Everest Experience to share as warning

[Mamato3Princes]

OP, I know that if I saw this happening to one of my sons, I would be upset, too. I think you kept it together better then I would have. I would have lost it . I'm glad your daughter got the chance to ride it eventually tho. And I'm glad that you didn't let it ruin your trip!

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

This makes no sense.

I totally agree!

AKK

 

[TJDisneymama]

OP, I know that if I saw this happening to one of my sons, I would be upset, too. I think you kept it together better then I would have. I would have lost it . I'm glad your daughter got the chance to ride it eventually tho. And I'm glad that you didn't let it ruin your trip!

I agree, i would have lost my mind on the CM if this had happened to my child. Whether the kid was whining or not, it's no excuse to escort her out -- without even saying a word to her!?!? I have a 9 year old (DS) - he would have been so confused and probably terrified that this stranger was pulling him out of the ride. I have my kids so hyper-vigilant about stranger-danger and potential kidnappers that maybe he would have kicked the CM in the nuts (was it a guy? not sure) and started screaming his head off that he was being kidnapped.

 

[Disney-Chick]

It does seem odd that he would guide her away with no words exchanged. Sounds kinda awkward to me. As others mentioned maybe all he did hear was not wanting to ride. As for guiding her to the exit, his job was to put others in the ride line, he can't leave his station. But with that said, he shouldn't just usher her away. Had you asked what was going on maybe he could have explained his thought process.

When im in line with DH, & DD she lets me know if she wants to ride the front or back. She is 15 now but even when we started going when she was 9. We even did single rider. I would always put her on first then I go. I would have done the same in your situation. Let the 2 kids go first then you and your other son. That way you know all is ok.

I don't believe you are lying but I think some of the story is missing that you don't know about. As you said, it was loud so maybe he said something that your DD missed?

As for touching her arm, I have done this to kids that were upset. You touch their arm to comfort. I wasn't their so I don't know.

I am not a person that usually freezes when something is going on. I actually react with always thinking the worst. So I would have probably said "what the hell is going on?" But I always speak first and think later. People respond differently to situations.

It's not up to me to judge you, but if you are posting on public forums you need to know that not all responses will be positive. And please don't take this the wrong way, but if you don't want to hear people's opinions (good or bad) don't post.

 

[momofbcs]

A request to ride in the front does not split up a group of 4 or even 10. The entire group goes to the front of the ride line and get loaded onto the same train. When a front seat opened up your party would have been directed to seats 1 and 2. If you were a party of 10 you would have been directed to seats 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Sometimes the wait can be fairly long. Sounds like the first problem here is that you didn't go to the front of train holding area with your children, keeping your group together, or you could have told your son no to sitting in the front.

Thats actually not the case when the first two people are already directed to a line and the second set of people make a request. We were at our separate spot since it was the line nearly directly to the left of the original line. So if we had had 10 people, we would have walked to our spot and the last set of 2 would have gotten to the end and asked to sit in the front, they would not have taken the entire party 8 of which were already in the small lines out.

Now you are correct, that if the first 2 people in the group had asked to sit in the front they would have put the entire party over there. We did that on several rides.

 

[goofy4tink]

You know, I just had a thought. Perhaps the CM thought that your dd was with only her brother...no one else. So, when she said she didn't want to ride in the front, the CM felt that it would be best to have her wait outside for her brother to get off the ride.
If you said nothing to this CM, then how would they have known otherwise?? If this was, indeed the case, then I can see how it happened. A lot of assumptions are happening here..I am not defending the CM, but I really think there was a miscommunication. The CM may not have known that there was other family in the area, and so took the youngster out to wait for her brother. Is that possible??

 

[momofbcs]

You know, I just had a thought. Perhaps the CM thought that your dd was with only her brother...no one else. So, when she said she didn't want to ride in the front, the CM felt that it would be best to have her wait outside for her brother to get off the ride.
If you said nothing to this CM, then how would they have known otherwise?? If this was, indeed the case, then I can see how it happened. A lot of assumptions are happening here..I am not defending the CM, but I really think there was a miscommunication. The CM may not have known that there was other family in the area, and so took the youngster out to wait for her brother. Is that possible??

I agree that he had no way of knowing that I was even there. He was not the CM asking how many in the party. Im sure he only heard part of it. I agree something should have been said. I think he likely overwhelmed.

When riding with my kids I always let the 2 kids go first, but this was a last minute switch to ride with Twin A over DD that it didnt even cross my mind. Literally the entire situation took 2 minutes tops.

Even for the CM to think she was just with her brother, he left her in a bad spot. He should have let her go to the end of the ride which is only a few feet further, although Im not sure if there is a gate connecting the start to the end platforms.

 

[momofbcs]

It does seem odd that he would guide her away with no words exchanged. Sounds kinda awkward to me. As others mentioned maybe all he did hear was not wanting to ride. As for guiding her to the exit, his job was to put others in the ride line, he can't leave his station. But with that said, he shouldn't just usher her away. Had you asked what was going on maybe he could have explained his thought process.

