Seat belt lenght

I know that this is a topic that has been discussed many times before and in most cases been has been a dragged out topic..... I have read about all of the threads but one thing I haven't been able to find is an approximate measurement from side to side for the seal belts on TTD and MF. I had an issue last year and have been working to make it not an issue with diet and exercise for this years trip. I carry my weight in my thighs and butt so I am not concerned with the waist and chest requirements. Can anyone help me out? Again, not trying to start a thread all about weight, waist size, etc because everyone is different and I dont think that CP discriminates against the people of "exceptional size"!!!

I personally think it is unfair that some cannot ride these rides because the "secondary" safety device restricts them from riding the ride. Correct me if I am wrong but the lap bar is the "primary" safety device and the seat belt is the "secondary" device.

I have a good friend of mine who travels from Alabama every year to visit Cedar Point, he is not fat by any means just a big guy and the first year he had issues fitting in these two (2) rides as well, for the same reasons as you explain above. He ran, dieted as much as he could before his trip last year and was able to just make it work. One way he made it work was having a friend (me) help him buckle his belt. Sometimes having a friend can have that extra muscle to get that belt tightened.

I think they need to re-examine these seat belts since they are the "secondary" safety device on the rides not the primary.

Thoughts anyone???

I think it's fair. If you are too big for both safety systems to work, you shouldn't be able to risk death or serious injury to not only you but possibly other riders. Best advice is to lose some weight. I never once griped when I was too fat to ride things at Cedar Point, I've lost weight instead.

I personally dont think that there is any harm in makig the seatbelts a little longer because bottom line if you can get in the seat and under the lap bar the likely hood of there being an issue because the seat belt is a few inches longer is minimal. On the other side of that I could see where smaller individuals may feel that their safety is being compromised by "accomodating" larger individuals by creating more slack with their belt. I obviously feel more one sided because I have had issues. Overall I think it really comes down to the fact that if the lap bar fails there are bigger problems!

What is the harm in making the seat belts longer? Is there really any harm in that? I agree with Thrillerz, you've got bigger problems if the first system fails!!

Ride on!!!

The thing is, there is no reason for those belts to be that tight. AT ALL. The reason they were shortened is because someone who shouldn't have been on Superman at SFNE was dispatched in 2004 without any of the safety systems secured, and was thrown from the train. So rather than blame the idiots who dispatched a train with someone who A. Shouldn't have been riding and B. Didn't have either the lap bar or seat belt secured, the restraints took the blame and needed modified.

So, blame Six Flags and their incompetence.

Oh and to make it worse, the same thing happened in 2011 at Darien Lake. Someone was thown from Superman Ride of Steel. The reason: HE WAS A DOUBLE AMPUTEE! For a lap bar to work, you NEED A LAP.

http://www2.macleans.ca/2011/07/15/death-on-a-roller-coaster/

Seriously, I'd hate to tell a vet, sorry you can't ride this because of your war wound, but SERIOUSLY.

I had a problem fitting in the test seat in 2011. I couldn't get the damn seat belt locked. So, I started working out and eating right.

I'm a big dude too. 6'3 260. Last year I read that the left hand seats on the red train had longer belts. When I got there I knew it wasn't going to be a problem as I fit in the test seat. I always rode the red train on the left hand side after that and never had a problem

I agree it's somewhat stupid that the belts are that small but it's a great motivator to get in shape.

I know that I can't fit on WT as my chest is pretty big.

We can sit here and complain all we want but Cedar Point isn't going to do anything about it. You can, don't have that after dinner snack. Go on walks instead of sitting inside. Go to bed hungry instead of full. That's what I did last year and I feel much better.

Staaber said:
I personally think it is unfair that some cannot ride these rides because the "secondary" safety device restricts them from riding the ride. Correct me if I am wrong but the lap bar is the "primary" safety device and the seat belt is the "secondary" device.

Normally, I would agree. But on Intamin coasters, the belt is used as a "verification" device for the lap bar. i.e. if the belt fits, the lap bar will properly secure the rider.
Is it excessive? Quite possibly.
But it's also their name that goes on the "Defendant" line when a rider gets thrown from one of their coasters.

Right, on the MF and TTD restraints the restraint bar has to go down a certain distance to work properly. The seat belt verifies that it is down enough. If a person's build doesn't let the bar go down far enough for the seat belt to fit, the restraint bar isn't securing the rider as it was designed to do so the guest does not ride.

Ok, then why in one seat I can barely buckle the belt....and in another, I have 3-4 inches of slack pulled? If it was a measuring device for the lap bar to "work properly" wouldn't all the belts need to be the same length?

^^^^^This^^^^^

Personally, i dont feel bad for people who cant fit in the seats. In many ways its their own fault. Eat the right food, workout on a regular and you should have no problems.

UM....sometimes it has NOTHING to do with eating and weight -- there are plenty of large boned riders that are about as fit and as trim as you could possibly be at that height/build and STILL not be able to ride because of where the belts actually go across your lap.

Im 6'4" 245lbs. I fit perfectly on every ride there

+1 @ Gplez90

JW - I didn't say the explanation didn't smell like a whorehouse at low tide.

I just pointed out that that was the reasoning for the belt length being what it is, and why the park can't just arbitrarily lengthen it. The length is per the manufacturer.

I hear ya! :)

I told a guy that couldnt get the seat belt buckled, but was close, at the Dragster test seat, to just hop in line while it was short for ERT and give it a shot! He wasnt going too because he didnt want to be embarrassed. I told him if it was close the ride op would help him. He got in line with his group. He saw me later in the day and thanked me because he had buckled it by himself with a little room to spare!

Its frustrating seeing someone getting turned away by a short belt, when there could possibly be a longer one right next to that seat or behind them etc.

I have never felt "less safe" with 4 inches of slack on my belt vs. the one struggling to stay buckled because its so short and tight on my lap! :)

Gplez90 said:
Personally, i dont feel bad for people who cant fit in the seats. In many ways its their own fault. Eat the right food, workout on a regular and you should have no problems.

I know several women who are in good shape, but cannot get the belts buckled on MF or TTD due to wide hips. Perhaps you'd like to tell them they're fat too?

The worst discrepancy I've seen in belt length was on Drop Tower at Kings Island (another Intamin ride). The seat I was in wasn't even close to buckling. Thankfully the ride op knew where the longer belts were, and switched me with someone in another seat. That seat had 3+ inches of slack. Small variations in length is one thing, but over 3 inches seems kind of absurd.

How do they handle test seats for rides with two sizes of seats (as with GateKeeper's "big boy seats")?

^ What if a child is in row 4, aka the big boy seats? Are they "less safe" sitting in those seats?