The 1.3m ride height for Hyperia worries me. Even more than the badly designed layout. When a ride is designed the manufacturers give the park a minimum height requirement and the park can decide to go with that or use their own discretion and enforce a taller requirement. A lot of things will go into the decision guiding that minimum height requirement, but not everything can be fully accounted for.
The first factor is obviously the restraint system. A manufacturer will have all tested their restraint systems extensively and they will have a good idea of what the minimum height can be for riders that won't see them exiting the train before they arrive back at the station. Looking up to see 20+ kids raining from the sky, before they plough into the concreted ground, won't play very well with people inside and outside the park. I'm certain we will never hear, " Look at the little one, did you see how far he bounced before he was impaled on the safety railings " being conveyed in a gleeful manner.
However, different body shapes can be harder to account for. Plus size people can be a problem if they try to force themselves into the restraints or the restraints aren't fully locked to accommodate them. This should never happen, but sadly it sometimes does. Generally speaking the manufacturer will set a weight limit and the ride staff will be alert for people of a size that will test the restraints.
For me, the bigger problems are with the smaller people, especially children. People with very slight frames can sometimes slip through the restraints if that last click hasn't been achieved. In respect to young children an even greater range of factors comes into play. Small children don't have the muscle mass and the core stability of older riders.
I've watched kids on RMC coasters, with their 48" or 1.2m height restrictions, being thrown around like rag dolls. Granted, they are enjoying every single moment of their ride, but the forces that their bodies are being subjected to are extreme. It doesn't take very much to cause whiplash or damage to developing bones and joints, not to mention the stress that greying out can put on a person.
A different set of factors can affect older and more frail people. It is very well known in the coaster community that the older you get the less resilient you are to the demands placed on the body by a coaster ride. It can take you longer to recover from an intense ride, your heart can be more prone to giving out and those brittle bones can't take the forces a young and healthy body can.
Growing up near one of the country's premiere amusement parks, I was an early lover of all things roller coaster. I adored the thrill of the ride, and sought out trips to my beloved Cedar Point as often as I could. As soon as I was tall enough —…
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Our team at Optimal Chiropractic is dedicated to providing gentle and effective chiropractic adjustments and therapies that prioritize your child's comfort and well-being. Learn more.
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Whiplash happens when sudden movement or force puts too much strain on your neck and spine. It’s painful but usually isn’t dangerous, and it’s often treatable.
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Non-Fatal Injuries Associated with Riding Roller Coaster, Cuan-Baltazar Yu Nam, ÃÂÂvila-Sánchez Pablo and Soto-Vega Elena
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And yet, despite all of this Granny Brittle Bones and Jenifer Bobble Head can both queue up and ride Hyperia safe in the knowledge that nothing negative will affect them because they are 1.3m tall. I'm exaggerating a bit here, because most rides have safety disclaimers on the signage that covers things like a dicky ticker and so. Although, following all of these advisory warnings are completely up to the riders discretion and sadly eager riders are not immune to making some very bad decisions.
I can imagine that the riders of Hyperia will experience some pretty intense G-Forces at the bottom of that first twisting drop. Far more than I would be happy exposing an 8 year old kid too, which is the average age of somebody 1.3m in height.
Some of the points made previously in this thread should be enough to raise questions about a 1.3m height rating for this ride. If 8 year olds are allowed to go on the tallest, fastest roller coaster in the country how can you subsequently tell them that they can't go on the swarm which is less extreme. Nobody will be able to placate them with the argument that it is down to the train configuration, because they will have seen the same trains on Mandril Mayhem. Kids might be small, but they aren't daft.
The perceived disparity and unfairness will makes no sense to them. Just like it makes no sense to me. Putting such a situation into play will probably lead to confusion, disappointment and a lot of tears before bedtime. And that is just the ride operatives, imagine how the kids will feel.
On the other hand if the forces in play aren't that really great then it will act to refute the marketing blurb that Hyperia is the most extreme coaster in the country.
Will you Face your Fearless and take your seat on a ride designed for 8 year olds ?
Okay, I'm worried, but I think I can handle it, I need a transition point to help me build up to the Telly Tubbies boat ride.
If I had to guess then I would say that the park have gone for the lowest ride height possible instead of exercising a bit of caution. The lower that a ride height is set at the more people can ride and the more people who can ride Hyperia the more people they can pull into the park. It could be a simple case of placing an emphasis on visitor numbers and profits instead of being sensible. The sort of decision that marketeers and money counters would make, but safety conscious people wouldn't.
Just because a park can do something it doesn't mean that it should do something. I would be a lot happier if Hyperia had a 1.4m rider height limit.
