Want to experience the thrill of an F-16 fighter pilot? Just head to your local amusement park.
Whether you're strapped into the cockpit of an F-16 or the seat of an amusement park ride, you put your body through elevated G forces. A fighter pilot routinely experiences four to five G's, or up to five times the force of normal gravity. And if you ride Lagoon's Rocket or Catapult attractions, your body is hit with 4.5 G's.
And that's a problem, according to a Massachusetts congressman. While a thrill ride may be exhilarating, how safe is it?
"This is a rapidly growing problem that will soar out of control if the industry does not wake up to its responsibility to the riding public," Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., said. "The average roller coaster riders are not graduates of astronaut training like John Glenn or Sally Ride, and they surely should not be placed in a situation where the forces of the ride test the limits of human endurance."
Markey has compiled a list of 58 brain injuries, dating back to 1964, that he associates with thrill-ride stress. Eight of those cases were fatal, with all of them after 1992. None of them occurred in Utah.
California tops Markey's brain-injury list with 10 purported cases at amusement parks, followed by Florida with five and four each in Nevada and Ohio.
Space Mountain and the Matterhorn are two Disneyland rides on the list. The Riddler's Revenge ride at Six Flags' Magic Mountain and the Manhattan Express and the Desperado rides in Las Vegas are also included.
Clearfield's Arrow Dynamics, a local thrill-ride designer and manufacturer, has two of its rides listed as allegedly having caused brain injuries — The Desperado in Nevada and the Matterhorn at Disneyland.
Fred Bolingbroke, president of Arrow Dynamics, believes the safety records of the two rides are impressive based on the many thousands of passengers who have safely ridden them. There have been only a few isolated incidents.
But, he agrees, "safety and G-force are always a concern."
For that reason, the amusement-ride industry has done considerable research. Manufacturers must evaluate the amount of G-force as well as the duration of the ride and where the force comes from, he said.
Ride safety is "incredible" for a healthy individual, added Lagoon spokesman Dick Andrew, who said it's less dangerous than taking a shower at home.
Lagoon posts warnings at rides outlining health reasons — pregnancy, back problems or other risks — to advise some people to skip the rides.
"People have different degrees of health," said Sheldon Killpack, an assistant in Lagoon's marketing department.
Killpack said while Lagoon's most thrilling attractions only have a G-force factor for a few seconds, some rides at other parks, such as the Goliath at Six Flags' Magic Mountain in California, sustain about five G's for several seconds. A five-G force is apparently the most that any roller coaster in the nation claims right now.
Bolingbroke agreed there is an assumed responsibility for riders to be aware of any medical conditions that may be aggravated by a thrill ride.
Lt. Col. Paul Strickland, the operations support commander for the 388th Fighter Wing at Hill Air Force Base and also an F-16 pilot, said an average 170-pound person can withstand 5.2 G's of force before blacking out.
Pilot training increases that threshold, and some of it has to do with expecting G-force. It's unexpected G-force that can be the real danger, the pilot said.
Strickland said he would have no problem riding or letting a family member ride a 4.5 G-force thrill ride.
Ride maintenance safety gives him much greater concerns, he said.
Bret Lovejoy, president of the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA), believes Markey's new list is misleading and irresponsible.
He thinks what's missing from this debate is solid science. The ride industry is working to develop G-force standards for new rides.
"If Congressman Markey is really interested in roller-coaster safety, he should talk to the experts who know about the real science behind roller coasters," Lovejoy said. "All of us in the theme park industry regularly consult with medical engineers, medical doctors, biomechanics, state regulatory agencies and leading experts on G-forces. It is time to tone down the rhetoric and tune in to the experts."
At least one state — New Jersey — is going to set its own G-force guidelines. Limits for rides in that state may be in place by October.
To access Markey's list, go online to www.house.gov/markey. The IAAPA site is www.iaapa.org.
E-MAIL: lynn@desnews.com