The Wet Rides and Kids

[beachdreamr1229]

I had a couple of questions about Splash Mountain and Grizzly River Run for you. My son is finally tall enough to ride either. We will be going sometime in the next week for a day-trip that we had to postpone from earlier this week. Anyway, I know it's been amazingly hot lately and I'd like to go on one or both of the "wet" rides and I'm wondering how kids tend to do on either of them. My son is 5 and he wants to try Splash Mountain, but he's not terribly brave. He gets so scared on BTMRR that he holds onto me for dear life and he even gets a little scared on RSR during the racing part. I'm a little concerned that he will not do well sitting in his own seat on Splash Mountain and that he'll panic and try to turn around and jump over the seat to grab me, which could be dangerous. I'm thinking Grizzly River Run would be the better choice since it doesn't really have any drops bigger than Pirates and he'll be strapped in right next to me, but since he wants to do Splash Mountain so badly, what do you all think? Will he be okay on Splash, or should I just tell him no?

 

[coaches24]

On splash Ask to sit in the last seat and you can sit next to him.

My DD is 6 and she liked the GRR but is scared of splash. We are in the parks now and just rode both of those this morning. DD would only ride splash if I was able to sit with her. She was all smiles on GRR.

 

[RobertaMomof2]

My son is 7 and he just went for his first ride on Splash a couple weeks ago. He LOVES rides but was scared a bit on Splash. There is an inside drop that you don't see coming and you are not strapped in so, it feels scary especially in the final big drop. That said, I did hold onto my son from behind him. We asked for the front two rows so I could scoot up and wrap my arms around my son during the drops and just kept one arm there during the ride for him to feel secure. My son told my daughter about me holding him ( my daughter hates drops and water ) and asked me to do the same thing for her (which I did) and it helped her a lot and she actually enjoyed the ride. I think at least for my kids the scary part is not being strapped in to the ride. There is a sense of safety with that, so maybe you could do what I did and he will be ok?

 

[beachdreamr1229]

Thanks. I think I will run it by him and see if he wants to try me holding him from the seat behind him. I had heard that using the back seat and sitting side by side was being discouraged and maybe even not allowed anymore, but we'll try that, too, if we can. I appreciate the advice!

 

[Comicbookmommy]

My 5 y/o won't go on either, haha. He's afraid of EVERYTHING. That said it depends on if he's more afraid of getting wet, or the drops. Grizzly is by far the wetter ride. Splash he could sit behind you and avoid most of the wetness.

Splash may have the giant drop, but there's two smaller drops before it that will help "prepare" him for the bigger one. Grizzly's drops are smaller, but the overall ride is more jarring than the slow Splash as you're whipped over rapids in some parts.

I might choose Splash if I could get my son on it!

 

[coaches24]

Thanks. I think I will run it by him and see if he wants to try me holding him from the seat behind him. I had heard that using the back seat and sitting side by side was being discouraged and maybe even not allowed anymore, but we'll try that, too, if we can. I appreciate the advice!

One person in our group is a CM (off day today) and she works splash and said she hasn't heard anything about discouraging people to ride side by side in the back.

The CMs that were working the ride saw my DD and said "who's riding in the back with her". I didn't even have to ask.

 

[Aladora]

My son hates Splash (so do I for that matter!) but he likes GRR.

 

[GatorChris]

The drop on GRR seems just as daring because you're spinning on the way down. Plus, you have a lot more wet potential on GRR. A LOT MORE! To me, Splash Mt is like a right of passage. It's not like a drop at Six Flags or a park like that. 50ft is all. It's the gateway-drug to all other coasters.

 

[bellanapoli]

The theming might be a bit frightening on Splash vice GRR. My son is 9 now but when he was 6 or 7 we took him on Splash Mountain for the first time. The logs got jammed and we were stuck for a while on the ride. Where did we get stuck? Right before the incline and drop. Right when the storyline gets dark and spooky. We were there for minutes and the poor kid was terrified.

