Seven Dwarfs Loading - Bizarre Things

[MickeyMinnieMom]

OK, it's like the Twilight Zone in this thread.
My comment is in direct connection with paragraph 2 of the original post.
I'm not taking a "position" on this, I am commenting as to likely why there was a 5 yo single rider whom an adult was paired with.
I didn't pair them up.

I didn't say you were... ... in fact, I quoted your post saying you weren't taking a position... ... I only quoted you and another PP to make clear that I was adding a thought on that topic.

 

[Jennasis]

I guess I am the strange one. I don't mind watching out for other peoples little ones for the whole 3 minutes you might be on the ride. I feel like it is my responsibility just as a grown up to keep my eye out for any little ones, on a ride or just walking around. I appreciate the same from other parents. Even if I am at the grocery store and I see something like a little one dart toward the door away from their parents I will stop them and turn them if I need to. Rather have a disgruntled parent than a hurt little one. That's just me though.

That is a very admirable sentiment. Unfortunately, in this crazy, litigious world in which we live there is NO WAY I would allow myself to be put in a position to accept responsibility (or even the appearance of responsibility) of a stranger's kid on a ride at Disney (not even entertaining the notion of applying this to outside scenarios. For the sake of this discussion, I am limiting it to the scenario posed in the OP).

And frankly, a "comforting arm" tossed around a frightened child or holding on to a kid you think is slipping in the seat can easily become an accusation of something nefarious. No way. No how.

 

[Satchmo128]

The very reason for having Single Rider Lines is to fill any empty seats.

I know 7DMT doesn't specifically have a SRL, but it is still operated the same...
loaded in a way that there are no (or as few as possible) empty seats sent out.

No way to gauge with whom a given single rider will be paired.

Agreed. I have been seated with children on EE when I have ridden as a single rider. Sometimes they are chatty and sometimes quiet. Same has happened on SDMT.

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

That is a very admirable sentiment. Unfortunately, in this crazy, litigious world in which we live there is NO WAY I would allow myself to be put in a position to accept responsibility (or even the appearance of responsibility) of a stranger's kid on a ride at Disney (not even entertaining the notion of applying this to outside scenarios. For the sake of this discussion, I am limiting it to the scenario posed in the OP).

And frankly, a "comforting arm" tossed around a frightened child or holding on to a kid you think is slipping in the seat can easily become an accusation of something nefarious. No way. No how.

I'm with you. I do not want even the appearance of responsibility.

Would I stop a child from running into a busy street? Of course. Should parents expect me to watch, then stop their children from running into a busy street? Of course NOT.

In today's world, there will be no "comforting arms" placed around a child that I did not know.

And if I am ever placed next to a child that is too young, in Disney's eyes, to ride alone, I will speak up that I am not this child's parent and per Disney policy, the child needs to ride with a parent or responsible adult. Sorry, but separate Mom and Dad or whomever and get one of them over here. If the child is old enough to be on their own, then they shouldn't need a comforting arm.

And keep in mind the reason Disney wants a responsible adult is in case something happens. I do not want to be responsible for the safety of an underage child in case of an emergency. Guess what, Mom and Dad, that is why you are there.

 

[KittyKitty]

Being around students most of my life, retired teacher, I know the most innocent adult can be a threat to a child. I would never put them nor myself in a situation where the child is fearful. So if the child looks under 10 or so,maybe even older,I will request to ride with an adult. Why take the chance.

 

[HopperFan]

WOW, crazy ..... but food for thought. DS and DD (both 20's often ride as single) as we are often odd, and have had children sit with them. They usually talk and have fun - created some great photo ops. Both are great with kids but never did I anticipate crazy parents. Now I wonder if I should tell them to refuse to sit with young children.

I'm with you. I do not want even the appearance of responsibility.

Would I stop a child from running into a busy street? Of course. Should parents expect me to watch, then stop their children from running into a busy street? Of course NOT.

In today's world, there will be no "comforting arms" placed around a child that I did not know.

And if I am ever placed next to a child that is too young, in Disney's eyes, to ride alone, I will speak up that I am not this child's parent and per Disney policy, the child needs to ride with a parent or responsible adult. Sorry, but separate Mom and Dad or whomever and get one of them over here. If the child is old enough to be on their own, then they shouldn't need a comforting arm.

And keep in mind the reason Disney wants a responsible adult is in case something happens. I do not want to be responsible for the safety of an underage child in case of an emergency. Guess what, Mom and Dad, that is why you are there.

Once on 7DMT the CMs told the parents to split up and put the child with one of them. They refused so CM refused to let them board and our train left without them. But I do know most the time they would have no idea who belongs with who.

