The Joys of Strollers

[steverails]

Every day, thousands of guests with strollers descend upon the park. They come in all shapes in sizes ranging from the small and economical umbrella strollers to behemoth triple-wide strollers, although these are rare. The different stroller models remind me of car lines; "Today I saw this delux 'Peg-Perego Pliko' model stroller complete with a fan. WOW!"

Anyway, I have noticed both in my work location and while in the parks that guests really abuse strollers. First and foremost, I can't recount how many times a guest has pushed their stroller in front of me in order to cut me off. I see this happening all to often.

Second, some guests tend to exploit the ADA law since strollers fall into the grey area of being a wheel chair. In fact, some guests have red tags attached to their strollers to advise CMs of this. While in line at POTC one day, a guest with one of these in the queue was blabbing to her friend that she bought her tag on E-bay.

Third, some strollers are flat-out dangerous. Ever seen one of those strollers with the long rod protruding from it so it can be attached to a bicycle? I don't even know how guests can bring these in the park.

Finally, I feel bad for the kids in the stroller who have reckless parent drivers. In Monorails, I see it all to often. Guests will push their strollers into the doors of the train as they are closing...with their children onboard. This is just disturbing. After all, every day at WDW is opposite day, "Please satnd clear of the doors" means "Please jump aboard the train."

I'm sure Attractions have some interesting stroller stories.

[Cranbiz]

Second, some guests tend to exploit the ADA law since strollers fall into the grey area of being a wheel chair. In fact, some guests have red tags attached to their strollers to advise CMs of this. While in line at POTC one day, a guest with one of these in the queue was blabbing to her friend that she bought her tag on E-bay.

Too bad she didn't try that on my bus. She would have come off the bus with a broken stroller as I would have attached the hooks in the most vunerable place and cranked them down soo tight that parts would have broken. (after telling them that "We are not responsible for damage caused by securing a stroller that was not designed to be secured like a wheelchair")

If she balked at my securing the stroller then I would have called it in for management assist. She want's a stroller as a wheelchair, she will get a stroller as a wheelchair. :twisted:

The genuine Stroller as a wheelchair is not hard to distinguish. They are built to be secured and the parents are very cooperative.

[DLRFantasmic!Dan]

Oh, there were so many stories i have about strollers. They are like the evilest things in the world. They should be banned, or at least have size restrictions. The fun things about parking stollers for Fantasmic! is one time I was working on Fantasmic! and some of us saw a stroller that was LOCKED onto a railing next to the Riverbelle. So we called security, have them cut it, and moved it to stroller parking, :twisted: That will teach them!!!

One time I saw rearranging strollers in front of Buzz when I saw a stroller locked onto a pole, so I lifted the pole and moved the stroller.

[Cranbiz]

One time I saw rearranging strollers in front of Buzz when I saw a stroller locked onto a pole, so I lifted the pole and moved the stroller.

Did you lock it to a different pole??

That would of had them scratching their heads even more. :p:

[Princess Susi]

