Plus size riders, what can I ride?

[Fye Coasters]

On 7/12/2018 at 1:43 PM, hploviedovie said:

So it's me again. I'm at the park atm. I was able to get on everything so far but Flight of Fear is a long wait. If I fit Banshee and Diamondback and The Racer and beast... Are the chances are I'll fit on FOF? 

im a little on the bigger side, dont sit in the 1st row of any car, they have a hump on the floor and its hard to squeeze in if you have big legs/thighs. sit in any even # and you should be gtg!! hope this helps!  

[OhioMom]

Hello! My family and I are going to KI next week and I’m a nervous wreck! I’ve been tons of times and rode rides fine, some with a tight fit on the chest area tho, but none the less I rode it. Now...My problem is, I’ve had a baby last year and have gained some weight. I’m 5’4” and 245 (blah) I carry my weight relatively even do not look any bigger than I was a year or so ago..Do you think I will have problems? Looking for people around my stature size for some comfort... I don’t want to wait in line and have to do a “walk of shame”..

[jcgoble3]

Welcome to KIC! Your question is a very common one. Others with experience in such matters will show up soon to offer advice (at 5'6" and 160 pounds, I can't help you), but in the meantime, try using the search function in the upper right. Many threads have been posted on this subject in recent months and years, and most of the advice in those threads remains valid. The most recent thread on the subject is here, to get you started.

(Paging @IndyGuy4KI and @malem: might I suggest collecting all of the advice from this and other similar threads into an FAQ and pinning it to the top of the forum?)

[harmony29]

The one ride that seems to be the worst to fit on is Drop Tower. Im not your stature and even if their was someone, it's really all about how you fit in it, some may pull their stomach up for the coasters, where Drop Tower you really can't. I have to say that ride ops really try to get people on, I've seen it numerous times, much more than Cedar Point. If you try at the test seats that should help you some, so that your not waiting in long lines and then cannot ride. I know for sure Banshee has a row for bigger people, I want to say row 4, but I'm not positive, I'm sure others will chime in. Hope you have a lot of fun!

[King Ding Dong]

Although I have never done it I have heard it mention on here several times that if there is not a test seat out front, you may go up the exit and request to test the restraints on the actual train before waiting in line.   

I suspect you will be fine on all but Drop Tower and Flight of Fear, but there may be some close calls.   You may not be extremely comfortable after the op staples you in however, but rides are over fast.  (99.9% of the time.)

[IndyGuy4KI]

Let's start with this one as our master plus size thread. This has been pinned.

[whengodsaysgo]

I'm a plus-sized gal myself and I'd be happy to dish if you have specific questions.  I'm proud to say I now can fit every restraint in the park at this point in the season, and I'm still trucking along on my weight loss journey.  Each ride fits differently, and it's all based on how you carry your weight.  Let me know if you have any questions about specific rides. :)

[TripleB]

6'3, 400 bones. 

In college (many, many years ago) the only ride I had a problem with was Drop Tower. A hilarious story involving my buddies being jerks and the poor ride operator darn near breaking my ribs trying to lock me in. I had to do the walk of shame! 

2 years ago I only attempted Woodstock Express and Adventure Express (I was with my then 6 and 8 year old) and fit in but was pretty snug. Good luck! 

[JCJTheHurricane]

As a ride operator myself, I can assure you that we would rather somebody come through the exit or use a test seat out front rather than have to do the walk after having to wait in line. Most rides would be able to do this for you so don't hesitate to come up through the exit and ask. There are a few rides that I know of that are definitely more accommodating such as The Bat back near Banshee as well as Shake Rattle and Roll. For Banshee there are two rows designed to be more accommodating. Rows 4 and 5, both of which have seats with a red seatbelt.

Also on some rides that have a bar that comes down near your belly such as WindSeeker, if you can pull your stomach up it should definitely help. Everybody is different and a lot of things can play a role in whether or not somebody will be able to ride. As some others said Flight of Fear and Drop Tower definitely do not have a lot of room after the restraint is pulled down. If you want, I have seen people test the seats at Flight of Fear at their exit before, so this is an option as well.

Anyways though, I hope that some of this advice can help! 

[TheRickster]

Flight of Fears exit/unload is also not in the station and no one would be seeing anything other than the two unload workers. If anyone is nervous about feeling awkward while checking it.

[IndyGuy4KI]

1 hour ago, TheRickster said:

Flight of Fears exit/unload is also not in the station and no one would be seeing anything other than the two unload workers. If anyone is nervous about feeling awkward while checking it.

That is a really good point. Never thought about that.

