Big & Tall at KD

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CoasterAuditor

CoasterAuditor

Theme parks are cool
Jul 5, 2017
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Richmond, VA
Okay so I know some of you have likely seen my posts in the TT forum about being walk of shamed on Twisted Timbers.  (I plan on taking another crack at it soon not wearing jeans and belt to see if that'll make me a little more flexible where the bar hits).  So as a point of reference I was wondering if there were other larger riders in the forum that have trouble with rides at KD.  I am 6'3 313 with a 42-44" waistline and before I got over 300 pounds I had ridden every coaster in the park. If I weigh in the 275-290 range I'm generally good for most coasters in general.  

Currently I can ride Intimidator 305 no problem (but let's be honest that is a difficult ride to marathon).  Haven't tried Dominator in a while although I plan to check the test seat on my next visit I imagine I will be okay especially for the big boy seats but I don't believe the test seat out front is a big boy seat for some reason.  I rode Dominator last in 2014 when I was in the 320s (since then I got up to 360 and then back down to 313 currently).  I haven't really checked any other coaster in the park except Volcano once (couldn't ride in the 320s in 2015 checked the test seat BUT when I went in 2014 when I was in the 310s I somehow got the belt to click so I may check again but I'm not getting my hopes up.  FOF I got on in 2014 BARELY.  Plan on checking soon.  Have never ridden Delirium can't get the stupid lights on the test seat to turn on.  

How are the rest of the coasters for larger riders?  Genuinely curious what everyone else's experience is and all should feel free to mention the rides I have already mentioned.  Really hoping I can get on Twisted Timbers in the next month or so as seeing everyone rave about it is killing me inside after I went to the gym for a year hoping to get on when it opened.
 
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As someone who is 5’9” and 330+ I feel your pain.

Volcano is hit or miss. It mostly depends on the seatbelt itself and the operator when it comes to larger guests. While all the seatbelts are technically the same length, the more worn seatbelts are stretched out more. On top of that, the more seasoned operators tend to be more skilled, stronger, and willing to smoosh larger guests in. So while you may not fit in the test seat, an operator still might be able to get you in.

Avalanche, Apple Zapple, Anaconda, Grizzly, Racer 75, and Woodstock are more forgiving for larger guests. Grizzly and Racer 75 do have a two click rule that they follow. Typically if you can ride FoF, Backlot should be non-issue.

Dominator, I305, and Twisted Timbers are the only rollercoasters in the park with seat sensors. So it is possible for you to fit in one seat, and not another.

Delirium does have a larger seat, but the Ops there aren’t suppose to force it closed.
 
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I am a larger guest. (I have lost a great deal of weight in the last year so I don't have much issue anymore)
I find that any B&M with OSTRs are the worst for larger quests. Intimin can be hit of miss. FoF was right out for me for years, but I have not tried it since I lost the weight. It just never seems to be open when I am there.

In general I do not think the parks do a very good job of handling their larger guests well. I hate that the test seats, when they have them, are out front and center for all to see. Worse they tend to be turned into photo ops for kids or worse toys. I can not count the number of times I have sat there waiting for a parent to remove a child even after I have humiliated myself asking to use it. Once in fact I was told to "wait my turn and wasn't I a bit old to be playing on the chair" I corrected her as kindly as I could.

The worst was once at BGW when a ride op on Alpie, (which in my opinion, is by far the worst) could not make me fit and asked me "Why do you even bother?" as she threw me out.
 
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^OMG! Wow that is absolutely horrible and nasty! I would of definitely complained that that ride op said that to me good lord that is rude. Interestingly enough Alpengeist was the first coaster I was ever walk of shamed from. I rode Afterburn about a month or so before that but I had started a new year of college and drank heavily the night before so I imagine I had a beer belly. I was screamed at on Gringotts at Universal last year by this large ride op when I rode the ride earlier in the day the man screamed at me IT WILL NOT LOCK over and over again despite the fact I rode it earlier that day. I wish I got his name because I wasn't exactly being rude or unruly to him as I am sure some guests can be and screaming at me in front of everyone that it will not lock was humiliating.

I know what you mean about kids playing in them. I wanted to check Delirium the other day but about 2-3 kids were playing around with the test seat so I didn't even bother and wow that is sad somebody asked you if you were "too old to be playing in the chair" usually there's at least signs up saying "try me on for size" or something around them but some people are just generally clueless.
 
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I am 5 7 and in the 260 range with a 40 waist. My experience is that the test seat for Volcano is tighter then the actual seats. Not sure why but there are times that I barely fit in the test seat but had no issues with the actual ride seat. Being able to fit on Back lot is not a guarantee on FOF I have always fit on Back lot but have had to take the walk at FOF last year. The test seat for Dominator is the larger size seat with double buckles. Rebel Yell and Grizzly are both fits for me. I find the best way to sit is to cross my restraint side leg under the other leg for just a hair more room. Hope that helps.
 
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Many times test seats are more restrictive than the actual seats on the ride. I, too, have found this particularly true with Volcano.

As for Flight of Fear, its seatbelts vary wildly. In one seat they'll give me the boot for it not even being close yet in another I'll have slack in the belt. If you get a good ride op they can typically tell you if your seat is a common problem and if there is a better seat to try.
 
