Not all Strollers are Created Equal

In our attraction, there are many different positions that must be filled. One of those is Stroller Greeter. This position involves one cast member whose sole purpose is to stand there and help direct guests with strollers to the parking area so that our location does not become "Stroller Chaos" with 100's of strollers parked wherever their driver felt the first inclination to drop it off. Here at this post it is also our job to make sure that the stroller parking area stays neat and tidy, meaning that we arrange and in some cases move the strollers to different locations. Over all it is sometimes either relaxing, or the worst position ever, especially when guests feel that they are above the parking area and just roll their stroller somewhere else.

As I stood in stroller parking today, arranging the rows into nice, neat and perfectly orderly lines that only someone of slight OCD behavior can do, I made this realization. "Not all Strollers are Created Equal." Why did I make this realization? well because as i attempted to move one particular stroller to the side, I realized that it's front wheels were stationary and they did not rotate to the sides at all and simply always would face forward. So naturally, I took it for a slight test drive to see how it maneuvered and the verdict was that it did not. In order for it to turn you needed to lift up it's front two wheels. I then wondered, "Why on EARTH would someone EVER purchase this stroller?" Because let me tell you, this stroller was not small, it came equipped with a baby carriage holder and everything.

This then led me to wonder why some people choose to purchase some of the strollers that they do to take to disney. So I developed a few rules for those families who are about to brave the Walt Disney World Resort with a Stroller in toe.

Beginners Guide to Strollers:
1: Do not bring a Jogger's Stroller. (no matter how great you think that one wheel in the front is going to be, with it's superb 360 degree turning ability and it's large tread wheel, it will NOT, I repeat, NOT function in the park as it does in your unrealistic dream. It will tip to either side, dumping the precious cargo of your child on the ground. these strollers are typically heavier than all the others either. All in all, a bad choice.)
2: Stadium Seating is NOT the way to go. (lots of strollers are trying to play to the fact that parents think their kids in the double stroller need a movie theater type view of their surroundings. These strollers are long, awkward, and heavy with horrible turning radius. Do not be fooled by their flashy outer appeal, your child does not care where he sits, or how unobstructed his view is while sitting, he only cares that he is sitting.)
3: Being Cheap is not always a win. (Winning on the receipt does not always constitute a win in the parks. When buying a cheap stroller, realize that you are going to be putting it through it's paces in the resorts and that a cheaply bought stroller means it was a cheaply made stroller, and cheaply made strollers often lead to broken strollers. When you have to fanangle your way around the park by counter balancing the broken leg wheel with your superior steering abilities and keeping little Timmy from falling out of his seat, you will not be turning to your wife with excitement on your face as you did in the Penny Pincher store after buying this stroller for only 9.99 and assuring her that it would last longer than the 50.00 stroller she wanted to get. Oh no, you will not be making one complaint about the broken stroller and will be avoiding any and ALL eye contact with your lovely bride.)
4: Folding Ability can be a Selling Ability. Many of our park guests are also our resort guests. That meaning that many of our stroller rolling guests will be boarding a bus numerous times throughout the day and unfortunately, strollers must be folded before being allowed on the bus. Test this out, numerous times in the store before you buy the stroller. Your strollers ability to fold fast and efficiently can be the difference between you making your resort bus at the end of a long day or your staying to catch the next one.
5: Be Unique. Do not buy the umbrella stroller that is the cheapest and the most generic color. Odds are, everyone else in the park did too, make sure that your stroller has some personality that sets it apart from the others. Something that says, "Hey, I'm your stroller, and you know it!"
6:Trial Runs are a MUST. This is the most important rule of all. Every stroller must be given a trial run before entering the parks. Pack your kids up in it and take them on a stroll through the busy mall or a few times around the local park or even around your neighborhood. Get the feel for your stroller. Turn quickly, stop randomly, stare at a map blankly and look for random landmarks like you will be doing and see if it rolls away, park it somewhere and see if you can relocate it, collapse it and open it back up again, do anything that you think you might be encountering in the parks to this hopefully worthy stroller and see if it can stand up to the test. if not, then bid it adieu and know that you may just have to take a standard Disney stroller at the front gate, because a stroller can be one of the largest nuisances on your Disney vacation or one of the best saving graces. It's your choice.