Rider Height Wristbands- What's the Point?

Just got back from our three day Hotel Breakers stay. My 8 year old finally hit 54".

We got her officially measured at Town Hall and received the 54" wristband, yet at every single ride we were inconvenienced by having to get her measured. Even after flashing the wristband, we were told that they still had to measure her.

It seems like a waste of resources and everyone's time to provide rider wristbands if they still are going to measure them at every ride. It makes absolutely no sense.

So what are you suggesting? That they refrain from measuring at the entrance to ensure everyone's safety and to prevent liability in case of shenanigans? Or that they just fire the guys and gals at Town Hall?

Seriously, what did it add to your day(s)? 7.5 minutes total? Didn't your newly raised-up enthusiast wear her wristband proudly, anyway? And please tell me you didn't waste those precious resources on the second and third days knowing it was for nothing. And lastly, did you voice your concern to the park?

When my son reached 48" a few years ago and could ride Jack Rabbit (or the Jack Bunny as he called it) at SeaBreeze he insisted on being measured every time we rode it that season. He was very proud. Make it into something fun instead of a sourpuss moment, this will be the last season she gets measured.

RCMAC said:
So what are you suggesting? That they refrain from measuring at the entrance to ensure everyone's safety and to prevent liability in case of shenanigans?

I'm asking a question. I thought the whole point of the wristband was so they wouldn't measure you at the rides. What is the point of the wristband?

Safety First, the ride ops were doing their jobs. People will be stupid and risk their child lives and swap wrist bands. Let them do their jobs and thank them for it.

As a parent of two; one just at 54 and the other around 46ish, I hear ya. From what we experienced, it's more of a fun thing for the kid to get; like a badge of honor to wear around, and to give the parents a general idea of what their kid may or may not be able to ride. Not everyone who visits the park has just measured their kid the night before (and then that morning just to make sure they didn't grow) like I do when my kid is oh-so-close...

So, no, don't get these expecting to not be measured.

That said, the kids seem to dig them, you know how tall your kid is (which you may not have known), and the good news is that most kids also seem to enjoy getting measured, which takes about 3 seconds.

And here's the other harsh reality; when your kid is just hitting a mark (like 54"), there will be times when they will get on without being measured, times when they get measured and "just make it", and other times when they get measured and don't make it; the latter happens a lot towards the end of the day when we tend to slouch more.

^ Disk compression from Witches Wheel. :)

XS NightClub said:

Safety First, the ride ops were doing their jobs. People will be stupid and risk their child lives and swap wrist bands. Let them do their jobs and thank them for it.

If they are going to be measured at the individual rides anyway why issue wrist bands at all? Seems like a waste of park resources.

Seems like a good question. I imagine in the case where it's very close they can divert judgement to the band, otherwise they measure each time like they're taught.

^ Exactly right. When the kid is just baaaaaarely too short (I'm talking almost immeasurably), if they had a wrist band, we were told to let them ride.

Several years ago my son was just over 52", we used the wristband several times and encountered the same issues with re-measures. Sometimes both at the ride entrance and station entrance. The last time I used the wristband for him he was measured at the entrance to Gatekeeper, then checked quickly at the station entrance, the fun part was once we were seated on the train they made him get off to measure again.

I see no point in wasting the time to get them measured for a wristband at one of the measuring places. On the other hand if we are getting on a ride and the ride op has one to give them I always say yes.

Out of all the CF parks we've been to CP is by far the worst in regards to this subject.

Yeah, Being safe and making sure nobody swaps a wristband on their child so they can ride a freakin roller coaster is 'by far the worst'.
Wtf is wrong with parents nowadays?

RCMAC said:

So what are you suggesting? That they refrain from measuring at the entrance to ensure everyone's safety and to prevent liability in case of shenanigans? Or that they just fire the guys and gals at Town Hall?

Seriously, what did it add to your day(s)? 7.5 minutes total? Didn't your newly raised-up enthusiast wear her wristband proudly, anyway? And please tell me you didn't waste those precious resources on the second and third days knowing it was for nothing. And lastly, did you voice your concern to the park?