We're a family of 3, and whenever we ride TSMM DD sits with either me or DH, but the solo rider has never been paired with a stranger. I agree that one seems weird to ride with a stranger.

I think they only did this a short while before the third track was built to help with lines.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

The only thing I've learned from this thread is that I want to go on EE with @Robo.

 

[JacknSally]

I do wish there was a little less pressure on the CM's to get a specific (high) number of riders through each hour.

We rode Primeval Whirl in May and it's just my husband and me, but we're both bigger - though DH is bigger than I am. Usually when we ride Primeval Whirl, it's just the two of us in a car, and we each sit comfortably on one half. We never ask for this arrangement, it's just how the CM's have always assigned us. It's nice to have the little bit of extra room on a ride that throws you around so much, plus with each of us having our own lap bar, I'm able to pull my down further. On rides like BTMRR where we both share one lap bar, it stops where it's comfortable for DH, which leaves me with way too much room.

This time when we rode PW, the man in line in front of us was a single rider, and the CM directed him into a car and then waved us on with no real direction. We started to get into the car behind the single rider and the CM snapped that we couldn't ride in that car, we were supposed to be in the same car with this guy we didn't know - which was now nearing the end of the conveyor belt, so no real time to think or discuss. We got into the car as instructed, but the stranger was already in his seat with his lap bar down (and even if he weren't, one of us wasn't about to cram into that half of the car with him) so both DH and I had to sit on the same side of the car, and we didn't really fit - which meant DH was half on top of me and I was pinned against the side of the car.

It was the most painful, uncomfortable ride I've ever been on, and honestly the CMs should've seen that this arrangement wasn't good before we ever left the station. Nevermind combining parties, but overfilling cars just to stay on top of their numbers can lead to real issues. I actually hurt my shoulder against the side of the car because of the position I was riding in, and we mentioned it to another CM as we exited the ride, who actually let us ride again immediately in our own car - which, while INCREDIBLY appreciated (it's one of our favorite rides), had to throw off their riders per hour quota, in which case I wish we'd just been assigned this way from the get-go and it never would've been a problem at all. Mine wasn't a serious injury at all, it was just sore, and we only mentioned it to the CM to try to make them more aware of how they were loading the cars - but it could've been worse for someone else.

 

[bumbershoot]

I didn't really take a position. I just pointed out the obvious situation that the child would not be riding "without an adult" if he was riding along with another single rider adult.

I just referred to your "take" on it; your idea of why it might have happened. I didn't say you had or held a position on it.

I swear it's so WEIRD for me to disagree with you *I* feel like I'm in the twilight zone!

I don't think the CMs decided "that kid is with a stranger, therefore they aren't riding alone". I think that someone messed up.

Disney can't use the single rider lines to in any meaningful way assign unwilling babysitters to unaccompanied kids...

Exactly.

I'm not taking a "position" on this, I am commenting as to likely why there was a 5 yo single rider whom an adult was paired with.

I know that; I just don't think that's how the child ended up there. I think a CM messed up if the child was that young.

It's also entirely possible the child wasn't 5. I know one child, and am acquainted with another, who look AT LEAST 4 years younger than they actually are. The first girl is almost 10 but you could easily think she was barely 6 and maybe 5. The other girl is 6 but looks *maybe* 4. So either one of them would be mistaken for being too young (let's age the second girl up by a year when she's 7 and looks 5 IF that) to sit alone, but both of them would be. So the OP could be mistaken on that and the child could have been solo-legal.

And frankly, a "comforting arm" tossed around a frightened child or holding on to a kid you think is slipping in the seat can easily become an accusation of something nefarious. No way. No how.

So very much yes. I won't even touch a lost child. I will stay near. I will watch. I will look out for frantic parents. I will talk to an employee. I will NOT touch that child. And this is nothing new. This is what I learned from my mom, who was like a lost-child magnet, starting in the late '70s when I was old enough to notice what she was doing. Even then she was smart enough to never EVER touch someone else's child in such a circumstance.

And if I'm on a ride where the child is slipping I'm going to be narrating anything I do very very loudly in my theater-voice.

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

@JacknSally , we've had something similar happen to us a couple of times.

Both times, I told the CM, "Um no, I don't think so." Sorry, I'm not going to end up half sitting on some guy I don't know. And both times we took the next car.

Of course, if you don't have a chance to say something, you don't have a chance.

It is crazy to try to shove extra people into cars.

