2006 Seatbelt changes?

There isn't so much a weight capacity as a shape capacity. If your friend is round or his weight is in his upper legs, he'll have a much harder time than if his weight was in his upper chest.

I weigh around 250-260 and its close (big thighs) but I haven't had a problem yet.

I'm impressed that Wozniak responded.

Remember... this whole affair is the result of some morons in New England that don't know how to maintain or run a ride. I'm not even sure I'd place much blame on Intamin.

I think a big piece of the problem rests on the fact that Cedar Fair's Perilous Plunge caused a death in 2001.

I think that occurrence has lead Cedar Fair against putting pressure on Intamin to allow more people to ride. There are certainly are more efficient ways than having short seatbelts. Some will easily reduce the number of those whom can safely ride but are restricted by the current seatbelt.

I'm guessing that the short seatbelts are the cheapest option to implement. If you have two options and one is cheaper, most are compelled to go for cheap. I think that the thread in General titled "Cedar Fairs brass gets more gold" reiterates that point.

Jeff sez...
"Remember... this whole affair is the result of some morons in New England that don't know how to maintain or run a ride. I'm not even sure I'd place much blame on Intamin."

Well...what's even worse is that, assuming that the train on the ride in New England is the same as the train on the ride near Buffalo, the seat and lap bar in New England are very different from the seat and lap bar on Millennium Force. The differences are subtle, but extremely important. In much the same way that there are subtle but very important differences between the seats on Millennium Force and Dragster.

My personal, unverified, unofficial pet theory is that Cedar Fair hasn't fixed the Milllennium Force problem because Intamin hasn't yet fixed the Dragster problem. I think once Dragster is properly fixed, we might see some movement on Millennium Force.

It's only a theory, of course, but still...

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Wow, this seatbelt fiasco goes much deeper than weight sizes and belly shapes.

-S. Eagle

I also agree that it is amazing that Wozniak replied. I remember seeing a lot of "canned" answers in seasons past. Still gives CP somewhat of that "personal" touch....

So did anyone find any seatbelt changes whyle riding any of the coasters this year so far?

Everything I rode seemed the same to me. (Millennium, Magnum, Gemini, Mean Streak, Iron Dragon, Raptor, & Blue Streak)

Yes, everything was the same for me as well. (Millenium Force, Gemini, Magnum, Wicked Twister, Raptor) Wished there was more to my list, but I was with some party poopers.

On MF, I noticed that the seatbelts (at least on the seats I sat in) were brand new and it seemed like the buckle was easier to reach, as if they had moved it up a bit or changed the routing of the belt or something, but it could just be me imagining things.

Some of the seats were replaced, but not all of them. The new ones are black on the back rather than grey. And yes, the locking part of the buckle did seem a little longer/higher and they were also new.

So would you say that they're a little roomier than last year? I was able to pull about an inch and a half of slack last year. I was just hopin they hadn't shortened them more.

So is the new seats lower then the grey ones to make the buckle higher and longer?

I don't think the new seats are roomier, especially since they all weren't replaced. However, like I said earlier, the seatbelts are brand new, and I think they may have either made the belt attached to the female end of the buckle longer, or re-routed it in order to make it easier to reach. This made it easier to fasten.

They did indeed re-rout the seatbelts under the side bar rather than over it like it had been previous years. That can give someone an extra inch possibly...an inch they may need to ride. Good move by the park. This should help interval AND guest relations a bit.

Coaster25 said:

"I emailed park operations and asked them if the seat belts were changing in any way and here's what they had to say.

Thank you for your question. At this time there are no plans to change the
seatbelts again at Millennium Force. I will explain that the previous changes
were mandated by the manufacturer and not Cedar Point. We realize that a
change in any restraint can end up restricting some of our guests from riding
their favorite rides. I weigh 225 and I am able to fasten all the seatbelts
and pull down all the harnesses with no problem. I will not lie to you and say
that everyone will fit on every ride. That is just not the case. We do offer
test seats in front of some of the newer rides and we do allow guests to come
up the exit and try the seat out before waiting should you have any question or
concerns. I know this is not the exact answer you are looking for but it is
the best I can do. I do hope this helps you out."

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This seatbelt policy has been the clearest example of poor ergonomics i've ever seen in life. In any other industry, such a blatant design flaw would result in a recall. To be blunt, larger black people (especially women) have it the hardest when trying to ride Millennium Force. Before you think conspiracy theory, the design of the seat belt has little if anything to do with your waist size, but rather the thickness of your legs. We know that blacks typically have more "junk in the trunk" even without being fat. I can say this because I'm a 5'10, 180lbs, personal trainer built like a fitness model with a 30 inch waist and I can barely get the thing fastened.

RockDown2G said:
In any other industry, such a blatant design flaw would result in a recall.

You're assuming it is a design flaw. According to Intamin, the seat belt is meant not so much as a restraint as it is a measuring device to make sure the primary restraint (lapbar) will fit properly. Granted, the whole thing makes zero sense, but it isn't a design flaw.

JuggaLotus said:

"You're assuming it is a design flaw. According to Intamin, the seat belt is meant not so much as a restraint as it is a measuring device to make sure the primary restraint (lapbar) will fit properly."

Right. I'm not targeting the seat belt so much as I am the entire setup. The seat belt could easily be made longer but i know its kept short as an idiot proof way of ensuring a proper lapbar fit. And just because some people can fit into it, doesn't mean it is ergonomically effective.

Well I want to CP yesterday had no trouble fitting in the test seat on TTD and Millie (pulled 1 inch). Got to ride TTD but not Millie, couldn't even buckle the belt. I even ask the ride op about a differ seat, he and another ride op said that ALL belts are the same to the test seat.

Hmmmmmm......well don't you think that if the test seat and the seats on Millie are the same I could have buckle and have gotten on with 1 inch slack??

http://www.rcdb.com/ig3138.htm?picture=2 Maybe this could be a answer to all probs if they change all seats. Large and T lapbar.
*** Edited 5/14/2006 11:12:26 PM UTC by MF_Man***

Hey Rockdown, the shorter belts affect all larger people, not just blacks. That was the most racist and stereotypical post I've ever seen on here. Black, white, asian, hispanic, it doesn't matter. We're all people and larger people are larger people, period. Get over yourself.