When im in line with DH, & DD she lets me know if she wants to ride the front or back. She is 15 now but even when we started going when she was 9. We even did single rider. I would always put her on first then I go. I would have done the same in your situation. Let the 2 kids go first then you and your other son. That way you know all is ok.

I don't believe you are lying but I think some of the story is missing that you don't know about. As you said, it was loud so maybe he said something that your DD missed?

As for touching her arm, I have done this to kids that were upset. You touch their arm to comfort. I wasn't their so I don't know.

.

I double checked with her as soon as I got there. He said nothing to her. And he was not comforting her, he was guiding her. She only began crying when he took her out of line.

 

[momofbcs]

I am very sorry that not only did you have a bad experience at DW but also here on Dis. Yes the situation sounds odd but that is exactly why you were passing along the information.
And I think everyone is overlooking one very important piece of the puzzle. You are a single mom tackling DW with twin teen boys and a young daughter. It's easy for others to judge and say what one would do differently but if they are lucky they haven't had to choose between reporting a negative incident or calming down an upset child. So I applaud you as you sound like a great mother who handled the situation very well. You were keeping your eyes on all your kids in a busy area, calmed your daughter down and chose to discipline your son as you saw fit. Kudos to you and ignore the judgmental fools who dare to call you a liar.

Thanks! I certainly had my hands full with the twins! They turned 13 during our trip and they think they are all grown up.

 

[Mike7468]

I was within ten feet of my child and she was not being "disruptive".


The child was not "unattended and unsupervised". I was right there. Her brother made an impulsive "ride in the front" request that split our group into 2 parts. That is no reflection on my opinion of my daughter's capacity to be unsupervised or unattended.

I found the reaction of the CM to be strange and irresponsible. I agree that BOTH should have been removed from line... I also think that big brother should have gone with her, which Im sure he would have done had I not been a few steps behind.

I think that if a child is removed from line for being disruptive and is with another child at the time, both should be removed and kept with a CM until the child or children is reconnected with the responsible adult and not just put outside the attraction into "general population".

Again, my intention was to let people know that it is a possibility for a child to be removed from line and left alone so if your child/children is riding a ride and they dont come off at the anticipated area in an appropriate amount of time, this is a possibility.

If all of this happened and you where right there why did you not get a supervisor and find out WHY the CM responded to your daughter that way?? Now all any of us can due is speculate and assume why the CM did what he did, I'm sure at this point the CM wont remember that day or incident so if you call Disney you may not get any sort of answer your looking for. If the CM was diong something wrong, you coould have put a stop to it once and for all.

 

[smidgy]

A request to ride in the front does not split up a group of 4 or even 10. The entire group goes to the front of the ride line and get loaded onto the same train. When a front seat opened up your party would have been directed to seats 1 and 2. If you were a party of 10 you would have been directed to seats 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Sometimes the wait can be fairly long. Sounds like the first problem here is that you didn't go to the front of train holding area with your children, keeping your group together, or you could have told your son no to sitting in the front.

no. there is a dif. between hyour whole party asking to ride in the front and aksing to sit in the front seat. rollercoasters often have a sep. line for the front SEAT (which doesn't hold 4 or 10).

when asked how many in your party, the OP said 4. the CMdiorected OP and one twin to the middle. THEN the other twin piped up with wanting to sit in the front. like a last minute thought.. it hadn't been discussed among them.. .

I'm sure it all happened so fast, there wasn't time to figure out waht happened immediately. and going with the littlest one who is being "escorted" out was the right thing. (but I would have been yelling "what's goin on? STOP!")

I also would have insisted on the whole family going to the front of the line, since the CM decided they weren't riding.

but: woulda, coulda, shoulda. I often , the next day, think "OH! I SHOULD'VE said......."

 

[robinb]

Even for the CM to think she was just with her brother, he left her in a bad spot. He should have let her go to the end of the ride which is only a few feet further, although Im not sure if there is a gate connecting the start to the end platforms.

People can't wait on the ride platform exit. They have to go inside into the photo area or gift shop and the photo area is really busy. I think that the wall is a better place for a crying child to regroup out of the way and wait for her brother that the ride exit. Of course being seated out of the way increases the chances that they could miss each other and your DD could feel that she was lost. If anything, this thread is a PSA for having cell phones for everyone and/or a back-up plan in case you get separated.

 

[KatWI]

THANKS so much for sharing your experience! We are going for the first time in years with four kids and it's a good reminder to be very careful. Sorry some of the responses you've gotten have been difficult - but know that many are grateful for the information!

 

[momofbcs]

People can't wait on the ride platform exit. They have to go inside into the photo area or gift shop and the photo area is really busy. I think that the wall is a better place for a crying child to regroup out of the way and wait for her brother that the ride exit. Of course being seated out of the way increases the chances that they could miss each other and your DD could feel that she was lost. If anything, this thread is a PSA for having cell phones for everyone and/or a back-up plan in case you get separated.

