Run Over by a Rascal

[jgorman9]

I know I'm going to start a major riot on this one but I have no problem with folks who are either temporarily or permanently disabled and need a chair. Good for them, I'm glad they step out and share in the same experiences as the rest of us. I also have no problem whatsoever with grandma in her ECV who can walk a bit but runs out of puff after an hour of walking. None of us are as spry and have the stamina we used to have as we move on in years.

What I do have a problem with is the new phenomenon of lazy people (not always over-weight people either) who rent an ECV to use it as a) a shopping cart, b) a baby stroller, c) a toy to give their kids a ride on or d) a way to make it to the front of the line in the busy times under the guise of being disabled. JMHO but, if you don't have a doctor's note or aren't obviously in need of the ECV, then you don't get one to use for any or all of the above purposes. I've known of seniors being denied chairs in the middle of the day "because they're all out" and seen able-bodied folks clowning around in chairs and sometimes letting the kids take turns to drive them.

I agree with this 100%. Last year I saw one guy riding one of the ECV's. We saw him later that day running to the Splash Mountain ride when he saw a big group of teenagers coming, just so he could beat them in line. I have no problem with elderly of handicap people renting them but when you are young and very capable of walking you shouldn't be allowed to rent one.

 

[seashoreCM]

Last year I saw one guy riding one of the ECV's. We saw him later that day running to the Splash Mountain ride when he saw a big group of teenagers coming, just so he could beat them in line. I have no problem with elderly of handicap people renting them but when you are young and very capable of walking you shouldn't be allowed to rent one.

While it may not be allowed to ask why someone needs a wheelchair or scooter, Disney needs to have a rule to prioritize use of its equipment that allows termination of the rental when the user exhibits behavior well beyond the lack of need for the equipment. But such a rule is a low priority item for management and consumes labor to enforce.

It would be up to those aggrieved (those needing equipment that is sold out) to write their Congressmen to repeal the law that prohibits asking why. Then Disney can more easily keep the equipment on hand for those who need it.

all of a sudden the most frightening sound ever heard, the electronic beep of the ecv. "

was cut down from behind."

person who hit me and all she says is "you should have gotten out of the way."

Three counts of wrongfulness on the part of the driver regardless of need for the ECV or nature or degree of disability.
,

so i just did what any normal person would do in those circumstances i jumped right onto the handle bars and started screaming bloody murder"

Congratulations! Too bad this is not sufficiently normal (frequent; proliferous)

finally the lady apologized only after putting out her cigarette, then saying "now will you please get off"

The minimal desired result.

For the driver ID idea, I like it. I like it a lot. But what would be the penalty?

Certain kinds of incidents, including running down someone from behind, probably should be dealt with by confiscation of the ECV. Subsequent inability to experience or enjoy the park would be an intended or unintended consequence depending on the opinion of the person reading this sentence. Less egregious incidents may result in a required driving practice session on the spot and/or being given a second chance.

 

[edcrbnsoul]

Follow them around heck! Just take the key to the dang thing and make them sit there immobile until security arrives. Better yet, take the key and toss it across the parking lot, street, or into the numerous moats or fountains and just walk away and leave them stranded.

Ya thats a good idea, so when some mother hits the back of your shins with a baby stroller or a some guy trying to make his 5pm ADR runs into you should you tie their legs together till security gets there?

 

[shellybaxter]

...Sounds like something a politician would come up with.

Interesting - to me it sounds like a way to protect the disabled from further persecution.

 

[KPeveler]

...Sounds like something a politician would come up with.

obviously you have never dealt with an invisible disability, or a chonic illness. i do not have a "note from my dr" but i have a chonic disabling illness. you CANNOT be required to prove disability. a disabled person would have to carry a ton of papers everywhere. some people with disabilities do not have access to good doctors. some people do not need an ECV elsewhere. there are many reasons, and there is a very good reason why a person cannot be made to prove disability!

 

[waltfan1957]

Follow them around heck! Just take the key to the dang thing and make them sit there immobile until security arrives. Better yet, take the key and toss it across the parking lot, street, or into the numerous moats or fountains and just walk away and leave them stranded.

if my wife accidentally hit you and you touch her, keys wont be the only thing in the moat and I wouldn't wait for security to arrive.

by the way must complement you on what a great attitude you have

 

[KPeveler]

I agree with this 100%. Last year I saw one guy riding one of the ECV's. We saw him later that day running to the Splash Mountain ride when he saw a big group of teenagers coming, just so he could beat them in line. I have no problem with elderly of handicap people renting them but when you are young and very capable of walking you shouldn't be allowed to rent one.

guess what, I am young and pretty and look normal, and i am capable of walking. and i use a chair or ECV at disney. because i cannot walk more than a few feet without pain. i am not saying this person did right, because they may well have been faking it, but you cannot assume that just because a person is young and can walk around a store for a few minutes, that means they are ok!

