Illinois cop busted for assault at Michigan's Adventure

My first reaction - do you really want to rough up and otherwise assault the person who is harnesseing you and attaching you to a Skycoaster? Something that is being done behind your back, and that requires concentration and care by the operator. "Yeah, that sucker punch he landed on my jaw in the harness shelter rattled me so bad, I must have forgot to make sure the caribeaner gate was locked"

Drunkeness can cause some strange stuff to happen. I'm sure he'll be so proud of his actions when he sobers up and reads the story in the news.

"...hit him in the forehead with a closed fist."

Would someone please explain what an 'open fist' is. I'm thinking that an open fist isn't a fist at all.

I've never understood that expression either. Is there another kind?

Alcohol is a hell of a drug :)

Kudos to the ride team for refusing them to ride. A long time ago, 2 drunk people died in one day at Kings Island... or something like that - while on rides.

It was a Skycoaster. No reason to get punched. Harness them up, raise them about 10 feet in the air and leave them there until the cops arrive.

^+2

kpjb said:
It was a Skycoaster. No reason to get punched. Harness them up, raise them about 10 feet in the air and leave them there until the cops arrive.

10 feet? I say at least 30 feet, that way for sure they can't get out of it. I used to work at a little rinky dink Amusement park called Enchanted Forest, that was where the now defunct Splash Down Dunes is. I was a sweeper for a bit and one day I was in a really nasty mood because here I was 14 and hated sweeping..lol. Anyway, I was walking under the Skyliner arial tram when it hit me. Liquid. I looked up and there were these other 2 kids in one of the cars laughing. So I went to the turn around and waited oh about 10 minutes. I had a ride op at the end along with a deputy. the kids got to the turn around and we turned the ride off with them about 25 feet in the air between towers. They hung there til the park closed 5 hours later, with a ride closed sign at the main entrance. Of course we made sure all the other nice customers were off the ride. Made my day!

As a former Skycoaster operator, turning away the drunks was always an unpleasant experience, because they always turned it into one. We had a girl on our crew who was maybe 5 foot 2 nearly get assaulted by some hulking moron who wouldn't take no for an answer. I never have figured out why, out of all the rides out there, it seems more people get liquored up before doing a Skycoaster than anything else.

kpjb said:
It was a Skycoaster. No reason to get punched. Harness them up, raise them about 10 feet in the air and leave them there until the cops arrive.

It's been done. The crew who worked at my site the year before me did it. Just left them to dangle there till security showed up. Although I believe in that case the dude punched someone after getting on the platform.

CP Chris said:

it seems more people get liquored up before doing a Skycoaster than anything else.

I've never done a SkyCoaster - type attraction. Getting liquored up..which I rarely do, and never at an amusement park...might be the only way I would.

I never have figured out why, out of all the rides out there, it seems more people get liquored up before doing a Skycoaster than anything else.

Ever heard the phrase "dutch courage"?

The only time in my life that I've braved American beer was right after doing the 300ft skycoaster in Florida. I'm so glad that we have real beer in this country...

Zing!

+1 for pointing out the crappy liquid that passes for beer in this country. :)

I guess I have the benefit of the inside knowledge of working on a Skycoaster, but they are so redundant and stupid proof it's ridiculous. There's far less that can go wrong on them than virtually any other ride out there.

-1 for thinking all American beer is Bud Light.

I'll +1 the crap outta your -1 on that.

Yes, you need to back away from the big brand beers, and venture into the microbrew and craft beers. Plenty of good stuff to be had. Or of course, you can order an import. Noticing the .ie in your URL - Guiness is almost becoming a common beer over here, finding a bar that knows how to pour it correctly is the bigger challenge.

Skycoaster has an excellent safety record, no doubt, but I still think this falls under "Do you really want to upset the guy that can make your life miserable?"

You: "I'll just let you "hang out" here until the cops arrive"

Them: "Uh, we didn't think this one through."

I guess I have the benefit of the inside knowledge of working on a Skycoaster, but they are so redundant and stupid proof it's ridiculous. There's far less that can go wrong on them than virtually any other ride out there.

Just because a ride is safe doesn't mean that it's not scary as hell though, especially for a first time rider. I'd resisted Skycoasters for years, then decided if I was only ever going to do one it might as well be the Kissimmee one. I've since done quite a few more. They still unnerve me, but I love the sensation of swinging back and forth...

^Make sure you try a 'skyscraper' ride. Like the one at Cedar Point. Now that really turned me into a quivering, shaking nervous white knuckled wreck! Loved every minute of it though !

http://www.funcoast.com/stories/attractions/cedar-point/skyscraper-...edar-point

^ Does that Skyscraper still have the straps on it? Myrtle Beach retrofitted theirs with the hard harness system this year and it ruined the ride, much less creepy and they added 40 pounds on the bottom of each car (makes it much harder to stay upright or feel airtime because the car always flips).

Some still have the harnesses.