Overweight Muggles Turned Away From Forbidden Journey

[PirateLover]

Just an FYI, if you are "Pooh sized" as people call it here on Intercot, you may have an issue with Wizarding World's flagship ride, Forbidden Journey. My husband is about 6 foot, and is overweight though not obese. It was a tight squeeze for him. We are friends with a couple headed down in October just for Harry Potter and the man is overweight and carries it all in the tummy, so he is going on a diet now. Were told by a worker that the safety bar must click 3 times for you to be able to ride and people were getting turned away. I think there is a light that must turn green. I know on one ride a supervisor on the floor pushed my husbands down one more click and he moaned "Was that necessary!?" And the man apologized and said "Yes it is actually, sorry!" There is a test seat out front. Here is a few weeks old article I found on the problem.

"When most people get in line at Orlando, Fla.'s new Harry Potter theme park, they're worried about the wait -- not their weight.

But according to some Harry Potter lovers, pudgy muggles -- those who weigh about 265 pounds or more -- are getting tossed from line at the most-hyped ride in Universal Studios' Wizarding World of Harry Potter amusement park.

For them, the ride "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey" is truly living up to its name -- and that's a big disappointment for fans who resemble Harry's rotund cousin Dudley.

Heavyset Harry Potter lovers are cursing the much-anticipated "Forbidden Journey" ride inside the Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park in Orlando, Fla. Amusement park officials have reportedly turned away overweight visitors waiting in line for the attraction, which is inside a mock-up of Hogwarts Castle.

Harry Potter fanatic Jeff Guillaume said he was "quite disappointed" after park officials turned him away from the Hogwarts-touring attraction because his 5-foot, 8-inch, 265-pound frame was deemed too large for the ride's safety harnesses.

"What it boils down to for me, and what surprised and disappointed me the most, was that many of Universal's other rides contain 'modified seating' rows for larger guests, and -- let's face it -- a good number of people in the Harry Potter fandom are a bit heavy, so why didn't Universal anticipate and accommodate us here?" he wrote on his website, the Harry Potter Automatic News Aggregator (HPANA to Potter maniacs).

Universal Studios representatives did not return calls in time for AOL News' deadline, but the Orlando Sentinel reports that park officials have "instituted a screening system" requiring random park-goers to sit in "test seats" installed in the line area of the "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey" ride.

"I'm not sure what the system is, but team members take potential riders -- not all of them -- and test whether the safety harness will latch," the paper's Theme Park Rangers blog notes.

Some park-goers are hexing Universal Studios officials over rumors that 6-foot-11, 265-pound Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard was permitted on the ride while other heavyset Harry Potter fans were turned away.

But amusement park expert Dennis Speigel says the restrictions likely have as much to do with body type as they do with weight.

"Height can be a factor either way -- too short or too tall -- and girth could be a factor too," said Speigel, who is president of the amusement industry consulting firm International Theme Park Services.

While amusement park visitors are probably accustomed to signs informing them they "must be this tall to ride," Speigel says weight and body type restrictions are prevalent.

"It's not unusual," he says. "You have weight restrictions everywhere from Disney to the smallest mom-and-pop operators. It's for the safety of the guests. ... They aren't penalizing the person to be mean. They are exercising caution as it relates to safety -- and that's the prudent thing to do."

Even though more than one-third of American adults are obese, amusement park designers simply aren't creating rides for people who are very overweight, Speigel says.

"You can't design a ride for an excessively large person," he says. "You can't build for that narrow segment of the population. You try to hit average and little bit above."

[BrerGnat]

For the life of me, I can't understand why this is such a big deal? Life is not "one size fits all". Everyone is not equal. Everyone cannot expect the world to accommodate him/her.

This is never talked about in regards to EVERY other theme park attraction with a weight/size limit.

We just visited Legoland, and there are MANY weight restrictions posted for their rides (because they are, essentially, designed for younger kids). MOST of those rides had a maximum COMBINED rider weight of 200-300 pounds. I mean, if my husband and I went together (without our kids), we would have not been able to ride almost anything together!

