Today's work rant: People don't act rationally when they're panicked. My park has had one fatality because a guest was forced onto a ride (by their ops & peer pressure) they didn't want to be on. They panicked and climbed out (of a TIGHT RESTRAINT for a ride they were tall enough for!) and fell a hundred feet to the ground.
You might see it as "helping your scaredy cat friend get over their fear of rides." We're trained to see it as a safety hazard. A little fear is fine but if someone doesn't feel ready I don't care how old or tall they are, they aren't ready. Leave them alone.
I say this as a thrill addict: You have no idea why someone doesn't want to ride a ride. Some people have had bad experiences on rides. I know a guy who works in the industry who has a family member who had a TBI on a roller coaster. For some people it's too intense a sensory experience. Some people didn't grow up around amusement rides; a lot of the world doesn't have access to them at all. They might have a genuine medical condition. Or maybe they're scared of them because their purpose is to be intimidating.
I don't care if it's your thirteenth birthday and your one scaredy cat friend doesn't wanna ride with you. I don't care if you're their mom and you think your kid "should" be ready for the ride by now. If they're so scared they're in tears you shouldn't be forcing them to ride anything. This is why your kids won't want to talk to you in five years.
I always try to talk to scared guests and tell them about how the ride is safe etc which is a different talk depending on the ride but I do always try to help them look forward to it. But at the end of the day I'm not forcing anyone to ride anything. Because not only am I not an asshole, but also, that's a human factors safety hazard that no one takes seriously. Leave your scaredy cat friends alone.