 

[karrit2000]

I have witnessed many times CM's instructing guest who they need to sit with and those people rearranging themselves within their group after then CM moves on down the line. Most often I've seen this on BTMRR but also 7DMT. Not much the CM's can do once the ride is loaded unless they want to hold everything up to force a switch. But I've often gone from being seated with an adult to being stuck with a child who is unknown to me on 7DMT. I've never been expected to sit with a stranger on BTMRR although on several occasions I've had people from the next train try to force their way in with me. That usually stops when they realize they won't be on the same train as the rest of their party and they back off. Also once witnessed an entire large group try to squeeze their way onto a safari vehicle at Kilimanjaro Safari and the CM's almost had to forcibly remove them all while repeatedly telling them they needed to wait for the next vehicle.

 

[luvmy2boyzz]

While I have never had these type of experiences, I always found it strange that this ride could make you ride with strangers in such close quarters. To me they should have a single ride line & then if you're in that line, you know the risk you're taking. I also find it strange that parents would put their young children alone with a stranger & ride together vs one parent riding with the child!

^^ THIS^^

 

[samsteele]

I think they only did this a short while before the third track was built to help with lines.

Yes. My experience on TSMM when a teenage boy was seated with me was just before the extra track was opened. It was the running of the bulls to TSMM at rope drop.

The first time I rode 7DMT as a single rider, I did not take the seat beside another rider but hung back & waited in the pen with the intention of waiting for the next train. I was immediately directed by one of the loading CMs to get in the seat. With the load volume at 7DMT, the CMs are brusque & direct. As a middle-aged woman, I am almost always seated with a child or teenager. Curious if this is coincidence or if by design. While I doubt that the line CMs (for lack of the proper term), actually have the time or ability to stack the lines with the idea of placing a woman with a younger rider, the odds are I've been placed with young guests at least 90% of the time.

I absolutely agree with PPs that parents should split up and one needs to ride with their own child. But it may be less about the parents being selfish and much more that they just haven't put any thought into how the seating is going to shake down. As a family of 3, they get to the pens and suddenly it's a scramble to get on the ride. It's like they expect the CMs to tell them exactly what to do. While you would think that adults would have worked this out with their child while waiting in line, it always amazes me that people just don't think that far ahead. Like their brain is on vacation. Or worse - they just forgot to pack it.

 

[anonymousegirl]

I have ridden dozens of times as a single rider on Exp. Everest.
My wife can only take the "backwards section" very occasionally, but I like to ride EE multiple times.
When you get to the CM who is "assigning rows" just say that you want to ride in the first row and (s)he will
tell you to stand in the special short line for doing so. Doing that virtually guarantees that you will
be paired with a stranger in the first row. I've ridden with countless other riders of all ages, male and
female, alike.
I will wait until we have boarded and turn and cheerily ask, "Is this your first trip on this ride?"
This always gets some kind of response from the other rider.
I explain that my wife is sitting this one out as she "let's me ride it again."
Then, we ride quietly for that first twisting few hundred feet and the next thing I say is,
"Notice how quiet the lift hill is.
They built it so the safety ratchet brake is 'pulled up' by the chain so the normally very loud
'clankity-clankity' of nearly all other coasters is eliminated on EE and the climb to the top
is very smooth and quiet."
If I get a stoney silence response, that's the end of that...
and we ride the duration with me keeping my mouth shut.
OTOH, if the other rider engages in convo... at the very top pause,
I'll point out the hair-ties on the ground,
the other hotels and parks on the horizon, the "bird on a stick"
(so often missed if you don't know when/where to look.)
Then backwards we all go...
When we reach the "projection yeti" pause I'll mention to look for the "real yeti"
in the last cave.

I add one quick note as we end the ride that I have seen the yeti actually MOVE as we were at DAK
when EE first opened.

So very many times I have had the luck of a fellow traveler who is an EE fan, (new or of old)
and we exit and part ways immediately at the gift shop. (I don't linger at the ride photo viewing.

Then, I pop back into the single rider line and many times I'll see the person with whom I've just ridden
discussing with their their party if they want to ride again.
Sometimes they join the SLR somewhere behind me as I'm off for another EE adventure,
this time with another fellow traveler, new or seasoned.


However, 7DMT has little opportunity for any but the most cursory of, "here we go!"
conversation at the beginning of the ride, so it is far less conducive to much
interaction with another single rider.

Totally want to ride with you sometime, Robo. AT the very least to thank you for your awesome maps!

 

[HopperFan]

However, 7DMT has little opportunity for any but the most cursory of, "here we go!"
conversation at the beginning of the ride, so it is far less conducive to much
interaction with another single rider.