[Honorarius]

I have to say the ride ops were extremely helpful with helping my travel companion fit into rides on our trip to Kings Island this week... Sitting in the seat you don't have anywhere near the leverage someone does standing in front of the seat... At both CP and NJFTP she had to take the walk on a ride she'd ridden earlier in the day just because we got a ride op that was in complete don't give a **** mode...

[TheRickster]

2 hours ago, Honorarius said:

I have to say the ride ops were extremely helpful with helping my travel companion fit into rides on our trip to Kings Island this week... Sitting in the seat you don't have anywhere near the leverage someone does standing in front of the seat... At both CP and NJFTP she had to take the walk on a ride she'd ridden earlier in the day just because we got a ride op that was in complete don't give a **** mode...

Not give a crap mode would typically be just shoving you in as hard as they can... CP has stricter rules on helping guests fit, and they are in place to help consistency. If you really have to try with all your might, what happens when someone else can't get that same bar to go down enough later? Also as you spend the day at a park people will begin to swell for water retention. Not to mention certain seats/bars will have smaller wiggle room. (Everything has a machine tolerance so depending on if it's the high or low end it can make a sizable difference in fitting.) Also just how you're sitting in the ride and things can make a big difference.

My first trip to KK last year, I needed a decent amount of help getting on LR, but over the next 2-3 rides I figured out exactly the right way I had to sit to get my bar down.

But yeah, if the OP can't the bar down and did what they could they still tried. A lot of times people who get stapled that hard turn around and complain as well because of how much the ride hurt. 

I've been on both sides of this coin, as someone working in operations and someone being a bigger rider. It's not a good situation for anyone, but the path of least resistance is for the guest to ride. It's a lot easier to just stand on the bar than it is to deal with the guest upset/yelling at the exit, then having that same guest complain to a manager, then having that manager lecture the crew about "trying too hard" since the person shouldn't have rode in the first place earlier.

[TheRickster]

3 hours ago, IndyGuy4KI said:

That is a really good point. Never thought about that.

Yup, and FOF is one of the harder rides to fit on. Probably the hardest next to Drop Zone tbh. Everyone is different but that's always been my experience and the majority of the experience with others I've heard about. 

No wiggling with FOF restraints, with Beast/Racer you can cross your ankles and tuck a leg under the seat to make more room for the bar.

[Honorarius]

7 hours ago, TheRickster said:

Not give a crap mode would typically be just shoving you in as hard as they can... CP has stricter rules on helping guests fit, and they are in place to help consistency. If you really have to try with all your might, what happens when someone else can't get that same bar to go down enough later? Also as you spend the day at a park people will begin to swell for water retention. Not to mention certain seats/bars will have smaller wiggle room. (Everything has a machine tolerance so depending on if it's the high or low end it can make a sizable difference in fitting.) Also just how you're sitting in the ride and things can make a big difference.

My first trip to KK last year, I needed a decent amount of help getting on LR, but over the next 2-3 rides I figured out exactly the right way I had to sit to get my bar down.

But yeah, if the OP can't the bar down and did what they could they still tried. A lot of times people who get stapled that hard turn around and complain as well because of how much the ride hurt. 

I've been on both sides of this coin, as someone working in operations and someone being a bigger rider. It's not a good situation for anyone, but the path of least resistance is for the guest to ride. It's a lot easier to just stand on the bar than it is to deal with the guest upset/yelling at the exit, then having that same guest complain to a manager, then having that manager lecture the crew about "trying too hard" since the person shouldn't have rode in the first place earlier.

I'm saying in the cases I mentioned at CP(GateKeeper) and NJFTP(Joker), the OP most certainly did not do 'what they could'... On GK, the operator tried to push down the restraint with the amount of force of a cat pushing a vase off a desk... With Joker, the operator didn't try at all she just shrugged... In this case, the rider has really short arms and below average upper body strength... In both instances we circled back later and different OPs were able to get the bar down easily... 

At KI, the operators were willing to help if necessary, and always asked before pushing on the restraint... 

[Cyanideprincess]

What rides would someone who's just under 300 and 5'5 probably be able to ride?

[pkifreak23]

On 8/10/2018 at 1:55 AM, JCJTheHurricane said:

As a ride operator myself, I can assure you that we would rather somebody come through the exit or use a test seat out front rather than have to do the walk after having to wait in line. Most rides would be able to do this for you so don't hesitate to come up through the exit and ask. There are a few rides that I know of that are definitely more accommodating such as The Bat back near Banshee as well as Shake Rattle and Roll. For Banshee there are two rows designed to be more accommodating. Rows 4 and 5, both of which have seats with a red seatbelt.

Also on some rides that have a bar that comes down near your belly such as WindSeeker, if you can pull your stomach up it should definitely help. Everybody is different and a lot of things can play a role in whether or not somebody will be able to ride. As some others said Flight of Fear and Drop Tower definitely do not have a lot of room after the restraint is pulled down. If you want, I have seen people test the seats at Flight of Fear at their exit before, so this is an option as well.

