Roller coaster advice, anyone ?

[rosebud's mom]

This trip we're taking my teenage daughter's boyfriend with us. He has a fear of heights, and says he won't ride the coasters. His only experience with them in the past is the standard amusement park kind. We've been trying to explain to him just how much more than a thrill ride the Disney coasters are, but he's still not sure.

Any advice ?

 

[Lynx04]

well both RnR and Space mountain are in the dark, you can't see the ground. RnR doesn't even have a lift hill, it launches your car using LSM. Majority of the attractions are indoors and he can't see what is instore, so you can pretty much tell him anything and he won't know until he goes on it.

 

[barnum42]

Good call from Lynx.

Even Thunder Mountain may be OK as unlike traditional rollercoasters you cant see through the structure to the ground.

Mind you, it all depends on how strong his fear is. If he is just uncomfortable then go for it, but if he is full on phobic, sweating palms and shaking with fear then best keep both feet on the ground.

 

[Lynx04]

after you get him to go on one of the rides he will probably say one of three things.

1) That was scary and I am never goin on that again.

2) That was great lets go on it again

3) That was great lets go on it again after I clean my shorts.

Most likely it will probably be two that he says, unless he really has a problem with rides. Disney does a great job building anticipation while standing in line, so if he start bugging in the line just tell him it is normal that is one of the things disney does best. Also, if he happens to say number three try not to laugh.

 

[rosebud's mom]

Yeah, 3 would be pretty funny ! Actually, we plan on springing a few surprises on him as a sort of initiation into the family. He's never been to Disney before, so we will set him up in every way we can. Like having him ask for the ketchup at the Whispering Canyon.....

 

[barnum42]

Yeah, 3 would be pretty funny ! Actually, we plan on springing a few surprises on him as a sort of initiation into the family. He's never been to Disney before, so we will set him up in every way we can. Like having him ask for the ketchup at the Whispering Canyon.....

MMmmwwaaa haaaa haaa :drevil:

 

[waltdisny]

Start with Goofys barnstormer. Gentile and quick. Then move to Big Thunder. If he can handle that, move on to RnRC and Splash. Personally, I'd avoid Space and Triceratops Spin (due to the roughness) until you're sure he's ready.

 

[meatloafsfan]

This may sound a little dumb but, if you are planning on going on Peter Pan's Flight, you may want to warn him ahead of time that the Ship "flys". My dad does not do heights and freaked out and nearly jumped out of the ship.

 

[joel_maxwell]

2) That was great lets go on it again

that is what i said when i was a tike and was scared to ride. have never looked back....................... well, i just regret i missed one year of height requirment being scared. 20+ years later i still get mad i was being so silly. lol

my first coaster was BTM and the second was SM.

 

[imagineer99]

I love Disney coasters...but none of them to me are scary.

As others have mentioned, it's the anticipation that is the most jarring. If you can get past the wait, the actual experience truly isn't that bad.

Even Rock 'N' Rollercoaster isn't that bad. Besides the launch, there are very few extended drops.

The ride with the most physical scare factor is definitely ToT. Then again, that is the best ride Disney has ever created....

 

[Nicole]

I'm way afraid of heights too, and riding Splash at DL about 10 years ago literally about did me in. But BTMRR isn't "high" so that one's fine for me. My request would be that you don't trick him into riding anything. Let him decide. Since I also suffer from motion sickness there are several rides at WDW that I can't do - and yet I still have a fabulous time and start planning my next trip on the drive home. Disney is about so much more than thrill rides!!

 

[Yellow Shoes]

I do not like heights. I do not like falling from heights.

However, spinning and roughness is fine with me--bring on the teacups, Mission: Space and the simulators!

It really is important to understand what exactly the fear is of.

Goofy's Barnstormer is really fun, although if he is tall the seats will be snug.

Of the Mountains, I think Big Thunder is the least threatening. The drops are fairly small and the there is lots to look at.

Space has more side to side roughness than big drops, although there are a few.

The drop on Splash Mountain is totally intimidating to someone afraid of heights. Don't even suggest it.

I did NOT like Rock 'n Rollercoaster. I knew when it was upside down, and it wasn't pleasant for me.

Of course, Tower of Terror is out of the question.

Above all, be understanding and do NOT try to humiliate him into riding--he'll resent it. Also do NOT lie and say that there isn't a drop on ToT.

And remember--your vacation will not be ruined if he sits out a ride or two.

 

[brich]

I am terrified of heights!! Big Time. There is nothing in any of the Disney parks that bother me though, including Tower of Terror. Don't get me wrong, Tower is scary but it's brief so I don't get all worked up. I look out the window for a second and realize, wow, this is high, and then you drop. He may want to skip Tower. As for the coasters, I think he'll be fine on all of them. Good call on Peter Pan. That has a few areas that do seem a bit high. And for some reason, the end of Spaceship Earth sometimes makes me feel funny. NO COMMENTS PLEASE. Even though I'm going backwards.

 

[barnum42]

And remember--your vacation will not be ruined if he sits out a ride or two.

Don't forget, even if he does not want to ride he can still queue with you and see any pre-shows to a ride as they all have bypass doors. That way, if you still want to stay together you can.

 

[phlydude]

I was in the same boat with my wife's (the gf's) family. It was either ride or wait an hour for them to come off the ride. I chose to ride with them. I never looked back.

My brother this past year, he hates rides, hated flying but went on every single ride in the MK that was height and roller coaster saying "that wasn't bad at all!!"
He enjoyed himself and maybe the fear left him a bit (or maybe he didn't want to act like a wuss in front of my brother-in-law who is the same age as him)

 

[nibblesandbits]

I used to hate roller coasters. I mean I was absolutely terrified of them. You couldn't get me on one know matter how much you tried. So my suggestion is to not push him to ride. I absolutely hated when people did that. If I didn't want to ride, that was my own business. Just let him know that it's ok if he doesn't ride. He should definitely walk with you in the line though. There is so much to see. Maybe once he does that, he'll get up the courage to ride the ride.

(By the way, now I love roller coasters, so long as they don't go backwards. I can't wait to ride RnRC when I go back in May, since I've never done it before! That's not to say I'm not apprehensive about it...lol)

 

[fudwrapper]

I was the same way before I went to WDW. I'd only been on coasters at Cedar Point, and I hated them. It took a lot to get me on RNRC, but after I did I got right back in line. Disney coasters are completely different. Space Mountain is still a little rough, but he'll be fine. Force him to go, he won't be disappointed or scared!

 

[Nemmy]

My first coaster was a "newly" opened Vekoma boomerang at Six Flags Over Texas called Flashback...UGH! The first of 536...at least Vekoma wasn't so rough back then.

My advice: go onto RCDB and show him the stats for coasters like Space Mountain where it says that they're 28 miles per hour. I drove three times that amount driving up to WDW (but don't tell anyone! ). What I like to do is talk to people during rides, tell them what's coming up if they're scared...it helps.

 

[dandaman]

For some reason, I never get worried when I can't see the lift hill or main structure of a roller coaster. My first roller coaster ever was RnRC, and I loved it! Plus, if that's the most extreme roller coaster there, he should try the others... of course, it all depends, you never know what will push his buttons too far...

 

[Nemmy]

RnRC was a bit too rough for my liking (but what can you expect from Vekoma). You might start with Space Mountain, but that's pretty rough, too. I nearly lost the camera, even though I had it around my neck. A good starting coaster is RotM. There's one pop of airtime, some nice speed, a "training launch", theming, curves, an on-ride photo, and other stuff. It's a good, rounded-off coaster. I remember that a lot of kids in Zach's grade came over their coaster fear on the field trip by riding Mummy.