Ride tolerance decreasing with age.. Anyone else?

As an enthusiast, it’s a bit heartbreaking.. I’m suddenly finding that I can’t handle certain rides like I used to.

I can marathon certain rides (non-loopers, but also RMC’s) with no issues. Unfortunately, I have had a few experiences with ride-induced nausea that ruins the rest of my day at the park.

Specifically, Batman: The Ride (SFoG) makes me nauseous nowadays, and I had a trip on a vekoma boomerang that did the same at Carowinds early in the day.

I’m 34. I’m wondering if anyone else has experienced anything similar? I’m also wondering if I should avoid certain rides at Kings Island next week, other than invertigo? Banshee has a lot of inversions, but looks like maybe not as nauseating since it’s spread out? I did fine at CGA on Flight Deck and Patriot, for reference..

Anyways, thanks for listening, maybe I’ll try Dramamine but just wondering if there is anyone else to chat with about this/solutions or trip plan ideas around nauseating rides.

Cheers!

A

Yeah Ditto. I'm 35 and I experience pretty much the same thing.

Now a days I walk into a park and there are things I'll only ride once and things I'll skip. Endurance wise four hours riding in an amusement park is plenty these days. Vs. I used to ride everything as many times as possible. Still have a little more tolerance for things like you said... RMC and non inverting seems to be more palatable.

I went to Nagashima Spaland today. Acrobat (Manta clone) once was unpleasant. I was suprised my tolerance is at the point where a B&M flyer is a bummer. Dared to ride a 4D for the first time, after previously skipping it at Sfot and Sfft. Never again.

Took five laps on Hakugei. That was good, but more then enough there too. Left the park by 1 pm.

-K

The older I get, the more I appreciate the simpler, older rides that don’t need to restrain every possible part of your body for safe keeping.

Sometimes, even a simple ride in a carousel can make me a little dizzy, but I have no problem with rides like Magnum, Gemini, Blue Streak, and RMC rides, even though the RMC restraints are pretty much a blanket that pins your entire lower body to the train.

I am 33 and definitely don’t have the tolerance for certain rides. B&M flyers aren’t fun anymore, and their regular loopers and inverts, while still fun, can often also be one and dones for me. Gatekeeper at CP honestly is one of the worst offenders. That said - Banshee at KI somehow has escaped that issue and I happily enjoyed multiple rides during Coasterstock ERT without issue. But if my beloved Raptor or a ride like Afterburn or the old Dragons at IOA are walkons, I still can only do it once and need a breather. Put me on Maverick or an RMC though and I’m just fine. I also don’t do well on impulse coasters anymore with the quick change in direction.

As for non inverting rides, I can still sit on Fury or Milennium Force or a non wheel seat on Magnum for hours and be perfectly content.

I'm 38 and I've noticed throughout my 30's that I've gadually lost my ability and desire to ride spinning rides and coasters. When I was a younger man I used to marathon things like Vekoma SLC's or their Boomerangs. Now when I visit parks I might not even ride B&M inverts due to the nausea and headache I develop afterwards. I took the family to Busch Gardens earlier this month and didn't even ride Montu or Kumba. It was the first time I'd ever skipped them but they just didn't seem worth feeling uncomfortable after for. Regular coasters like Goliath at SFOG are fine. I've also noticed that the flyers are particularly bad, my wife and I call it the "pretzel-loop of death" on Manta whenever we discuss riding it with the kids and why we don't ride it more than once. Don't worry you're not alone!

As you get older your inner ear starts to change, it's not as resilient as it was when you were in your teens and twenties. Different people age at different rates. I know people that are my age (65) and older that don't have a problem. I started having problems several years ago, not being able to marathon rides like I used to. In a nutshell, it's called life.

I'm 152 years old :-p and I don't have a problem with rides. I do prioritize which rides I'll ride in what order. For example. at Cedar Point Blue Streak comes first. then Mine Ride, then Gemini and so on.

Joshua Bott said:

When I was a younger man I used to marathon things like Vekoma SLC's or their Boomerangs. Now when I visit parks I might not even ride B&M inverts due to the nausea and headache I develop afterwards. I took the family to Busch Gardens earlier this month and didn't even ride Montu or Kumba.

It's so funny you say both of those things - I used to marathon Serial Thriller and Mind Eraser at Worlds of Adventure (in addition to flats like Rotor and Yukon Yahoo - their Matterhorn) and love every minute of it. Now I live an hour away from Busch Tampa and rarely get there because as amazing as Montu and Kumba are, I can usually only ride them once and get queasy.

43 here.

I've had this issue for a while and it does appear to be getting worse with age. While I simply can't do repetitive back and forth at all, on coasters I have problems with poorly engineered maneuvers. In examples given above, Gatekeeper has some hills and dips near the end that are taken slower than they should. Ditto Nitro, Apollo, and some others. Instead of smooth floating hills, it's more of a start, stop, start, etc, which has the same effect on me as a swinging ship.

The most nauseous I ever got was on the mouse coaster at SFNE. The 2 bunny hops at the end were so terrible that I went from fine to "I'm gonna sit these next few out" instantly.

This topic made me compile a rough list in my head of what I would consider "good to great" rides that unfortunately don't agree with me as much with age, and it's literally a list of B&M looping coasters, Wicked Twister and boomerangs.

