Running when park opens?

[MagnumFan]

Friday, I had the pleasure of taking my brother, father, and an in-law for their first trip to KI. We got there at 9:10AM to be the first ones in line for early entry at 9:30. I was excited to see their reaction to Diamondback, which is a top-3 ride on my list.

After getting through the main gate, we had to wait about 60 seconds at the Platinum/Gold archway entrance because it was not yet 9:30. We were the first ones there. Now I have done this many, many times before and enjoy being the first person to the Diamondback station so I can claim front seat, followed by 8-12 subsequent rides without ever leaving the station thanks to KI's generous re-ride policy.

The security guard (white shirt) said "You guys sure got here fast" and I said "Yeah, this is our exercise for the day, I like being the first one back to DB". Well, as 9:30 approached he gave us the "On your mark, get set, GO!" after which, we started running. Normally I would sprint but my family is not in the greatest of shape so it was nothing more than a mild jog. I was still far out ahead of the rest of the crowd.

In the past, on occasion, I have had a sweep, or food service worker, or security person yell "WALK!" to all the runners, which usually gets ignored, or followed only for a brief moment. But this day, a security guard (brown shirt, with gun) yelled walk, and we all ignored him, most of us because we could not hear over the BLARING music they were playing.

As I rounded the turn towards the DB station near Planet Snoopy, another security guard flags me down (but not the rest of the crowd), and says the police guy wanted me stopped and to have a seat, he would be over in a minute.

Minutes pass and I'm beyond angry, but still manage to be cool and polite to the security guy who stopped me. He sent me down to where the other police guy was (in front of International Fudge), and this jerk gets totally up in my face, telling me he "has the power to throw me out of the park and destroy my season pass". I calmly explained that I was encouraged to run by another security officer, and he says "I don't care what he told you. YOU WILL FOLLOW THE RULES AND REGULATIONS!!"

By now my blood is boiling but he's still yelling at me. This old man was on a serious power trip. I was about ready to pistol whip him with his own firearm. Not really, but you know what I mean. He tells me that "It's YOUR (my) problem that there are two sets of rules" and "when he tells me to do something I darn well better do it".

Finally he lets me go and I arrive at DB about 15 minutes later, at which point my family had already ridden the ride 3 times and I completely missed their reaction.

I went to the customer relations office later to complain about that cop. It's not that he was doing his job, it's that he was rude, disrespectful, and had shown me (IMO) discrimination and was harrassing me. I never mouthed off to him, I was polite the entire time, and yet he had to yell in my face.

I've been running for rides all my life. It happens at CP, KI, and all the other Cedar Fair parks I've been to. I'm so angry at this tool of a cop and would love to get him in trouble, but that's probably not happening. So from now on I guess I'll walk, but it sure doesn't seem fair for me to have to walk while everyone else runs?

My beef here is that:

1. Policies like no running are not only randomly enforced, but sometimes the opposite is encouraged. I've been encouraged to run many times by CF employees at various parks.

2. The way I was treated by the cop was inappropriate, offensive, and after hearing my side of the story, really didn't give a rip and proceeded to tell me how much power over me he has.

Has anyone else had a similar experience, or is it just me??

[ki lover]

Hahaha i would of told him " your a cop at Kings Island, was being a mall cop too hard for ya" haha I know it's wrong but come on, there's no reason to be a jerk about it. I don't care who it is, if someone is a jerk, i'll be a jerk right back. You handled yourself very well.

[KI-ORIG-EMP]

You were told to not run and you ignored it. You were told again, and you ignored it. The officer was doing his duty and it was your inactions that provoked it. By your own words you were at fault. No ride is so important that you must sprint to the ride and cause injury to you or someone else. Walk and do not run.

[HTCO]

Private Property is private property.

HTCO, not being mean just being honest.

[CedarPointer]

It's probably in your best interest to walk when you're told to walk... oh, and I've seen security make someone WALK all the way back down to the end of Coney Mall then WALK to Firehawk during that morning rush (when NOBODY says not to run, right?).

[Rutgerskev]

2nd thread this month about someone ignoring orders and then complaining about their 'treatment'.

[BavarianBeatle]

The officer's behavior was inappropriate. He should have calmly and professionally, without yelling, escorted you from the park and revoked your pass.

[CedarPointer]

I'm sure that if you tripped and cracked your head open on the pavement, you'd be the first one to sue KI for not telling you to walk instead of running.

[KI-ORIG-EMP]

I bet he also complains when the life guard yells at him and orders him to stop running at the pool. The person to complain to is the person's image being reflected back at you when you look into a mirror.

