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Thread: What if the Matterhorn became "Frozen"?

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  1. #1
    Registered User DisneyGator's Avatar
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    Lightbulb What if the Matterhorn became "Frozen"?

    Just a thought. On our last trip, me and the family took the time to ride the Matterhorn. Once. 4 days at the parks and we only did it once. My kids were expecting something like Expedition Everest at WDW - boy were they disappointed. "It's just twists and turns and it HURTS!" And these kids were 6 and 8 yo.

    So what if Disney gave it a "Frozen" makeover? Turned it into North Mountain complete with a Crystal Palace, a better and scarier giant snow beast, and some comedy relief from Olaf.

    I know that traditionalists will say NOOOOOOOOO, but c'mon. Matterhorn is a painful, uninteresting, non-thrilling ride. It's in desperate need of help. Frozen is a film with staying power and good audience appeal of all ages and genders. For those who think it should stay the same as it has been for 50 years or whatever, I'll just say this: "It's a bit of a fixer-upper" that could be something great "for the first time in forever", so just "let it go" so that it can be worthy of a 90 minute line "in summer". So, "do you want to build a snowman"?

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    Nope, I disagree that it's uninteresting and non-thrilling, though yes, it's nothing like Everest. I'd ride it more often if it wasn't as painful as it has become. They just need to fix the bobsleds. And given the lines that I see for the ride all of the time, it's obvious many others like it.

    As much as I love "Frozen" and as much as I do think it will be a classic, I'm not a fan of changing attractions to fit the newest things. If they're going to do a "Frozen" attraction, I'd rather they do it justice rather than just trying to shoehorn it onto an existing attraction.

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  3. #3
    At home in the hills candles71's Avatar
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    What C said on both counts.


  4. #4
    Some people are worth melting for oregontraveler's Avatar
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    Granted, Matterhorn is no longer thrilling because of recent changes. But if your kids are complaining as well as the 'big' kids who don't like the new sleds, at least I'm not alone in that thinking of going back to the old ones. But to change it up completely... I'd have to vote no.

    It appears that Frozen will be able to stand the test of time as classic Disney film. The lines for the meet and greets plus merchandise sales are probably making corporate very happy. (not to mention another theater push with the Sing A Long version, not even Tangled & Princess & The Frog got that much attention)

    I would prefer to see a new dark ride for Frozen, give people the chance to see Arendelle up close. If the Subs do indeed go away at some point. Perhaps you could use some of that space for it, plus whatever is left of the old Motor Boat cruise canals. And with it right next to the Matterhorn, you could create a new Alpine village of sorts.

    As for repurposing an older attraction, what about revamping Maelstrom in the Norway pavilion ???


  5. #5
    Out of this world for Disney DwarfPlanet's Avatar
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    I also agree that the new Matterhorn bobsleds leave much to be desired. But I think it would be very easy to change Harold out with a Monster snowman and add the little snowman in also. The only place I could think of putting the sled, reindeer, boy and girl (only seen it once and can't remember their names) is where the Wells Expedition crates are at and I would hate to see those removed. Then again maybe they could add a Ice Castle to someplace in Storybookland.

    "Although we think it's DOPEY that Pluto has been downgraded to a dwarf planet, which has made some people GRUMPY and others just SLEEPY, we are not BASHFUL in saying we would be HAPPY if Disney's Pluto would join us as an 8th dwarf. We think this is just what the DOC ordered and is nothing to SNEEZE at."

  6. #6
    Registered User DisneyGator's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by oregontraveler View Post
    As for repurposing an older attraction, what about revamping Maelstrom in the Norway pavilion ???
    I, for one, would be all for that. It makes since since it's in the Norway pavillion. There are plenty of traditionalists who would say no way, but they're also the ones who think Horizons was better than Mission:Space and that Nemo ruined the Seas - loco! You wouldn't have to change much, just put the characters in a few spots. Of course, if it was completely changed, I'd have no problem with that either.

