Tweet
I used to work at California Adventure as a rides operator. For those of you who don’t know what it is, California Adventure (henceforth CA) is Disney’s answer to the carnival. They have the traditional carnivalish rides there, like the Ferris wheel and, a roller coaster, and well, that’s all that’s really worth mentioning…the rest are just, well, crap rides. I was trained to work 2 rides there the golden zephyr (which is a slowish ride where you sit down and go in circles for several minutes) and Jumping Jellyfish (which is a parachute type ride, and also has a rider height restriction). I was working the greeter position when the SC’s wandered over with their 2 screaming brats. Before they get in line, I ask the parents to have their kids stand up next to the “must be this tall to ride the ride” sign, and sure enough, one of the kids was too short by at least a foot. I tell the parents that their child is too short to ride the ride (in much nicer terms of course, and all the while smiling), and they start yelling at me that I better let their kid on the ride, that they will go to the front desk and complain, and that they will do all manner of things to get me in trouble. I just sit back and take it, and let them scream and yell at me. After their rant, I tell them their kid can’t go on the ride for his/her own safety, tell them of several alternative rides that don’t have height restrictions, and offer the kid a sticker to make him/her feel better. The dad yells at me for giving the kid a sticker and starts yelling at me to let the kid on the ride, and I finally tell him why the ride has this restriction (which is a no-no). On this ride, the kids sit down on chairs and get belted in, unfortunately, due to the design of the seatbelts; the smaller children can squirm out of the belts, and potentially fall out of the ride, which has an approximate height of 200ft. I tell the man that if his child fell out, they could be seriously injured. I think the message finally sank in, because he let me give the kid a sticker, and walked away toward one of the alternative rides I told him about.
There’s a rotation (these happen about every 2 hours, so no one person is stuck at the same position all the time) and I am now at the gate where the kids actually board the ride. The wait time on the ride is about ½ an hour, so things are kinda hectic up there. As the loader, it was my duty to re-screen all the kids to make sure they are tall enough to ride the ride (Disney is nothing if not thorough). Guess who I see inching their way toward me? You guessed it, the SC’s and their brats. Somehow they made it passed the guy up front, and now they are in line. When they get to me, I tell them once again that their short kid (not the words I used) still couldn’t ride the ride, and that they would have to exit at the gate behind me. (Disney actually planned for this, and put a gate near the loading area, but before the people got on the ride) Now it’s ballistic time. Both parents are now screaming at me at the top of their lungs, complaining that the other guy let them in, and that they have been in line for over ½ an hour. Thankfully, the lead was nearby, and saved me from the yelling. I ask the lead what happened to em, and he told me that he sent them to the front desk, and that they probably got free tickets out of the whole thing. That’s right, ladies and gentlemen; these asshats actually got free tickets because their kid was short.
There’s a rotation (these happen about every 2 hours, so no one person is stuck at the same position all the time) and I am now at the gate where the kids actually board the ride. The wait time on the ride is about ½ an hour, so things are kinda hectic up there. As the loader, it was my duty to re-screen all the kids to make sure they are tall enough to ride the ride (Disney is nothing if not thorough). Guess who I see inching their way toward me? You guessed it, the SC’s and their brats. Somehow they made it passed the guy up front, and now they are in line. When they get to me, I tell them once again that their short kid (not the words I used) still couldn’t ride the ride, and that they would have to exit at the gate behind me. (Disney actually planned for this, and put a gate near the loading area, but before the people got on the ride) Now it’s ballistic time. Both parents are now screaming at me at the top of their lungs, complaining that the other guy let them in, and that they have been in line for over ½ an hour. Thankfully, the lead was nearby, and saved me from the yelling. I ask the lead what happened to em, and he told me that he sent them to the front desk, and that they probably got free tickets out of the whole thing. That’s right, ladies and gentlemen; these asshats actually got free tickets because their kid was short.
Not only did these morons not comprehend basic laws of physics, it's against the rules to explain it to them? That's crazy! 
.
people make me mad
Comment