Dear Prudence
Well-Known Member
I am pretty sure a drop like that should have some kind of safety restraints, but I must say, folks have died on Matterhorn and Matterhorn and not Splash (*knocks on wood*), so who knows.
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Tiana's Bayou Adventure: Disneyland Watch & Discussion
- Thread starter Californian Elitist
- Start date
Well technically someone died on Splash but they got out of the boat, hence the need for safety restraints
SuddenStorm
Well-Known Member
I'm not aware of any deaths on Splash Mountain.
Splash also isn't anywhere on this list of incidents at Disneyland- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_incidents_at_Disneyland_Resort
SuddenStorm
Well-Known Member
In this case, I'm gonna trust 30 years of no deaths and assume Splash Mountain is perfectly safe.
I'm also gonna trust Disney's lawyers, who I assume know very well what the risks are, as well as the 100+ times I've ridden the ride in the last three years (and probably 200 or so rides in my life), with my hands up on that drop almost every time.
It's worth noting that while people do sometimes sustain minor injury on Splash Mountain, Space Mountain is the #1 ride people get injured on at Disneyland and it has metal lap bars- which makes me believe that a seat belt wouldn't be a determining factor in whether someone gets injured on a Disneyland ride.
Jury says Splash Mountain accident not substantial factor in injury
Disneyland was negligent in an accident involving the Splash Mountain ride, but the incident was not a substantial factor in the injury of a rider who sued, a jury has found.
www.latimes.com
Professortango1
Well-Known Member
I like the zippiness and log-style aesthetic vs the slower boat-like other versions. Plus, to fit the wider boats, they would need to replace the entire flume and reduce the track length to allow for the increased horizontal space necessary. And I'm pretty sure that it would require a complete rebuild of the final lift hill/mountain. So...I don't think we'll ever see boats instead of logs at DLR.
Disney Irish
Premium Member
Like I said not a popular opinion. There were rumors at one time during a very long refurb a number of years ago that Disney considered switching to the WDW style boats, but decided against it at the time.
Since this is a complete retheme it might be possible they decide to do some remodeling as well. Who knows, you're probably right, but a guy can dream.
PiratesMansion
Well-Known Member
A restraint on Splash Mountain is unnecessary because guests aren't being forced out of their seats by the drop-gravity more than suffices in this case to keep guests inside the ride vehicle assuming they aren't doing anything they shouldn't be.
It's also worth noting that Splash Mountain is a log flume, and the only log flumes I can think of that have restraints are at parks operated by Disney and Universal-but you can go to Six Flags parks, Knott's, Busch Gardens, or anywhere else and you'll see them without restraints of any kind. That's not because those other parks are deficient in safety-it's because those parks are operating the rides the way they are intended to be operated. Log Flumes just don't generate sufficient negative-g forces (the g-forces that push you out of your seat) to need them.
Even most older roller coasters work under the principle that gravity is the primary restraint and any lap bar or seat belt is secondary, a "just in case" measure. Those attractions were and remain perfectly safe if the rider is riding the attraction as they are supposed to be. It wasn't until later, from sometime in the nineties, that coasters or other attractions were designed with much higher levels of airtime that truly necessitated strict, tightly-fitting lap bars/restraints for safety.
But that lack of restraints on log flumes can invite poor guest decision making and/or psychological feelings of being unsafe, which is also why Cedar Fair has removed log flumes at many parks they operate (California's Great America, Carowinds, Valleyfair, Cedar Point, and so on), even though people love log flumes-the company is paranoid about people getting out of the boats when they're not supposed to. When Cedar Fair did build a "modern" log flume-Shoot the Rapids at Cedar Point-that had lap bars installed from day one at their insistence, there was an accident where a boat rolled back off a lift hill and flipped over with riders on board and restrained. It's a miracle nobody was killed. Although that's not the only reason that attraction is no longer operating, it certainly didn't help prolong that ride's future.
So for rides designed in the era of Splash Mountain and before, if guests are riding the attractions as designed, there's rarely a problem. And there's precedent showing that attempts to correct that can bring more harm than good in an actual emergency.
It was Orlando's Splash a man died on.
Dear Prudence
Well-Known Member
I agree. And, to be honest, I've gotten more injured from being evacuated on rides than ever on them. (Again, *knocks wood*)In this case, I'm gonna trust 30 years of no deaths and assume Splash Mountain is perfectly safe.
I'm also gonna trust Disney's lawyers, who I assume know very well what the risks are, as well as the 100+ times I've ridden the ride in the last three years (and probably 200 or so rides in my life), with my hands up on that drop almost every time.
It's worth noting that while people do sometimes sustain minor injury on Splash Mountain, Space Mountain is the #1 ride people get injured on at Disneyland and it has metal lap bars- which makes me believe that a seat belt wouldn't be a determining factor in whether someone gets injured on a Disneyland ride.
Jury says Splash Mountain accident not substantial factor in injury
Disneyland was negligent in an accident involving the Splash Mountain ride, but the incident was not a substantial factor in the injury of a rider who sued, a jury has found.
From the above LA Times article:
The accident was one of 60 injuries on Splash Mountain from 2007 to 2012, ranking it among the top Southern California theme park rides in total injuries, according to a Times analysis of accident reports filed with the state Department of Industrial Relations.
Space Mountain at Disneyland led all rides with 120 injuries in the time period, followed by Ghost Rider at Knott’s Berry Farm with 92 and California Screamin’ at Disney California Adventure Park with 76, according to the reports.
The accident was one of 60 injuries on Splash Mountain from 2007 to 2012, ranking it among the top Southern California theme park rides in total injuries, according to a Times analysis of accident reports filed with the state Department of Industrial Relations.
Space Mountain at Disneyland led all rides with 120 injuries in the time period, followed by Ghost Rider at Knott’s Berry Farm with 92 and California Screamin’ at Disney California Adventure Park with 76, according to the reports.
Dear Prudence
Well-Known Member
The old version of the logs really injured people because they got so knocked around. Also having people sit in your lap was the worst.
Dear Prudence
Well-Known Member
They already flat out said they weren't going to change the track layouts for either park..here's hoping they at least fix some of the rotting.
mickEblu
Well-Known Member
They already flat out said they weren't going to change the track layouts for either park..here's hoping they at least fix some of the rotting.
The one thing I’m happy about. They re not changing the logs or track layout.
SuddenStorm
Well-Known Member
I think every date that's gone to Disneyland would disagree, haha!
Brer Oswald
Well-Known Member
But they are changing the logs. They are removing the racist bunny.
mickEblu
Well-Known Member
Dear Prudence
Well-Known Member
ROFL, watch, they just tear off the Brer Rabbit heads and stick brown duct tape over
(I mean, that's where we're at with Current Disney 
)
Dear Prudence
Well-Known Member
The best part of the pandemic was getting a whole log on Splash Mountain to myself
Kirby86
Well-Known Member
I made a joke about that to my buddy's wife. They will just get the cast members to buff out the Brer Rabbit on each log the night before the retheme is done. Instead of OT they get to take home the Rabbit as an exclusive thank you. That or they get a thank you note on the company website.
chadwpalm
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- No
That happened to me too last June. I also got a Small World boat to myselfThe best part of the pandemic was getting a whole log on Splash Mountain to myself