Anyways though, I hope that some of this advice can help! 

How much more accommodating are. Those seats. I'm 5'1 and 300 lbs and it's distributed evenly but I can squeeze on Invertigo, monster and scrambler. Ive always wondered if I could fit on any other rides but was too scared because I didn't want.to do the walk of Shame. Anyone think there are anything else I could possibly fit on?

[Cyanideprincess]

My friend and I will be going on Sunday, she is going to wait in line with us for everything and probably try to get on everything unless she is too scared. So hoping she can fit on a decent amount of things 

[IndyGuy4KI]

28 minutes ago, Cyanideprincess said:

My friend and I will be going on Sunday, she is going to wait in line with us for everything and probably try to get on everything unless she is too scared. So hoping she can fit on a decent amount of things 

I hope you guys have a good time!

[harmony29]

As others have said, it really depends on the individual body. My husband is 6'2" and 245, he has at times had trouble on Drop Tower and fof is tight due more to his height than weight. Banshee in row 4 is for bigger people and that would probably be the one I would try.

[Cyanideprincess]

1 hour ago, harmony29 said:

As others have said, it really depends on the individual body. My husband is 6'2" and 245, he has at times had trouble on Drop Tower and fof is tight due more to his height than weight. Banshee in row 4 is for bigger people and that would probably be the one I would try.

Do any other coasters at KI have bigger seats on certain rows?

[harmony29]

9 minutes ago, Cyanideprincess said:

Do any other coasters at KI have bigger seats on certain rows?

Hopefully someone else can chime in, I'm not really sure. I can say that KI ride ops really try everything &) get you in the seats, if you were going to Cedar Point, theirs are more restrictive. A lot honestly depends on how your weight is distributed. There will either be a test seat or if there isn't you can go up the exit and ask a ride ops to see if you can fit without having to wait in line and being turned away.

[whengodsaysgo]

Do any other coasters at KI have bigger seats on certain rows?

The only coaster with the longer restraints is Banshee rows 4 and 5. Also if you ask the ride op to pull up on the vest, you’ll have a much comfier ride.

I’d say sure bets for sure are Adventure Express and Bat. Backlot is also a decent bet.

Depending on how you carry your weight is what determines the fit. For example, I carry mine low, so restraints that attach between the legs can be uncomfortable.


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[Ellie]

My mother in law is 230, 5 foot or so. She carries her weight in her midsection, including her backside. Every ride is accessible for her, just snug to tight fit but no walks of shame. The Beast and The Racer appear to be very similar trains, so if you can ride one, the other should be fine. 

My father in law is close to 6 foot and weighs around 300. He carries his weight in his thighs and upper chest. He has had issues on Diamondback (thighs)and Drop Tower (chest). He’s had walks of shame frequently for Diamondback. 

[KIcoasterlover]

If you wouldn’t mind my asking .. how much did you weigh and still fit on everything ? I have a very large chest and I wear a size 18 pants and 2xl shirt .. I just don’t want to go and embarrass myself there .. really hoping to ride Flight of Fear with no issues 

 

I haven’t been to a park in a few years .. I’m not sure if I’m too big to ride some things or not . 5’4’’ about 285 and I carry it mostly in the chest, waist up basically .. I’m really hoping to get on Flight of Fear. Can anyone around the same size give me any advice ? Thank you  

[IndyGuy4KI]

@KIcoasterlover I moved your thread to the existing topic we have. I hope this thread is helpful for you. Welcome to KIC!

[KIcoasterlover]

Thank you!! 

[Cyanideprincess]

Forget to come back and update what she could ride. Our group hit every coaster with the exception of Flight of Fear(Was down when we went to ride Firehawk and when we came around late in the day it was an hour wait) she fit fine on Firehawk,  Vortex, and The Bat. She was unable to ride The Beast, The Racer, Mystic Timbers Diamondback or Banshee. The first three were because of the lap bar and the last two was because of the shape of the seats. She didn't want to ride The others so did not even attempt them. I have to say though that Drop Tower was tight,  i needed help wih my buckle, and I've never had an issue fitting on any coaster(5'8 200lbs)S till it was a super fun trip, although very very hot.  Were already planning to go again next year but are considering getting Platinum passes which we never have before.  

[Slim328]

I’m 6’4 and 225 FOF was very tight on me.. after locked it felt like couldn’t breath.. so I got off 

[Sam Mattingly]

Does anyone know how many clicks you have t0 get on Delirium to ride?  I fit fine in the test seat and they said I couldn't fit the ride though.  I got 3 or 4 clicks.