As per her dad, an Illinois teenager who wanted to ride the new Mississippi Monster slide at Raging Rivers Waterpark rather stepped away in tears after being ruled too hefty to ride.
Andrew Batton called out the Grafton, IL park in a scathing Facebook post earlier this week, writing, words cannot begin to explain his grief, fury, and disgust at the present time.
He stated that the family went on opening day to test out the new attraction, which his 13-year-old daughter was “overjoyed” to experience. He said that when she and her buddy “eagerly climbed the hill” to reach the Monster’s mouth, they were “faced by a scale.”
He explained that not to forget the wonderful psychologically devastating consequence of compelling a young woman to publicly weigh herself, adding that he witnessed his daughter’s eyes filling up with tears as she was sent away for being five pounds over.
Batton reported that no reference of a weight limit had been made at any point during the attraction’s rollout, nor did he observe any indication concerning a weight limit at the bottom of the hill going up to the ride itself while they were there. The weight restriction was 200 pounds, and Batton stated that his child got on the scale and weighed 205 pounds.
The enraged parent added on Facebook that the employee was also really agitated and indicated that this drama had been playing out all day and that many others had been shocked/surprised by the limitation. To have such an unbelievably dreadful experience today has devastated him beyond words, as well as adversely affected his daughter in a manner that he is sure they will be addressing in therapy for years to come, and all over 5 pounds!
The park’s representative stated that the company’s aim is never to humiliate anybody, but added, but must monitor for their safety when visiting Raging Rivers.
They went on, Raging Rivers took several efforts to assure their customers’ safety while enjoying their slides and attractions. The new Mississippi Monster Slide has a rider weight limit of 200 pounds. Signboards at the bottom of the slide informs guests of this limitation. Furthermore, all passengers who desire to ride the attraction must step on a scale to confirm they fulfil the ride’s safety regulations.
The park also informed that new tubes for the slide are on their way, and that they would “raise the maximum weight” of the attraction.
A park representative stated that their staff is collaborating with the manufacturer to improve the ride for everyone. However, safety is vital to both them and their customers, adding that they aim to get the replacement tubes by next week and gain clearance to test them within the following few days.
Because large rides need a significant amount of engineering, they want to ensure that the manufacturer and their staff are both happy with any adjustments to the ride for the safety of all passengers. They are optimistic that they will find a solution, the representative said.
The park claims they are still trying to talk with the family but have not been able to obtain accurate contact information.
Despite having a season pass, Batton and his daughter have stated that they do not intend to go back to the park anytime soon.