    I just brought up Matterhorn because it's become an attraction that I'm not sure I'll ever go on again. There are long lines there because of what people remember used to be a good thrill ride. Today, though, it just lags so far behind every thrill ride that exists. I get it - it's a mainstay of Disneyland. Maybe I'm jaded by the awesomeness of ExEverest, but if the Matterhorn's purpose is to be a thrill ride, MAKE IT THRILLING. Make it fun. Make it less painful. I'm a few years shy of 40 - I can't imagine going on this ride 5-10 years from now without needing a morphine drip. Hey, if they can make Space Mt into the world class coaster that it is, they can do the same with Matterhorn.
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    Quote Originally Posted by DisneyGator View Post
    There are long lines there because of what people remember used to be a good thrill ride.
    Wow, that's an interesting statement to make based on no proof whatsoever.


    Quote Originally Posted by DisneyGator View Post
    if the Matterhorn's purpose is to be a thrill ride, MAKE IT THRILLING. Make it fun.
    It's funny that you're positing your opinion as the TRUTH. I get that you don't enjoy it. That's fine. I do find it thrilling. I find it fun. I also find it painful, and that's really the only reason I don't ride it often. I know a number of people who share that sentiment. I also see a lot of people getting off the ride who seem to have had a good time.
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  8. #8
    At home in the hills candles71's Avatar
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    I was one of the very first people to complain here about the new sleds. I have been back twice since that trip and enjoy it just as much as I used to because I figured out how to hold my body (sitting up holding the bar in front of me instead of leaned back) that the new sled doesn't hurt me anymore, I still have issue getting up from the flat bottom but it is worth it to me. I love the Matterhorn just as it is. (I wouldn't complain if they improved the sleds but that is a whole other topic)


  9. #9
    Registered User DisneyGator's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by cstephens View Post
    Wow, that's an interesting statement to make based on no proof whatsoever.

    It's funny that you're positing your opinion as the TRUTH. I get that you don't enjoy it. That's fine. I do find it thrilling. I find it fun. I also find it painful, and that's really the only reason I don't ride it often. I know a number of people who share that sentiment. I also see a lot of people getting off the ride who seem to have had a good time.
    The proof is me. I stood in the line to ride the Matterhorn because I remember it (from 20 years ago when I was a teenager) as being fun. Compared to all the rollercoasters that exist today, it's not even close. My 6yo and 8yo didn't think it was fun, either. It's not like they're teenagers looking for the biggest thrill ride in the world. They complained that there weren't any drops or fast take offs - just twists and turns. Reall, though, it's about the pain. This ride make Big Thunder seem like Storybook Canal boats.

    I guess for me or my family, this ride just needs something "more".

    Disneyland will never be completed. It will continue to grow as long as there is imagination left in the world. – Walt Disney Let's imagine something better where the Matterhorn now sits. Frozen or not.
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  10. #10

    Disney Gator has a point. I bet that verrrrry few kids know that that is based on Walt's love for documentary/nature films and as the years go on even less will know( or care) that that was the first(right?) rubber wheel coaster. I love the nostalgia of the ride and have always felt it to be too herky jerky. (Hint: ride as if you are actually on a bobsled). I never noticed FROZEN was in Norway. I thought it was a fairy tale kingdom. If they put stuff from the pic in the Matterhorn I wouldn't be up in arms. I think a dark ride would be better but I would rather they lay a new track on the Matterhorn that was smoothe like SM. And DG also has a point that most people do not like that coaster compared to the rest. I have heard that at least 100 times just attending the parks. But then again I am mad.


  11. #11
    At home in the hills candles71's Avatar
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    Hatter, first steel tube coaster, is how I have always heard it.
    My 12 year old is including it in her World Cultural fair presentation because Walt fell in love with Switzerland on a trip there and loved that peak.


  12. #12

    First steel tube, and I believe the first to allow multiple cars to be dispatched at once.


  13. #13

    Correct on both accounts Leota and Candles( so I thought) thanks for the confirmation.


  14. #14
    Registered User jmorgan's Avatar
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    I am the biggest nostalgic freak when it comes to Disneyland. A part of me dies every time they move a bench. I have very fond memories of the Matterhorn well before they added the monster (seeing all of the internal beams on the original ride along with the buckets that used to go through the mountain). However after years of riding Disney newer thrill rides, that are smoother, faster and themed wonderfully, I believe the Matterhorn is an absolute terrible ride (I think the new bobsleds actually feel better than the old ones though). For some years now I have really thought they need to gut it and add a smother and faster roller coaster. I absolutely love the idea of theming it to Frozen.


  15. #15

    Wow Jmorgan. Not okay with moving a bench but okay with "gut it and add a smother(sic) and faster roller coaster" ???

