Do ride accidents put you off riding?

[LiveForTheLaunch]

Do I stop driving because there have been car accidents? Do I stop flying because of plane crashes? Do I stop swimming because of drowning accidents? No. Same goes for coasters. Nearly anything can make you die, no point living in a bubble.

 

[Hyde]

The risk of accident while riding a roller coaster is inherently, by orders of magnitude, less than risk of accident when walking, driving, ride public transit, etc.

It is quite literally the safest thing you will do in your life.

 

[Rankle07]

I would probably have one of those split second thoughts about 'Is this ride safe?'. But it would only be a split second thing .

 

[CoastinBear]

As I mentioned on the Smiler thread, I have ridden The Big One many times since the first crash back in 1994, but I look over my shoulder every time I climb the lift hill to double-check that the other train made it back to the station OK - then I can relax and enjoy the ride.

I rode the Space Invader after that lad fell out.

I ride the Grand National, yet I remember that grizzly newspaper article about the youth who got pushed onto the coupling between the cars and went round a full circuit with his mates hanging onto him from the back bench of the car in front. That was in the days before the platform gates, and happened during the Illuminations when the platform was packed.

I still rode Nemesis this one day, despite there being a hold up in the queue - turns out a guy had had a heart attack and died on the ride.

I rode Raging Bull at Six Flags Great America not long after that girl choked to death on her bubblegum during the ride.

I've been on the Runaway Mine Train at Alton Towers since the decoupling accident.

I've been on the Rapids at Thorpe Park after someone fell out and lost their ear.

I rode Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril at Disneyland Paris after (oh yes - shhhhh! No-one knows about that one...).

I've been on Treetop Twister at Lightwater Valley since the accident in which one person was killed when two cars collided.

I've ridden the Ultimate at LWV after the trains collided (one train failed to make it up the lift hill into the station after the other train had left the second lift hill). I was even riding The Ultimate when a bearing came loose, leaving the car behind flopping from side to side - I waited until they fixed it and I was back on the next ride.

But you know what? I probably will never ride The Smiler. I didn't feel the urge to go to Alton Towers to ride it before the accident, and I certainly don't feel the urge to ride it now. But then that's a whole other story about me and Alton Towers ;-)

 

[CoastinBear]

Talking of unsafe, or at least the feeling of been unsafe. Shockwave seemed to have very dodgy restraints. Obviously I'm still alive so I didn't fall out but something seems very dodgy about them, of course Id get back on it no problem though!

Ah! Shockwave! Had a very freaky experience on that ride. As the train went though the "rifle-barrel spiral" (as they called the zero-g roll), the OTSR didn't open, but the lock that holds the actual seat/OTSR in the correct vertical position unlocked and it suddenly ratcheted all the way up, leaving me with my feet dangling above the floor for the rest of the ride.

Still got straight back in line, though. I did tell the ride ops, but they didn't seem overly worried...

 

[SaiyanHajime]

Holy **** that Grand National accident...

I can 100% see how that happened with a packed station, no batching staff and guests being the morons they are. I'm not saying it was the kid's fault, could have been pushed by other guests.

People don't stop and think "there is clearly no room for me, I will wait here" at the top of a queue but instead fill up every inch of space on the platform. At Chessie's Vampire I've seen guests queue in the sections that don't lead to gates, then climb under when the realise their non-gate hasn't opened. I've seen the entire row ahead spill through and steal my seat, more than once. Batching staff are so important from both an efficiency and h&s perspective, keeping platforms uncrowded and guests clearly in safe areas with no risk of pushing or falling, but all too often guests are left to themselves.

 

[SouthCoaster47]

No, coasters are supposed to feel dangerous and that's the fun of it. But most are safe or have a reason for the accident which the park will learn from and the coaster will be safer next time so we shouldn't be put off.

 

[SouthCoaster47]

No, coasters are supposed to feel dangerous and that's the fun of it. But most are safe or have a reason for the accident which the park will learn from and the coaster will be safer next time so we shouldn't be put off.

 

[spacebum]

Depending on the day the weather and how I feel. Sometimes I may think on it abit mainly with ones I have yet to ride. I guess it comes down to if I can be botherd to ride or not. If it was an act of human stupidety that caused the accident. ie some one jumping into the live areas hanging out of the cars. Then it wouldnt bother me. If it was a design flaw or opperational error then maybe I would think. I dont really know untill I get upto the ride.