At Disney, too, there are restrictions. On every boat ride (Small World, Mexico, etc.) there is a max. weight per boat. If you have a large number of overweight people in a group, they likely will not all ride together. On Space Mountain in Disneyland, every rocket is actually WEIGHED prior to "lift off". If the rocket is overweight, a loud beep goes off, the rocket is moved to the side and CM's have to "rearrange" the riders, removing some, and switching them to other cars, until the rocket is no longer 'over'. The new Silly Symphony swings ride at DCA has quite small seats, and riders who cannot fit in the seat and lower the bar cannot ride. I saw a very pregnant woman (who was not overweight by any means) have to walk away from the swings with her crying child after she realized she could not fit in the seat.

Such is life.

[SBETigg]

I've heard about this. Maryanne, your dh does not look like a really big guy in pictures, so I am surprised that he found it a tight squeeze. I expected it was people at the larger end of the Pooh-sized spectrum having problems getting to ride, but this sounds more like slightly over average could be an issue, too. Good to know.

[PirateLover]

I am not outraged, I just think it's an issue people need to be aware of. As Sherri noted my husband barely registers on the "pooh sized" scale yet he was uncomfortable in the ride. The way it is designed, you sit in a kind of box. If you are broad shouldered you may be uncomfortable. He felt the squeeze when the harness pushed his "extra" poundage off to the side. Most roller coasters now have special rows for heavier people. This is THE ride to be on now, and it's meant for adults not kids. I just wanted to put this out there because I can't imagine how I'd feel if I never had an issue fitting on a ride and I planned a vacation based around this land and then I was too big to ride the flagship attraction. I read about theme park blogger that has never been turned away from any other ride, but he can't get on this. On the plus side, it has now encouraged him to lose the weight and he's now chronicling his own "journey" to ride Forbidden Journey.

[Hair_Razor]

Good to know, we are definitely planning a visit to see the new HP park probably next year and my husband tends to carry Pooh in his front. (that just doesn't sound right haha) Something to encourage our diet before we make plans.

[Pagan]

Harry Potter fanatic Jeff Guillaume said he was "quite disappointed" after park officials turned him away from the Hogwarts-touring attraction because his 5-foot, 8-inch, 265-pound frame was deemed too large for the ride's safety harnesses.

"What it boils down to for me, and what surprised and disappointed me the most, was that many of Universal's other rides contain 'modified seating' rows for larger guests, and -- let's face it -- a good number of people in the Harry Potter fandom are a bit heavy, so why didn't Universal anticipate and accommodate us here?" he wrote on his website, the Harry Potter Automatic News Aggregator (HPANA to Potter maniacs)
I know I'm going to be in the minority here, but why should they "accomodate" them?

I have a friend who went down with her family last week. Her husband was turned away. His reaction? Not "they should accommodate us", but "Man, I better get back to the gym."

[PirateLover]

I know I'm going to be in the minority here, but why should they "accomodate" them?

I have a friend who went down with her family last week. Her husband was turned away. His reaction? Not "they should accommodate us", but "Man, I better get back to the gym."

I can see both sides. On one hand, people do expect to be accommodated because almost all rides do nowadays, so they are taken by surprise and of course very disappointed when they can't ride... on the other hand, I don't necessarily think anyone should feel entitled to an accommodation on an amusement ride. I agree that losing the weight is the best option!

[RBrooksC]

My reaction is so sad, too bad. It isn't hard to lose weight. I should know. At the Olympics, I weighed 217 pounds and I am down to almost 197. It was nothing more fancy than reducing my caloric intake. That was achieved by reducing how much I ate at breakfast and lunch and reducing my serving at dinner. I didn't change what I ate. And then I added running/walking 2.5 miles four times a week.

The problem is most people are lazy. So, they get fatter and fatter. And when something comes around that precludes them, it is really their own fault.

