There's a good reason theme parks are banning selfie sticks
Six Flags changed its policy on Monday and issued the following statement to annual-pass holders on Thursday:
Nothing is more important to us than your safety. After careful review we've decided to prohibit selfie sticks, monopods, and similar devices at all Six Flags theme and water parks effective immediately. Guests who bring selfie sticks to the park will be asked to store them in their cars during their visit. We apologize for any inconvenience this causes, and thank you for helping us keep Six Flags among the safest theme parks in the world!
The policy changes have nothing to do with restricting people's picture-taking at these parks; it does, in fact, have everything to do with safety.
In late June, an employee at Disneyland in California wrote a lengthy response on Reddit explaining Disney's new policy on selfie sticks.
According to that person, all attractions made since 1965 are designed with what's called the "Envelope of Protection," a giant contraption that is placed on rides to simulate what would happen if a rider extended his or her arms or legs from the vehicle. The video below shows the Envelope of Protection on the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train ride at Walt Disney World.