Theme Park Safety

I obviously didn't miss his trip report. Go back and find it; I made the same comments there. The question in this thread asked "What parks do YOU not feel safe at?" His answer was Big Chief, so I asked how it made him feel unsafe. The "GP" is completely irrelevant in this case.

-Nate
*** This post was edited by coasterdude318 11/8/2003 12:23:48 AM ***

As far as rides go, I generally feel safe on all of them, hey anything can happen on any ride on any given day. I also refuse to ride any fair rides ever.

As far as feeling unsafe due to clientel, you have to take a second guess anywhere there are medal detectors, but SFWOA is the only one I feel a bit sketchy at not that I feel unsafe but on some days its a like a trip to the inner city And I'm use to be around people like that, in college I had a summer job where I had a route in the hood.

But I have run into problems at all parks, at CLP I was sitting there eating some fries with my gf and my mommy, and this gutter trash sitting behind me kept hitting eachother and a few times I got hit in my lower back near my wallet, so finally I had enough and turned aroudn and said if I get touched one more time your all going to be kissing the curb, after that they shut up and kept their hands to themselves. Then I had two problems at CP this year, early in the summer I was walking by Johnny Rockets on the main midway and these people were palyin keep away with a basketball, luckily I was alert and braced myself or I would of been plowed to the ground, I said watch the damn ball man, then wit in a few seconds I had about 3 or 4 adults threatening my little white boy.....(a few more choice words) I said well hop back on the bus and get out of my face, finally my gf dragged me away. Then our last visit to CP closing weekend on friday, we were walking alone and out of nowwhere this kid runs up and runs into my gf, kinda like a muging, so I turned and told the adults he was with to keep their kids ona leash, well they shouted some reverse racist words, etc, but the thing is if he would of hit my instinct would have been a jab to the neck and I would be in a mess for hitting a 13 year old, if someone comes at your wallet area they get hit. I didn't have an incident at SFWOA this year but we only had one trip there and we were in by 11am and out by 1pm, so there really wan't time for anything good to happen. Also KW had no incidents but when I'm in Pitt I tend to be very passive and stay alert, those people are crazy, my buddy use to like downtown, and we always got into brawls everywhere, land of the drunken recknecks.

But as far as safety, I don't really feel safe anywhere ever, but I'm use to that so I don't really even think about it a parks.

Why must you want to argue so much Coasterdude? First with Great Escape and now you seem to have the same intentions.

Reason-1.The park admits they have no insurance.That means they don't insure their rides , and that if they have a failure , it's not the parks fault. You are riding at your own risk , and if there's a problem , it's your fault.

Reason-2. He probably has never been to a park other than Big Cheif's that didn't check their restraints. Heck , I've always had my restraints checked at even Roadside Carnivals. Parks do this to ensure your safety , and Big Cheif 's does not.That isn't all that reassuring.

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Who says that he thinks Bob needs to drop in and refresh us of his reasons.

I personally find checking restraints is more ensuring that it's in the proper position (which can be done visually) than checking it's function. More importanly I RESPECT others opinions on what feels safe or not.

When I check restraints they must complete two conditions. The restraints must be in a position to make the riders comfortable with the safety they provide. The restraints must also be in a position that I feel comfortable allowing the ride to be started.

thepinkmonkeysofdoom: I argue with people who I disagree with or who are flat-out wrong. I thought that's the point of forums.

Point 1: Do you honestly think any park could operate without insurance? That's both ridiculous and impossible. And illegal. Of course the park has insurance, and of course they're liable if you get hurt on one of their rides. It's just like every single park in the nation claiming they are not responsible for accidents and injuries incurred on their rides. That's really stopped anyone from collecting money in the case of accidents, hasn't it?

Point 2: There are plenty of parks out there that don't check lapbars. Adventureland in Iowa did visual checks on certain rides when I was there. Heck, even enthusiasts' wet dream Cedar Point doesn't check lapbars on Disaster Transport or OTSRs on Corkscrew. The operators at Big Chief sometimes do visual checks rather than manually checking them. That's fine with me, and certainly most people who visit don't seem to have a problem with it (again, if you're so worried about it, check it yourself).

Additionally, there are other policies in place at large, major parks that small parks often don't abide by (ie employee track crossings). Do you feel unsafe at a park that allows track crossings? Is that not also done to ensure a safe environment??

-Nate
*** This post was edited by coasterdude318 11/8/2003 4:49:55 PM ***

Great Adventure comes to mind, only because line jumping and smoking seems "normal". I have seen a lot of fights break out too. The security, from what I have seen in the past, seem apathetic unless it gets really down and dirty.

I have never really felt "unsafe" at Great Adventure or any park as far as the clientele.

As far as the rides I always feel unsafe on carni rides.

Who has the best security I have seen? Cedar Point without a doubt. Holiday World's security staff are also awesome.

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Gimme speed, height, airtime and plenty of LAUNCH!!!
*** This post was edited by coasterqueenTRN 11/8/2003 4:53:49 PM ***

That last comment doesn't mean much , and anyway I have seen track crossings at every "small park" I have been to.

The park posts signs that say , we have no insurance. Click Here , 11th picture down. They state it quite plainly.

Keep in mind that these are not my reasons , they are KTS's , and I'm currently just stating it for him. I, personally , would feel for my safety as well , but probably not care and go back anyway just for Cyclops(I am an airtime whore).

Edit; Crap , broken link.