It retrospect, it's pretty hilarious. The photo from the ride is of him in tears because once it started moving again he just wanted off. (We bought it and it hangs proudly on our fridge.)

GRR doesn't really have a storyline so it may be better. It's the theming that tends to spook my son more. So, that's something to keep in mind.

 

[bumbershoot]

I had heard that using the back seat and sitting side by side was being discouraged and maybe even not allowed anymore

Where have you read that? Doesn't make sense; the back is easily 2 people wide (not two big people, but an adult and a child). As far as I'm concerned, that's what it's for.


Grizzly is long and bouncy and you spin around and never know if you'll be going down a hill forwards, backwards, or sideways. While I do NOT recommend watching Splash's drop before going on it (it's so different to look at vs experience), I do recommend watching Grizzly so that people know that there is no way to determine who will go down that last drop backwards, or who will end up wet. Also a great way to see HOW wet people can end up.


Bring a new set of clothes from top to bottom including unders, so that there's no uncomfortableness or chafing later on.

 

[momtohms]

My oldest (5, but turned 6 on the trip) and middle (4 1/2) year old daughters both rode Splash and loved it - even my middle daughter who was in tears after Space Mountain and RSR and claimed she didn't want to ride any more "big" rides enjoyed it. We were all in the back row of our log (the CM put MDD and myself side by side in the back and the ODD was in the seat in front of us - right after the ride started she jumped up and climbed back to sit with her sister and I. I didn't want her to get up again to move back unless they asked her to but they didn't stop the ride to make her move I let her stay) and we hardly got wet at all.

My oldest also rode GRR with me, I had ponchos just in case and she insisted on wearing them and that I wear mine too. It ended up being a good thing since we were on either side of the opening of our raft and got quite a lot of water on us even while wearing ponchos. It didn't seem like the people who were sitting more towards the middle of the raft got as wet as those of us on the edges though. She really enjoyed it, probably more so than Splash!

 

[momtohms]

Where have you read that? Doesn't make sense; the back is easily 2 people wide (not two big people, but an adult and a child). As far as I'm concerned, that's what it's for.

They put my 4 1/2 year old with me in the back row and we had more than enough room. My 6 year old moved back to sit with us right before we went up the first hill and even with 3 of us back there it wasn't a tight squeeze.

 

[DisneyJamieCA]

Thanks. I think I will run it by him and see if he wants to try me holding him from the seat behind him. I had heard that using the back seat and sitting side by side was being discouraged and maybe even not allowed anymore, but we'll try that, too, if we can. I appreciate the advice!

As others have said, where ever you heard this information, it's incorrect. I always sit back there with my 4 year old - it's the only way she'll do the ride. If your son is more comfortable with it, definitely do it this way.

They put my 4 1/2 year old with me in the back row and we had more than enough room. My 6 year old moved back to sit with us right before we went up the first hill and even with 3 of us back there it wasn't a tight squeeze.

I'm confused - your 6 yr old moved back there DURING the ride? And you sat 3 across?

 

[beachdreamr1229]

Thanks, everyone! A friend who had gone told me about the back seat thing and obviously she was mistaken. I think that will work out well for us. Can't wait!

 

[momtohms]

As others have said, where ever you heard this information, it's incorrect. I always sit back there with my 4 year old - it's the only way she'll do the ride. If your son is more comfortable with it, definitely do it this way.




I'm confused - your 6 yr old moved back there DURING the ride? And you sat 3 across?

Yep. I was pointing something out to my 4 1/2 year old and right at start of the ride ODD got out of her seat and sat on the other side of me before I could stop her. We were still in view of CMs, and in a place they could've stopped the ride to move her back but I didn't want her to get up again. I definitely did not condone it or encourage it, but I knew they would have asked her to sit back in her own seat had they seen (which with all the cameras, I'm assuming they would) or if they had an issue with it. If we weren't about to go up the first big hill I would've moved her back but I felt it was safer to just let her be unless we were told otherwise