 

[SnoWhiteRabbit]

This is my first post on here and it is not the happiest. I was wondering if anyone else has been run over by a motorized scooter before?

First post? Troll?

 

[seashoreCM]

some mother hits the back of your shins with a baby stroller or a some guy trying to make his 5pm ADR runs into you should you tie their legs together till security gets there?

If they aren't willing to make good any damage or injury they caused, then perhaps the need exists.

if my wife accidentally hit you and you touch her, keys wont be the only thing in the moat and I wouldn't wait for security to arrive.

You are revealing characteristics of someone for whom Disney needs a security force.

Disney cannot ask for a DR's note.

The reason they can't require proof is the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), which does say the person with a disability can't be required to provide proof that they have a disability in order to get accommodation for needs related to their disability.

Open question: But may Disney give someone who did submit a doctor's note priority over someone who did not? Including retrieving from and unrenting from a guest who was there first without a doctor's note when someone came in with a doctor's note and the equipment was all gone?

 

[KPeveler]

Power chairs are much much more expensive, and they are much much harder to drive. a ECV is steered much like a bike. a power chair is very sensitive, and to rent one from an area company, you must have used one at home, so they can so the settings. a power chair is very difficult to drive and to adjust.

the shopping carts are because if you are in an ECV, you cannot carry things in your hands. if you think about it, a shopping bag does no good for a person who cannot carry it.

i agree the ECVs around there are huge, but a powerchair would not be a good possiblity...

 

[NUguyinCrew]

Interesting - to me it sounds like a way to protect the disabled from further persecution.

...persecution? Like getting what youre entitled to? Maybe Im persecuted to show my ID when I go into a bar to prove Im 21.

obviously you have never dealt with an invisible disability, or a chonic illness. i do not have a "note from my dr" but i have a chonic disabling illness. you CANNOT be required to prove disability. a disabled person would have to carry a ton of papers everywhere. some people with disabilities do not have access to good doctors. some people do not need an ECV elsewhere. there are many reasons, and there is a very good reason why a person cannot be made to prove disability!

I respectfully disagree.

 

[ogreenlee]

What if one of these things runs a child over? Not just bumps into a kid, but runs them over?

Can I also assume that some of these folks driving these ECVs are also medicated because of their illness or because of their age?

Is it safe to assume that Epcot houses a few who are drinking and driving around the world?

How old does one have to be to drive one?

 

[KPeveler]

you must be 18 to rent an ECV.

How does one prove a disability? What standards would you use, NUguyinCrew? I cannot run, some days I cannot walk, i cannot lift heavy things, i cannot eat certain foods. does this make me disabled? or do you have to be paralyzed? how would you create standards? also, disney is differnet than the rest of the world. so, can some people be disabled in disney cause its so much walking, and not disabled at home? who gets to decide?

 

[LittleLebowski]

First post? Troll?

You give me a !

 

[northie]

Open question: But may Disney give someone who did submit a doctor's note priority over someone who did not? Including retrieving from and unrenting from a guest who was there first without a doctor's note when someone came in with a doctor's note and the equipment was all gone?

Noooooooo, because they can't ask for a Dr's note, and they can't "retrieve" one after someone paid the money for it for ALL DAY. Who would be the judge over which person among those who already paid for a days use gets theirs "unrented"? How are you going to find a specific person anyway? Add lojack to all the scooters? They could be anywhere in the park, so are you just going to go up to every person on a scooter and say, "Got a dr's note for that thing?" until you find one who doesn't have a dr's note (which won't take long since they don't need a note to rent one) and if they don't, say, "Well, then, get off that thing, somebody with a dr's note needs it!" You might end up with a very angry guest on your hands.

Some 18 year old CM is not going to want to try and take a scooter away from some big burley guy who forked over his dough and doesn't want to give it up. And he may NEED the blasted thing anyway even if he doesn't have a dr's note. You don't know.

