Space Mountain and a 5 Year Old

[LCoulter]

My 5 year old DD may be tall enough to ride Space Mountain on our next visit to WDW. I’ve been on this ride a couple of times many, many years ago and remember it being very jerky so I’m not planning to ride it again. DD does want to ride it with DH but I find myself worried about her being tossed around in the seat and am trying to remember what the ride vehicles are like.

If I am remembering correctly, she would be sitting in a seat in front of him? So he won’t be able to help hold her so that she doesn't jerk around? Is there a lap bar or belt? Is there something that she can hold onto to help keep herself from jerking around?

I know that on Splash Mountain, there is a handle on the back of the seat in front but that is actually too far away for her to grab onto unless she sits on the front edge of the seat without her back against the seat so that doesn’t work for her. With one of us sitting next to her, we are able to put an arm in front of her for the big drop to keep her from falling forward.

Are the hold handles so far in front of her on Space Mountain, that she won’t be able to reach them? Can she hold onto the sides of the vehicle?

Thanks.

Let me clarify…DD5 is a little daredevil and has been on BTMR, Splash, TOT and even Expedition Everest and loves them all. It’s just me worrying that she is in a seat by herself and is being jerked around so I’m worried she will get hurt. A friend of mine had her daughter on Splash and during the big drop, the little girl fell forward and smashed her teeth on the seat in front of her. I am worried about DD hitting her head from all the jerking. I remember SM being more jerky than any ride I have ever been on and was hoping that she had something to hold onto.

 

[meggiebeth]

I can't really remember the small details about Space Mountain, but our six year old was only just over the height limit and coped really well. She would have to sit in a seat infront of you, you remembered correctly. Our 6 y o loved it, it was only a little jerky. Then again he does really well on thrill rides- could even handle ToT.

I think Space Mountain is a great ride to start out on if she is not used to thrill rides. I find the drop at the end of Splash Mountain is more 'hairy' and thrilling than Space mountain.

I'm sorry I can't answer any of the technical questions, and ones about the handle bar but I'm sure someone else will be able too

 

[Hannathy]

If she is tall enough and wants to ride it she will be fine.
My 5 yr old rode it many times. At 5 they know to hold on. I honestly think SM isn't as jerky as a lot of the kiddie coasters at fairs and amusement parks that much younger children go on. Now those are jerky! (and kids aren't bothered by jerks as much as us older people)

Forgot to add that I also have tiny kids.

 

[Disneychix]

I would definalty recommend that your DD does NOT sit in the very front car/seat. That is the one spot that I think would be a problem a far as feeling like she would fall out/get whipped around a lot. There is a lap restraint on SP.

 

[Lisa71]

Ok, my DD is 6 and we live in DLR and she will not ride Space Mountain simply because it is dark. She loves many other roller coasters, but that is too much for her. I rode it first when I was 7 and had horrible dreams for weeks. I rode it 2 years later at 9 and was hooked. Every kid is differant and only that day can your DD decide. I took the very last exit a few times when I was 8 and not sure I was ready. I could ride anything that had light, but not the dark. Silly now, yes, but I think every kid is unique. I hope she does and loves it!

 

[nadira36]

I agree it depends no the child. At 5my DD wasn't tall enough for SM, but enjoyed BTMRR and SpM. She also enjoyed Dinosaur. But for all of those I was beside her. SM would have been a bit much based on how well she liked those other rides.

If she LOVED the other rides and was tall enough, then I'd say go for it. I was 6 or 7 when I rode SM for the first time, and I loved it - however I was also 10 before I could open my eyes on it. lol

Ultimately let her be the judge - if that means her and her dad bail at the cars, then so be it.

It is possible to hold onto the lap bar, but I don't recall there being handles specifically for holding onto. I do know it isn't as jerky for the kids just b/c the seat fits them 'better' however if she's tiny, then she'll still slide around in the seat even though she won't be jerked around.

 

[puffkin]

My DS is TALL....he has been riding it since 3.5...and riding RnR since just turned 5. The little kids don't whip/bounce around as much as the adults. He holds onto the lap bar (it is one of those big black ones that really pins you in) and does just fine.

Just beware that the cars are 1, 2, 3 big space 4, 5, 6. It is a pretty big stretch where the two cars connect. So I would not recommend having you be in seats 3 and 4. I also would not recommend seat 1 for a little kid/newbie. When the 3 of us ride we put DS in seats 2 or 5 and one of us sits in front the other in back....although he is absolutely fine on it now and doesn't really need us there for support.

 

[MSSANDRA]

I would want to know how she reacted to other rides before you put her on Space mountain. She will be safe..she can not get out.but.... I would ride Spash and BTMR with her and be sure she enjoys them and there is no fear or panic there before she goes on the on where no one can touch her. We did not encourage DS to ride Space on our last trip. Had he loved everything else and begged to ride it, I would have said ok, but he was a little unsure of the other mountains (though he was fine) and was not a fan of some of the dark rides at all.

 

[jdcthree]

If she did well with Expedition Everest, she will have no problem at all on Space Mountain. My son rode SM when he was 4 and I sat behind him and held his head slightly so it wouldn't jerk around. He did not appreciate it of course, and he would have been fine without my hands there to "protect" him, lol.

