How strict is height requirements?

[graciepooh]

Hi,
We are going to WDW the first week of Sept. Our DD is probably not going to make 40 inches although she will be very close to it. She is a dare devil and loves going to a theme park close to our home. Are the cast members really strict? If I put her in "tall" shoes and tease her hair does she have a shot at riding Splash Mountain? By the way she is around 37 inches at this time without shoes. Thanks in advance for the information!!

 

[dturner]

They are VERY STRICT!!! Last year I read on this board where someone took a measuring tape with them because the sticks they use at Disney sometimes are not accurate.

 

[yasuern]

Sketchers makes some great sneakers for kids with almost 2 inch soles on them but that would bring her up to 39inches and they are strict. When my DD was 5y/o she was just shy of 44 inches - I mean less than 1/2 an inch - and she wasn't allowed to ride Space mountain

 

[Michelemouse]

And the CMs are definitely aware of the "tricks" used to make kids taller. I don't think they'd do anything about the "tall" shoes, but they will definitely make sure the stick touches the top of her head, not the top of her hair. If she is only 37" now I think you should let her know that she will probably not be able to ride. That way she won't be disappointed when she gets there.

Our DD is also a daredevil...and very short for her age. A bad combination. She has always worn the "tall" shoes, simply because she likes them, and she was able to ride a couple of things when she was just short of the height requirement...but she was only 1/2" or so away from the required height. We always let her know that the requirements are there for a reason (safety of passengers) and that she would just have to wait until the next trip. By telling her this in a straightforward manner, with no sad faces or sympathetic tones, we found she took it quite well.

Good luck with your DD. I feel your pain. )

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by graciepooh
Hi,
We are going to WDW the first week of Sept. Our DD is probably not going to make 40 inches although she will be very close to it. She is a dare devil and loves going to a theme park close to our home. Are the cast members really strict? If I put her in "tall" shoes and tease her hair does she have a shot at riding Splash Mountain? By the way she is around 37 inches at this time without shoes. Thanks in advance for the information!!

They are very very strict, and for a good reason, the SAFETY of your child. The CMs are also very smart, they can see tall shoes and teased hair. I could see making an exception for 1/2" but, 3" no. It is unsafe, they spend a lot of time figuring out minimum heights for a reason. Sorry if I am coming across harshly, but, this is one of my real bugaboos. It should not matter to me what you do with your child, but, I sure would hate to see her hurt because you "fudged" her size.

 

[Stimpy]

I have a daredevil too and he gets very upset that he can't ride Space Mountain or the Primevel whirl coaster even though he can go on Splash Mountain and BTMRR b/c he is only 41". But he knows that Disney will not let him ride until he is taller.

I would not try to go around the height requirements. It's not worth it. And I have seen CM's ask kids to remove their shoes and flatten down their hair. So you can't rely on those tricks to much.

 

[Elk34]

Has your little daredevil proven to be a daredevil when it comes to rollercoasters too? Our littlest one is 4 and we never thought she would be scared of any ride but she proved to be quite timid when it came to the bigger rides. She rode Splash and BTMRR once each but didn't want to do them again. And they are very strict with the measurements and I think their measuring sticks are overly conservative too.

As a side note I would recommend that if you have alittle one take some earplugs for them. Sometimes the loud noises are scarier than the actual movements of the rides. A little flashlight helps too.

Also, why in the world does Primeval Whirl have a big height requirement. It is fun but seems really tame to me.

 

[zcomic]

DD was 4 on our first trip and wanted badly to go on SM but was a couple inches short. She started crying and a CM gave her a really cute astronaut certificate that said if she comes back when she is big enough she can go to the head of the line. That was back in '97 so I don't know if they still do that but I know it helped her a bunch

 

[pintrader]

The heighth restriction is not just to make your child's trip miserable. Let me ask all of you something. Let's say I was a guest and I wanted my child to have what they wanted and what they wanted was to ride an attraction he/she was not tall enough for.

Let's further say that my child was slung from the ride vehicle and killed on contact or just as bad paralyzed. Let's say I'm a pretty normal human who doesn't want to believe I just did that to my child. Will I look for someone else to blame? How would you feel if you were the CM who let that happen to my child? Am I going to want to blame you? Would I have the right to sue you? Are you going to take that chance with my child?

Self discipline is a virtue and should be enforced in matters of life safety. We can't have everything we want. That's a life lesson we all need to learn young. The real question here is "how strict are you on her obeying rules".

 

[beattyfamily]

Sorry but 3 inches is quite a bit to grow by September!

Our DD (7) is 47 1/2 inches and is praying she'll be 48 by our trip in December (to ride RnR at MGM) so I know how you feel but 1/2 is alot more possible to accomplish than 3 inches in such a short time.

Those height requirements are there for safety reasons. I've also read here that many children were sent away from a ride they were tall enough for just because the CM's stick was off. What a bummer. So we have to prepare our children that the CM's have the last say.

Good luck!

