Expelled From Disney Springs
 

It happened to me Friday afternoon. I was in Orlando last week and was attending a pest control conference at the Hilton Buena Vista. Next door is Disney Springs. For those that don’t know it’s an entertainment, restaurant and shopping venue in the Magic Kingdom. I was in the shopping complex on my Segway about 30 minutes when 2 Disney security staff members came up to me and asked if I was staying at a Disney property. I told them I was not I was staying at the Hilton next door. They then asked me if I had plans to visit one of the parks while I was in the area, I replied no I was not. They then asked how much longer I planned on being at Disney Springs and my answer was I don’t know because I was waiting on my wife to finish shopping. They then went on to tell me that Segway’s are not allowed on Disney properties. Of course I knew that. I asked him if the ADA knew that and he said yes. He said Disney has 4 wheel stand up Segways available, I replied I knew that but told them those aren’t Segways and they were not designed for my size and scale. I had seen one of the standup PT Disney modified at the federal trial against Disney banning Segways used for EPMD several years ago I testified at in Orlando. If I wasn’t with other friends I might have asked him what would they do if I didn’t leave their open shopping area complex to hear what their policy was on seeing that I leave their property.

So if you knew they weren’t allowed, and knew they’d have a problem with it, why poke the bear? What does that accomplish? We all know Disney watches their properties like a hawk ... no way to fly under the radar, so to speak ...

Dmurphy, I wasn’t trying to fly under the radar. I knew what their antiquated policy is of what is and what is not ok to be used by mobility challenged individuals. You probably don't know that I’m a dwarf. I’m about 3’ tall. I have to take 2 to 3 steps to cover the same distance as an average height man does. I’ve used a Segway P133 series since 2003. I have 6 of them. Just to travel from our hotel to Disney Springs would have worn me out. They open up my world when it comes to getting around. There was no signs anywhere that said no 2 wheel mobility devices allowed. I didn’t see where they had the traditional 3 or 4 wheel scooters for rent. Should I have just stayed in my hotel room and waited for my wife and friends to come back? In my opinion Segways look different than scooters and wheel chairs and that’s why they want to restrict their use. Einstein said, “A new type of thinking is essential if mankind is to survive and move toward higher levels.”

Hi Greg - I’m genuinely thrilled for you that the Segway gives you great mobility and abilities you wouldn’t have otherwise; that’s absolutely true to Dean Kamen’s vision and you’re exactly whom they were designing for. I wish the rest of the world adopted the Segway in the way it was intended; we’d have a very different world on our hands.

Now, having said that - please accept my apologies if I sounded confrontational; that wasn’t my intent at all. I was really trying to ask what the goal was - it’d be one thing if you didn’t know Disney’s policies beforehand and were coming here to share your story, either as a call to action or as something to share. But given that you knew what they’d say beforehand, I was trying to understand - did you intend this as a protest, or just wanted to see how far you could push it?

I don’t agree with their policy but as we know - this has been to court and held up. Disney is a special case; laws apply to them differently than most.

For instance; I’m also a (very) amateur drone pilot and thus familiar with TFR’s (Temporary Flight Restrictions)... did you know that Walt Disney World is the only private property with a permanently temporary flight restriction? (Or, is that a temporarily permanent flight restriction? :)

So it’s clear to me that fighting The Mouse is akin to fighting the government.... times and places where it’s necessary but you’d darned well better make sure your ducks are in a row if you want to succeed.

So to that end - if you’re trying to stage a one man protest by getting tossed from Disney Springs, more power to you, but I doubt it’d be effective. Maybe inviting a news channel to run a story on how Disney isn’t accommodating you in an effective manner? That’d be a lot more successful ...

Just my $0.02 for all that’s worth - and really all I was trying to get at was understanding what your goals are. Sorry if it came out any other way!

—Dennis

Greg! I found something I can harp about! My wife has pretty serious walking limitations and we got her a mini-Pro for Walmart trips and the like. Plus, I can easily hoist the thing into the car. I really have to get right to load our X2's in that van! So she qualified for that blue handicap mirror hangy thing which I bolted to her mini handlebar. That tag shuts up security people like a Star Trek force field! Probably work on Disney pukes, too!

Karl

glide somewhere else
 

Your protest was rather pointless. It is private property. Get over that and move on. There are a million other places you CAN ride, and avoid the heartburn.
Good luck and be safe.