Gatekeeper, Raptor, Rougarou, Manta, Kraken, Hulk, Alpengeist, Montu, Kumba, Batman: The Ride, Vortex (Carowinds), Great Bear, Hydra, Dragons (RIP), Wicked Twister, Vekoma Boomerangs & Inverted Boomerangs. I do really like most of these coasters and will still ride them, but they are often a one and done for me on a park visit.

And then to play devils advocate, I made a list of coasters that "should" make me queasy given the above list, but for some reason do not. And for the life of me, I can't figure out the difference in some of the B&M loopers from the first list to this list:

Steel Vengeance, Twisted Timbers, Maverick, Dominator, Banshee, Vortex (KI), Anaconda, Viper (Magic Mountain), X2, Scream, Tatsu, Talon, Cheetah Hunt, Possessed (which leads me to wonder if it's the backward spike on WT), Copperhead, Fahrenheit.

I'm 62 and still ride everything. However, rides like Raptor at Cedar Point do affect me differently now. I think that many elements on one ride have a different affect on me now.

Something like Millenium Force at CP, or the Raging Bull/Diamondback type rides are as fun as ever and I could ride them all day. The RMC's and GCI's like Goliath, Mystic Timbers, and Steel Vengeance don't bother me either. I can still handle the rougher woodies as well. I did five back to back rides on Voyage about three weeks ago and still love it.

Hopefully I can keep riding until I'm 80!

In October I’ll be hitting 65. (Sigh) (Still alive to tell the story, right...?) I’m proud to say I have yet to meet a coaster that did me in. My marathon days of 25 rides may be over (I’m looking at you, Raptor 1994), but I can still put in a full day of coaster riding.

What I’m sad to admit is my increasing aversion to flats. I absolutely love them and my lifetime memories include many days at carnivals and fairs where I probably flipped over a thousand times or more on each of those days. I still love them, but the more aggressive inverting flats give me pause. Or an occasion to ride the bench for a while if I’ve been brave enough to try the latest sensation. Spinning and rocking flats are still ok (except that Rotor ride at Canobie, now that I think about it) but it hurts me to think I’ve probably already taken my last ride on a Zipper. Dammit.

I’m also proud to say I’ve never had a park puke. There was a close call a few years ago at the Florida State Fair after an evening of dozens of carnival rides, but thankfully my record still stands.

Coasters? No problem as long as I fit on them. Flat rides? That’s another story. Tight spinning does me in. The Tilt-a-Whirl at SeaBreeze took me out yesterday. But it was spinning so fast we couldn’t lift our heads from the back of the cart!

I'm 58, wife is 61. We will still ride anything in the park multiple times. So far, so good. Gatekeeper at Coastermania was an 8 lap marathon. (Does that qualify as a marathon?)

What we do find now is that while we will still ride, the desire to run from ride to ride and get as many laps in as possible during the trip is no longer a priority. We find that the older we get the more we take it slow and enjoy the pace of the day. There is always the next trip.

One thing I have found as I've aged is truly the importance of staying hydrated when at the park. Even if it isn't a terribly hot day, I pretty much grab a quick drink at each drinking fountain as I go by, and that tends to help quite a bit on a lot of rides. There are still rides I don't ride as much (Arrow Loopers, for example), and some wooden rides are not as much fun any more, but I can still take most everything else if I stay hydrated.

Kstr 737 said:

Took five laps on Hakugei.

Gesundheit!

Yeah, 36 about to be 37 (in a row) and can't power ride things like I used to. I don't feel old, but I'll be damned my body is beginning to tell me that. It's not just nausea, but even the amount of bounce I feel on wood coasters. I will purposefully find row 2 of a 3 car train and sit there and that seems to mitigate the bouncing factor. As far as nausea goes? I just have to ride less.

And I pretty much avoid spinning flat rides altogether.

I'm 60 and can still ride everthing. There are a few that I just don't think are worth the time unless I need the count like any boomerang, Arrow looper, or spinning mouse; I just don't find them fun anymore. But I could ride any RMC all day long...

I tell people that I'm A Hundred Years Old® these days, but I'm really only 45.

I've found that if I stay hydrated and pace myself, I can tolerate almost any kind of ride. I can't ride over and over like I used to though. I need some time between rides.

I did have some nausea at Kings Dominion last October, so this year before visiting Kings Island a few months ago, I tried to get used to motion by sitting on a playground swing for about a half-hour, about once a week for a few months prior to my visit. It may have helped.

My wife, now 39, struggled with spinning rides after the birth of our daughter 7 years ago. Before, she was able to ride everything without a problem. Last year, she decided to try the product in the link below, and she can now ride everything again. She has used both the stick and the oil. The stick is handy and is easy to carry around. Just apply a stripe to one wrist, rub your wrists together, and you're all set.

https://barefut.com/?s=Tumease&post_type=product&dgwt_wcas=1

I hope this can help you.

CoastingInMN

BrettV, I grew up right next door to Geauga Lake in Solon, and the rotor was my favorite ride in the park along with the Texas Twister, Witches Wheel, and Music Express. I would literally run back into the line as soon as I got off of them. Now I wouldn't dare go on them even if I see a model of them. I just can't take the spinning. I did ride Cobra's Curse last month and I actually enjoyed it although since it was my first time perhaps I was more determined to like it because of that fact, but who knows. I guess what this thread shows is that we're all a bunch of aging men who still really like coasters and rides but our bodies are mostly slowly being betrayed by time.