This made me think of our last trip. Odd number as usual, me and both DS.
We got in line me with DS1 (disabled) and DS2 would have a stranger.
In split seconds as a Mom was getting in line with DS2, her daughter grabbed her,
spun her around to her line as she was hopping in line with DS2.
He didn't see this as he was facing me where DS1 asked to ride with DS2.
So he moved and swapped seats ..... disappointing the young lady
who was trying to ride with him. I chuckled to myself since he was oblivious.
It was truly the longest 7DMT I ever rode as from the minute she sat,
she never stopped talking to me.
Joked DS2 made a good move.

So it is possible ........... to have a too long chat. on 7DMT.

 

[mamamelody2]

The only thing I've learned from this thread is that I want to go on EE with @Robo.

Haha, me too!!

 

[PaintsWithAllTheColors]

I've had two such experiences, both fairly recent.

1) The first was at DCA and it was actually the small child who was the single rider. DH and I were in line for RSR and a single rider was placed with us. DH had happened to see that the child (4 yrs) had been taken out of the single rider line away from the rest of his family. We were a bit nervous as the kid seemed confused and scared. We decided amongst ourselves to wait after the ride to make sure he was reunited with his family.

Well. The ride broke down mid-trip for about 10 minutes. By this point we were semi-talking with the kid. Once we got to the unloading zone we were told to stay on as we would be given another ride-around. We told the CM about the single-rider kid but he said it would be fine and that the kids family would probably also be going around again. After the ride, we waited with the kid by the unloading zone for 5 minutes. We then alerted a CM who was less than caring and simply seemed annoyed. 10 minutes went by with the kid straining to see any ride vehicle that he could, looking for his family. We mentioned to the CM that the family might be waiting outside the entire ride but were shot down.

DH told me to stay with the child and he went outside to search for the family. Sure enough, he immediately found the distraught dad and assured him his son was safe. The man pushed my husband out of the way angrily and ran back to where I was waiting with the kid. I received a glare and watched the dad yank the kid away.

2) This was an unusual one. One night I decided to go through Tarzan's Treehouse at DLR. About halfway through, I ran into two kids, one was about 5, the other was a toddler. The older was trying to convince the younger to cross the hanging bridge but the toddler was paralyzed with fear. I look around for any adult but there wasn't another soul around. I knelt down and told the toddler it would be okay. He grabbed my leg. At this point I didn't know what to do and looked at the older child. He told me their mom was down below, waiting but couldn't come up. I quickly weighed my options and offered the toddler my hand so we could cross together. He shook his head no and stuck his arms up, indicating that he wanted to go "up". So I sighed, picked him up, and prayed that this situation wouldn't go south. At multiple points I asked if he wanted to go down but he repeatedly shook his head and buried his head in my shoulder. Once we got all the way through the attraction (and I was exhausted for having carried him up and down stairs), I saw a woman waiting at the bottom coming towards us. I quickly set the boy down and started apologizing/explaining the situation. Thankfully, she smiled and started thanking me for helping, explaining that she had a bad knee and couldn't go up. The 5 year old told her I was a "nice lady" and I wished them a good night before heading off to HM. That one scared me but I was thankful that she didn't take offense or worse! At the same time, I also hope she instilla a little more "stranger-danger" in the little one

 

[KrazeeK120]

I've ridden 7DMT both in my own car and seated with another guest. I rode it multiple times during EMM. We have a "too short" child, so DH and I took turns riding (while the non-riding parent took DS on Winnie the Pooh or PP).

The time I was seated with a child, it was a boy who looked to be somewhere in the 10-12 year old range. His dad and younger brother were behind us. We actually didn't look at or speak to each other. We just got on, rode, and got off. I was seated with another adult for one ride and alone twice.

Sorry about what happened to your sister, OP!

 

[Felicis]

The only thing I've learned from this thread is that I want to go on EE with @Robo.

Exactly what I was thinking!

 

[KyleAfterAWhile]

I guess I am the strange one. I don't mind watching out for other peoples little ones for the whole 3 minutes you might be on the ride. I feel like it is my responsibility just as a grown up to keep my eye out for any little ones, on a ride or just walking around. I appreciate the same from other parents. Even if I am at the grocery store and I see something like a little one dart toward the door away from their parents I will stop them and turn them if I need to. Rather have a disgruntled parent than a hurt little one. That's just me though.

As a man, I do not feel comfortable being placed with a female child I do not know. I realize there are cameras everywhere and you cannot pick your butt without Mickey knowing, but still!
We live in a crazy world with crazy people. I do not want any accusations that are not deserved. I am the type of person who would take a bullet for a stranger (military background I suppose), however I am still cautious.