[KIfan1980]

Normally you sprint ... I wonder maybe if you were stopped because you've repeatedly ignored them and they recognize you.

[Snowman]

One of the security guards at the Gold pass entrance once told us to "Swim!". We chose not to, but others did, and after they were fished out of the fountain they were escorted from the park while that security guard and the rest of us watched and cracked up. (not a true story)

On your mark, get set, GO! doesn't mean "run like a psycho racehorse". As mentioned before, KI is private property, if a security guard tells you to do something (if you value your pass/ticket) it's best to just do it, or don't be surprised by the consequences. That thing on their hip is a radio, and if you ignore one of them, I'll bet five others know about you in a few minutes.

[CrutchMud]

Two word's my friend. Explosive diarrhea. Your bladder was a nuclear warhead ready to drop at any moment and your britches were about to be hit harder than Hiroshima. Needless to say, it was a crisis you felt best avoided. On a serious note though I'd walk next time if I were you. No need to run. DB isn't going anywhere. Take a stroll through the park and get your money's worth.

[CoastersNSich]

MagnumFan,

Usually, I don't run through the park for the sake of being first on a ride that's been there for almost three seasons.

Yeah, I'd say it's you.

If I were the officer, I would have said, "Hand me over the pass. Don't come back for about a year. Do some thinking. You'll thank me later."

[MagnumFan]

On your mark, get set, GO! doesn't mean "run like a psycho racehorse". As mentioned before, KI is private property, if a security guard tells you to do something (if you value your pass/ticket) it's best to just do it, or don't be surprised by the consequences. That thing on their hip is a radio, and if you ignore one of them, I'll bet five others know about you in a few minutes.

Nobody was running like a "psycho racehorse". It was a mild jog. Did you not read the OP?

[CoastersNSich]

If I were you, I'd take the advice of the armed police officer that set you aside, and just walk next time. NOBODY is MAKING you run!

[MagnumFan]

Yeah, I'll definitely walk in the future. I'm not an idiot. In fact the next day (Sunday) I walked, while plenty of other people ran. It's unfair, but I'm not risking it again.

[MarketingExpress]

But this day, a security guard (brown shirt, with gun) yelled walk, and we all ignored him, most of us because we could not hear over the BLARING music they were playing.

Here's where I started forming my opinion over your incident...

You admit to hearing the officer yell "walk" and admit to ignoring the order. While his behavior was unprofessional, you did start the chain of events that morning by not adhering to their orders.

Hahaha i would of told him " your a cop at Kings Island, was being a mall cop too hard for ya" haha I know it's wrong but come on, there's no reason to be a jerk about it. I don't care who it is, if someone is a jerk, i'll be a jerk right back. You handled yourself very well.

Obviously you know nothing about park security...this was a park police officer not an 18 year old security guard. They are required to attend a police academy and attain OPOTA certification just like any other police officer in the state of Ohio and most are from local police departments.

Try calling one of them a mall cop to their face and see where that gets you.

[kingsrattler]

There are two levels of security at Kings Island, "Park Security" and "Park Police". The first being a security officer, the second being a police officer. Might want to think about that next time you want to think about disobeying their orders.

[Browntggrr]

This is TOO funny.

Someone was busted for not following the rules, and is crying about it!

Discrimination? Yes, he was discriminating against running. Harrassing? I'm sure that is your perception, but you admitted to running, thus, you brought attention to yourself. Yes, you were singled out of everyone else running. Do you expect officers to equal the number of guests?

First- I have a hard time believeing he was in your face. You are the one calling him old and on a power trip.

"B"- Are you ****ed about how you were treated, or, the fact you were caught?

I'm with "B".

[MagnumFan]

First- I have a hard time believeing he was in your face. You are the one calling him old and on a power trip.

"B"- Are you ****ed about how you were treated, or, the fact you were caught?

I'm with "B".

I'm glad you are amused.

I'm amazed that some people just can't understand the point I was trying to make. Perhaps that's my fault for not doing a better job explaining.

Yes, I was jogging. Yes, I was caught. Yes, I was wrong to do it, and wrong not to listen. That's not the issue in question. I am not perfect. Sometimes I make mistakes. Anyone who states otherwise is probably a hypocrite.

My issue is that I was following the suggestion of a security officer, which directly conflicted with the instructions of yet another security officer. Doesn't anybody see the problem with that?

When I went to customer relations later and spoke to one of the heads of security, he APOLOGIZED for the way I was treated, and also APOLOGIZED for the conflicting instructions. He acknowledged that this is a problem within the security department and he would be sure to address it at their next department meeting. By his own admission, there should not be conflicting policies. And by his own admission, I should not have been talked to in the manner I was by this officer. He was in my face. I don't care whether or not you believe me.

