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emd2611
03-01-2006, 06:12 PM
1. How hot is the devil room at the end of Mr Toad's Wild Ride? If the ride was to break down at that spot would the heater turn off automatically so you don't cook?
2. On Small World some of the boats have a little PVC pipe sticking up on the bow. What is this for?
3. On the new Space Mountain do they still need to send overweight rockets off onto a side track for unloading and reloading? I also notice people putting their arms up. Are the clearances not as tight as before?
4. On the Electrical Parade how do they sync up the float music to the music playing from the street speakers?
5. How bad is the rodent situation? In December during the evening I saw a big rat walking across the walkway between the Haunted Mansion and the river. A few months before that during the day I saw a mouse feeding on popcorn in the planter next to Peter Pan. Do the roaming cats keep them in check? Is the place swarmin with rodents?
6. Why is there only one Matterhorn for all the parks worldwide? It seems like it is one of the most popular e-ticket rides and I am curious why it hasn't been built at other parks too. Is it an expensive ride to build and maintain in relation to other rides?
7. How many cast members does it take to operate the park on a weekday and how many on a weekend?
8. How often are flowers in the planters rotated in and out? Any ideas what the annual budget is for flowers, especially tulips?
9. How much does each "Remember" fireworks performance cost to put on?
10. In the 30 years I have been going to the Tiki room the eyes on the totum poles always seem to be broken. Are they really broken or is that the way they are suppose to be?

Disneymademoiselle
03-01-2006, 06:42 PM
Great questions!!! Too bad I don't know the answers to any of them.:(

Malcon10t
03-01-2006, 06:55 PM
2. On Small World some of the boats have a little PVC pipe sticking up on the bow. What is this for? The boats with people who were in wheelchairs have the pipe, so they know they will be unloading to the "load area" and not the regular exit.

4. On the Electrical Parade how do they sync up the float music to the music playing from the street speakers?There are circuits along the way that get tripped by the different segments so the right music is playing in the right spot, even if the floats get delayed.
5. How bad is the rodent situation? In December during the evening I saw a big rat walking across the walkway between the Haunted Mansion and the river. A few months before that during the day I saw a mouse feeding on popcorn in the planter next to Peter Pan. Do the roaming cats keep them in check? Is the place swarmin with rodents?There are a fair share of rodents, but the cats do help control it.

9. How much does each "Remember" fireworks performance cost to put on?Rumor has it, in the neighborhood of $90,000 a show.

CinemaGal15
03-01-2006, 06:57 PM
5. There are traps all over the park obveriously hidden from guests, but they are there and yes there are cats that probably help the situation.

8. The flowers are rotated I would say about once every month maybe even sooner for different times of the year.

10. The totem poles aren't suppose to be broken, but when kids constantly try to keep them open or closed when in motion then they tend to break down and aren't easily fixed. So to everyone who enjoys the Tiki Room, keep your eyes on your children and stop them when they try to investigate the show.

Opus1guy
03-01-2006, 08:05 PM
1. How hot is the devil room at the end of Mr Toad's Wild Ride? If the ride was to break down at that spot would the heater turn off automatically so you don't cook?

I don't know. But an excellent premise for a Disney Sunday Movie!


7. How many cast members does it take to operate the park on a weekday and how many on a weekend?

Almost all of them.


10. In the 30 years I have been going to the Tiki room the eyes on the totum poles always seem to be broken. Are they really broken or is that the way they are suppose to be?

They are designed to "freeze" the moment sensors indicate you are looking at them. You know those crazy Imagineers! Next time don't look at them and watch other guests do funny takes of puzzlement as they try to catch the eyes moving! It's a laugh riot!

;)

TTFN92
03-01-2006, 08:16 PM
I have a question that my 6 yr. old asked me today and I wasn't 100% sure of the answer, so this is a great thread to ask in. Are there people at Disneyland all day and all night? I think it is yes, because I heard that maintnance is done at night, but that may have changed. I'm sure someone knows the answer to this one.

BTW, those are great questions. I just don't know the answer to any of them.

CinemaGal15
03-01-2006, 08:37 PM
Yes there are people at Disneyland and DCA all night long. Maintence, cleaning crews, food services, and security.

experiment626
03-01-2006, 09:25 PM
From past experience, having been stuck in HELL on Mr. Toad, in the middle of August no less, the heater does not turn off when the rides shuts down. We were stuck for about 30 mins and deffiently needed an ice cream to cool off afterword.

raych30
03-01-2006, 10:45 PM
My goodness, I would hate to get stuck in the "devil room" on Mr. Toad's. I would be one panicked crazy lady :D ( I HATE being hot)

SandraVB79
03-02-2006, 12:20 AM
My goodness, I would hate to get stuck in the "devil room" on Mr. Toad's. I would be one panicked crazy lady :D ( I HATE being hot)

Hmmm, I thought nowadays, "being hot" was the way to go! At least that's what MTV tells me ;)

Cats and mice in DL... Last weekend, I saw a Mickey-cartoon on television, actually, it was about Minnie and Figaro and a bird, and I thought it was funny, since the mouse kept the cat as a pet. Now that's something different from Tom and Jerry!
At DLP, they have a field mouse problem, since the resort was built in the middle of the French country-nowhere... I thought having mice at a Disney-theme park was actually the idea, but well...

