Mean & Blue Streak seat belts

Large guy here...

I rode Mean Streak on my first visit in 2001, but was unable to ride the Blue Streak due to the length of the seat belts.

Are the seat belts different lengths or are they supposed to be the same?

I'm able to ride every other rollercoaster at CP (don't know about TTD yet). The seat and lapbar aren't the problem. It is that dang seatbelt.

Tips for sequezing into the seatbelts on these 2 rides? A particular car/seat better than others? Belt length?

Thanks,

Greg Shelton
Nashville, TN

As part of the annual rehab, both Blue and Mean Streak got new seat belts.

I noticed late last season that not all of the belts were the same length. At the beginning of this season, the belts were all the same length, and that length is fairly ample. I usually find that to fasten the belt, I have to stand up, stretch the belt to its full length, fasten it around my legs, sit down, and adjust the belt appropriately...all because the outboard end is REALLY short. But the adjustable end (inboard) is plenty long.

During the season it seems that the inboard end of the belt gets shorter and shorter as the end frays and has to be cut and re-stitched from time to time.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Yes I absolutely hate that!! Why can't they make the outboard end longer, like end at about the center of your lap? What is wrong with that? It would make them easier to fasten for everyone and load times would probably greatly improve. I think it would also be easier for ride-ops to visually check them.

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cyberdman
*** This post was edited by cyberdman 6/27/2003 6:26:53 AM ***

I think CP did that to all the seat belts so no one would be able to undo there seat belt during the ride. CP does not want any law suites with people falling out. It's not right with what they have done, but you can't trust anyone to obey the rules, so you have to resort to stapeling every one in there seeat.

This issue has nothing to do with stapling and anyone can undo their seatbelts during the ride no matter where the belt latches.

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cyberdman

The reason the outboard end of the belt is so short is very simple...

The belt is short enough that the latch plate cannot reach the outside of the car. This means that (a), it can't drop over the edge of the running board and get caught between the platform and the train and; (b), it can't get outside the seat far enough to chip the paint on the outside of the car.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

And it may just be more comfortable than having the buckle right in the middle of the waist. At least thats the way it would seem to me.

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tambo