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Normouse
09-16-2005, 09:15 PM
So, what did they actually take so long to do to Space Mountain?

I must admit I was disappointed. It doesn't seem noticeably better, or even much more than slightly different.

leotatoombs
09-16-2005, 11:18 PM
So, what did they actually take so long to do to Space Mountain?

I must admit I was disappointed. It doesn't seem noticeably better, or even much more than slightly different.They Did A Great Job On Redesigning the que area! I love the new look of it! Also love the new Special effects! But I must say, I expected more!!! It seems to me they have redone it at least twice before noticeably, The track did not change but the same effects have been changed or updated.

SoCalSteven
09-16-2005, 11:34 PM
They re-built the ride from scratch AFAIK. Sure, didn't change much, but the ride does seem faster and much smoother to me.

disneyhound
09-17-2005, 05:04 AM
So, what did they actually take so long to do to Space Mountain?...
Its was the double loop! Plus, about half way through the ride the vehicles actually leave the track and are airborne for a couple of seconds! The new additions are so smooth that the average rider does not even know that they have experienced such a thrill. Just imagine if they rushed through that... ;)

potzbie
09-17-2005, 08:52 AM
I must admit I was disappointed. It doesn't seem noticeably better, or even much more than slightly different.

That reminds me of an episode of THE SIMPSONS.

The new George Lucas STAR WARS movie sequel was premiering in Springfield (hometown of the Simpson family).
After the showing, people were leaving the theater, talking about the movie.
COMIC-BOOK-MAN was overheard as saying:
"What a disappointment! Lucas has lost his touch! I cannot believe the low quality of acting, editing, and camerawork. In protest, I will only see the movie ... four more times today!"

***

Will Normouse demonstrate Normouse's disapppointment by refusing to ride SPACE MOUNTAIN -- no more than four times per day?
:rolleyes:

Osky
09-17-2005, 09:01 AM
Comic Book Guy is definitely my favorite character from that show. One of his best exchanges:

CBG: Yes, finally. I would like to return your quote
unquote, Ultimate Belt.
Storekeeper: I see, do you have a receipt, quote unquote,
sir?
CBG: I do not have a receipt, I won it as a door
prize at the Star Trek convention, although
I find their choice of prize highly illogical
as the average Trekker has no use for a
medium-sized belt.
Storekeeper: Whoa, whoa. A fat, sarcastic Star Trek fan. You
must be a devil with the ladies.
CBG: Hey, I... Huh... Tha... Oh...
Storekeeper: Gee, I hate to let you down Casanova, but uh, no
receipt, no return.
Bart: I'll give you four bucks for it.
CBG: Very well. I must hurry back to my comic book
store, where I dispense the insults rather than
absorb them.

HydroGuy
09-17-2005, 09:14 AM
From what I understand, they replaced the entire track. This is what took so long.

I and my DW rode it many time pre-refurb, and four times last month. We had a different experience than you did on the new version. We were both of the opinion that the new SM experience was vastly improved. Among the improvements in our opinion was the launch, the increased darkness inside SM, the starfield inside, the sound track, and the ending.

TowerofTerror
09-17-2005, 09:15 AM
The new version is so good.They did use something form the the version from Walt Disney World

cosmicjive
09-17-2005, 11:57 AM
It's a bit of a disappointment if you were expecting a dramatically different ride. I was surprised that it was the same, but once I understood that, I thought the cosmetic changes were fantastic. The reason it took so long was that they completely rebuilt the track from scratch.

Why rebuild it if it was going to be the same? Space Mountain was one of the earliest rollercoasters of its type, and more than 20 years of metal fatigue was causing it to literally fall apart. It had to be rebuilt, and the form factor of the building restricted how much they could change it. The new version is smoother, feels faster (but isn't -- I don't think), and has major cosmetic changes. Think of it as an updated ride, not a new one.

-Jeff "etumor"

hdlzx2
09-17-2005, 01:11 PM
Its was the double loop! Plus, about half way through the ride the vehicles actually leave the track and are airborne for a couple of seconds! The new additions are so smooth that the average rider does not even know that they have experienced such a thrill. Just imagine if they rushed through that... ;)

did you know that if you say alligator really slow it sounds like gullible? ;) ;)

Sandiegoboy
09-17-2005, 03:13 PM
Did you all know they didnt change ANYTHING.
Have you guys seen the South Park episode where Cartman CLoses a park to the public. When he openes it again it gets awsome business.

Thats all they did with Space, they closed it so you would want it. When they finally reopened it everyone thought it was 200 times better!

Donald Duck Fan68
09-17-2005, 04:42 PM
did you know that if you say alligator really slow it sounds like gullible? ;) ;)

Actually, the word "gullible" is not in any modern dictionaries. I swear. Look it up and see for yourselves. ;)

Another Dimension
09-17-2005, 09:39 PM
'They changed nothing'.


If anyone really believes that, that's pretty pathetic. :rolleyes:

Mark Goldhaber
09-17-2005, 09:45 PM
Bill Watkins did such an amazing job fitting all of that track into that building, why mess with it? A duplicate track with improved show effects is just fine with me. I loved the ride. (As did George McGinnis and Bill Watkins, who did much of the design work on the original. Their story about the design of the original DL Space Mountain will appear in a few weeks on the main MousePlanet site.)