    That is hard core! If they put FROZEN stuff in the FEW spots that are there I probably wouldn't mind so much as that is not my favorite nostalgia part of the ride.

    I think the ABOMINABLE SNOW MAN is cool and like him or her. I just think that they could replace the tracks all together and make it smoother. I wish that you always raced the other bobsled. Has that ever happened to any of y'alls? That is so cool and it makes the ride feel faster as you keep meeting the other sled and then separating and meeting and separating and....well you get the picture. My favorite is riding at night and looking over Disneyland as that is my favorite. Good times. Good times. Of course....I am mad...


  16. #16
    Out of this world for Disney DwarfPlanet's Avatar
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    So I'm trying to figure out is everyone more upset that the OP said it wasn't thrilling or that he menthioned it would be nice rethemed? I kind of get the sense of the thrilling part, because its already been rethemed in a way from the way it originally was built. No more internal structures visible, no more buckets riding through it, you don't get to see as much of Disneyland from it anymore, the addition of Harold and his cousin (which should come from the Himilayans not the Matterhorn right?), and the Wells expedition tribute that was all added. Matterhorn used to be my favorite E-ticket ride (when I actually used tickets) at night when you could see Disneyland lit up.

    "Although we think it's DOPEY that Pluto has been downgraded to a dwarf planet, which has made some people GRUMPY and others just SLEEPY, we are not BASHFUL in saying we would be HAPPY if Disney's Pluto would join us as an 8th dwarf. We think this is just what the DOC ordered and is nothing to SNEEZE at."

  17. #17
    Some people are worth melting for oregontraveler's Avatar
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    I love the Matterhorn theming the way it is now, and I seem to be in the majority that the new sleds have made the ride rougher. For me, a Frozen overlay does not make sense, since you would not have alot of time to soak in the details in the world of Arendelle. A dark ride makes more sense for me. I'm neither upset or offended by the OP.


  18. #18

    Instead of going 25 MPH like it currently does - or something like that - slow it down to 5 MPH so you could see the Frozen stuff???

    I don't think so

    You already bearly see the yetty as you speed by

    "If you can Dream it you can Do IT." Walt Disney


  19. #19
    At home in the hills candles71's Avatar
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    No track replacement. I rode it the day it reopened with these sleds and the track hadn't even been painted.


  20. #20

    While I'll agree that riding the Matterhorn these days doesn't quite live up to my memories of riding it as a kid (I thought it used to last a lot longer), it doesn't need to be changed. Just look at poor Pirates.

    Then again I was very disappointed when I rode Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom, I thought it was vastly overhyped and even more "boring" than say the Matterhorn; the going down backwards gimmick is ok, but overall the experience just didn't do it for me.


  21. #21
    Registered User houseofmouse's Avatar
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    xezat, if they would fix the Yeti it sure would help!!

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  22. #22
    Registered User DisneyGator's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by xezat View Post
    Then again I was very disappointed when I rode Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom, I thought it was vastly overhyped and even more "boring" than say the Matterhorn; the going down backwards gimmick is ok, but overall the experience just didn't do it for me.
    ??? More boring than the Matterhorn? I'm convinced you've never been on Everest after saying this. But everyone has their opinion. Some are just more shocking than others.
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  23. #23

    Ok....I think the Matterhorn should stay as it is in general. I think the bobsleds should ALWAYS race each other. SO if SPACE MOUNTAIN was completely torn down and rebuilt.....why couldn't they do that to the Matterhorn? Just gut the inside and start over from scratch. Before riding SM a friend had told me that it is exactly the same and not that big of a deal. Well, I had ridden SM 100 times I would say and the new one IS smoother and all of the effects are better and the tunnels leading up had been re-done and spiffied up so how about doing that with the Matterhorn? Could you imagine how cool that ride would be with the sleekness of SM? Of course....I am mad.....

    PS before all of y'alls get on me I know THE EASIER SAID THAN DONE line and I am not an Imagineer....just a humble hatter


  24. #24
    At home in the hills candles71's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by sjhanksaz View Post
    This is a little random but if they ever put seat belts on Pirates I am going to totally freek
    After the accident in Paris, not random at all.

  25. #25
    At home in the hills candles71's Avatar
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    Psst, Hatter, Anna and Elsa, (unless you were being facetious. ). Oh and you had to say it didn't you, Now it is back in my head. :/


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