When I did orange team mission space...

[agavegirl1]

I'm thinking 5 or 6. He loves it now. In fact, I don't think he's scared of any ride (he's 14). The next thing he wants to do is sky dive!

He should ride Falcon's Fury at Busch Gardens Tampa...feels just like falling toward the earth face forward.

 

[MeganMango]

OP, based on your description, I have to agree it was really inappropriate and callous for that mom to force her child on that ride. Particularly as he had already done the green option and asked to not go again. My DS has an anxiety disorder. He also, we discovered through daily life, going to smaller carnvials, Ren fairs, etc. loves fast rides, rides that spin, etc. Knowing these things, when at WDW, we slowly worked him up to things we knew he would like if he would just give them chance. Our one unknown, a few years ago, was Space Mountain (there are some knowns - TOT, Mission Space Orange will never happen unless he actually says he wants to do them). We though he would like it, but we were actually unsure. He decided to do it and, though he was scared, there was no panic attack. We went on the whole time I'm thinking to myself, this was a mistake, this was a mistake! Ride ends, we get off, first thing out of his mouth, "That was AWESOME!" It's legend in our family!

That being said, Mission Space Orange is a whole other ballgame. With reports of people feeling sick afterward and really, physically not being able to take it, there is absolutely no way I would do a "let's try it!" on that one.

That's EXACTLY what I mean! I honestly do not understand the comparisons to "I forced my child to go on splash mountain" to mission space orange team. There are no singing animatronics on mission space MORE INTENSE. I have a high tolerance for thrill. This is a thrill ride, but splash mountain, even tower of terror, it is not hard to breathe on. Mission space more intense team mixed with an anxiety attack seems like a whole other ballgame.

 

[MeganMango]

And for the record, I don't want to seem like I would be an overprotective parent when I have kids. If I'm paying that much to take my kids on vacation, you bet they'll be trying new things even if they're scared.

But I would never take my child on the more intense team of mission space knowing that while it is a ride, this IS a ride where something could physically go wrong. A 4 year old boy died on the ride and the ride warns about chest pain. Mission space orange mixed with an anxiety attack is not something I would mess with.

I don't think splash mountain, space mountain, or even tower of terror are on the same levels of comparison.

 

[aretha30]

I've made my boys (within reason) try rides once but if they don't like them they don't have to ride them again. Our 8 yr old hates roller coasters, the first year he was tall enough he tried everything he could (everything but RnR). He said I'll ride them once to see if I like them, he said he kinda liked them but said he didn't want to do them again. Each trip we ask him if he wants to go on them again. He tells us no, we're okay with that. He loves Splash and will ride that but anything that has speed and drops is pretty much out for him. There have been times that he has agreed to go on something again and we've gotten to the front and he's said nope I don't want to go on, he and I take the chicken exit while my DH and 13 yr old ride.
As to the mom who forced her child to ride while screaming and crying, that is wrong. Just plain wrong, if my boys were panicking I'd pull them off the ride and and try to calm them. How can you sit there while your child is having a full blown panic attack? Their health and well being is more important.

 

[MeganMango]

I've made my boys (within reason) try rides once but if they don't like them they don't have to ride them again. ....
As to the mom who forced her child to ride while screaming and crying, that is wrong. Just plain wrong, if my boys were panicking I'd pull them off the ride and and try to calm them. How can you sit there while your child is having a full blown panic attack? Their health and well being is more important.

That's how I feel. I do not have my own kids yet, but as a full time nanny to four (young, toddler age) kids, my heart broke for the young kid. But I felt anger towards the mom because she put his health at risk and is LUCKY something bad did not happen. Drag your kid on splash, space mountain, the less intense team of mission space, maybe even tower of terror. I just feel like dragging him on the more intense team of mission space is cruel when he was clearly having a major panic attack. Coming from someone who has a high thrill tolerance, I've never done anything like that ride before and it truly takes your breath away and it is hard to breathe even when you're calm.

 

[mellyf]

Part of the problem with WDW rides is that many of them cannot be seen before boarding so kids don't know what they're getting into. My parents never made me ride anything "just once" as a kid...and now I ride everything.

As for the kids panicking in line. I won't get on a car with a family or into the stretching room etc if their kids are having a freak out. I will politely ask to wait for the next one. The problem I have is parents who LIE to get their kid on a ride. Telling them it's not dark/scary/fast etc when it is. Not cool.

Totally agree. My husband and I were in line for Dinosaur a few years. Also in line were three adults w/ a small child, I'm guessing 3 or 4. He kept asking if it was scary (he was obviously petrified), and they told him no, and to stop being a baby. They mentioned several times to each other to not use the word "ride" because he would freak out, so I got the impression they'd taken him on other rides where he got scared. I was really uncomfortable because even though I like the ride, it's dark, it's loud, and could be terrifying to a little kid (and maybe some not so little kids).