How many CMs it takes to operate DL, I don't know, but at Jungle Cruise, it's one out of free... :p

Vegitabeta
03-02-2006, 02:56 AM
From past experience, having been stuck in HELL on Mr. Toad, in the middle of August no less, the heater does not turn off when the rides shuts down. We were stuck for about 30 mins and deffiently needed an ice cream to cool off afterword.
I wondered this about Test Track in WDW. If you break down in the hot or the cold section, do they not turn it off?...

geoffa
03-02-2006, 03:45 AM
5. How bad is the rodent situation? In December during the evening I saw a big rat walking across the walkway between the Haunted Mansion and the river. A few months before that during the day I saw a mouse feeding on popcorn in the planter next to Peter Pan. Do the roaming cats keep them in check? Is the place swarmin with rodents?


Two in particular - the big cheese and his girlfriend! (Thought that was obvious).
More seriously DLP's Blue Lagoon restaurant has got a huge rat problem - they scoot across the floor whilst you're dining. CMs just laugh at guests who shoot out of their chairs. Food + warmth + water is ideal for them.:)

You've also reminded me of an incident at the crystal Palace at WDW. We were at a Pooh's breakfast and the characters had done the rounds about 3 times. Piglet came along and a guy on the next table drawled:"Jeez! Has this place never heard of Rentokil?":fez:

geoffa
03-02-2006, 03:57 AM
9. How much does each "Remember" fireworks performance cost to put on?


We were told back in 2000 that over 25,000 shells and a cost of $30,000 a night was the going rate for the Reflections of Earth at EPCOT. Given inflation it's a wild guess what the Remember display must cost. Disney are currently looking at new technology for launching fireworks:

"New Fireworks Technology Launches at the Disneyland Resort
After 10 years of research and testing, Walt Disney Imagineers, in partnership with the Disneyland Resort, have perfected a new innovation in fireworks technology. The new technology, which is safer for the pyrotechnicians and the environment, uses compressed air to propel the fireworks into the sky, eliminating the need for smoke-producing black powder. The new launch system significantly reduces ground-level smoke and noise while still providing guests with a spectacular fireworks show.

"The development of this cutting-edge science is the result of many years of hard work, testing and a long-term initiative," explains Dr. Ben Schwegler, chief scientist, Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI). "We are proud to be pioneering this innovative and beneficial technology."

Widely recognized as an industry leader and the world's largest producer of fireworks shows, The Walt Disney Company currently holds seven patents associated with the new air-launch technology and is in the process of donating all seven to a nonprofit organization so these patents can be licensed to other pyrotechnic providers. The gesture was recently applauded by the American Pyrotechnics Association, a nationwide advocate of fireworks safety standards. Future plans include incorporating the new system at other Disney parks around the world, continuing the Company's commitment to improving technologies. "

geoffa
03-02-2006, 04:04 AM
I wondered this about Test Track in WDW. If you break down in the hot or the cold section, do they not turn it off?...

It takes a little time for the computer to shut things down when things go wrong. The priority is to stop the cars! The heat room can be a bit uncomfortable if you're there too long - they are lamps emitting some heat after all.(They're not infra red - they just appear that way). The "acid" room is just misted water and the freeze room is just good air con with "ice" effects added on the scenery.:)

cfrith
03-02-2006, 06:45 AM
More seriously DLP's Blue Lagoon restaurant has got a huge rat problem - they scoot across the floor whilst you're dining. CMs just laugh at guests who shoot out of their chairs. Food + warmth + water is ideal for them.:)



Eeewwwww! Does this really happen often? Can't they fix that? UGH! If I saw a rat while dining anywhere I would jump up and leave- and never come back!!!!!!!

danyoung
03-02-2006, 07:09 AM
4. On the Electrical Parade how do they sync up the float music to the music playing from the street speakers?There are circuits along the way that get tripped by the different segments so the right music is playing in the right spot, even if the floats get delayed.

This is not quite right. The music playing in the street speakers is the background music, while the float music is specific to that float. All of this music is played back from one multi-track source (it used to be a tape, but I think it's all computer based now). This is kinda hard to describe, so stick with me. The entire music track is about 45 seconds long, but broken up into segments like the opening, the main background loop, the float segments, and the ending. All of these are laid down side by side, and are always in sync. This 45 second program, once started, simply continues to loop.

As the parade approaches an area, the street triggers tell the system to start with the opening loop (let's say track 1 on our multi-track playback system), which will start as soon as the beginning of the loop comes around. Once the opening plays, it then switches smoothly over to the main background loop for the rest of the show (say track 2). Then the other tracks play in their individual floats. Their sound is transmitted to them by radio waves from the central source. Because they're all playing from the same source, they remain synched. When the end of the parade passes by the sensors, the background music switches over to the ending track which plays the final voice and flourishes.

