Height restrictions from Barnstormer to SDMT?

[NicholeB630]

Just a question for those who have been on both these rides, is there a big difference as to where the height difference is needed? Just curious. My son will be 2.5 when we go and pretty sure he is right at 35'' especially with shoes so I am happy he hopefully will get to ride Barnstormer with us ( which is the only roller coaster he can I think) but SDMT is 38" is there a big difference to why they heights are different? I wish he could ride that one too. Oh well next time.

 

[ghtx]

Just a question for those who have been on both these rides, is there a big difference as to where the height difference is needed? Just curious. My son will be 2.5 when we go and pretty sure he is right at 35'' especially with shoes so I am happy he hopefully will get to ride Barnstormer with us ( which is the only roller coaster he can I think) but SDMT is 38" is there a big difference to why they heights are different? I wish he could ride that one too. Oh well next time.

Because they are two different rides, and the engineers have determined that they have different minimum height requirements.

 

[Baptist]

OP, I'm glad your taking the safe route and putting it off until next time. Some parents bring their kids up to the ride, only to be turned away.

 

[NicholeB630]

I am well aware they are two different rides and that the engineers decide that but I was just curious if one is faster than the other, has bigger hills ect. I know which rides he'll be able to ride and wont be able to so we def will be using rider swap for numerous ones.

 

[Imagineer5]

My 2.5 yo is at 37.5" - can't wait for her to ride 7dmt too - next trip. The 7dmt is longer and faster than barnstormer for sure. However if she met the height requirement I know my dd would love it. The barnstormer is a short little roller coaster good for young children.

 

[mesaboy2]

I am well aware they are two different rides and that the engineers decide that but I was just curious if one is faster than the other, has bigger hills ect. I know which rides he'll be able to ride and wont be able to so we def will be using rider swap for numerous ones.

Speed and "thrill factor" have little bearing on minimum height requirements. The design of the ride vehicle itself is usually the most important factor.

 

[cakebaker]

Just a question for those who have been on both these rides, is there a big difference as to where the height difference is needed? Just curious. My son will be 2.5 when we go and pretty sure he is right at 35'' especially with shoes so I am happy he hopefully will get to ride Barnstormer with us ( which is the only roller coaster he can I think) but SDMT is 38" is there a big difference to why they heights are different? I wish he could ride that one too. Oh well next time.

There is enough of a difference that it requires a little more height than barnstormer. Higher drops, deeper and harder swings and while not a long ride, longer than barnstormer.

We were where you are for our August trip. My grandson is 2.5 and was tall enough for barnstormer, but just shy of making it on SDMT. Between August and the first of October, he grew just enough to barely meet the height requirements.

He was so disappointed not to get to ride SDMT on our first trip, so we were thrilled he had grown enough!! He loves them both!!

 

[karenbeth24]

Do they check height at the entrance to the queue for 7DMT, or when you're about to board the ride, or both?

 

[mesaboy2]

Do they check height at the entrance to the queue for 7DMT, or when you're about to board the ride, or both?

Both, and they must pass both.

 

[cakebaker]

Do they check height at the entrance to the queue for 7DMT, or when you're about to board the ride, or both?

And in my experience at least, they don't fudge on it. If they don't pass, no matter how close, they don't ride.

They will encourage them to stand straight with their little legs together, but if there's air between their head and that bar- no go.

My grandson was seriously within a hair of being too short. Then again, 2 yr olds are not good at standing straight and still for more than 3.1 seconds. I know, I've timed him.

 

[karenbeth24]

And in my experience at least, they don't fudge on it. If they don't pass, no matter how close, they don't ride.

They will encourage them to stand straight with their little legs together, but if there's air between their head and that bar- no go.

My grandson was seriously within a hair of being too short. Then again, 2 yr olds are not good at standing straight and still for more than 3.1 seconds. I know, I've timed him.

I feel as though I'll have the same experience as you. I hate to wait in line just for her to not stand up straight for long enough to get a good measurement.

 

[ebradley23]

I can't say they don't fudge. We were there a couple of weeks ago and my 2.5 YO wasn't measured at all for SDMT. I took him up to the measuring thingie before entering the line myself to check him, because I knew it was going to be close. The attendant never checked despite stopping us because we didn't have 3 fast passes due to no ticket for my son.

