United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ____________________ No. 21-1967 MEGHAN FAXEL and MIKE FAXEL, Plaintiffs-Appellants,

v. WILDERNESS HOTEL & RESORT, INC., Defendant/ Third-Party Plaintiff-Appellee,

v. PROSLIDE TECHNOLOGY, INC.,

Third-Party Defendant.

____________________

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin. No. 19-cv-1026-slc — Stephen L. Crocker, Magistrate Judge. ____________________

ARGUED OCTOBER 25, 2022 — DECIDED AUGUST 15, 2024 ____________________

Before SYKES, Chief Judge, and FLAUM and LEE, Circuit Judges. 2 No. 21-1967

SYKES, Chief Judge. Meghan Faxel was injured while rid- ing an inflatable tube down the “Black Hole,” a water slide at the Wilderness Hotel in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. Her tube became stuck and then flipped over, and she injured her shoulder. Meghan and her husband, Mike Faxel, sued Wilderness alleging claims for negligence, common-law premises liability, and loss of consortium. Wilderness later filed a cross-claim against ProSlide Technology, Inc., the manufacturer of the slide, seeking contribution if found liable. The scheduling order set a deadline for the Faxels to dis- close their liability expert, but the date came and went with no disclosure. Almost three months later, they sought an extension of time to name an expert. A magistrate judge, presiding by consent, denied the motion. Wilderness then moved for summary judgment, arguing that without expert testimony, the Faxels could not prove their claims. The magistrate judge agreed and entered judgment for Wilder- ness. We affirm. The hotel’s duty of care depends on what is reasonably required of water-park operators regarding the safety protocols, inspection, and maintenance of water slides like this one. These questions require specialized knowledge and expertise; they are not within the common knowledge of jurors. It follows that without expert testimony, the Faxels cannot prove their claims. Summary judgment for Wilder- ness was appropriate. I. Background In August 2016 Meghan and Mike Faxel visited the “Wild West” water park at the Wilderness Hotel & Golf Resort, one No. 21-1967 3 of several indoor water parks at the resort’s vast recreational complex in Wisconsin Dells. Meghan decided to try a water slide called the “Black Hole,” a thrill ride in which the rider sits on an inflatable tube and courses down a covered slide that opens into a large bowl. Churning water then pushes the rider in a circular motion into a final covered slide that corkscrews into the exit pool. Aquatics attendants are posi- tioned at the beginning and end of the ride to assist riders and monitor for safety issues. Meghan’s ride on the Black Hole did not proceed as planned. When she emerged from the first slide into the bowl section of the ride, the force of her descent and the flowing water pushed her tube to the ridge (or side) of the bowl instead of toward the opening to the second slide. Her tube then became stuck in a “dry spot”—not literally a dry spot but an area of the bowl where the water was not circu- lating with sufficient force to continue pushing her along the route. Her tube flipped over after stalling in this spot for a few seconds, and Meghan sustained serious injury to her collarbone and shoulder. She finished the ride without her tube. When she landed in the exit pool, she told the at- tendant that she was hurt; the attendant provided first aid, and the park temp