Rollercoaster restraints, and why as a 300lb man I should not be worried about it, as long as it locks? What forces are at play with the safety systems and how are those designed so that some one like me does not extert enough force to break the restraint during the ride?

Question

Rollercoaster restraints, and why as a 300lb man I should not be worried about it, as long as it locks? What forces are at play with the safety systems and how are those designed so that some one like me does not extert enough force to break the restraint during the ride?

In: 0

Answer 1

Usually roller coasters are designed in such a way to avoid negative G-forces and anything which would really strain the restraints at all. This is simply because to do so would make riding the attraction unpleasant. Instead riders are expected to be pushed against more suitable surfaces like the seat.

But another factor is that the restraints are typically vastly over-engineered. Often restraint belts are capable of holding 5000 pounds; the rider is going to break before the restraints!

Answer 2

The main issue with rollercoaster restraints is people slipping out of them from being too skinny, not the restraints themselves breaking.

Answer 3

There’s a size and weight limit. In many parks there’s a replica seat/restraint system at the entrance to the line, so you can test the fit before getting in line. If it doesn’t fit then they’re not going to let you ride. This is a relatively common problem for people that are the size of professional athletes, for example (especially NBA size and NFL size people)

Answer 4

I have related questions: can carnival rides that are built in several days trustworthy? How can i be sure there is no lethal mistake/series of mistakes in something that is assembled so quickly from my point of view?

Answer 5

The seat restraints are pretty dang tough. You should be concerned about rollercoasters for a variety of other reasons. They usually are not maintained as much as they should be and the travelling ones that move around are often put together by some cracked out individuals. So when they fail it is usually some point on the ride and not on the seat restraints that is engineered to hold many times the weight and in one direction.

Think about car accidents and how often the seatbelt snaps vs how many times something else on the car breaks either from lack of maintenance or home job repairs.