I can see a need for two different height requirements. SDMT is a full fledged roller coaster. While it may not be a RnR or Everest equivalent, it is not of the kiddie variety that Barnstormer falls into. Like others have said, it is faster with bigger drops.

 

[mesaboy2]

I can't say they don't fudge. We were there a couple of weeks ago and my 2.5 YO wasn't measured at all for SDMT. I took him up to the measuring thingie before entering the line myself to check him, because I knew it was going to be close. The attendant never checked despite stopping us because we didn't have 3 fast passes due to no ticket for my son.

I can see a need for two different height requirements. SDMT is a full fledged roller coaster. While it may not be a RnR or Everest equivalent, it is not of the kiddie variety that Barnstormer falls into. Like others have said, it is faster with bigger drops.

What about at the loading area, where there is a second height check?

There's "fudging" and then there's a CM not doing their job very well. Sounds like the latter here.

 

[cakebaker]

I feel as though I'll have the same experience as you. I hate to wait in line just for her to not stand up straight for long enough to get a good measurement.

You don't have to stand in line to measure them the first time. The first check is just outside the entrance. Just take her up there and they'll be happy to check her. They worked with my grandson to get him to do what he needed to do, so it's not like they don't give them every chance to make it.
If she passes one, she should pass the other. I'm not even sure why they have 2 checks except to make sure that if you managed to get by the first one, there's a 2nd one for insurance.

If she is tall enough, word of warning...keep your arm or hand behind her head on the ride. I've read where small ones can bang their heads on the back of the seat a bit. We didn't test it, just made sure we kept an arm around him.

 

[mesaboy2]

You don't have to stand in line to measure them. The first check is just outside the entrance. Just take her up there and they'll be happy to check her.

If she passes one, she should pass the other. I'm not even sure why they have 2 checks except to make sure that if you managed to get by the first one, there's a 2nd one for insurance.

The first is so little Susie's family doesn't wait in line for an hour only to find out she's just a bit short, the second at the loading area is the real deal that pretty much no one sneaks past.

 

[cakebaker]

The first is so little Susie's family doesn't wait in line for an hour only to find out she's just a bit short, the second at the loading area is the real deal that pretty much no one sneaks past.

Makes sense. I know ours was checked on every ride there was a check for at both checks.

Barnstormer was a walk on and we didn't use FP+ for it- we just walked right past the check because he was tall enough last trip and I knew he hadn't shrunk! They called us back and made us measure him. lol

 

[NicholeB630]

Thanks all. It makes sense for the height difference than for sure if the other is faster and ect. Wish he could ride but its ok we def will be going again. I need to measure them both before we got and make sure he has on good tennis shoes. I should practice him standing up. I dont want him to miss a ride because he wasn't standing straight up.

 

[cakebaker]

Thanks all. It makes sense for the height difference than for sure if the other is faster and ect. Wish he could ride but its ok we def will be going again. I need to measure them both before we got and make sure he has on good tennis shoes. I should practice him standing up. I dont want him to miss a ride because he wasn't standing straight up.

We practiced with ours- he was a trooper at home. In the park? Squirm, fidget, run. He even tried standing on one leg for a while. Toddlers....sigh...

 

[ebradley23]

What about at the loading area, where there is a second height check? There's "fudging" and then there's a CM not doing their job very well. Sounds like the latter here.

There was never a check at the loading area either. I was shocked. He was checked multiple times for the kiddie coaster at our local Busch Gardens when he finally measured up to 38", so I expected the same. He's so close that I didn't want to have him meltdown if he didn't measure up. That's the reason I checked myself before entering the line.

 

[BuzzinDownToDisney]

On our recent trip we rode both a lot. Our son was 38.5 inches. We were never measured a second time at SDMT. Barnstormer is a tamer and much shorter ride, and the design of the mine cars is such that it travels at greater speeds.

Odd heads up, he was measured at Barnstormer and this isn't a scientific measurement, but it looked like he only cleared the 35in measurement by between 1-2 inches. Yet at SDMT he just cleared the 38 inch mark. Felt like the Barnstormer mark was a bit high.