Help! I'm a Ride Wimp! (And would like to not be one!)

[Mickey's Best Girl]

I try to find a 5 or 6 year old getting off the ride and giggling about it. If they can do it and survive, surely this 40 something woman can do it, right? That's how I managed to get my butt on RNRC and now it's my favourite ride.

 

[missnic]

I'm totally a recovering ride wimp. I love BTMRR, really hate Space, and have never done Splash. I think Space is more because it's dark and I can't see what's in front of me. A few trips ago, I decided that I really wanted to do EE. I watched the videos on YouTube to get an idea of what was in store, and read these sort of threads. I then figured, it's a whole 2 minutes, I can survive that, even if I have to close my eyes and cower in the seat crying like a baby. DH refuses anything more intense than BTMRR (motion sickness issues), so I went single rider. I was terrified, but it was awesome. I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't near as bad as it looks - that lift hill doesn't end in a straight drop. I don't think I could have gotten back on right away, but I can't wait to go back and do it again!

Next up is ToT, and I'm trying to find a decent ride through video of RnRC. And I'm planning to do Splash next trip as well.. if I have a towel handy. I want to ride, but I don't want to be wet for the rest of the day. Otherwise, I would have ridden it last week when it was a walk on. Still sorta regretting not doing it.

All that said.. RRR and Hulk are just big nopecoasters for me.

 

[RustManFan]

I don't do thrill rides but Splash Mountain is lots of fun. I always get the giggles after the drop!!

 

[MadisonMouse13]

OK, anyone who quotes "Adventure is Out There!" is cool in my book.

I'm kind of a ride wimp, myself, so I get where you're coming from. I like BTMRR, but once a trip is enough for me. I LOVE Splash Mountain! I'm not picking on anyone, but I hear so many comments on how the drop looks so scary, and I get that, but it's really not, it's fun! Maybe it's because I have ridden and loved flume rides since I was 5 years old, but I've never been scared of Splash, and it is such an awesome ride with the story and songs and so much fun. For years, people rode it with no lap bars/restraints, and Disney finally put in the bars just to deter rider foolishness (standing up, etc.). You can stand by the fence and watch the logs coming around the stream after the drop; you'll see plenty of people laughing and having a wonderful time. Just tell yourself you can do it, get in the line and give it a try. If it's not your cup of tea, you don't have to do it again. If you like it, you will have to do it again to catch all the inside story when you're more relaxed. (Do be aware there are a couple of small drops in the dark inside, but they are quick and short.)

Expedition Everest - OK, I refuse to do RnRC or Space; I've done TOT but not for a long time, and I'm iffy about doing it alone for whatever irrational reason. But I'd always really kind of wanted to try Everest, and I finally did it this year. It was super-scary, but kind of fun. I can't decide if I'm going to do it again next year, but I'm really really proud of myself for doing it (bought me an EE cap afterward as a memento). Backwards in the dark was not as horrible as I feared (didn't make me sick or anything), but I'm glad I was prepared for it. It DOES make you feel like you're going upsidedown. The scariest part to me was an unexpected forward drop in the dark (I think it was only one, but... ?) The big drop out of the mountain wasn't as bad because at least I could see what was coming. The EE drops felt steep to me (felt MUCH steeper to me than Splash, FWIW). Going through the EE single rider line was a huge help to me because it was practically a walk on, so I didn't have time to get cold feet. I'm really glad I did it, and I can't swear I wouldn't do it again, but for a "ride wimp," it is pretty scary. But you'll never know unless you try!

Just my opinions.

Haha, hey, thanks!
I'm actually really excited to do Splash Mountain! I'll see about EE, I have friends who are begging me to do it, so what the heck, I'll try it!

 

[MadisonMouse13]

Glad to hear you are going ride Splash Mountain! It's a wonderful ride and longer than most, too.
We rode it last year at the same time the parade for the Halloween party was in progress. The ride was empty, only the three of us and a handful of other people. At the end of the ride, the cast member operating the ride asked if we wanted to go again, so we did and actually ended up doing the ride three times without getting off at all.

That's awesome!

 

[MadisonMouse13]

I'm totally a recovering ride wimp. I love BTMRR, really hate Space, and have never done Splash. I think Space is more because it's dark and I can't see what's in front of me. A few trips ago, I decided that I really wanted to do EE. I watched the videos on YouTube to get an idea of what was in store, and read these sort of threads. I then figured, it's a whole 2 minutes, I can survive that, even if I have to close my eyes and cower in the seat crying like a baby. DH refuses anything more intense than BTMRR (motion sickness issues), so I went single rider. I was terrified, but it was awesome. I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't near as bad as it looks - that lift hill doesn't end in a straight drop. I don't think I could have gotten back on right away, but I can't wait to go back and do it again!

Next up is ToT, and I'm trying to find a decent ride through video of RnRC. And I'm planning to do Splash next trip as well.. if I have a towel handy. I want to ride, but I don't want to be wet for the rest of the day. Otherwise, I would have ridden it last week when it was a walk on. Still sorta regretting not doing it.

All that said.. RRR and Hulk are just big nopecoasters for me.

Thanks for the advice!

 

[Ginya]

I am a ride wimp. Oddly as a teen I would ride anything that spun, flipped etc. think carnival rides, but anything rollercoaster was out. As an adult taking my kids, I felt I had to suck it up and ride. I took dramamine first (American medicine that seems to work better then gravol). I managed to ride space mountain, splash mountain, and harry potter hogwarts castle ride. Okay, I had my eyes closed for all of two seconds in harry potter and space mountain. Afterwards, listening to my DD's talk about all they saw in HP ride made me wish I had kept my eyes open. I chickened out on ToT, RnRC, and EE. Can we say baby steps? So for the next trip, I will ride space mountain again and try to keep eyes open. We are spending a day at Universal to see new HP. I will try very hard to keep my eyes open for both rides this time. Dramamine will keep you from feeling ill,but only you can keep you from being afraid.

