Strict On Height Requirements?

[undertheradar]

When the CM wouldn't let my daughter on a ride, I turned around and walked away...no arguing, no comments about it. I knew she was doing her job and arguing is going to get me on the ride. It was the people in line behind me who were yelling...mostly because of how minor a difference it was.

As far as adding things to the shoes, how does it make a difference? 48" is 48" no matter which way you slice it. Compare two kids without shoes on. Kid one can be taller than kid two. But if kid two is wearing the right shoes, they may end up being taller than kid one. Don't you think disney takes these kinds of things into account? They do, otherwise you would be required to take your shoes off before getting on the ride. Adding a quarter inch in the shoes would be no different than (if it were possible) adding a quarter inch in the shins. There are many different body types out there and long legs are common in my family. Adding a quarter inch of stuff in shoes...or even a shoe insert for that matter, isn't going to make my kid fall out of a ride any easier than if they really were a quarter inch taller. Chances are when they really grow that extra quarter inch, it will be below the waist anyways. So the foot to hip measurement will be the same anyways. How is this a big deal? They are the proper height either way. 48" is 48".

Now I'm not saying run out and stuff your childrens shoes with stuff to make them taller, but don't call people foolish and other names for doing it. I would hope and agree that parents need to recognize if a child's body type is proper for a ride.

The real problem is that the ride restraint systems are designed for those heights as a minimum. When you stuff paper or whatever in shoes, you have not increased the the height of the trunk of the torso. You will see cms have children remove shoes and measure, it took place when we were there a month ago. Height is not the only factor, many of the restraints would not safely hold a smaller child. Take younger children on Soarin first and see how they react. Many are nervous about the feeling of falling and that would be a good test before Screamin. While it may not be much for older children and adults, smaller bodies "bounce" around more within the confines of the restraints. Wouldn't be a fun vacation if the young one is sore from the ride!

 

[sheenadb]

I am just wondering why the roller coasters have shorter requirements than the Indiana Jones ride. It seems like the Indiana Jones ride shouldn't be a problem for anyone so long as they have the strength to support their head in a jolty envirnment. It has a seatbelt, not a lap bar, so you can tighten it as much as needed. Any CMs out there that can explain this logic?

 

[EmmersIsTheMommy]

Sheenadb- It's rough. I wouldn't take a kid shorter than that on Indiana! I remember going when I was 12 and thinking it was REALLY jolty! (And I LOVE rough rides!)


As for the height thing. I wish they could do a band! That'd rock! I took my DD (2 at that time) who was the right height for matterhorn. I still, to this day, regret that I took her on it. She was above the requirement but there is NO WAY I would take a kid that age on it again. There are height requirements for a reason and I wouldn't cheat it. A ride isn't worth the safety of my kid. (Wish I'd ridden matterhorn to refresh my memory before I took my 2 year old on it).

 

[disneychrista]

Keep in mind that the height requirements are for your childs safety.

No ride is worth risky your child getting injured or worse.

 

[Sydnie]

They are super strict sometimes. We had the nicest family ahead of us on GRR and they waited an hour and 20 minutes to get on, only to have their child turned away at the ride (he had been cleared at the entrance by another CM) His hair literally touched the bottom of the plank (and it wasn't spiked!) but because the CM could pass a credit card between the plank and the child's head he wasn't allowed on. Everyone was chanting "Let him ride!" but after calling in another CM to measure the kid they still didn't let him. It was so sad for that little guy, though he was a trooper about it and the parents handled it well. I probably would have been a bit grumpy if it were my child who had waited 80 minutes.

 

[MenchieMan87]

Dr. Scholl's? What do I know, I was a tall kid who was way too scared to ride anything with a height limit.

 

[Disney Dreams]

Just a note that this thread is five years old. How do they surface to the top? LOL But yes, they are very strict on height. If there is a difference of one sheet of paper, they can turn you away.

- Dreams

 

[HappyHaunt]

Seeing as I'm not big on thrill rides, I'm always amazed at how small some kids are going on certain rides. My son was probably 10-11 years old before I started allowing him to go on TOT or Screamin. He was more then tall enough, but I just didn't see the need for him to be on rides that will probably make him feel more scared and sick then anything else. Yeah I know a lot of kids just end up loving them. But to me when they are small I just prefer things like Small World, Peter Pan, and Pirates.

