Coney Island's Cyclone gets off to rough start for the season

It's a good thing the national media was there to cover this horrific scene of people having to walk down some stairs. Someone call the national guard! No way I'm riding this death machine now. :)

I think the story is not so much that it broke down, but that it broke down on its first ride while everyone was watching. Whoops.

There's a ridiculous amount of cheesy pomp and circumstance surrounding the Cyclone opening every year. Up to and including Ms Cyclone making an appearance. The first train resulting in a walkdown is amazing situational irony.

Then there's this.

60% her fault (according to the article) and she STILL gets a mil and a half...

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/brooklyn/woman-1-5m-coney-islan...-1.2166708

I've only had the chance to ride it twice but it seemed in need of a good reworking. The drops were rough from all the sagging in the wood. My second lap also resulted in my seat cushion detaching during air time. Thankfully I managed to catch it before it flew out entirely.

How exactly is this 60% determined? one of the silliest things I've heard in a long time.

I'm on the fence about this one. It always sucks to hear about a park or ride manufacterer getting sued, and often, I feel the lawsuits are frivolous. I'm not sure 1.5 million isn't frivolous, but it isn't a ton of money for someone who is probably somewhat or totally disabled now, has children, and has decreased earning potential and quality of life. However, wasn't the Cyclone well-known for being a BRUTAL coaster for many years? Don't most people kinda know that? And although her previous injury was just a neck sprain, wouldn't there be some thought as to whether or not she should ride with a history of a possibly weakened neck? Especially with all the signage?

However, the fact that the ride herniated two discs in her neck and actually caused a broken neck in another case to me just sounds like basically the ride truly was unsafe at the time of her injuries...

Just a bummer of a situation all around I guess.