 

[tomatecerise]

I scream like i Will Die in fast portion of test track... Yes i am a chicken... But i do love splash mountain (but not the drops in the dark)

 

[epcotty]

I think Splash is less intense than BTMRR

 

[MadisonMouse13]

I am a ride wimp. Oddly as a teen I would ride anything that spun, flipped etc. think carnival rides, but anything rollercoaster was out. As an adult taking my kids, I felt I had to suck it up and ride. I took dramamine first (American medicine that seems to work better then gravol). I managed to ride space mountain, splash mountain, and harry potter hogwarts castle ride. Okay, I had my eyes closed for all of two seconds in harry potter and space mountain. Afterwards, listening to my DD's talk about all they saw in HP ride made me wish I had kept my eyes open. I chickened out on ToT, RnRC, and EE. Can we say baby steps? So for the next trip, I will ride space mountain again and try to keep eyes open. We are spending a day at Universal to see new HP. I will try very hard to keep my eyes open for both rides this time. Dramamine will keep you from feeling ill,but only you can keep you from being afraid.

I'm spending a day at HP, too!

 

[MadisonMouse13]

I scream like i Will Die in fast portion of test track... Yes i am a chicken... But i do love splash mountain (but not the drops in the dark)

How many drops are on Splash Mountain?

 

[niffer5150]

i used to be a ride wimp. i got over it by just riding the rides and reminding myself that as long as i follow the rules, the chances of anything bad happening are incredibly slim. after enough rides, they were no longer scary at all. the rides are designed to be a little scary for most people but they are also incredibly safe. any "scary" in them is just an illusion, especially at disney. i decided that i refuse to let my imagination hinder my real life experiences. if something got too be too much for me, i'd shut my eyes. the initial discomfort was well worth it as we can all ride as a family.

 

[Bishoparc]

scream like a madman

It's been many (probably 20 years) since I've ridden Splash Mountain but I plan on doing it this upcoming trip. I've ridden a similar ride at Dollywood and I totally agree that screaming is one of the best ways to make it through the drop. It gives a place for all of that adrenaline to let out.

DW & I did Space Mountain a few years ago and I refuse to ever do it again lol. I just don't like that not knowing where I'm going feeling at all and you're sitting in the birthing position too lol

 

[daae3]

Former ride wimp. I forced myself to ride Space Mtn as my first attempt to overcome my fear...bad choice-dark? Bumpy? Fast? Combo did not help-I went to BTMRR as my next choice...and was so freaked out I begged the CM not to put me in the front-he looked at me and said, this is a kiddie roller coaster-not helpful, but I went and loved it. Still one of my favorites. I usually talk myself into rides by saying it is only 90 sec. to 2 minutes-so how bad could it be. Splash is an easy first ride-the drop looks scary but due to the angle of the ride-the big drop is really gentle. I almost chickened out of TOT but the CM talked me into trying it by talking about how smooth and controlled the drops actually were. BTW-I have now ridden every ride at DW and love them all-including Space Mtn. Expedition Everest is my favorite with RNR being a close second. Good luck!

 

[AuroraRora]

Try both Splash and EE, you'll love them. My mom is the world's biggest ride wimp and we got her on Splash and she loved it. EE has the big drop but the rest of it is well themed a lot of fun. The drop isn't nearly as bad as you'd think and I firmly believe you should try anything once!

 

[littleblackegg]

I hope you are comforted by what I can tell you about fear of extreme body experiences like rides and jumping out of planes and the like. The feelings we get when confronted with these fears are very low brain activity. They don't come from a place of reason and logic. They come from the part of our brain that keeps us from going over cliffs-survival! When we want to overcome a fear that is about how speed, heights and g-forces feel on the body, we throw whatever works at it. Some people can't get past it and that is OK. Most people come up with a whole handbag full of techniques to work through it over time. Of course, the best way to extinguish the fear is to adjust the brain and body to the experience. Be kind and patient with yourself. I am always shocked at how families can be so mean to a non-rider. Time and patience will win out!

 

[Maddysdaddy]

As much as I hate people pulling out their cameras and phones to tape rides, they were a life saver when it came to getting my daughter on some of the "scarier" rides.

She is very much the type of person that needs to feel like she has some degree of control over her situation and environment, and letting her watch You Tube videos of ride-throughs allowed her to see in advance what was going to happen during the course of the ride. This, in turn, allowed her to put her fears in perspective and to try rides that she had refused to go on in the past.

Yes, for some (most?) people the fear of the unknown on a theme park ride is half the fun, but if making the unknown 'known' is what was required for her (and maybe you) to get over her fears, I think the trade-off is worth it.

 

[snitchseeker]

I'm a wimp too but I'll ride Thunder and Mine over and over. The drops on Mine get to me - I get a little scared so I don't think I'll be able to do Space, EE, ToT or RnRC. I know this is another beast but my DF said I would be okay on mission space so I did the orange side - never again. It ruined my night and I thought I was going to die! I had a panic attack. Now - he's all like "you can do space, ToT, and RnRC, and EE!" and I'm passing on all of those and I'm fine with it.

He also said I would be okay on Mummy at USF and hated him for that too! grrrr....worst ride.

 

[ExpatDisneyLover]

I let out a really big laugh, pretty soon I am laughing hysterically and it is all really, really fun instead of terrifying.