seatbelt question

I don't remember where I read it but I think it was in a coaster club newsletter...They said something about an extra loop in the seat belt this year so the ops can see if its buckled better? Well I'm just wondering if this "extra loop" makes the belts smaller? I havn't heard anything about this anywhere else and havn't been on Millie this year so I'm just wondering...

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Magnum '01 - 108 laps
Life Magnum - 411 laps

The seatbelt are about the same size as last year, the loops is at the end and is just added length. It makes it much easier to check since they just have to pull on the loop instead of go down and yank on the attached part. It's also easier to tighten them.

I think they actually may be a little smaller, although not too much. I noticed that when I rode, I had to put the buckle at the end of the belt, and it was a little tougher to buckle (I am slightly bigger than many people, although not that overweight) I never noticed them before this year, so either I got a little bigger (which could be the case), or the belts got a little smaller.

I noticed that when I sat down on the left side of the car...that I had to reach down to my left side to fasten the belt. I tried to look at my daughter's to see if she was fastened tight and I couldn't see where she was fastened because they are "anchored" to the outside of the cars. It's still ok though...just a slight variation! ::smile::

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God bless ya'll!!!!

MillenniumMan...

That could very well be the case and wouldn't surprise me one bit. Another repercussion from Perilous Plunge.

As long as we don't have 5-point Formula One restraints, I'll be happy.

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Tommy Penner - Variable X
"Last night, I laid in my bed, looked to the sky, and thought, Where is my ceiling?"

Here is your answer everyone. Yes the fit of the belts did indeed get smaller, but the belts are the same from last year just retrofitted with the new loop at the end. What they did was move the buckle farther down the belt and used this extra material down at this end as the overlap to stitch the new looping portion to. This indeed makes the amount of belt that you have available to buckle yourself in to be roughly 3 inches shorter.

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cyberdman

Monty Jasper answered the seatbelt question at today's CoasterMania Q&A session. He said that part of the laws of the state of Ohio dictate that Cedar Point must do what the manufacturer wants them to do and follow their instructions. It was Intamin who decided to shorten the length of the belt and Cedar Point complied with their request.

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Virtual Midway
http://www.virtualmidway.com

I don't suppose the Perilous Plunge accident would have anything to do with that.

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Jeff
Webmaster/GTTP, Sillynonsense.com
"As far as I can tell it doesn't matter who you are. If you can believe, there's something worth fighting for..." - Garbage, "Parade"

: Rolling my Eyes :

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cyberdman

Well, that's good to know. Hopefully this means I didn't gain any weight over the off-season!
*** This post was edited by MillenniumMan 6/7/2002 5:26:54 PM ***

Since this happened, have you "regulars" seen more people turned away than in the past?

No doubt the seat belts are definitely smaller this year. I lost 35 lbs. and I barely fit. I could barely fit last year. So, I am glad I lost the extra weight this winter. Hopefully, I can lose some more and fit even easier next visit.

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Joey
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CATHERINE ROCKS!! CP RULES!!

I must have lost weight too because they seemed the same to me :). I did notice that WT belts were shorter compared to S:UE's last year. When I rode S:UE this year those belts seemed tighter as well, about the same as Twister. Perhaps Intamin requested shortened belts on all questionable rides.

As a trend I have seen less and less people get refused a ride over time. Not once yet this year have I seen someone turned away form MF or Raptor. WT is a different story because it is new. I think the people who cannot ride either stay home or avoid those rides if they do visit.

On Pitfall (another Intamin, go figure! :))at Kennywood they had a similar situation were the belts were shortened. However they do have large well placed signs that says something like "attention, belts were shortend, those who have ridden pitfall in years past may not now fit, we are sorry."

MF needs something like this if it does not have it already. Some people who rode it in previous years won't have any clue and when they are turned away after waiting an hour will not be too happy.

One last note, the seats and belts were tighter in 2001 compared to 2000 because of the lowered height requirement. Much like the ride they keep rolling back.
*** This post was edited by Joe E. 6/14/2002 11:29:52 PM ***

Are they going to request an extension on the belt from intamin? I heard that they were for next season...

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Magnum '01 - 108 laps
Magnum '02 - 18 laps
Life Magnum - 429 laps

Is it just me or does it seem like Intamin rides are the least accomodating of all the coaster companies? Two people have fallen out of Intamin rides because of size, but, for example, I've never heard of that happening on an Arrow ride. In fact, I can ride any of the Arrow coasters at Cedar Point perfectly fine, but I can not ride Millennium Force. Now, in addition, I hear that Wicked Twister's seats are smaller than Raptors seats. Maybe Intamin needs to rethink their restraints if they seem to keep allowing less and less people to ride.

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...and enjoy the rest of your day at Cedar Point, The Am-aaaa-zement park!

A good point, but keep in mind the number of people who whine that the Arrow restraints are uncomfortable. There has to be a compromise somewhere. Intamin has chosen to make the ride comfortable for the majority of people. Unfortunately, it has also meant that in order to be safe, larger people aren't accomidated as easily. I don't have a problem with any of the Intamin restraints myself although they might not be as fool proof as they should be (Perilous Plunge, Superman incidents).

-Matt
2001 Magnum Crew