Is "X" unsafe?
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Nothing... NOTHING... can prepare you for... the Fourth Dimension!
As far as your leg getting on the other side of the hump I would imagine your legs being rather skinny. If a person with "thicker" legs rode then that wouldn't really be a problem since the hump is pretty big
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"ok everyone go ahead and pull down on your shoulder restraint so you feel nice and stuck!"
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"Launching in 1,2,3..2..1"
-Wicked Twister Ride Op.
Ok, let us clear something up, my legs are not skinny, and the upper body restraints could not hold you in alone, I am willing to bet I could have gotten out of the restraints if I were to try while on the ride - or at least fallen through enough that the force of the ride would break my back. Keep in mind that holding on is not an option (for die hard riders) so slipping out would be easy. I could, however see my head getting stuck on the way out, draging me by my head (fun, fun). Anyway thanks for the replies, at least I know I am not the only one with this problem.
The issue is that, like jammie has said, the shoulder restraints are so high up that your lower body has a lot of room to move. Essentially what is happen is that my back is bending, raising my lower body up, so my pelvis lifts up and forward, bringing my legs up high enough that one can pass over the center post on the seat.
Despite this, though, I can't imagine that I would be able to be pulled free from the restraints, or even dragged along by it. Sure, I get some great airtime, but nothing near what it would take to actually pull me out of the seat or drag me by my head. When I ride Goliath with the lap bar a bit up, I eventually settle back down into the seat, and I see the same thing on X. Sure, my legs lift up pretty high, but it's not like the entirety of my body lifts and moves out over that center seat post. I might be most uncomfortable, but I never feel like I have *any* chance of getting injured.
Rideman - It's still a problem if the rider's legs did fall out. They could hit a support or hurt their legs somehow. I doubt that would ever happen, but it would be quite scary if it did.
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LeWiS
There is a huge gap between 'sliding your legs over the hump', and freeing yourself from a train lumbering along at 45-70 mph. This so called rider should submit the exact day and time he rode, and write a polite letter to SFMM Operations and copy Guest Services. Standard procedure is that they will find an employee of his exact dimensions, and they will lock him to the train while the park is closed, and tell him to 'work his way out' in the allotted time that the train takes to complete its course.
Risk Management and Ride Maintenence will decide if there is a viable concern. Period.
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"Every Man Has Got to Know His Limitations"
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Intelligence is a God given gift: Know how to use it.
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"Launching in 1,2,3..2..1"
-Wicked Twister Ride Op.
I believe that I could work my way out on the platform or at least put myself in a bad (deadly) position to ride the ride at full speed. I still say that a simple strap between the legs will solve the problem and will not affect the ride quality at all. As for the letter suggestion- I am working on a letter to send after Christmas.
I am banking that if this guy was put in by me, and his shoulders were touching the harness firmly, he is not sliding anywhere. Those restraints are also designed for the Arrowbatic, and that coaster is a hell of a lot more aggressive than a 4-D.
The Steelers win the AFC North. I'm Off!
AJ, it *was*...lol. Oh, and that team your Steelers *destroyed*, was my poor Bucs....who'd have guessed that Brad Johnson was THAT important....and he's a 'NOLE, for cryin' out loud....ROFL. Looks like another long off-season for us Bucs fans. You sure are making the Arrowbatic sound like a tasty treat, maybe Stan C. can get one to market....:)
I see what you mean now...sorry about that!
If you carry most of your height above the waist then the restraints will touch your shoulders at a higher point meaning more of your lower body is exposed...
A belt would help prevent that but honestly they prolly wont do anything about it until something happens or enough people complain. Sad to say...
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"ok everyone go ahead and pull down on your shoulder restraint so you feel nice and stuck!"
jammie said:
Ok, let us clear something up, my legs are not skinny, and the upper body restraints could not hold you in alone, I am willing to bet I could have gotten out of the restraints if I were to try while on the ride - or at least fallen through enough that the force of the ride would break my back.
