Safety Checks

[MikeC]

Is it normal for the staff not to check your restraints?

[Benin]

Not in the UK... It's actually a poor show of staff procedures as technically they should be checked...Germany on the other hand, will dispatch rides without checking bars

[Fred]

Oakwood doesn't, and tbh they don't really need checking unless its obvious they're not pulled down - just due to the design of those restraints.However, thorpe tells them they should be checked, and therefore they should. Oh wells!

[Mer]

No, this is not normal; the procedure at Thorpe on rides with restraints is that they are checked.I suggest to anyone who has this happens to, to go to Guest Services and let them know. If possible, while at said ride, look at the staff member's name badge to get their name.It may sound harsh and moany, but it's really not. If staff are not doing their job properly the rides department needs to know about this and deal with it accordingly. It happened at Alton Towers last time I was there and we informed GS.

[pluk]

I've always wondered why they bother on a lot of rides. No one physically checks them on vortex - if the light is right they know it is locked properly. Saw also has these lights, so why bother. It just slows down dispatch.

[Mark9]

I've always wondered why they both on a lot of rides. No one physically checks them on vortex - if the light is right they know it is locked properly. Saw also has these lights, so why bother. It just slows down dispatch.

They do check on Vortex now for some reason. Our H&S is so ridiculous sometimes..

[Benin]

I've always wondered why they both on a lot of rides. No one physically checks them on vortex - if the light is right they know it is locked properly. Saw also has these lights, so why bother. It just slows down dispatch.

Fair point, but very dismissive of the fact that the rules set out to the ride hosts always centre around guest safety and ensuring that all bars have been checked...But Mark says it well, they check bars on Tomb and Buccaneer these days for crying out loud...

[Dan]

No, this is not normal; the procedure at Thorpe on rides with restraints is that they are checked.I suggest to anyone who has this happens to, to go to Guest Services and let them know. If possible, while at said ride, look at the staff member's name badge to get their name.It may sound harsh and moany, but it's really not. If staff are not doing their job properly the rides department needs to know about this and deal with it accordingly. It happened at Alton Towers last time I was there and we informed GS.

Ive reported before I think it's should be done always because it only takes seconds and save a life one day , Is it ok for restraints to have movement in them ? Colosuss front row and nemmie front are very slack :/

[Benin]

Is it ok for restraints to have movement in them ? Colosuss front row and nemmie front are very slack :/

Yes is the short answer... Usually as they're between two notches or some similar feature... As long as they're pulled down to the sufficient requirement, there is absolutely nothing to fear...

[Tom]

Of course on Saw, a bar can be 'secure' even if there is a large gap between say a 12 year old who is just 1.4m and the point where it considers itself locked. And that really is an issue.

[Mr.man]

I always make sure the ride op checks my restraints, I wont ride if they dont?

[Mark9]

I always make sure the ride op checks my restraints, I wont ride if they dont?

If they didn't on Colossus how exactly do you not ride if you're stuck in the seat?

[Mr.man]

I just shout out and ask, but if its locked and the ride starts usually I'll be fine, I just like to check.

[Luke_A]

I have had many goes on Saw where my restraint has not been checked, and In my opinion it doesn't really matter, just look at some of the German parks I.e Europa Park... Even if your restraint is not completely down as far as you like, say on Oblivion or Nemesis(B&M's in general), then you will find when going through an inversion or at the bottom of the drop on Oblivion, your restraint will click down a notch or two more, or on inferno at the bottom of the loop my restraint quite often will click down more... I'm quite skinny myself so on Saw and Eurofighters with OTSR's, the bar is usually all the way down until it wont go any more. If Saw did have OTSR's with seatbelts like Rage does at Adventure Island, then I think it would be suitable for them to be checked. I agree with what Peter said on the subject anyway. And if you think it is bad not having your bar checked at a Theme Park, have you ever been to a funfair , most of the time the ride is still moving as you get on it and you just pull your bar down and go, when all bars are down the OP obviously knows and off you go, but sometimes they might do a quick run round and tap your bar, but that's about it. Well that's the case with what usually happens at most of my local fairs who are run by most of the same people anyway.

Edited June 7, 2011 by IanNem
Added a ton of punctuation and paragraphs

[trippy]

I would have fit if they didnt check my restraints, for some reason I feel a lot safer once they have been checked

Edited June 7, 2011 by IanNem
removed swearing

[pluk]

Is it ok for restraints to have movement in them ? Colosuss front row and nemmie front are very slack :/

I understand and am comfortable with them moving up and down a bit, as there is going to be a bit of give between the notches. What really unnerves me are samurai restraints. I remember when it opened at Chessington they were absolutely solid with no movement at all, now they move side to side a couple of inches when locked. This does not seem right to me, what is that is giving way for them to move like that? There should be no side to side moving part in there!I'm not a worrier in general, but it really makes me feel uneasy on there, I can't relax and enjoy it.