TowerofTerror
09-17-2005, 09:47 PM
THE RIDE IS SO SMOOTH IT BETTER THEN IT WAS before

Another Dimension
09-17-2005, 11:52 PM
Bill Watkins did such an amazing job fitting all of that track into that building, why mess with it? A duplicate track with improved show effects is just fine with me. I loved the ride. (As did George McGinnis and Bill Watkins, who did much of the design work on the original. Their story about the design of the original DL Space Mountain will appear in a few weeks on the main MousePlanet site.)

Looking forward to it! :D

The previous George McGinnis stuff, was good stuff.

Thank you.

potzbie
09-18-2005, 01:02 AM
I do not remember the old queue.
The long walk seems the same.
The narrow corridor seems the same.

What is different about the new queue modifications (improvements?) from the old queue's look?

disneyhound
09-18-2005, 06:06 AM
Did you all know they didnt change ANYTHING...
But, but, what about the "Ring of Fire"? And, and the "Gators in the Pond"? :D

newportbeachbumz
09-18-2005, 06:40 AM
The ride is smoother - I love the effect in the beginning that they changed and at the end. It's nice that you can't see the ride from the que like before. I rode the old space mountain with the lights on during an AP night - it's amazing how they fit a roller coaster into that building! The one thing I liked better on the old space is the soundtrack - the new music doesn't do it for me.

DianeM
09-18-2005, 09:24 AM
It's totally different. The track is much smoother, there are far more "stars" and I think it's longer. The lights in the tunnel at the beginning are different. And the handicapped access is wonderful. My mother has trouble getting in and out of cars (bad knees) and we were able to get into the car, taking all the time she needed, on a separate track. Then they just moved the track and shifted us into the mainstream traffic. It was really great. She didn't have to feel guilty for slowing down the line, and the line moved very quickly. I'm betting they can put more people on the ride now.

Of course, my husband still hates it. He did try, but it isn't his kind of ride, so if I ride it in the future I'll do it alone. Dammit. It's my favorite ride.


So, what did they actually take so long to do to Space Mountain?

I must admit I was disappointed. It doesn't seem noticeably better, or even much more than slightly different.

Disneyfreak
09-18-2005, 11:14 AM
They re-built the ride from scratch AFAIK. Sure, didn't change much, but the ride does seem faster and much smoother to me.
Big whoop and I dont think it even feels faster. For that matter I believe that before when it was rougher it felt faster. I personally actually liked the old way better. I see it as a downgrade because there are not nearly as many projections on the walls and the soundtrack is inferior to the Dick Dale version. Me personally I miss the red thing they had in the center. The queue's character is missing too unlike the old one which you could see into space and such. The launch area is EXACTLY the same except for a new lcd, new pannels for the SAME ship, and blacklights. Me personally if they are going to have the ride down that long, dont insult the public by shuttering the ride without a big improvement.

Disneyfreak
09-18-2005, 11:18 AM
Did you all know they didnt change ANYTHING.
Have you guys seen the South Park episode where Cartman CLoses a park to the public. When he openes it again it gets awsome business.

Thats all they did with Space, they closed it so you would want it. When they finally reopened it everyone thought it was 200 times better!
Bingo!!!! We have a winner.


'They changed nothing'.


If anyone really believes that, that's pretty pathetic. :rolleyes:

We have another winner. Not at all up to Disney standards. It is really pathetic that they cannot improve a ride that was built in the 70's. Dont get us wrong, we still think the ride is good it is just that it could of been so much more and anything less then that is cheap. Dont you think by praising crap you are letting Disney get away with every bad ride they put out now and telling them that this is ok? I may be the one of the biggest fans of the place but I would never in my life praise something that is not true WALT Disney quality which I believe we haven't received since Indy.

lauramaynot
09-18-2005, 12:17 PM
Bingo!!!! We have a winner.



We have another winner. Not at all up to Disney standards. It is really pathetic that they cannot improve a ride that was built in the 70's. Dont get us wrong, we still think the ride is good it is just that it could of been so much more and anything less then that is cheap. Dont you think by praising crap you are letting Disney get away with every bad ride they put out now and telling them that this is ok? I may be the one of the biggest fans of the place but I would never in my life praise something that is not true WALT Disney quality which I believe we haven't received since Indy.

There are lots of DL "purists" who would have complained if the refirbed SM was too far of a departure from the original...I like the ride (then and now) I am glad they didn't do any drastic changes. I mean look at all the hubub on here about putting Jack Sparrow into pirates during the next refirb. There are just some things that shouldn't be messed with...at least not that much :D

Mark Goldhaber
09-19-2005, 09:14 PM
Looking forward to it! :D

The previous George McGinnis stuff, was good stuff.

Thank you.
I just finished going through the first draft. Looks like it's going to be a three-parter, with one part done by track designer Bill Watkins. :)


it's amazing how they fit a roller coaster into that building!
And that'll be discussed in Bill's story. :D


My mother has trouble getting in and out of cars (bad knees) and we were able to get into the car, taking all the time she needed, on a separate track.
If she fit in the rocket comfortably, she'd probably also fit comfortably into a Nissan Maxima. (Oooh, gotta remind George to put that info into the story.) ;)