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Still says that Bob needs to pop in and refresh us of his reasons.
*** This post was edited by thepinkdoomofmonkeys 11/8/2003 8:44:44 PM ***

Is That A Rent-A-Cop?

All theme parks take safety very seriously. Any park that makes safety "a second thought" will not remain open for long. I'm not here to bash parks.

I'm here to bash the carnivals. If there's one place where I feel uneasy, it's at all those travelling carnivals. Employees are less likely to spot problems in order to keep rides open longer - mostly because the carnival is only open for a few days at a stretch, and they want as many rides open as possible. (But do realize that if a sufficient problem arises, I have seen carni rides closed). I have felt uneasy about being on some carni rides, but it was not to the point where i refused to ride a ride.

Theme parks (in my opinion) have the best safety and maintenance records because they have dedicated mechanics to service all the rides. and typical park employees are more open to spotting problems or listening to a guest who spots a problem.

So in my opinion, the theme parks rate better than the carnivals.

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The best way to ride a coaser: is often.

I never said the park didn't have a "We have no insurance" sign. I live 45 minutes away and have been there countless times. What I said, though, it that the sign is AS MUCH BS as when a park claims they are not responsible for accidents. In other words, the park most definitley has insurance. It is illegal not to.

-Nate

Still , if the park has that kind of attitude and policies , it must make you feel less safe than at other parks , right?

I shall not post anymore about this because I'm arguing about a park I haven't even been to , and i'm now finding that pretty silly. So , if you want to debate with someone else , do so , but I don't really care.

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Who still thinks that Bob needs to drop in and refresh us of his opinions....

On the other hand, it is also illegal to operate without the fences that Big Chief's hasn't got...

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

never been to Big Chief's...dont wanna go now. knowing MY luck, i'd be the one that got injured on some ride...

ANYway, i never feel completely safe at SFGAm. the element that seems to creep in from Chicago more and more every year is enough to keep me away more often than not.

i actually felt unsafe at CP earlier this year, but the security guys that handcuffed that man and his GF made that feeling go away VERY quickly.

of course, i also dont feel completely safe at some of the major ballparks in the area either (not comiskey) so i guess its not just SFGAm that makes me afraid...

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mela en coiamin Legolas...
it aint the size of the arrow, its what you do with the bow

Go to Big Chief's.

They have lousy Go-Karts (great tracks, lousy karts), they have no fences, and some say they are sloppy about checking lap bars. But none of that means you can't be perfectly safe; you just have to be active about your own safety. And you wouldn't want a thing like that to interfere with experiencing Cyclops, which may well be the best first half of a coaster anywhere.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

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RideMan said: On the other hand, it is also illegal to operate without the fences that Big Chief's hasn't got...

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According to who? The city? The state? ASTM? I'm genuinely curious, especially because I can't think of a place in the park where fences (or lack thereof, as the case may be) is a problem. Granted, I don't ever really walk around the park and I never ride the go-karts, but I have been there many, many times and can't think of a problem area. I have seen the pictures on your site (which I think is great) but I don't believe the "problem area" shown in the second picture is even there anymore.

In any case, surely you (or anyone) can see the difference between operating with inadequate fencing and operating without insurance. There's no possible way any park could get away without insurance, while other safety measures are clearly less enforced at some parks and with some manufacturers (as seen on Dave's site).

-Nate (who wonders why it's only Cyclops' first half that's so great, since "the drop" is in the second half...but doesn't really care because Zeus is the far superior ride anyway)
*** This post was edited by coasterdude318 11/9/2003 4:49:01 PM ***

First, I'd like to say that no one's opinion is stupid. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and its not fair for someone to say that it is stupid when they voice it.

Second, No park is going to be completely safe. But some parks are more safe than others.

That's all i wanted to say.

Nate:
Wisconsin Administrative Code Comm 34.34(1):
"GENERAL. Amusement rides and attractions shall be fenced, barricaded or otherwise arranged in accordance with recognized safe practice so that frequenters are effectively prevented from entering hazardous areas."

"Recognized safe practice" is defined in terms of manufacturer's requirements, the insurer's requirements, standards given by the Department of Commerce, or recognized industry standards. The applicable indistry standard in this case would be ASTM, which says a fence is not less than 42" high, all openings will reject a 4" ball, and it will resist climbing.

Hmmm...I don't see an insurance requirement in here. Wisconsin's amusement ride code is extremely detailed, though. Oddly enough, Wisconsin is the one state I know for certain actually *forbids* seat belts on Go-Karts unless the karts have proper roll cages (as most don't).

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

So it sounds like legally Big Chief is required to fence, but not to insure it's patrons. Fences probably would also be considered a legal requirement under OSHA as well to protect employees. I'm sure the park is required to carry workman's comp. I believe that every state requires that. Not carrying insurance on your customers might be legal, but of course it is immensely stupid. Without insurance any injured party could sue the park and possibly the owners or managers as individuals. Any major judgement would be catastrophic.

I should mention that rather than looking up the Wisconsin code online, I was reading from a printed copy that I printed some years ago.

I could swear that I read in there someplace that there is an insurance requirement, as exists in most states. My guess is that the "no insurance" sign is really a "don't sue us" sign, and probably doesn't really mean much. But that's only a guess.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Has anyone been to a chain park and had a fear of a ride breaking or some attacking them? CF,SF,PM. Any of those chains.
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http://coastertrackrecord.tripod.com/

Yes.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.
"Rainbows aren't supposed to move like that"