[Paul123]

Germany on the other hand, will dispatch rides without checking bars

Germany Parks will even dispatch rides even if you get in the car and the bar isnt even down I went on the mine train at Europa Park once, and got in my seat, and had barely sat down when the guy just dispatched the train, I then very quickly grabbed the bar and pulled it down, lol. This is why I love Germany, they dont do none of this health and safety crap when they physiclly have the check the lapbar to see if its locked, they just do a quick glance down the train to see if all restraints/bars are locked/clicked in and away they go, capacity on the rides then goes way up, and queues move lightning quick(anyone whos been to Europa Park will know how quick their lines move)

[Mark9]

Germany Parks will even dispatch rides even if you get in the car and the bar isnt even down I went on the mine train at Europa Park once, and got in my seat, and had barely sat down when the guy just dispatched the train, I then very quickly grabbed the bar and pulled it down, lol. This is why I love Germany, they dont do none of this health and safety crap when they physiclly have the check the lapbar to see if its locked, they just do a quick glance down the train to see if all restraints/bars are locked/clicked in and away they go, capacity on the rides then goes way up, and queues move lightning quick(anyone whos been to Europa Park will know how quick their lines move)

I will point out that a ride that does get checked in Germany is Expedition Ge Force. And that has one of the strictest restraint checking systems I've seen.Europa is just class though, even when they check on Blue Fire, it's done in the most efficient and fastest way.

[Kevin]

Anyone who says 'restraints never fail' or 'they don't need to be checked' have absolutely NO clue what they are talking about.Restraints on the majority DO need to be checked. There is a lot of mitigating factors in the probability of restraints failing, however it's a lot more of a common occurrence that expected. Why do staff need to check if restraints are locked?I'll give you a lot of why..1. Some restraints do not need to be locked for the car/train to be dispatched. What Rides does this include? Runaway Train (at both CWoA and AT), Rattlesnake, Tomb Blaster, Duel, Vampire and some others.2. The operator can do what they want in manual mode. There is nearly always a Manual Mode key or switch that lets you simply send the car when you want.3. Restraint systems CAN and WILL fail. Nothing is ever totally safe. Welds can shear on anything, and if you knew how many minor and major cracks there are that are highlighted in parts of Rides in their winter strip down. How many bolts are there in Stealth? 100? 1000? 100,000? Probably about half a million bolts. They can shear, however can they realistically be checked every morning? 22,000 parts make up each Vampire train, from nuts, washers and piston valves, all the way up to full seats. 4. Restraints can send at any locked points. And any of you clueless morons that think a 'three click challenge' is anything cool, or fun, then stop. I'm not being a killjoy, however that's a lot less clicks that the restraint is able to pop. Keep your bloody seatbelt on.5. A lot more rides than you think will not have a safety system in place to check if the restraints are actually locked. If they weren't locked, and not checked then the seat could well have popped and then you've got either extremely bad PR for your rides, or a death on your hands.There are some rides however that do not need to be checked. Top Spins have a 5 system safety lock. Top restraint locking pin and pneumatic lock, bottom restraint locking pin and pneumatic locking pin and a sensor to detect movement between the two, and if that sensor is breached, the ride e-stops itself.I don't care if I sound Health and Safety mad but restraints need to be checked for GENUINE reasons, including the reasons above. I have seem some bad things happen to people through injury, etc etc. This post is really aimed at debunking the myth that 'Checking restraints doesn't need to be done' - it's utter bollocks.

[NickD]

1. Some restraints do not need to be locked for the car/train to be dispatched. What Rides does this include? Runaway Train (at both CWoA and AT), Rattlesnake, Tomb Blaster, Duel, Vampire and some others.

However, the rides Control Panel will indicate if any restraints are not locked. (I believe, don't ridicule me if wrong as I never operated)

2. The operator can do what they want in manual mode. There is nearly always a Manual Mode key or switch that lets you simply send the car when you want.

This is why a very high percentage of rides are not allowed to be run in any sort of Manual mode within Merlin parks. Exceptions would be smaller rides where restraint failure would have little or no impact on the safety of the rider.

3. Restraint systems CAN and WILL fail. Nothing is ever totally safe. Welds can shear on anything, and if you knew how many minor and major cracks there are that are highlighted in parts of Rides in their winter strip down. How many bolts are there in Stealth? 100? 1000? 100,000? Probably about half a million bolts. They can shear, however can they realistically be checked every morning? 22,000 parts make up each Vampire train, from nuts, washers and piston valves, all the way up to full seats.

It is possible , but checking the restraints make very little difference. If the restraint fails , it could happen at any point during the ride. If the restraint fails in the station, again, the control panel would alert the operator. With everything , there is a chance that it might not alert, if both the restraint fails AND the control panel fails... But then, pigs may also learn to fly one day.

