https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/kicked-off-harry-potter-ride-fat_us_5af09fbfe4b041fd2d2992c9

Sorry, I can't get behind this at all. There are things I have been unable to do because of my size and I have experienced the embarrassment of having to get an extender on an airplane but her premise is garbage. Seats (in anything except maybe a bus) cannot be designed for all body sizes. She apparently never noticed the "You must be this _______ tall to ride" signs? They're not discriminating against the very short, it is for safety. The restraints will not keep them secure. I guarantee that on those rides that go over the shoulders, there are people who are too tall, as well. Weight is another of those issues. If you make the restraints large enough for someone who is 350 pounds, how are they going to work on an 8-year-old? Then what do you do when a 450 pound person complains? Would the author have been happy if they'd let her ride because she bullied them into it and then the restraint failed during the ride?

Additionally, all the forces that determine whether the car will stay on the tracks, whether the wheels will pop off, whether welds will hold, etc. are based on a presumed range of weight limits and the amount of rotational force that weight will generate. This has nothing to do with being invisible, just physics.

As she is a writer, I presume she has never had to run a business or she'd realize that you can't EVER please everyone. Businesses want customers to be happy, but they'd forever be running in circles trying to accommodate everyone.

Signed, a former design engineer

8 minutes ago, Orchids&Dragons said:

Sorry, I can't get behind this at all. There are things I have been unable to do because of my size and I have experienced the embarrassment of having to get an extender on an airplane but her premise is garbage. Seats (in anything except maybe a bus) cannot be designed for all body sizes. She apparently never noticed the "You must be this _______ tall to ride" signs? They're not discriminating against the very short, it is for safety. The restraints will not keep them secure. I guarantee that on those rides that go over the shoulders, there are people who are too tall, as well. Weight is another of those issues. If you make the restraints large enough for someone who is 350 pounds, how are they going to work on an 8-year-old? Then what do you do when a 450 pound person complains? Would the author have been happy if they'd let her ride because she bullied them into it and then the restraint failed during the ride?

Additionally, all the forces that determine whether the car will stay on the tracks, whether the wheels will pop off, whether welds will hold, etc. are based on a presumed range of weight limits and the amount of rotational force that weight will generate. This has nothing to do with being invisible, just physics.

As she is a writer, I presume she has never had to run a business or she'd realize that you can't EVER please everyone. Businesses want customers to be happy, but they'd forever be running in circles trying to accommodate everyone.

Signed, a former design engineer

Well said.

On the other side, if the author's main concern that JK Rowling wasn't very fat-friendly. I'm amazed that it took her so long to figure that out. Doesn't seem like her reading comprehension is all that great. Don't get me wrong - I love the books and have read the entire series multiple times, but "fat-friendly"? No.

35 minutes ago, Orchids&Dragons said:

Sorry, I can't get behind this at all

I agree completely. I wouldn't trust a ride that would take all sizes.

https://saferparks.org/safety-tips/one-size-fits-all-ride-design

I went on this exact ride last month. First, there are seats outside of the ride entrance and signs that encourage any guests to try the seats before they get into line. There's literally no one standing there, so that could easily be done without any embarrassment.

Second, for safety reasons, they can't make the seats "one size fits all." Depending on the type of ride, a seat that fits a 400 lb. person may not securely accommodate a 75 lb. teenager. Somebody is going to be unable to ride.

it's not discrimination. It's a safety issue. It sucks that she was embarrassed, but it sounds like they handled it as discretely as possible.

First - I’ll honestly say I didn’t read the article; so take this with a grain of salt.

Disney manages to make better rides that are much more accommodating with no problems. They are safe for a 45 pound child and a 450 pound adult.

I don’t expect cheaper places like 6 flags and pop up amusement parks at state fairs to spend the money to accommodate larger bodies but if Disney can do it so can Universal. It’s purely a choice albeit probably financial but it’s not a safety issue. It can be done.