 

[nadira36]

the old Goofy's barnstormer was much more jerky and bumpy that SM - also agree that if she's done all the others and likes them, then relax - trust her to know what she wants. If she gets jerked a bit it'll be okay, she won't get hurt and she might have fun. If not it'll still be okay - you trusted her enough to try.

 

[bumbershoot]

Ok, my DD is 6 and we live in DLR and she will not ride Space Mountain simply because it is dark. She loves many other roller coasters, but that is too much for her. I rode it first when I was 7 and had horrible dreams for weeks. I rode it 2 years later at 9 and was hooked. Every kid is differant and only that day can your DD decide. I took the very last exit a few times when I was 8 and not sure I was ready. I could ride anything that had light, but not the dark. Silly now, yes, but I think every kid is unique. I hope she does and loves it!

FWIW, the Space Mountains at the two parks are night and day. Yes they are space themed, yes they are dark. Apart from that, they should be different rides. The cars are different, too. At DL you sit side-by-side. At MK it's more like DL's Splash, only with a t-bar (if I'm remembering my one terrifying, my kid's going to fly out and only my arm on his shoulder will keep him in, ride on it correctly) (lol, you should have seen the two of us riding Rip Ride Rockit at Universal Orlando last month! I bruised both of us "holding him in" ) Oh, and the height requirements are different (taller at MK)


OP, if you trust DH to see the ride vehicle and make a good decision about whether to take her on it, go for it. (with my own DH, while he is good in many ways, he does NOT do well under kid-caring pressure, and tends to freeze up) If he's more like my husband, why not go in line, see the vehicles, make the decision, and then take the "chicken" exit alone or with DD.


In our case on MK's Space, hubby and I nearly crawled out of the seats, in pain. And note, that doesn't happen often with us. At DisneyLAND, we ride Indy (a very jerky ride) in order to make our backs feel *better*! But Space at MK hurt us. While DS (6 at the time) jumped out and wanted to do it again and again. Only...without the mother-arm on his shoulder, LOL. Now I just send hubby and son in to ride while I people-watch outside.

 

[AliOops]

My son rode SpM for the first time at 4. He tried BTMR first which I personally find more jerky than SpM. Maybe your husband could take a "trial ride" first and then determine if he thinks it's too much movement for her or if the lap strap is not sufficient. We did that for a couple of the rides as it's not always easy to remember from a last trip and what was not acceptable before might be ok now. We utilized the baby swap for this, either me or husband rode alone first and then the next ride was mom or dad with DS, if he was riding. My concern was the dark as opposed to the movement but he loved it and rode it several more times during our trip. He sat in front of me and then my husband. He actually found EE more scarey, not because of speed or movement but the roaring shadowy sasquatch frightened him, for this reason we passed on Dinosaur after a mom "trial run". This trip he's big enough for everything, he turns 6 next week and is 49" tall, all he keeps talking about is RnR...we'll see!

 

[PiperPizzaz]

Ds has been riding since 4 y.o. I make him put his hand up and I sit behind him and hold his hand. He doesn't need it but, mama does.

He also rides with me on RnRC and holds my hand so I don't get scared.

 

[waltskids]

DS rode it for the first time when he was 4. He liked the coaster but didn't care for the noise. When I thought about it, his head may have been closer to the bottom speakers since he is shorter so maybe it was louder for him?? He liked the twists and turns he said. I sat behind him and kept reaching for his shoulder to be sure he was there! It was so dark so I couldn't see him. At the end he said 'why did you keep touching me?!'
BTW he also loves TT, BTMRR, TOT and Splash Mtn.

 

[tarin24u]

Back in 2000 my youngest was a very tiny 5yo. She was not tall enough to ride and we intended to switch-off. The CMs were assisting a handicapped rider and we foolishly let our daughter get on the ride. She was in front of me and behind my DH. Scared the life out of me. I was holding onto her shoulders the whole time. She still thinks it was the greatest thing ever but I was so upset that we did that. We got caught up in her excitement. We never did that again and we were so lucky that nothing happened. I think if your child is big enough and not afraid it's a great ride... just be sure they meet the requirements.

 

[Pinkprincessmom]

We are at Disney now. My 5 year old rode SpM today. He is right at the height limit. The lap bar is very secure, but my husband sat behind him and kept his hands on my son's shoulders. I always rise out of the seat and worried about that. But my 11 year old DD says she does not.

 

[kohlby]

At 3.5, my daughter loved BTMRR and Test Track. She did not like Tower of Terror, but was willing to try it. At 5.5, she hit the 44" mark, so she wanted to try Space Mountain. I explained the seats to her at home and she didn't want to do it then- until we got to the park. I sat in the seat in front of her. (I let her choose where she wanted me). About 3/4 of the way through the ride, she started crying and saying she wanted it to be over. I was able to talk to her loudly enough that she could hear me easily. The ride stopped and I told her she didn't have to do it again - we were doing rider swap and she could wait with me instead of going with Daddy. She then told me that know she knows of the super bumpy part so she wanted to do it again! It shocked me since she's a sensitive kid. She was no more than 40lbs and is slender and small boned. She did it again and now says that she really likes the ride!

*She did not try EE and I do think EE would have been too scary for her even though SM was fine. Another 44" ride is Mission Space - which she liked and was very calm on the green side. (She didn't want to try orange and since I get motion sickness easily, I wasn't going to encourage it!)

 

[LCoulter]

Thanks for all the replies. I think I will explain the ride to her and let her decide if she wants to go with DH.