News: Cedar Point’s mask rule ignites firestorm of fan protests on social media

It's been ages since I've heard "I Love a Rainy Night"

For those who are adamant that wearing a mask in the heat drops your oxygen levels, check out the article from Attractions Magazine:

https://attractionsmagazine.com/will-wearing-a-mask-at-a-hot-theme-...gen-level/

Also if you follow Tim the Tracker on YouTube he also did the same experiments with similar results.

Good read. It just further proves that if it can be done in the hot and humid Florida weather without any problems, then it can be done in Mason and Sandusky.

The face shield option is interesting. When at Costco yesterday none of the the CS counter staff were wearing masks but all had face shields on.

There are designs that can be 3D printed and use a report cover as the sheild.

I noticed CF specifically said cloth face coverings. I haven't read the article but was thinking about why today. Something tells me those face shields wouldn't work well with a coaster? Again didn't read the article though.

Everyone yelling about how its impossible to wear a mask while at a park or out in the heat is just yelling to yell. They are completely ignoring that people do this on the daily for their jobs, before there was a pandemic. We have contractors at work, who over the course of a 8-12 hour shift will wear a mask while they paint or do themed rock work with foam. This is outside in the Florida heat during a labor intensive job. I've already gone to Universal for a couple hours with a mask and did fine and I have asthma. I start back to work tomorrow and will be wearing a mask all day with no problems. People need to let go of this idea that wearing a mask is going to kill them while walking down the midway of an amusement park.

And your evidence is just as anecdotal as mine. So your asthmatic self can tolerate wearing a mask all day in the heat. Wonderful. By comparison my perfectly healthy lungs nearly failed me in a ten minute walk through an air-conditioned hospital lobby. I'm telling you there's no "getting accustomed to it" if you pass out first.

That we are not all the same is why what most people might consider a minor nuisance is a deal-breaker for others. Unfortunately, when the park issued its "how much crap will you tolerate" survey a few weeks ago, it was clear that their decision on masks had already been made: it was basically the only thing they *didn't* ask about...and if it were combined with the precautions described in the survey, including the more ridiculous ones, for me, it's the only thing that was a show-stopper. Because the other measures, yes, including "take a rapid-result test", do not cross the line from "inconvenient" to "intolerable."

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Your lungs aren't the only factor. If you get winded going upstairs, it could be your overall fitness that suffers.

This is true. Believe me; I am a fat slob myself. And with the parks closed this spring, a lot more out-of-shape than usual for this time of the season.

Who am I kidding? Round is a shape...

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

RideMan said:

And your evidence is just as anecdotal as mine. So your asthmatic self can tolerate wearing a mask all day in the heat. Wonderful. By comparison my perfectly healthy lungs nearly failed me in a ten minute walk through an air-conditioned hospital lobby. I'm telling you there's no "getting accustomed to it" if you pass out first.

But you've at least tried it first and discovered it bothers you. You also aren't someone I would say is shouting from the rooftop that this is impossible and infringing on your rights. You had a calm, quick discussion on Pointbuzz and moved on. The people I am referring to, and maybe I should have clarified in the my previous post, are those in an outrage that its even suggested. The same people who like to boldly say "If you don't like me not wearing a mask, stay the f*ck home!". Well that works both ways. I wouldn't call an amusement park a place you HAVE to go to while this requirement is in place. So there isn't a need to run about proclaiming everyone will die of heat exhaustion at the hands of these amusement parks.

I'm still trying to find in the constitution where "not having to wear a mask" is listed as a constitutional right........

It's in the same chapter as "my kids can't wait in lines and it's unfair that you are telling them they have to."

I just came back from spending yesterday at Holiday World. Masks are not required but I did bring one and wear it as a test run for Cedar Fair parks. It did not fly off on a coaster and I didn't find it uncomfortable. I mainly stopped wearing it because I had a disposable one and it didn't hold up very well. They're not meant to be worn for long periods of time. I'll need something more durable. I don't think it will be that bad wearing a mask. I'll do it if it means I can go to the park. And form other observations at HW, I noticed people weren't following social distancing and it wasn't being enforced although they had markings where to stand. Nobody there seemed to care. But I really liked the ride reservation system they had in place which cut back on people standing in queues. However, the park wasn't packed. The crowd level was probably considered on the lighter side.

