This is a loose article,
and so is this,
and this.
The sight of items like these being dropped, flung, or lost has become common place at
many theme parks around the world.
To combat this issue, different parks have come up with a variety of ways to secure guest’s articles.
However, increasingly strict policies have recently sparked a debate, with many questioning
how these items should be dealt with.
But what are loose articles, the dangers they impose, and the safety measures in place to
protect guests?
“A loose article would be any item that is not secure to the rider, the most common
examples would be glasses hats keys and phones, and a lot of people would think that their
glasses or hats are secure, you cannot guarantee that at all.”
That’s Cameron, a Ride Operator at Six Flags Great America who is all too familiar with
this problem.
“You can see a lot of things fly of a rider, I’ve even see go pros strapped to chests
fly off of riders before so, you can never really guarantee anything is secure.”
Many guests take these articles onto the ride without any cause for concern, expecting to
return with all their possessions intact.
However, taking loose articles on rides isn’t just bad for those carrying them, but can
be a risk for everyone else on, and nearby the attraction.
If an item does fall from a rider, multiple things could occur:
“One you lose the article, which sucks, as the last thing you want to do is lose your
carkeys, or cellphone on the ride.
As most parks, you’ll only be able to retrieve that item at the end of the day.”
“The ride itself could get damaged from a loose article - since a ride is very sensitive
with sensors and what not, if an article falls onto the track it could stop the ride due
to safety reasons, the computer will sense something is wrong, trip the sensor and stop
the ride.”
Both of these can be prevented by simply securing loose articles correctly.
Different parks employ a variety of options for guests to secure, or store, their items
in a safe manor.
“The ride I run most has an enforced no loose article policy, which includes bags
or fanny packs, so if you have a bag or are holding anything in your hand you can’t
ride with it.
We have designated storage bins on the side of the station for each of the trains so you
can put all your stuff in their and it will be safe.”
These storage bins are a popular choice by many parks, often being located inside of
the rides station, adjacent to the platform.
More recently, parks have begun investing in specialised bins, which separate items
according to trains.
These bins are locked until the correct train enters the station, causing them to re-open.
Besides this method, Baggage claims can be found at some parks, allowing visitors to
exchange their bag for a wrist band prior to boarding.
Once guests have ridden the attraction, they exchange their wristband at the exit and reclaim
their bag.
Other well known methods include lockers, which can be situated at the front, or part
way through the queue line.
Lockers allow guests to store their items in a safe manner as they can only be accessed
by a key, or password.
If none of these methods are sufficient for you, items could simply be left with a non-rider.
Nevertheless, despite the wide variety of options on offer to secure the articles of
guests, many continue to ride with them.
“One incident that happened to me is that I was operating a HUSS condor and someone’s
glasses flew out while it was ascending the tower and it nearly missed my head by a few
inches, so if it flew out any earlier it could have nailed me right in the face.”
“The worst case scenario in that would be having someone on the ground get hit with
an item, you’ve seen this before on rides likes … and they’ve had to enforce a very
strict no loose article policy.
“
On some attractions, the problems with loose articles are all too real.
The design of specific rides amplifies the issue, causing not only the loss of items,
but also the likelihood of those items colliding with other visitors, to rise significantly.
A recent few incidents involving phones hitting guests has led some parks to drastically change
the way they deal with loose articles on a select few rides.
Amusement Park chains such as Six Flags and Cedar Fair have banned all items from a selection
of their rides at specific parks.
This means that guests cannot take any items into the queue line, including phones, bags,
hats and more.
All loose items must be placed into paid lockers, located at the start of the queue line, or
given to a non-rider.
This policy has sparked a debate, with many questioning why parks are choosing to monetise
the safety concern that is loose articles.
On top of this, guests are unable to use their phones during long queues, which often help
to pass the time.
Furthermore, many visitors enjoy taking pictures of the rides.
FIlmmaker Taylor Bybee, of Coaster Studios, expresses his concern of the new restrictive
system.
“I do my best to capture these rides, which means go round and capture them from every
single angle, and that’s not always doable when rides have a locker system - because
what that means is you cannot bring anything with you in line, and some of the best views
are going to be from the queue line.
Just think of it, the queue line is next to the roller coaster, there are where a lot
of up close shots are going to be.”
"I don't think it is the best policy, and I think there are better ways to go about fixing it,
but it is what it is I guess."
While some policies might seem extreme, loose articles remain a real threat to rider safety.
If not secured correctly, all items have the potential to cause harm to anyone, both visitors
and staff alike.
If you find yourself at a theme park, make sure to place your loose articles in the designated
areas; not only to avoid losing your belongings, but to ensure the safety of everyone around you.
Thank you for watching, and I’ll see you all next time.
A big thanks goes to Cameron, Andrew, and Taylor for giving up their time to be in this video.