Ripsaw Falls finally gets lapbars

September 13, 2007, 12:41 PM · According to Screamscape... Dudley Do-Rights Ripsaw Falls at Universal's Islands of Adventure now has lapbars.

I was personally ecstatic when I read this because I have gotten hurt on that ride before due to the lack of lapbars. I will definitely be looking forward to the next time I ride this and for the first time not be afraid of ending up with a bump on my head. Kudos to IOA and safety!

The pictures that were linked to the story did look a little crammed so this ride might become a problem for riders with wider dimensions. And to those that liked feeling like you were going to fall out of the log... that feeling is no more. But at least we know now that IOA does care about our safety. :)

[Editor's note: Check out TPI's list of reported injury accidents at Dudley's Do-Right's. This ride developed a reputation among some insiders for injuring individuals who were light enough to be lifted from their seats by the double-dip at the end of the ride, yet old and heavy enough to be injured by being driven back down into the seat.]

Replies (11)

September 13, 2007 at 12:49 PM · I have ridden Ripsaw Falls a number of times and always had a blast. I never even thought about getting hurt because of the lack of lapbars and I didn't realize that others had been injured. I don't think most flume rides have anything more than a lap belt so this puts Ripsaw Falls pretty aggressively on the side of caution now. All in all, it certainly sounds like a positve change. Glad to hear Universal took action to prevent more injuries.
September 13, 2007 at 1:01 PM · finally! I loved that ride but i didnt feel safe at all! good job ioa! =] Go Yankees!
September 13, 2007 at 1:28 PM · I rode this on Saturday, and quite frankly, I dont feel any safer. I always had a good time on dudley, but this addition...its not good for us folks of a larger frame. My knees were upto my neck, and very cramped.
Also, it slows down on the load and unload time, and should there ever be an accident (which due to the extra weight of the lapbars and positioning, there could be one) where the log rolls over, everyone on that boat would drown.
Option? Scrap the whole ride and redo it. Also..this is only heresay, the warranty on the ride is now null and void on the entire attraction because of the work done on the boats.
September 13, 2007 at 10:09 PM · Yeah, it seems to need improvement.


Well we can only hope that people will not get injured by hitting their head or tailbone as the have in the past!

September 13, 2007 at 11:34 PM · I personally, have never felt unsafe on this ride. Do I welcome the lap bars though? Yes I do. I think they add more safety to the atraction without detracting from the ride experience.
September 14, 2007 at 5:24 AM · When last I went on this ride... my wife absolutely lost her mind. I made her sit in the front row on my lap. She wanted me to sit on hers so that she would feel safer, but I would be embarrassed to be the man and sit on her lap...

She literally thought she was going to die... while this was not uncommon for her... I personally didn’t feel a shred of fear. Nor did I feel unsafe in anyway. I guess the problem is that soo many f us feel that because we are at a theme park, we are safe! Especially if it is a big name park like Disney or Universal.

Sadly these days we are hearing about accidents a lot more often. (This doesn’t mean they are happening more often... just that we are hearing about them now because somehow this is national new...) Statistically speaking a coaster must be safer than driving right? And even ripsaw falls must be safer than driving or hanging a picture frame...

Where am I going with this? Heck I don't know. I always assumed it was safe, even though I felt a little on the edge of my seat. The idea of people hitting their heads (on what by the way) or hurting their tailbones would have never crossed my mind.

A lap bar on a flume ride? What will they think of next???

September 14, 2007 at 8:53 AM · Never really gave the safety aspect of DDRF a second thought to be honest.
I've always felt perfectly safe on this one and I'm a little surprised at the introduction of lap bars.
If it's going to impact on the comfort and , ultimately, the safety of the "larger" riders among us why not have them as an option rather than a compulsory measure ?
September 14, 2007 at 10:30 AM · Best part of the ride for me was feeling unsafe, and like Erik I'm tall, so my knees will be crammed in.
Theres my excuse to go Saturday anyway, gotta check it out.

When did they do this work? Did it get closed or did they just take a few boats of at a tine?

September 14, 2007 at 10:35 AM · I have a question on the whole "log flipping over scenario."

Sure, it is a horrible mental image, but has there ever been a case of a boat flipping on a theme park flume ride? I can't remember one. Anyone with a link to a case care to post one?

September 14, 2007 at 8:23 PM · Lapbars???They're ruining a great ride. Been on it a bunch. Besides getting wet, nary a bruise or butt chaffe. It just another example of how loud irrational people have too much say, when everybody is afraid of getting sued. Lapbars??? are you joking? They must be for kids trying to surf. Well, they get what they deserve if they try to stand up on a ride.
September 14, 2007 at 8:46 PM · I must admit to being a bit bummed about the lap bars (especially with the longer load time mentioned previously). However, I do remember going on with my tiny, 5'6" dad and he did fly quite high up over the second drop. It's my favorite flume ride in the US. But, safety is important especially after what happened at SFKK. So...if lap bars make it safer, I'll still ride.

This article has been archived and is no longer accepting comments.

Vacation deals

Park tickets

Subscribe by email

Subscribe by RSS

New attraction reviews

News archive