An interesting note from HersheyPark as they have Storm Runner closed for the season. Some people commented on a tweet by the park when they caught it's status on the new park app. The park confirmed it in reply tweets, stating that some attractions won't operate due to covid related changes in park ops. As an Intamin Accelerator, I wonder if they are keeping it closed due to issues with the launch with trains unable to be more than half full, or maybe a concern of masks coming off. The launch is snappy, but I would rate it as less intense than Dragster and Xcelerator at Knotts.

I suspect a lot of decisions at the parks will have more to do with staffing levels than anything else. I think it is going to be difficult, if not impossible, to achieve full staffing at most parks in America. My son is of the age when he could be thinking about a summer amusement park job, but I would be very hesitant for him to consider one right now.

I just spent a day at Lagoon in SLC. 90 degree temps and I was fine with the mask. Didn't fly off on the rides.

The park did have employees trying to enforce social distancing and keeping your mask on with mixed results. Some people had no problem keeping their mask on, others had to be told repeatedly to put them on and then when the employee walked away they'd lower them to their chin again.

It's just how it's going to go in this world. Some people will follow the rules, others are going to do what they want and invade your personal space regardless of how many times they are told to social distance or how many CLEARLY marked spots are on the ground.

The toughest part of the the experience was fighting the urge to throw an elbow at the 40 something guy standing right up on me with his whole family. I'm not trying to act like a tough guy, it's just that the sheer ignorance and complete failure of being a parent is aggravating.

And it’s those people who will cause many more outbreaks including here in Ohio when Cedar Point opens this week. I’m dreading the next few months as I promise this virus isn’t even at its worst yet.

I wouldn't be surprised if there's a mandatory mask requirement in all public places soon. FL gets nearly 10,000 cases a day and they barely bat an eye and when Ohio gets 700 new daily cases, DeWine goes into panic mode. I know in some cities in other states (including parts of FL), it is a requirement and enforceable by fine. Wouldn't be surprised if something like that happens in OH soon or at least in some counties. I heard some new measures taken may just be county specific and not statewide. Also I noticed quite a larger number of cars with FL plates on the drive home from Holiday World yesterday, so it looks like some FL residents are fleeing.

^That is because our governor is an idiot.

So I returned to work today (yay!) and officially spent the most time I have in a mask. I had a 14 hour day but 12 of those were spent wearing my mask. We were in a zero tolerance building so there wasn't any pulling it down quickly, or just keeping it under your nose for a few minutes, it was on the whole time. Gotta say it definitely is more difficult than making a quick trip to Target but still manageable. At this point I am convinced I can do it for any amount of time but it was a good test today to see.

The numbers in Ohio are doing something interesting. The daily case number has just about doubled, from about 350/day to closer to 700/day. But it wasn't a spike, and it really didn't ramp up much...it's like we went from 350/day to 700/day all at once. Meanwhile, the daily hospitalization numbers are up slightly, the ICU admissions are staying flat, and the death numbers are falling rapidly. It will take a few more days to really see the actual trend, but that jump in daily *did* come just a couple of days after testing was opened up to everybody. But the people being tested now are self-selecting, so there should be a bias towards those who are expecting a positive result, and many of those people are people who weeks ago might have wanted a test and couldn't get one.

For my own analysis, I'm wondering if I should reduce my undercount factor; right now I am assuming a 70% undercount and my spreadsheet suggests that Ohio has around 8,200 confirmed active cases and an undercount of about 19,000. That puts your chances of encountering an infected Ohioan at about 0.17% or 17:10,000. Ugh; how about we reduce and round that to 1:500? And yes, a few weeks ago the same algorithm was estimating 1:1200.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.