Well I'm willing to bet that if i wanted to i could jump the air gates, get past the employees and through myself under a moving train coming into the station, what's your point? The ride would not be built unsafe. If you dont like the way it feels, dont ride it. All these horror stories of X and 4D coasters. Honestly people give it a rest, severe injuries, deaths, etc, etc, etc are all a bunch of crap. X's arm didnt break off, you didnt fall off, you could not have jumped off the ride while doing the forward twisting flip, blah blah blah. Oh, and if you wouldnt hold on because you were "die hard" and you thought you were going to fall out, i'd call that stupidity more than ride error.
I'm 6' (even) about 180lbs (that's a few extra pounds at me height - definetly not skinny) and my left leg crossed over the seat-hump to the right side as well, but I did not feel in any danger. I believe it was the twisting flip that did it - right after the raven turn. I went through the last 30 seconds(?) of the ride after that twisting flip with both my legs together, and I don't think I could of gotten out if I tried. That harness held me in really well.
In my opinion (from experience): Just becuase a leg crosses over the hump, does not put you in any danger on X.
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-Bret Pritchett
AIM: DrFrreezz
If at first you don't succeed... skydiving isn't for you
*** This post was edited by Dr. Freeze on 12/26/2002. ***
I had the same thing happen to me on X, the second time I rode it. I am 6'4", 180lbs. It was unsettling, but not the scariest thing that's ever happened to me on a coaster. That would be the first time I rode Boomerang at Knotts, right after it opened in the summer of 1990. On the way through the last inversion (backward through boomerang) the whole harness ratcheted up about 3 notches, and I was able to get out(after the train stopped) without opening it any more. The ride operators flipped out, and closed the ride for about 15 mins. When I saw it running again, there was the dreaded yellow tape over that seat. I did manage to go on it again that day(I was 13 at the time, still invincible) in another seat.
Just to be clear, I was grabbing the restraints when they opened, since it was the first time I had seen a Boomerang(almost hard to believe) so I was a fairly nervous, especially about hitting my head on the restraints and falling into the restraints and hitting my shoulders(back then I was more than a foot shorter than I am now). So I was pushing up on the restraints to keep me on the seat as well. And in the rides defense, I've gone that and other boomerangs countless times, as we all have, with no problems.
To be truthful, this may not have been as scary as when the Edge(Intamin first-gen freefall)broke down while we were waiting to drop(I think, maybe we hadn't moved ALL the way forward yet). Going down the stairs wasn't bad, but getting out of the vehicle one-by-one after already looking down was terrifying, especially since they insisted on pulling us out to the side rather than us leaping out, but with all the creaking and clanking we understood. The ride was a whole lot scarier after that! The weird thing is, there has been a tragedy on the Intamin Giant Drop which replaced the old model at PGA, and a Giant Drop which was previously mentioned in this thread. Ugh, I'm scaring myself too much...
-djansi
If you think your restraints opening on Bommerang is scary (not that I wouldn't be scared if it happened to me), there are enthusiasts who swear their restraints opened up midride on X (except for the seatbelt holding them together). That would be freaky, you would actually fly out because of all the negative Gs. You could easily go through bommerang with loose restraints, due to all the centrifugal forces holding you in. Enterprises are totally restraint free.
MPD47 Said:
Well I'm willing to bet that if i wanted to i could jump the air gates, get past the employees and through myself under a moving train coming into the station, what's your point? The ride would not be built unsafe. If you dont like the way it feels, dont ride it.
This is clearly not what is being discussed here, We are talking about falling out of a moving ride. My discription of myself getting out of the ride in the station was only an example of what could - I said could- happen. I loved the ride and the way it feels, but I don't want to see another injury that could delay the next big coaster or redesign the rides so we have to wear helmets and kneepads to ride it because someone overlooked a simple safety belt or because someone just screams (Give it a rest).
Anyways I thought I would keep the restraints loose on X for more airtime. That theory really doesn't apply to X, though because of it's unique design. If you pull down on the restraints and get them real snug you shouldnt have that problem and it doesn't diminish the ride experience one bit. This coming from a guy who puts his fist on his lap or stomach when the ride ops are checking the lapbars or OTSR's.
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Coasters and Chronic
What a Combo!
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