He's 13 now, and way taller then me. I'm the one that needs to stuff my shoes he says. (not really) lol But when he was smaller the only issue we had was with Autopia, cause he wanted to drive himself. And once for Splash when they changed it for a certain height to be in the front. But I'd never stuff shoes or anything like that. They obviously have a good reason in saying no, and I'd follow their rules. Thankfully DL has A LOT of really fun stuff to do when your too short for the big rides. I'd much rather do those things anyway then just do things that make my stomach turn! But I know that's just me.

 

[skiingfast]

I am just wondering why the roller coasters have shorter requirements than the Indiana Jones ride. It seems like the Indiana Jones ride shouldn't be a problem for anyone so long as they have the strength to support their head in a jolty envirnment. It has a seatbelt, not a lap bar, so you can tighten it as much as needed. Any CMs out there that can explain this logic?

Since you brought this thread up from the dead let me answer you. Height is related to other measurement of your body. Seatbelts fit around your waist and have to fit properly. So they use hieght to figure out if your waist will work in a seatbelt.

The same is true for baby and toddler seats in cars. But on Indy they don't let you bring booster seats in. That would complicate things.

 

[MenchieMan87]

Just a note that this thread is five years old. How do they surface to the top? LOL

Haha! I'm sure the OP's kids are tall enough now!!

 

[TDC Nala]

Should probably note even on an old thread that with the child on Mission Space (WDW) his age had nothing to do with his death. He had an undiagnosed heart condition. Parents can decide if their four year old who is tall enough is mature enough to handle the orange (full ride) version, or they can try the green (non-spinning) version.

 

[yngsj]

Several years ago my daughter was like 47 3/4 of an inch. She wore a flip flop with a small heel on both days of our trip. On the first day is was very busy and she rode on everything, the next day when it was slower she was not allowed to ride on most and was very upset. It would of been easier to just wait til the next trip.

 

[SlpgBty]

Don't try to "cheat" the height limits. They are there for safety purposes. Trying to "sneak" your child onto a ride by adding a wedge to shoes is a foolish risk. People are hurt at theme parks everyday, why take a risk with your child? The cms have a hard enough time without "blaming "them when a child is not tall enough. Wait until your child is tall enough without having to "cheat" the system!

Agreed!

 

[EmmersIsTheMommy]

Baahahha I may have even commented on this on another go around. I wondered why this type of thread kept coming up! Same answers too. Do'h!

 

[cyclenut]

The short answer is that DLR is strict with the height requirement but as has been noted several times, it is with shoes.

Several years ago we took our DD with our new AP and went to DL. DD was able to ride several rides, including Star Tours. A couple months later when we went back, DD was suddenly "too short to ride". We queried the CM on this. DD looked tall enough to us. It was that close. But the CM insisted it was a safety issue. That sort of scared us as DD had previously ridden that SAME RIDE. I didn't argue but this really seemed arbitrary to me.

As we walked away I looked down and it was then that I noticed that DD was wearing SANDLES that day but sister was wearing shoes. They swapped shoes. DD walked right up and CM did the measurement and DD was allowed on.

Having thought about this I came to the realization that the height restrictions do allow for a margin of error. The ride is very likely "safe" for something like 45" or maybe even 40", but they set the limit at 48" because they know there are differences in things like shoes, height of the torso (some have long legs but short torso and visa-versa).

Bottom line, if a CM says your kid is too short to ride, they are too short to ride. If it is that close that a couple napkins in the shoes let them pass the requirement, there is not likely any real safety issue. It would be totally stupid for Disney to not include a margin of error in their requirements and Disney is NOT stupid. It is up to you, as a parent, to use your best judgement. If you get ON the ride and don't feel like your child is secure ... tell a CM immediately. They can try and fix it or you can get off the ride ... but you've got to do it quickly.

 

[helenb]

The good thing for us as parents is that when Disney says a height limit is (for example) 40", they mean 40". Unlike at our local Cedar Faire-owned park, where they will say that the height limit is 40", the 'bar' sign at the entrance to the ride will be 40", but then the 'sticks' that they use at the boarding area have rubber endcaps that actually make them 2"-3" higher than what the measurement says. Imagine having your child be taller than the sign at the entrance to an attraction, but then be shorter when measured with the stick at boarding. Yep, I've lived it, and it sucks. At least at Disney you get a consistent measurement the entire way through, so you actually *know* if you're close.