It's a very cool system, well thought out and executed. Next time you watch the show, listen for the background music and how it's kind of a generic version of the main theme, played a bit lower so it doesn't interfere with the themes coming off of the floats. Very well done!

danyoung
03-02-2006, 07:14 AM
We were told back in 2000 that over 25,000 shells and a cost of $30,000 a night was the going rate for the Reflections of Earth at EPCOT.

Well, doing a little quick math on a 15 minute show, your figure indicates that 1,667 shells go off each minute. That's pretty high - could you be off a zero?

prncsmsj
03-02-2006, 07:16 AM
It takes a little time for the computer to shut things down when things go wrong. The priority is to stop the cars! The heat room can be a bit uncomfortable if you're there too long - they are lamps emitting some heat after all.(They're not infra red - they just appear that way). The "acid" room is just misted water and the freeze room is just good air con with "ice" effects added on the scenery.:)
On the same subject (kind of), we have broken down in the tunnel of moving lights in Buzz Lightyear, and they do not turn off the lights. We were stuck there for 5 minutes, and I thought I was going to be sick from the continuous flashing lights, and I am not a person who gets sick on rides.

tod
03-02-2006, 09:00 AM
As the parade approaches an area, the street triggers tell the system to start with the opening loop (let's say track 1 on our multi-track playback system), which will start as soon as the beginning of the loop comes around. Once the opening plays, it then switches smoothly over to the main background loop for the rest of the show (say track 2). Then the other tracks play in their individual floats. Their sound is transmitted to them by radio waves from the central source. Because they're all playing from the same source, they remain synched. When the end of the parade passes by the sensors, the background music switches over to the ending track which plays the final voice and flourishes.

I remember seeing on one of those Disney Channel fill-in-the-last-15-minutes-after-the-movie pieces that the floats had little low-range transmitters in them broadcasting their own music to override the main music on the street speakers. The low power would provide its own fade-up and fade-out as the float passed by.

And if you listen carefully, the synch isn't perfect. The tempo remains the same, but the fade-in and fade-out are mechanical (based on float movement) so it's a matter of chance. Fortunately it doesn't detract form the show.

--t

danyoung
03-02-2006, 09:09 AM
I could be wrong, but I don't think this is the case. If you listen to the main speakers during the show, you can hear that they're playing the same generic track over and over. It's only the floats themselves that have the unique music. I do know that there is a main transmitter that sends the float's audio to all the floats, but I've never heard of the floats having transmitters as well. Why would the park speakers need to pick up anything from the floats when all speakers are hard wired back to the master control room anyway? But I'm not on the inside - just an uber-geek who digs the inside workings of this stuff.

Malcon10t
03-02-2006, 09:55 AM
I could be wrong, but I don't think this is the case. If you listen to the main speakers during the show, you can hear that they're playing the same generic track over and over. It's only the floats themselves that have the unique music. I do know that there is a main transmitter that sends the float's audio to all the floats, but I've never heard of the floats having transmitters as well. Why would the park speakers need to pick up anything from the floats when all speakers are hard wired back to the master control room anyway? But I'm not on the inside - just an uber-geek who digs the inside workings of this stuff.Hmmm, will have to find the DVD that explained how the ELP worked. They way they described it and showed it, it was done with sensors and the floats triggered which music was played in which area. I will say, it was an extremely interesting piece.

geoffa
03-02-2006, 11:32 AM
Eeewwwww! UGH! If I saw a rat while dining anywhere I would jump up and leave- and never come back!!!!!!!

Go to the Disneyland Resort Paris discussions. It's the 3rd thread (with photos).:eek:

geoffa
03-02-2006, 11:34 AM
This is not quite right. The music playing in the street speakers is the background music, ...etc
A perfect explanation. We did a backstage tour at WDW and they showed us all this in the parade control room. Back then it was tape so I guess they've upgraded.:)

geoffa
03-02-2006, 11:39 AM
Well, doing a little quick math on a 15 minute show, your figure indicates that 1,667 shells go off each minute. That's pretty high - could you be off a zero?

On the new WDW planning DVD there is a trivia quiz and the answer for REFLECTIONS OF EARTH at EPCOT is 28,000 shells. My quote was specifically for that show. I guess there are fewer shells in Remember. If you've ever seen Reflections I guess that figure would be right. Don't confuse shells with fireworks. A firework can be a "cake" which contains multiple shells.. In other words when one rocket goes up it explodes into 1,000 or 2,000 shells etc.:)
Click on the thumbnail - (C) is the correct answer for Relections of Earth.

The old man
03-02-2006, 12:02 PM
They are designed to "freeze" the moment sensors indicate you are looking at them. You know those crazy Imagineers! Next time don't look at them and watch other guests do funny takes of puzzlement as they try to catch the eyes moving! It's a laugh riot!
;)
How does a sensor know when you're looking at something?

David