I agree with cell phones! Both twins had one and I had one... my 9 year old did not.

 

[Wadekind]

Why does nearly everyone feel the need to bash or be jerky? Some one even said "didn't happen"? Really? Im just making this up?

I was un aware that I needed to go breath by breath. My one son, Twin A, and I were first. We step up to the CM and answer "4" to the obligatory "How many in your party?" We are directed to the middle of the train which was right there by where the question was asked. We step into said line. Twin B says "Can we ride in the front?" and the CM directs them to the other line for those who are waiting on the front or back of the train. I see this and don't think any thing about it. My daughter is with my son. I am not allowing her to ride alone, she is with her brother. My daughter at that time says "I don't want to ride in the front" to her brother. (which Im sure was in a little sister whiney tone) The CM who is in charge of that line, then pulls her out of that line and takes her by the arm to the exit. I see this and leave Twin A in line. Twin B is still in line for the front. I follow a few steps behind. I am within earshot and he is saying nothing to her. She is now crying. She was not crying while in line. Whining yes, crying no. He puts her on the stone wall and turns and leaves. He says nothing to her and nothing to me. He does not tell her to wait here for your mom, he doesnt say ANYTHING! I go out the gate. I say to her "What was that about?" She said "I didn't want to ride in the front and he made me leave the line". I sit down on the opposite side of the wall. She is still crying. Another CM (a woman) walks and asks her "What's wrong? Did you not want to ride?" To which my daughter answers "I did, but not in the front row". The CM enters through the gate and nothing more is said.

Twin B did get reprimanded once he got off the line. As a parent, I chose to tend to the child in need before the child in trouble. Twin A was then allowed to ride EE again 3 more times with DD, in the middle of the train, while Twin B and I watched. Seemed like appropriate punishment to me.

Anyone else want to bash me or call me a liar?

Oh and I never said anything about expecting a CM to "babysit" my daughter, I just wouldn't expect one to set her free out in the park alone either.

My "warning" is that had I not been witness to this, I would have enjoyed EE, exited through the gift shop and where would my daughter have been? I would have no idea where she was. Its understandable that if you put a child on a ride alone, which I know is allowed, then you know to meet them at the exit. However, this is different because I put her on the ride with her brother and would have expected her to be there with him upon the completion of the ride.

So just knowing that it is a possibility might help someone else, that was my sole intention.

Geez.

Nice to see some of the passive aggressive apologists on here calling you a liar and criticizing your choice not to make a scene on your vacation. Most people with any intelligence will understand your warning and appreciate your post.

The touching should not have happened. No excuse for any stranger to touch your kids. He could have walked with her to the exit without touching her arm.

The spot where he left her is odd and I totally agree with your point about her not being in the exit area as expected.

Thanks for the heads up.

 

[robinb]

I agree with cell phones! Both twins had one and I had one... my 9 year old did not.

My DD got her PAYG phone when she was about 9 because she did a lot of after school sports, etc. Before that we all carried walkie talkies at WDW so we could stay in touch.

 

[stargazertechie]

"Putting his hands on her" and simply holding her arm to escort her out are two different things. He could have just been lightly steering her out.

This, to me it sounded like a well-intentioned cast member gently physically guided a child to a waiting area. Not that a cast member molested a child.

Has stranger danger really become so insane that someone would throw a right cross if I took the hand of a lost child to deliver them to a cast member?

 

[PetLoopers]

What do you call it when a 9 year old girl is physically taken by an adult male to another location without the knowledge or consent of her family? Oh yeah, child abduction, that's it. How are we treating this like an unfortunate incident? Maybe the CM didn't have ill intentions, but if you move this incident out of WDW I bet the police would be involved. Shocking and scary, both the incident and the reaction.

 

[stargazertechie]

What do you call it when a 9 year old girl is physically taken by an adult male to another location without the knowledge or consent of her family? Oh yeah, child abduction, that's it. How are we treating this like an unfortunate incident? Maybe the CM didn't have ill intentions, but if you move this incident out of WDW I bet the police would be involved. Shocking and scary, both the incident and the reaction.

That's rich. The employee was following standard operating procedures for the ride. CM was under the impression that the 9 year old child (who is allowed, by the rules of the park to ride and explore by herself) did not want to ride, and moved the child safely out of the operating area of the attraction through what is known as the "chicken" exit.

 

[meggiebeth]

Some people can be so rude. I am sorry you have been accused of lying. I totally believe you. I think it is being behind a screen that gives them that extra security. They wouldn't dare say it to your face.

Sorry you had a bad experience. I do wonder what the CM was thinking- whilst it sounds shocking there must have been some kind of miscommunication- for example as others have mentioned; her only hearing half of what your DD said.

I would remember this for next time and try and remember to complain if it ever happened again. I just don't get whatever the CM thought, that he could just take your daughter's arm and lead her off the ride with no interaction at all.