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So I went down today and rode Racer 75, Grizzly, Backlot, Avalanche, Anaconda, Flight of Fear, and Intimidator 305 10 times in the dark answer it was glorious. Dominator was down the whole time I was there but I checked the test seat which a ride op confirmed to me is a regular seat not a larger seat and honestly if I had a good push on it I could probably get the belt buckles and I think the larger seats I’d be fine. Twisted Timbers lap bar confuses me it stopped and I feel like it wasn’t even like touching me all the way because the shin guards hit my shins before I could pull it down further but I’m not sure I didn’t feel like experimenting with these teenagers in line watching me acknowledging how uncomfortable it looked. Volcano was also a no go obviously. I think if I lose another 20-25 pounds I’ll be good for all the coasters again. I’m gonna head to BGW Sunday and see how I fare there. Honestly if I’m good for most of the stuff above I guess my biggest concerns will be the B&Ms.
 
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CoasterChase said:
So I went down today and rode Racer 75, Grizzly, Backlot, Avalanche, Anaconda, Flight of Fear, and Intimidator 305 10 times in the dark answer it was glorious.  Dominator was down the whole time I was there but I checked the test seat which a ride op confirmed to me is a regular seat not a larger seat and honestly if I had a good push on it I could probably get the belt buckles and I think the larger seats I’d be fine.  Twisted Timbers lap bar confuses me it stopped and I feel like it wasn’t even like touching me all the way because the shin guards hit my shins before I could pull it down further but I’m not sure I didn’t feel like experimenting with these teenagers in line watching me acknowledging how uncomfortable it looked.  Volcano was also a no go obviously.  I think if I lose another 20-25 pounds I’ll be good for all the coasters again.  I’m gonna head to BGW Sunday and see how I fare there.  Honestly if I’m good for most of the stuff above I guess my biggest concerns will be the B&Ms.
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If you fit Dominator you should be fine on anything at BGW accept maybe Tempesto and possiblely Invadr.
 
CoasterChase said:
 I’m gonna head to BGW Sunday and see how I fare there.  Honestly if I’m good for most of the stuff above I guess my biggest concerns will be the B&Ms.
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Did you try dropzone? It can he a pain as well?
 
Zimmy said:
CoasterChase said:
 I’m gonna head to BGW Sunday and see how I fare there.  Honestly if I’m good for most of the stuff above I guess my biggest concerns will be the B&Ms.
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Did you try dropzone? It can he a pain as well?
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No I was certain that’s a no. Delirium was also a no.
 
CoasterChase said:
^OMG! Wow that is absolutely horrible and nasty! I would of definitely complained that that ride op said that to me good lord that is rude.
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I was far too humiliated to do anything but go back to the cabana and sit and think for awhile. In the end I just did not want to deal with it. It would not have done anything.

UncleDuncan said:
Zimmy - OT, but congrats on the weight loss. I've lost a bit too over the last few years and it's like pushing a boulder uphill still to this day. Good job, dude.
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i did it the easy way. I had surgery. I highly recommend it for anyone who's doctor suggests it.
 
So the coasters I can't ride in VA are TT, InvadR, Volcano, Dominator, Griffon, and Alpengeist. Honestly I think if I had somebody push on the bottom of the big boy seats OTSR I could get on the B&Ms but I'd rather avoid a walk of shame when I was in the test seat at Griffon the belts were less than an inch from the buckles when I was trying by myself. I think part of the problem with those is my shoulders are very broad and I've been doing a lot of strength training in the last year with them along with my excess chest and waist once those are smaller I should be okay. B&M OTSRs will probably always be kinda tight with broad shoulders though I imagine. I was genuinely surprised by the fact I could not ride InvadR.
 
I honestly feel like the OTSRs are more to do with my shoulders than chest and waist. I am 6'3 so I'm fairly certain they will always suck. I never thought I would be too big for GCI lap bars though, that was crazy to find out Sunday. TT was not a shock at all, Volcano obviously was not surprising either. I wouldn't be surprised though based off how low I pushed down InvadRs lap bar if I can get on OTSR B&Ms before GCIs again. Maybe InvadRs lap bar sensor is more stingy because there's no seatbelt? Not sure.
 
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Hi all! As a fellow big and tall guy, I figured I'd add my experiences in the Virginia parks as well. I'm 6'6" and currently weigh 320 pounds. After not even attempting to ride any rides at KD last season at nearly 400 pounds, I decided to do something about it. So far this season I've been able to ride Anaconda, Racer 75, Grizzly, Apple Zapple, Loch Ness Monster, Tempesto and Verbolten. I'm less than an inch away on Dominator and Intimidator, but figure I'll be able to ride them within the month as I'm still losing weight. Haven't tried Alpengeist or Griffon since member preview day, but I imagine they will be similar to Dominator. I wasn't even close on InvadR as my thighs were just too thick. I still can't believe I can't fit on this ride. I've heard that the test seat is way more restrictive than the ride. Can anyone confirm this? Twisted Timbers was weird because the restraint was still inches from my belly before my legs had no where else to go. The test seat is configured so that there is no room under the seat to stuff my legs like I am able to do on Tempesto. I don't know if this is how it is on the actual trains or not. I did end up taking the walk of shame on Backlot Stunt Coaster.
 
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