 

[goofy4tink]

I could be wrong here, but I think the height restrictions exist because of the restraint systems on the attractions. If you're not tall enough the restraint may not fit you correctly. If you put on shoes that add 2 inches to your height, you still aren't the right height to fit the restraint! That would be your seat to shoulder measurement that would matter. I'm sure that there are people like my 29 y/o son who, while looking somewhat stubby (at 6') he is actually very long from hips to shoulder. His legs are just short. He is actually the same size as my dh who is 6'4" if you measure hip to shoulder!!! Very strange indeed. I would just hate to see someone try to get their child on a ride and not have the restraint/harness not fit right and get hurt. Just my .02.

 

[Kteacher]

zcomic- they still give out those certificates- I saw a CM on RNR give one to a little girl last week who didn't meet the height restriction. The CM was very sweet with her, and she was smiling by the time he was done talking to her

 

[Disneylovers]

My DD was exactly 48 inches last year, with her shoes off, so we figured she'd get on rides without any questions. Our first ride on RnR, they stood her next to the garbage can, where you get in the cars! She loved the ride so much, we rode again! The CM outside collecting the Fastpasses, wasn't going to let her in, until I said she rode once already today, then she let her go. On SM, they measured her with a stick, so they are strict. So, don't try to "fudge" the system, (a good excuse to go back when she is tall enough!).

 

[buzzlady]

My 7yr old son who is tall for his age met all height requirements. He was able to drive his own Speedway car last week. The CM measured him 2x and then told him he could drive by himself. He was so excited.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by pintrader
The heighth restriction is not just to make your child's trip miserable. Let me ask all of you something. Let's say I was a guest and I wanted my child to have what they wanted and what they wanted was to ride an attraction he/she was not tall enough for.

Let's further say that my child was slung from the ride vehicle and killed on contact or just as bad paralyzed. Let's say I'm a pretty normal human who doesn't want to believe I just did that to my child. Will I look for someone else to blame? How would you feel if you were the CM who let that happen to my child? Am I going to want to blame you? Would I have the right to sue you? Are you going to take that chance with my child?

Self discipline is a virtue and should be enforced in matters of life safety. We can't have everything we want. That's a life lesson we all need to learn young. The real question here is "how strict are you on her obeying rules".

Wow Kathryn!!!! EXCELLENT POST!!!

 

[LibertyBelle]

As a CM at WDW I can tell you that the rules are strict and it is for the safety of the child. As was stated the height restrictions are made by the state based on the restraint system in use for the attractions. I was on the opening team for Coutdown to Extinction (now Dinosaur) at Animal Kingdom and I can tell you that I have had to turn away "a" twin... Yes, one twin was tall enough, the other was not.

It is better for you to advise your child that the possibility exists that they may not be able to ride certain things. That way when you are in the park it is not a big let down. The worst thing for the CM's is to have a parent with a crying child tell the child that they can not ride because the mean CM says they can't. The rules are in place for a reason, please respect them...they are not there to ruin your vacation, they are there to make sure you do not get injured while you are suppossed to be having fun...

 

[SamSam]

Michelemouse, Love your post. I agree that how you present something to a child will have a definite impact on how he accepts (or doesn't) it.

 

[Cindy B]

They are strict very very strict..

See, I have had the problems of tall kids at a very young age. My son was 4, yes 4, and he could go on TOT, Space Mountain, BTMRR & all that.. at a very young four.

Now he is 54 inches at 8 years old. He is just big enough for all "biggies" like Dueling Dragons, and any big coaster that is around. He is right on the mark, and gets measured all the time, sometimes twice in line.


My daughter is almost 6 , and is 47 1/2 inches.. how frustrating is that?

 

[Stimpy]

See, I have had the problems of tall kids at a very young age. My son was 4, yes 4, and he could go on TOT, Space Mountain, BTMRR & all that.. at a very young four.

We have the same problem, my DS was 3 and 41". He was able to go on alot of the "big" rides. Went on Splash Mtn, BTMRR, Test Track etc. He was tall enough to go on TOT and he really wanted to go on it but we said no. He ran up to the CM, who measured him and said he was tall enough. We still said no.

Now he's 3 1/2, almost 4, and is trying to stretch himself so he can get on Space Mtn in September.

 

[jacksonsmom]

They are pretty strict.

We just got back & my 3.5 yr old son is 43.5" (barefoot). He was able to go on Splash, ToT, BTMRR, Test Track, Dinosaur, etc.

He was measured before entering Splash, Dinosaur & Body Wars (surprised about that one)

I am VERY surprised he was NOT measured before entering ToT.

Even though my son really wanted to try Space Mountain, we didn't even try since I KNEW he wasn't 44 inches, which is the requirement. Although there is a good chance he MIGHT he been able to get on since with shoes I am sure he was at least 44" but I didn't even try it.

We are going back in December & he is hoping to grow at least an half of inch to reach the 44" mark & can ride Space Mountain.