I am not saying I am some health nut, because I am not. Like I said, my diet has not changed. But, it doesn't take much to lose weight.

Remember: Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, son. :)

[Pagan]

Remember: Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, son. :)
Gods I love that movie!

[crazypoohbear]

My reaction is so sad, too bad. It isn't hard to lose weight. I should know. At the Olympics, I weighed 217 pounds and I am down to almost 197. It was nothing more fancy than reducing my caloric intake. That was achieved by reducing how much I ate at breakfast and lunch and reducing my serving at dinner. I didn't change what I ate. And then I added running/walking 2.5 miles four times a week.

The problem is most people are lazy. So, they get fatter and fatter. And when something comes around that precludes them, it is really their own fault.

I am not saying I am some health nut, because I am not. Like I said, my diet has not changed. But, it doesn't take much to lose weight.

Remember: Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, son. :)

I take great offense to your comments.
I am overweight, I am not lazy.
It is very hard to lose weight, if it wasn't no one would be over weight.
.
Some people are over weight because they suffer depression or other medical issues.
I have cut down on my caloric intake,
I can not exercise at all right now, I have a herniated discs in my neck and back, I have arthritis in my back, I have a stress fracture in my back, I have plantar facisitis in both feet, I have a bone spur on one foot, Tendonitis in a shoulder, I could go on and on but I won't
I can't even walk very far now ( before my back went out I was walking on a treadmill for an hour a day!
I can't even swim right now because of the shoulder.
Now I use a tens unit, a back brace, I take pills for arthritis
I am under 50!
I have tyroid problems.
I am peri menapausal
I have very low Vitamin D levels ( just found out this causes weight issues)
I have fibromyalgia
Should I go on?

[Renfairwedding]

WOW with all that forget any rides. How do you get out of bed.

[BrerGnat]

Crazypoohbear:

Wow...so sorry you have to deal with so much. Sounds awful. :(

But, Forbidden Journey is probably a ride that's off limits to you anyway, due to your back/neck injuries. Try not to be offended by those comments, as it seems they were more directed at people who are in otherwise good health, except for being overweight. If one is healthy enough to experience this type of attraction, it stands to reason that exercise is not out of the question. And, I do agree with him to a certain point. The MAJORITY of overweight individuals can do something about it, especially if they expect to be riding thrill rides. Instead of expecting to be accommodated, perhaps they should consider accommodating THEMSELVES to the things they want to do in life.

[dnickels]

My reaction is so sad, too bad. It isn't hard to lose weight. I should know. At the Olympics, I weighed 217 pounds and I am down to almost 197. It was nothing more fancy than reducing my caloric intake. That was achieved by reducing how much I ate at breakfast and lunch and reducing my serving at dinner. I didn't change what I ate. And then I added running/walking 2.5 miles four times a week.

The problem is most people are lazy. So, they get fatter and fatter. And when something comes around that precludes them, it is really their own fault.

I am not saying I am some health nut, because I am not. Like I said, my diet has not changed. But, it doesn't take much to lose weight.

Remember: Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, son. :)

Amen! :thumbsup: I'm paralyzed completely from the knees down and about 2/3 from the knees to the waist, the only lower body muscles I can use are some of my quads. I haven't been able to run or walk without a walker in over 8 years and in that time I have gained exactly....

ZERO pounds.

[John]

Ok, folks - not much productive going on here so I am going to close the thread.

The fact is, not every ride is going to fit every person. All rides have a limit, be it per car or per boat and the designers I am certain try to maximize capability while still delivering thrills.

Like most high speed thrill rides that require a harness, there is a limit to what the ride can accomodate.

This ride is VERY unique in that it is a 4 person car on a moving huge robotic arm. If you havn't seen it, it's amazing.

The best way to effect change if you are dissapointed is to write (read - send an actual letter) to corporate and explain your frustration. Maybe then, they can look into modifying the ride moving forward.