Funny, true anecdote...I talked to my dad recently on the phone (he is 84 and I am 53 yrs old) My folks used to take us to DL fairly often when I was a child of the 1960's {where's the flower power hippy smiley when you need one! Zazu??? ;) }, anyway I digress... I asked why my dad did not like DL that much. He always grumbled when he took us, but by god, he took us cause he knew we loved it. He suffered in silence all these years. When I asked him about it on the phone, his answer surprised me. He said and I quote, "With all those damn strollers hitting my ankles, I didn't want to walking around that place!" We are talking 35-40 yrs ago! I really did not think about the fact that these were a problem back then. They have always been a problem, I guess. So my dad hated to go to DL because of the ninja strollers, never knew it until this last January! It is too bad that, that was what ruined DL for him. We have tried to get him and my mom to go with us on trips now and they won't. My mom is a DL nut like we are, but dad never wants to go and NOW I know why! And you know it has gotten worse...He would be MISERABLE with these new SUV strollers that are the size of Hummers!
Now hubby gets to be the crash dummy! He is disabled, not wheelchair disabled, thank god, but has had over 65 surgeries! and it never fails, the heat seeking missile commando strollers always find his disabled legs, ankles and feet. He has had his feet rebuilt, not unlike the 6 million $ man and it is VERY painful when someone even touches them. Somehow the strollers always connect with this poor man's feet. We have to dodge them whenever we go. We try to go during the slower seasons and avoid weekends, but he still gets it. It like playing dodgestrollers! Can't Disney Parks control the size of these things?
When you have to back the damn thing up with hubby guiding you into a parking space and you have back-up beepers going off, your stroller is too big! There are so many stories of these commandos with their battering ram strollers and I have to say the biggest problem comes from one group from a particular country which shall go unnamed here. It is not an attack on their nationality, but the largest % of strollers making contact with hubby have always had these draped women pushing them. It is just the way it is. Although stroller derby knows no national boundaries. There are parents of all ilk that ram these things around.
And just to be fair, There are a LOT of parents that I have seen go out of their way to be courteous as well. Kudos to those folks, for they know they wield a dangerous weapon! ;)
I fear my hubby is getting to be like my dad, he fears for his limbs everytime we go to DL or WDW: DL, moreso, because it is smaller and more packed in certain areas of the Park. We love DL and I don't want him to be afraid to go!
I have seen of what you speak on the buses at WDW. Many strollers have run over hubby's feet on them when the SG refuses to collapse the damn thing. They just don't get it! And it would make for an ugly situation if everyone had to evac a bus quickly with a stroller set up in the middle of the aisle. A couple times back during a May 2006 trip to WDW, some bus drivers at MK's closing would let people keep the stroller set up cause the kid was sleeping. I did not think that was legal or okay. Maybe things have radically changed since then. I know Big Wall and Cran would NOT do this. Did they used to let people on the busses with strollers still set up?
Stroller size should be limited. These 3 seaters and the ones with the jousting poles that could impale Ursula need to be kept out of the Parks.
Okay I am done. Aaahhhhhhhh.....
Susi

Hey Zazu, Is there a stroller smiley? Couldn't find one, I know I am being a pest today! I sorry! You da best at smilies though! The meister of the masters of smilies!! thank you Zazu. :waves:

[DLRFantasmic!Dan]

What gets me that even though the escalators say NO STROLLERS, parents take the strollers on it.......... UNFOLDED!!!

[mechurchlady]

What gets me that even though the escalators say NO STROLLERS, parents take the strollers on it.......... UNFOLDED!!!

Unfolded is nothing, they go on escalators with the kids unstrapped and sitting in the stroller.

Sue it is a law that all strollers must be without a child in them on a vehickle such as cars, busses, trucks, trams, and trolleys.

Why do people leave strollers in doorways. The toy area of the Emporium is very wide but not when you have ECVs and strollers everywhere. I hated when people would bring the stroller into a parade area. Some people would use strollers like a wagon with so much stuff they could not maneuver.

Backpacks are a pet peeve of mine. I been hit by those too many times. I miss the good old days of DL.

[ICStupidPeople]

does anyone else think that the the walkway between Jungle Cruise/Indy/Tarzan Tree house (aka the stair ride) should be renamed "stroller congestion hell alley" in the afternoon? That really is the only area in the park that I notice the strollers out in force, but then again I avoid Fantasyland like the plague between the hours of 9 am and 9pm and would rather have my eyes gouged out with a spork than enter tomorrowland at peak hours, so maybe that's the only place I've had the opportunity to see them.

e.t.a In DL not WDW by the way.

[tink70]

What gets me that even though the escalators say NO STROLLERS, parents take the strollers on it.......... UNFOLDED!!!

We see this all the time as well in the Mickey and Friends parking structure! Hi, newbie poster here but longtime lurker. :) Whenever we see this I tend to comment LOUDLY that I sure hope that poor child does not get caught in the escalator steps. Usually by the next level/landing area the parents are quickly taking the child out of the stroller and folding it up. BTW I'm usually not the type of person to butt into someone else's business but when it concerns a child I can't help it :mad: <I'm a teacher by trade>.

[Shorty82]

It doesn't help that the Disney strollers, at least at World, look and work like battering rams. They are also huge, a lot bigger than most private strollers.

I went on the Steam Train Tour on my last trip and towards the end we went below Main Street Station to look at the signs talking about the trains' and their namesakes. We first looked at the Roger E. Broggie and Roy O. Disney signs and then went to the other side to look at the Walter E. Disney and Lilly Belle signs. On the way to the latter two the tour guide told us to stop at a line of red tile in the floor as people who rented strollers come through the space in front of the signs and only have a few feet experience with them and the front of the stroller is right at ankle height.

It also doesn't help so many people use their stroller as a wedge to force through a crowd and basically don't look out for other people.