4. Restraints can send at any locked points. And any of you clueless morons that think a 'three click challenge' is anything cool, or fun, then stop. I'm not being a killjoy, however that's a lot less clicks that the restraint is able to pop. Keep your bloody seatbelt on.

Well, yeah , anybody who doesn't keep their seatbelt on is an idiot. I used to do the 3 click challenge, not the smartest thing aggree there.

5. A lot more rides than you think will not have a safety system in place to check if the restraints are actually locked. If they weren't locked, and not checked then the seat could well have popped and then you've got either extremely bad PR for your rides, or a death on your hands.There are some rides however that do not need to be checked. Top Spins have a 5 system safety lock. Top restraint locking pin and pneumatic lock, bottom restraint locking pin and pneumatic locking pin and a sensor to detect movement between the two, and if that sensor is breached, the ride e-stops itself.I don't care if I sound Health and Safety mad but restraints need to be checked for GENUINE reasons, including the reasons above. I have seem some bad things happen to people through injury, etc etc. This post is really aimed at debunking the myth that 'Checking restraints doesn't need to be done' - it's utter bollocks.

Let me some this up ... the chance of me having a car crash on my way home tonight is highly more likely than anybody in the world dying in a restraint failure this year. But when I get in the car, I won't double check my seat belt (even though it is so much less safe than any restraint failure happening.It can happen.. but it rarely does. I cannot think of a situation that a restraint failed , but had it of been checked before dispatch, it would have saved someones life. If you can find an incident, please link me as I may very well be in-informed. I don't really follow the theme park industry anymore.

[Kevin]

Just remember you and Fury Jack ;)Very fair shout on wether it could happen mid ride though.

[Fred]

1) Duel can't go around with the bars open - they automatically close on leaving station, if they dont, it stops the ride (there's a thing under the car which lifts up as the bars go down).. if its forced open mid ride, it causes a block fault and ride shuts down. Vampire can only be sent with an override, which I presume they don't use anymore for obvious reasons.2) The overwhelming majority of rides and places don't allow operators to run manually, they need a key which engineering generally have.4) Yes, however each ride will have a determined area which is safe to run. B&M say that the harnesses such as found on inferno and oblivion don't need to be physically touching the body, unless they're in the larger seat. Seatbelts do nothing on these rides - as every single ratchet in the restraint would have to completely wear away and fail for it to fully open, and a seatbelt would not hold a riders weight. Physically checking does show whether a ratchet has worn away, and guests would point out if it does not go down far enough for their comfort.Most of the time the checks are to make the riders feel safe, and also ensure that no-one has put themselves in danger or are sitting on top of their restraint (hello silly guests). However, there is no harm in having a nice physical check.. (god I hate the way thorpe just tap on a seatbelt).OH to add: I hate the unnecessary checks on rides such as huss pirate ships. They're not there to restrain you, they're there as a grab bar. It's run with hydrolics which won't open anyway. So why they need checking is beyond me...

[RobD]

4. Restraints can send at any locked points. And any of you clueless morons that think a 'three click challenge' is anything cool, or fun, then stop. I'm not being a killjoy, however that's a lot less clicks that the restraint is able to pop. Keep your bloody seatbelt on.

...except when the restraint system is designed to work in such a manner. Again, sighting B&M, the restraints are safe provided the seatbelt fastens. Think of larger riders, they may get only one or two clicks out of the restraint; does not render the ride more unsafe for them; your argument is null and void. If the bar locks and the seat belt fastens it is safe. The bigger risk here is from ejection; ie: skinnier rides falling out. It's kind of a touchy subject, obviously rides staff will try and pin you, and you are not usually allowed much freedom in the restraints; thus the reason people have tricks to gain, in most cases, what is simply a comfy ride. Just don't take it to extremes, and your'll be fine. Common sense should always apply. For example, the three click challenge for a skinny person with very narrow shoulders poses a much greater risk than for a larger person with very broad shoulders (it may well be the case the normal position of a harness for a large person is simply 3 clicks). It's all about common sense and if you don't feel confident enough in knowing your own dimensions or the limitations of safety systems, play it safe and endure being pinned.And just to hit on another topic, a seat belt WILL hold you in should a ratchet fail. We should firstly remember rides work on a principle of greater positive G exposure than negative; the maximum negative G exposure to a rider is certainly no more than -2g. Therefore, the highest force that could be exerted across the seatbelt in order to bring it into full tension is twice the riders body weight, 2g. This is a safety critical back up, thus the reason Intamin belts are rated to 12kN of force before failure. This means, for your typical rider of mass 80Kg, a force of 15g would have to be exerted across the seatbelt for it to fail. Now you tell me, if that isn't going to hold you in during a restraint failure, I don't know what will. To further prove my point, the most recent design of Irvin parachutes used for military aviation use the same locking belt as Intamin restraints. If these are not going to hold a rider pinned in their seat by G forces, then every time a para-troop goes for a jump, they should expect to die...