How are height restrictions determined?

[SaiyanHajime]

I always used to assume that the manufacturers determined height restrictions. But if that's the case, why do rides of the same type vary in some cases?

When I went to Cedar Point, I noticed their enterprise has a ridiculous height restriction of 54" (1.4ish) when they can be as low as .9m (36"ish). That is a huge difference.

Another example is Chessington's Maurer Wild Mouse, which is 1.4m despite others of the same kind in the same country being only 1.2m.

Is it simply that manufacturers set a minimum and some parks choose to raise that for whatever reason?

 

[Snoo]

Yes.

I've found some parks have different restrictions for the exact same type of ride. Like most things, it comes down to personal preference for parks. CP, obsessed with safety, tend to be a bit stricter.

I tend to think of it like seatbelts on rides that can run fine without them (Arrow Loopers, buzz bar woodies).

 

[spicy]

I believe it's a case of both. The manufacturer will give a recommended height limit and then it's up to the park to increase the height limit to limit their target audience.

One of the best examples is Thorpe putting Saw at 1.4m when most other Eurofighters are 1.2m.

In the case of Rattlesnake I heard that a child was once injured on the coaster which ended up on them increasing the height limit, it used to be 1.2m. H&S have always been on top of CWoA it seems.

 

[tomahawk]

My assumption is that the manufacturer gives a guideline, but then it's up to the park/country on what it is if it is higher than what is suggested.

 

[SaiyanHajime]

In the case of Rattlesnake I heard that a child was once injured on the coaster which ended up on them increasing the height limit, it used to be 1.2m. H&S have always been on top of CWoA it seems.

I assumed it was changed to 1.4 post the accident on X at Thorpe... But then I pulled out old maps, and it's always been 1.4m! The plot thickens!

 

[nealbie]

I want to know the flipside of it.

At 1.95m I am (literally) the standard top-end of most rides. It's also pretty common to have my height queried by ride ops but, strangely, my confident response that I know I'm not over the max height limit is usually all it needs to end the conversation.

What I want to know is, who and what determines the max height level? Because I don't feel like I'm ever close to hitting anything, never actually make contact with stuff I shouldn't (except maybe the trees around Vampire, but even midgets and small children claim to be hitting the trees on that thing) and despite being on the large side of things in terms of width and fatness I've also never struggled to get into any restraint that isn't on a kiddy ride (hence why anyone complaining about no room sitting on Colossus is a douche. I'm tall and fat with massive long legs and feet yet have nothing close to an issue with them).

So why is it (generally) 1.95m?

 

[CanobieFan]

CP, obsessed with safety, tend to be a bit stricter.

I find that kinda funny because during the 2000-2001 off season, Cedar Point dropped the height restriction on Millennium Force down to 48 inches.

 

[tomahawk]

^^I know for Deja Vu when they were at the various Six Flags parks, the limit was due to the lowered floor in the station.

 

[Snoo]

CP, obsessed with safety, tend to be a bit stricter.

I find that kinda funny because during the 2000-2001 off season, Cedar Point dropped the height restriction on Millennium Force down to 48 inches.

And? Their seat belts are also tighter then a virgin.

It was meant as a broad statement.. in case you also missed the thousands of reviews of annoyed enthusiasts saying the weather policy is borderline insane.

 

[Mike]

The most retarded height restrictions in a park must surely go to Rye Playland's Crazy Mouse with a maximum height of 6 foot. It's the only "adult" coaster I haven't been allowed to ride, yet other people (Ben and/or Jake) managed to get on despite being taller than me. :/

My assumption is that the manufacturer gives a guideline, but then it's up to the park/country on what it is if it is higher than what is suggested.

This.

 

[CanobieFan]

CP, obsessed with safety, tend to be a bit stricter.

I find that kinda funny because during the 2000-2001 off season, Cedar Point dropped the height restriction on Millennium Force down to 48 inches.

And? Their seat belts are also tighter then a virgin.

It was meant as a broad statement.. in case you also missed the thousands of reviews of annoyed enthusiasts saying the weather policy is borderline insane.

Indeed, I find their over-the-topness kinda insane myself. That's why I was pointing out I was amused they lowered MF while they added seat belts to a Ferris Wheel.

 

[SaiyanHajime]

I think it's fairly obvious that the min height limits are exaggerated far beyond what is actually perfectly safe... Whether manufacturer or park determined. It would make sense, as this would massively minimise the potential for anyone who is too short to ride. If staff are used to eyeing and checking heights at a set level, individuals slightly below that will occasionally get through, because staff are human and floors are uneven. But the chance of someone significantly lower, and nearer to the actual restriction getting through is incredibly low the more exaggerated the restriction is.