 

[ogreenlee]

you must be 18 to rent an ECV.

How does one prove a disability? What standards would you use, NUguyinCrew? I cannot run, some days I cannot walk, i cannot lift heavy things, i cannot eat certain foods. does this make me disabled? or do you have to be paralyzed? how would you create standards? also, disney is differnet than the rest of the world. so, can some people be disabled in disney cause its so much walking, and not disabled at home? who gets to decide?

I have a driver's license, a medical insurance card, a car insurance card, a birth certificate, and several other type legal documents stashed away in my purse.

Is it too much to ask that they issue medical cards to those with disabilities?


What do kids with disabilities do about getting around on an ECV? Do their parents drive them?

 

[KPeveler]

I have a driver's license, a medical insurance card, a car insurance card, a birth certificate, and several other type legal documents stashed away in my purse.

Is it too much to ask that they issue medical cards to those with disabilities?


What do kids with disabilities do about getting around on an ECV? Do their parents drive them?

kids cannot get ECVs. They must use a stroller, or have a motorized chair from home. parents cannot put kids on their laps when they drive, nor can a kid drive one.

Yes, it is too much to ask for a card regarding disability, because I want to know who would come up with the standards. for driving, you have certain laws set down on the books that you must follow. who sets the standards for disability? how disabled do you have to be? What is disabled? are there degrees, so different cards?

(p.s. some states require a card for certain things, like public transportation discounts for the diasabled. do you know how hard it is to get these? and if you cannot afford the right kind of dr to give you one, then you are out of luck.)

who will decide who is disabled enough for a scooter at disney? disney sure doesnt want to get into that.

 

[edcrbnsoul]

What do kids with disabilities do about getting around on an ECV? Do their parents drive them?

They push them in a stroller or a wheelchair depending on the size of the child.

 

[ogreenlee]

Well, I guess you have a point.


I don't want anyone denied that actually needs the ecv. (yes, i'm aware of the invisible illness)

i just wish there weren't so many in the parks.

maybe disney should create a lane for them, like the bike lanes in certain cities.

 

[kaytieeldr]

My favorite part is when they hit the gas and ran over the ankle thinking they were hitting the brake.

Gas? Brake? You ever LOOK at one? These parts don’t exist. All there is for control is a throttle. You hold the throttle, the ‘scooter’ moves. You release the throttle, it stops moving – taking into account reaction time of the rider, and the laws of motion.

Thanks Tissa for the lovely advice about getting out of the way. It is hard, most of these scooters are equipped with stronger faster motors than the Indy speed cars at MK so you jump out of the way of a moving car.

Well, the Indy cars are gas-operated and do/can not go over a certain speed. Surprise - the scooters, while battery-powered, also cannot go over a certain (slower) speed. The Disney-owned ones are permanently set on "turtle", while the off-site rentals and the ones owned by Guests operate at a range of speeds.

Thank you JW! I am just saying if someone got more seriously injured than me, who is responsible??

I would assume the driver that injured you.

Or, perhaps, the person who stepped into the path of a ‘scooter’ without paying attention.

They should bad the damn things. If you need help get a NON POWERED wheel chair.

So, you’re offering to push me in a wheelchair? Thanks! I’ll PM you my park-touring schedule so you know where to be, and when. While, yes, it’s possible for a person to propel themselves in a manual wheelchair, if you’re not used to it, it’s EXTREMELY difficult. Add in hills, ruts, curbs, rail tracks, and Guests who just don’t “see” you down there, and it’s miserable.

I think most people are missing the point. If Lebowski had a real problem he would not have aired it out here. It was meant as a

No, it wasn’t. Jokes are amusing. The original post wasn’t. It was critical and judgmental.

Use a non powered wheelchair or at the VERY least Disney should make people prove they have a very basic control of the EVCs before entering the parks.

Really? Then Disney also needs to make ALL Guests prove they have control of their senses and attitudes before entering the parks. And their wallets – but you know Disney would never do that

I just want to clear up a misconception.
Most EVC's really are not 1000+ pounds. (Although I am sure if your foot is run over by one it might feel that heavy.)

Yeah – I’ve run over my own foot while trying to maneuver an ECV in or out of the room. Now, granted, I wasn’t IN it – but it hurt, but on the other hand, that’s all it did was hurt. It didn’t break anything in my foot, it didn’t even bruise me. Also, no matter WHAT the weight, only 25% of it is accorded to any one wheel.