According to your logic, if you have fastlane you need to show your receipt at every fastlane entrance?

Nobody will possibly by injured if they sneak into the FL line. I have seen where parents get Child A, who is clearly over 48" a wristband, cut it off and tape it together inconspicuously to give to Child B, who is a bit under 48", and then hope that the line attendants don't measure. Unfortunately it's just another instance where irrisposible parents ruin it for everyone else. Maybe just brush it off because it's really not a big inconvenience at all and teach your kid a lesson in the importance of safety and personal responsibility?

^^ That's a ridiculous comparison because the Fast Lane wristband is, in and of itself, a proof of purchase.

The wristbands are to give Ride Hosts a general idea but if they don't feel comfortable with what the wristband says, they can re-measure and use their discretion to allow the child to ride.

To the park, safety trumps convenience every single time. As someone previously stated, disk compression does happen and at the end of the night. And after walking around for 10-12 hours, we are all shorter than when we rolled out of bed in the morning. That's why someone who is just at the next plateau may have to be measured a lot toward the end of the night.

As RCMAC said, it cost nothing but about 10 minutes of time all day. I'm sure the park and their insurance company are truly sorry for costing you 10 minutes when the opposite could cost them millions of dollars.

This is just another example of the easily butt hurt crowd crying over some perceived injustice that has completely logical and reasonable basis for implementation. These are the same people that are outraged at being carded when they are 22 years old.

XS, seems like your the only butt hurt one here, no one, other than you suggested that kids shouldn't be measured. What was said, is that some people do not see a benefit to obtaining the wristbands and I agree with that thought for the reasons provided.

Furthermore, if fraud of the wristband is so rampant as has been suggested, that in and of itself would be a reason to terminate the program.

XS NightClub said:

Yeah, Being safe and making sure nobody swaps a wristband on their child so they can ride a freakin roller coaster is 'by far the worst'.
Wtf is wrong with parents nowadays?

Then why issue the bands at all and just measure at the rides? As pointed out, it's a waste of park resources and to everyones time who both are wearing the wristbands and to those who are issuing them. Let those who issue them attend to other matters and save money on printing the wristbands. If swapping them was an issue, they would either modify the bands or check to see if they were tampered with.

Height wrist bands are intended to make things easier for both the employee and guest. Consider the following scenarios and decide for yourself which is the greater waste of time...

1. A just barely tall enough child arrives with his father at Raptor and is measured at the entrance by the minimum wage employee working entrance. The employee realizes it's too close to call for the child's safety and must therefore call an area supervisor to the ride entrance so that someone higher up makes the decision. Everyone waits for that supervisor to arrive.

2. The employee realizes it's too close to call for the child's safety and decides to tell dad that the child cannot ride. Dad and the child leave angry and upset because earlier in the day they were able to ride Raptor together with no problem.

3. The employee realizes it's too close to call and for the child's safety explains to dad that if the child receives an official height measurement wristband, that he then can allow the child to ride. Dad and child walk annoyingly toward guest relations for measurement, but are hopeful for a good outcome there.

4. The employees measures child, realizes that it's too close to call. Then the employee sees the wristband which indicates the child was previously measured by someone more official/experienced. He inspects the wristband to be certain that it hasn't been tampered with and then finally allows the child to ride.

If a child is well above the height restriction judgement call mark, then there's really no need for the wristband. But if your child is in the dangerously unsure territory, then the wristband is worth receiving to ensure that all measurements later in the day are consistently worry free.

If swapping them was an issue, they would either modify the bands or check to see if they were tampered with.

Even with a perfect tamper resistant wristband, I believe children close to the height mark should always be measured because there's always another parent of another short child somewhere nearby waiting to jump down an employees throat with the old "well you didn't measure THAT kid, why are you measuring MINE" argument (those parents don't care when you try to explain the wristband). This is why an employee might still measure the same child multiple times even if that same child has rode 6 times in a row.