 

[aretha30]

That's how I feel. I do not have my own kids yet, but as a full time nanny to four (young, toddler age) kids, my heart broke for the young kid. But I felt anger towards the mom because she put his health at risk and is LUCKY something bad did not happen. Drag your kid on splash, space mountain, the less intense team of mission space, maybe even tower of terror. I just feel like dragging him on the more intense team of mission space is cruel when he was clearly having a major panic attack. Coming from someone who has a high thrill tolerance, I've never done anything like that ride before and it truly takes your breath away and it is hard to breathe even when you're calm.

Exactly! Our 8 yr old has anxiety (like I said before he hates coasters, really anything with drops and speed) and has asked to ride mission space in August. My DH has said yes, let him try it but I vetoed it. I can see the ride sending him into a full blown panic attack. I rode it once (before there was two versions) and I will NEVER get on it again! I know if it makes me feel this way it will make him feel this way. How a parent can do that to their child, makes me sick just thinking about it.

 

[DantePD]

Wow. I guess they had a different perspective!! I see a LOT of little kids on that ride.

Takes all kinds. Last time we went, my brother and I described ToT to my niece in graphic detail to make sure she knew what it was before she decided to get on it.

Lemme tell you, you haven't lived until you've seen your five year old niece look at the ToT and say "Hell yeah"

 

[jennc27]

My youngest DS10 has flipped out in lines before. The strange thing is with him is he freaks out in line but loves the ride. When he was younger and would ride small kiddie rides (that goes in a circle and never leaves the ground) he would cry and hold on to me. The second he is in the vehicle he is all smiles, yelling how much he loves the ride, and very happy. Once he is out of the vehicle he is crying and holding on to me again. I have had other parents in the line say things to me and I would explain. After the ride they said they could not believe it was the same child.

Last summer we went to Universal and he worked up the nerve to try the Forbidden Journey. He did great all through the line but the moment we went to get on the ride he really freaked out. I mean grabbing railings (soft red rope), kicking, and screaming. The staff there was awesome. They moved the railings and opened a door and my DH grabbed DS and hauled him into the switch rider room while DS15 and I rode. A couple of days later (after much talking and watching videos of the ride) he decided to try again. He actually rode it and the first thing he said was "I am so mad that I have missed the first two days of the trip not riding it. It was awesome!"

He still does not like roller coasters but loved all the non-roller coaster rides at Universal. I can not wait to take them back to Disney. They were only 8 and 3 at the time. He has already told me he will not ride Dinosaur or Rock'N Roll Coaster but he is still thinking about TOT. lol Now my DS15 loves all types of rides and they can not go fast enough or tall enough for him.

 

[buzznina]

OMG - my DD13 would have freaked out even worse! We had just the opposite happen with a CM there, though. My daughter was nervous, and I was trying to convince her it wasn't that bad. I asked the CM and she told her "It's not scary at all, don't worry", all sweet and everything. It didn't go well, and I will never make my DD go on another ride she doesn't want to. She was 11 when we went on it, not little, maybe old enough to know better I don't know. I just remember looking at her at one point, and she looked like she was gonna lose it. The picture was priceless, she was pale as a ghost and glistening with sweat - we could see it in the photo! And she had a death grip on me and my DH's arms. I felt terrible!

Yep, and once they here it's fine and it really isn't(like that father on TOT), how can they trust him on the next ride. Gentle persuading or bribing is one thing, but out right lying to get them on a ride is, IMO, just wrong.

 

[MeganMango]

Exactly! Our 8 yr old has anxiety (like I said before he hates coasters, really anything with drops and speed) and has asked to ride mission space in August. My DH has said yes, let him try it but I vetoed it. I can see the ride sending him into a full blown panic attack. I rode it once (before there was two versions) and I will NEVER get on it again! I know if it makes me feel this way it will make him feel this way. How a parent can do that to their child, makes me sick just thinking about it.

Exactly!!! Felt so bad for that kid! And hope the mom knows just how lucky she was nothing happened to him.

 

[Missyrose]

I was a ride scaredy cat as a kid. At 4, my dad told me Big Thunder was just a train ride. I spent the whole ride screaming "this isn't a train ride!" We get off the ride and he says, "did you like it." And I screamed "yes."

And then we rode it three more times in a row. BTM remains my favorite Disney attraction.

It made for a fantastic story to tell Tony Baxter when we met him at the D23 Expo last year.

 

[Mistoran]

I have a big problem with parents who force their terrified children to go on rides. We were just in Disney at the end of June and saw the cast members at Soarin have to force a parent to remove a screaming child before the ride started, because the parents wouldn't do it. I was one of those terrified kids myself, and now that I'm a parent I can't imagine forcing your child to do something they're terrified of, regardless of if they'll "probably enjoy it" or not.