This brings up an interesting dilemma.
Disneyland has multiple rides without restraints- Splash Mountain, Pirates, Small World are a few- each of which someone could get seriously injured for getting out of the vehicle.
I always assumed (perhaps incorrectly) that the lap bar on Space Mountain or any ride was there to prevent you from flying out of the ride on a hill or bump. Space Mountain's have done that just fine since this iteration of the ride opened in '05.
So the question is- are restraints there to prevent someone from hurting themselves by preventing them from forcing themselves out of the ride vehicle at all costs? Or are they there as a safety precaution to keep willing passengers safe during the ride.
I'd argue that it's not up to Disney to design a ride vehicle that's 100% impossible to intentionally wiggle out of.
It's Disney's responsibility to design a ride system that keeps passengers safe from any hazard the ride my have- not to keep the passenger safe from themselves.
If a child or a person with mental disabilities poses a risk to themselves from riding the ride, it's up to their respective guardians to not allow them on the ride. In the case of small children, the guardian should be monitoring them during the experience to ensure they aren't doing anything stupid.
In this specific case, this person's friends should have been monitoring him if his mental condition prevents him from watching out for himself.
OK, why do the Doom Buggies have a bar that comes down? Of course, to keep you from getting out mid-ride.
The Fantasyland Rides and Pooh, Roger Rabbit....
Roller Coaster restraints are designed to match the specific ride, and what it does. For example, Gadget Go Coaster use the G forces and gravity to keep you in, and the lap bar is there to keep you in a seated position. In reality, Space Mountain is the same basic design.
Lets go to Knott's and its newest, HangTime. It has a seatbelt and then a leg/lap restraint, which is another common type. I like to freak people out, and I totally relax go up the 90 degree lift hill. This cause my head to move 6 inches or more above the head restraints. In reality, the seat belt keeps me from going anywhere. But during the ride, the lap bar is the main restraint, with the seatbelt as a secondary safety measure.
As for Splash Mountain, the State requires a CM to sit at the bottom of the large lift hill to insure that guests remains in the log.
Pirates is designed to have safety zones for mid-ride unloading, this is where the boat gets close to the edge of the flume. These zones have sensors on the platform, and camera monitors.
Captain EO used a moving platform where all the seating was. A group of CM's job was to insure everyone was seated and away from the edge. Then during the ride, if they noticed someone leaving their seat, an emergency stop happened, and everything came to a halt.
In reality, many Thrill Rides are designed to look a lot more dangerous than the safe rides they are. One is a roller coaster whose initial drop goes into an underground tunnel. You swear the tunnel isn't tall enough to go through without your head hitting the ceiling. But there is plenty of head (and raised hands) room. A long time ago, during a Matterhorn refurb, you could see the large wooden cutout that was placed on a train and then hand rolled on the tracks to verify there was enough space, and if any rock work had to be removed.
In this case, the state will detiremine if Disney could have done anything to prevent this outcome from happening, or if this was an extraordinary event where the guests did something you couldn't expect to happen. And since none of us have all the facts, who knows?
In fact, the State inspectors won't have them either. They will read all the reports from the guests and CM's, review all videos available. Inspect the vehicle to discover any type of flaw/mechanical failure, and try to recreate what happened. So just like Instant Replay in Football, You get the Call Confirmed or Overturned where they can make a true decision. But you have a third outcome, the call stands. In this case, they couldn't make a firm decision based on the evidence they have. That might happen here.
But in this case, The State will default not to the original call made by the refs, but will default to safety. So the state might order modifications to the attraction, or maybe to CM procedures (such as placing a CM at the safety platform to insure this doesn't happen again, maybe just more cameras and a sensor pad placed on the platform.
A lot of modifications were made to Big Thunder after its tragic accident as required by the state. In fact, a State rule (and became a national standard) is now to run a train empty at least once a full cycle before allowing guests to board. I was surprised to find out that Disney wasn't doing it, as it was required by other parks. But since maintenance is performed based on ride cycles, money is saved the less times a train is run. Quite a few things I reported on were safety issues that CM's felt needed attention back in prior administrations. So yes, I was given very detailed information about the issues, which I then had to turn into slightly vague articles that put pressure on management to make the changes due to public pressure. And trust me, it made me a Hero to some, and a Devil to others. I got word about what was being said about me in the Banana Building, and from some Fan sites and Disney Spinners, Ironically, one of my fans most of the time was the head of the DLR PR department. He knew the value of using media, and the emerging Social Media, and what I was doing behind his back. So long as it was done to force actions that nobody inside the park could make happen, and was truly an attempt to make things better, well, let the outsider do it.
Sometime in February, my new role will be unveiled, something very visible, and something I have avoided. But sooner or later, you need to move from behind the scenes to being in the spotlight. I sat down with my lovely wife Lisa, a person who has been on the ride from early on, tonight to discuss the fact I wanted her permission to accept the opportunity, one that will have her be by my side at many public events. So it had to be a joint decision.
Sorry I went off track at the end, but my cryptic words are meant for the long termers here.
Need to head to bed, night all.