I'm in my mid 30's, so it's not like I'm some kid trying to cause trouble. Throughout the ordeal and afterwards, I remained calm and polite. When the head of security asked if there was anything he could do for me, I specifically stated I wanted NOTHING for the trouble. Just to bring the issue up so that the rules are uniform across the park, so things like this don't happen to others. To accept any form of remuneration would have, in my mind, invalidated my argument and sent the wrong message.

[Browntggrr]

^ When were you told to run?

[coaster_junky]

right after he unwrapped the last golden ticket, of course!

you might have been told by one security guard that running was okay, but after a second one tells you to stop, jogging or dead sprint, you should have listened to him. ignoring him was the equivalent of one college professor allowing you to use a cell phone and then your next one gets mad at you for having one out. would you look at your second professor, and while continuing to play on your phone say, "the last one said it was okay?"

[pcc]

"Read, set, go!" Does not equal "RUN!"

Perhaps seeing that you are a grown adult, he may have been making a 'joke' of sorts. Sorta like "...and they're off!". Here's where I have a problem. You are in your thirties. So am I. I know better than to run in the park. I am an adult. Unless I'm in a race, you won't see me running anywhere. There are too many 'what if's' that could occur, that I won't bother to list.

I will just be honest, when you first posted, I thought perhaps you were young. I was willing to look over it...but yeah. Running in any public place is generally frowned upon.

[Titan]

Although it's common since to walk in a crowded area, does the parks have any signs that say no running? That would help out a lot. But, what if you would have ran into a younger kid? You could have made them break an arm, or even give them a concussion. What if you fell and cracked your head open? You wouldn't drive 60 miles per hour on an icy road would you? So why run in a crowded area where you could cause injuries to yourself and others.

[Browntggrr]

right after he unwrapped the last golden ticket, of course!

Can we call the Security Guard "Slugworth" instead of "old power trip guy that should be pistol-whipped"?

[Cpt Crunch]

right after he unwrapped the last golden ticket, of course!

Oh...my...goodness...I wondered why the title was "Life Comes at you Fast". That scared me!

Good video find.

[MarketingExpress]

"Read, set, go!" Does not equal "RUN!"

Perhaps seeing that you are a grown adult, he may have been making a 'joke' of sorts. Sorta like "...and they're off!". Here's where I have a problem. You are in your thirties. So am I. I know better than to run in the park. I am an adult. Unless I'm in a race, you won't see me running anywhere. There are too many 'what if's' that could occur, that I won't bother to list.

I will just be honest, when you first posted, I thought perhaps you were young. I was willing to look over it...but yeah. Running in any public place is generally frowned upon.

Well said...

I also thought that the poster was younger. Being in your 30's, Magnumfan, I would expect that "you know better than that."

This may also explain the reaction received by the police officer. He probably figured a 30 some year old knew better than to run through the park, hence his reaction towards childish behavior.

[Bennett]

I have never understood the mentality of running when the park opens, though, I see it every time we go. I mean, you have a Gold Pass. You'll get plenty of rides before the huddled masses arrive at 10.

[Snowman]

Nobody was running like a "psycho racehorse". It was a mild jog. Did you not read the OP?

This is the first mention of a "mild jog". Did YOU not read the OP?

So lets analyze this again.... You heard from the 1st Officer "ready, set, go", (which from your OP can only mean run [sorry, mild jog], not things like: the park is now open, start eating, begin your tests, shoot the target with a water pistol, whack the moles, and so on) so you mildly jogged (not ran for goodness sakes) towards DB. The second Officer yelled at you to stop running because he clearly has no clue what a mild jog looks like.

I gotta say if I was a parent with small children in the park and I saw a guy in his 30's mildly jogging toward them, I'd be concerned for their safety, and I'd be glad to see an officer put a stop to these rampant mild jogs through the park.

[XGatorHead 8904]

Nobody was running like a "psycho racehorse". It was a mild jog. Did you not read the OP?

This is the first mention of a "mild jog". Did YOU not read the OP?

I completely hate that I'm doing this, because I don't agree with MagnumFan's actions at all and don't want to side with him in any way, but...

The security guard (white shirt) said "You guys sure got here fast" and I said "Yeah, this is our exercise for the day, I like being the first one back to DB". Well, as 9:30 approached he gave us the "On your mark, get set, GO!" after which, we started running. Normally I would sprint but my family is not in the greatest of shape so it was nothing more than a mild jog. I was still far out ahead of the rest of the crowd.

... he did say it in the OP.