So, extending that logic, Neal, the max height is the same. The actual safe boundary is probably more like 7ft, and even then it would be dependant on things like stretching your limbs out. On a suspended coaster, for someone with unusually long limbs, there's probably a risk touching either the train above you or scenery below you. But with most confined rides, If you're THAT tall (7ft), you're going to struggle to get in and the restraint down anyway in most examples. Depends where ones height is too, be that torso or legs.

As for Cedar Point... Did the H&S all spew out of the incident on Magnum? Or were they like this before?

 

[CanobieFan]

CP really only got crazy in the mid 2000's
Even after Millennium Force opened.... A good number of their coasters didn't even have stations gates. You just stood on the platform behind a painted line and the trains came in and left with you there. I think outside of MF and the B&M's, and maybe Mean Streak? had gates... But for sure rides like Iron Dragon, Corkscrew, Gemini, and Mine Train didn't have them. You also didn't have belts clipped to the OTSR's on Corkscrew of Iron Dragon yet.

And back to the height restrictions. The only ride in SeaWorld Orlando's kiddie area with one for riders WITH an adult is the coaster, all the flats you can have anyone ride, as long as they have an adult with them if their under the posted minimum. (mini-cups, rockin' tug, samba tower)

 

[SaiyanHajime]

And back to the height restrictions. The only ride in SeaWorld Orlando's kiddie area with one for riders WITH an adult is the coaster, all the flats you can have anyone ride, as long as they have an adult with them if their under the posted minimum. (mini-cups, rockin' tug, samba tower)

That's insane... So theoretically, a newborn can come on the rockin' tug with an adult? I bet people do bring their babies on it, too.

 

[gavin]

The most retarded height restrictions in a park must surely go to Rye Playland's Crazy Mouse with a maximum height of 6 foot. It's the only "adult" coaster I haven't been allowed to ride, yet other people (Ben and/or Jake) managed to get on despite being taller than me. :/

Yep, I couldn't get on either. Well, I actually did get on, but then they decided I was too tall and removed me from the ride after I'd already sat down in it. Twats.

Didn't want to ride it anyway. So there!

 

[Martyn B]

And back to the height restrictions. The only ride in SeaWorld Orlando's kiddie area with one for riders WITH an adult is the coaster, all the flats you can have anyone ride, as long as they have an adult with them if their under the posted minimum. (mini-cups, rockin' tug, samba tower)

That's insane... So theoretically, a newborn can come on the rockin' tug with an adult? I bet people do bring their babies on it, too.

The Roller Coaster at GYPB has a height restriction of "no babies in arms"!

 

[CanobieFan]

The most retarded height restrictions in a park must surely go to Rye Playland's Crazy Mouse with a maximum height of 6 foot. It's the only "adult" coaster I haven't been allowed to ride, yet other people (Ben and/or Jake) managed to get on despite being taller than me. :/

Yep, I couldn't get on either. Well, I actually did get on, but then they decided I was too tall and removed me from the ride after I'd already sat down in it. Twats.

That's a newer rule for Rye, I'm 6.2 and I've been on their mouse, a bunch (also their bumper cars that also have the 6 foot rule)

 

[Martyn B]

It does worry me when I see these maximum height restrictions, but as of yet, I haven't actually been questioned (I'm 193cm).

 

[gavin]

^^This was back in 2010. They had a 6' height restriction, which I'm pretty much dead on. Mike would have been a couple of years before I did I think, and didn't manage to get on either. Ben's about my height and got on fine when he went, so **** knows.

Like I said, I was literally sitting in the car before they bothered. It must depend on who's working the ride on any specific day and how much of a **** they're feeling like being.

It's a dump of a park anyway, with **** all going for it. That just added insult to injury.

The only other ride I've seen ride ops properly enforce a maximum height restriction in on Atlantis Adventure. I can see why they'd have it on that ride though; it's a very near miss going from the main drop back into the building.

 

[Ben]

The Rye Mouse spite is my ultimate fave <3

That was STUPID. We had to slouch and distract the op by talking about watches to get on. I'm not even tall cause six foot is nothing really. So dumb.

Surprised noone has said Disney, they're always the lowest end of height restrictions.

And how like, B&Ms here the standard is 1.4m in America it's 54 inches (or is it 52?), which is less. And then I swear the European ones are usually the same as America? Metric spite.