The part of this story that irritates me...is that these people waited through the line before being asked to try the "test seat" to see if they'd get the three clicks and fit safely.

That test seat should be to the side of the line...so you can try it before waiting in line. This should be disclosed information. " You must be able to fit in this seat and get three click" to ride this ride.

Would be very simple to do, and it would allow people to run their own test if they had any concerns before waiting in line.

Notification signs....if you have a chest measurement of XXX...please try the test seat before waiting in line...would also be really helpful.

I don't mind the mechanical limitations, but I'm irritated by the failure to disclose information and failure to provide customers the opportunity to try the seat before committing to the line.

1 hour ago, Creekimp13 said:

That test seat should be to the side of the line...so you can try it before waiting in line. This should be disclosed information. " You must be able to fit in this seat and get three click" to ride this ride.

Would be very simple to do, and it would allow people to run their own test if they had any concerns before waiting in line.

According to an earlier poster @mamamc32, there is a set-up like you describe. Although, it might possibly have been set up after the author of the article was there.

Edited May 9, 20188 yr by Orchids&Dragons

2 hours ago, Over and Out said:

I agree completely. I wouldn't trust a ride that would take all sizes.

https://saferparks.org/safety-tips/one-size-fits-all-ride-design

Interesting! Thanks for sharing.

17 hours ago, Creekimp13 said:

The part of this story that irritates me...is that these people waited through the line before being asked to try the "test seat" to see if they'd get the three clicks and fit safely.

That test seat should be to the side of the line...so you can try it before waiting in line. This should be disclosed information. " You must be able to fit in this seat and get three click" to ride this ride.

Would be very simple to do, and it would allow people to run their own test if they had any concerns before waiting in line.

Notification signs....if you have a chest measurement of XXX...please try the test seat before waiting in line...would also be really helpful.

I don't mind the mechanical limitations, but I'm irritated by the failure to disclose information and failure to provide customers the opportunity to try the seat before committing to the line.

I was just there in April, and I rode this exact ride. There is a seat outside the entrance and there are signs all over encouraging people to try the seat. At my larger size, I would have tried the seat to make sure I would have fit. That's why I can't really take this article seriously . . . in my opinion, she was embarrassed and just wanted something to complain about.

I was hornswaggled and bamboozled away from the primary argument and transported, LEVIOSUM, to the dimension where you're tugged into the bullying bs. (And I've no doubt there is a need to get down on REAL bullying, especially to kids in school and on the internet.)

Sigh. I'm about as sick of this #bullytoo stuff as I am the #metoo stuff. Sorry. Color me insensitive. Apologies in advance.

Anyone with four eyes (like Harry and me) can see that JK Rowling does not portray fat people well. She may very well have a bias against us. Who the frick cares? You do you. I'll do me.

Didn't like the writer at all. Plus she KNEW that she could pick a bone with 'em and probably was going for the free rides at Universal angle for being thrown off HP...

Edited May 11, 20188 yr by FluffyChix

1 hour ago, FluffyChix said:

Didn't like the writer at all. Plus she KNEW that she could pick a bone with 'em and probably was going for the free rides at Universal angle for being thrown off HP...

I doubt she thought that far ahead. I just think her perception of fat people is that they're either stupid or lazy and she assumed that everyone else feels that way, too. Although Mrs. Weasley was awesome and chubby and Harry loved her dearly!

T-shirt for me? I'm not lazy' I'm not stupid- I'm soft and squishy like your favorite sponge.

...

Edited May 11, 20188 yr by Creekimp13

On 5/11/2018 at 8:32 AM, Frustr8 said:

T-shirt for me? I'm not lazy' I'm not stupid- I'm soft and squishy like your favorite sponge.

I had to laugh. My oldest son (9) was worried about me having weight loss surgery because he likes my soft, squishy tummy. His words . . . not mine. Apparently, I am also soft and squishy like a sponge, too.