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I recently went to the
Anaheim ride and the sound was gone. Did they remove it? No. The
sound is frequently on hiatus, because the sound system installed on some
cars essentially needs to be replaced. Try again - you might get a car
that does work next time.
What's this I hear about ride reservations?
In March 1999 they tested out a reservations system for the Orlando Space
Mountain, and then in Anaheim in June 1999. So far it's only a test, and
thus will not always be that way if you go to Orlando or Anaheim. What they
do is this: you could wait like normal for the ride (only now you have to
wait outside in slow-moving rope lines) or you could get a ticket electronically
generated. That ticket allows you to return in two hours and board the ride
with only a five minute wait. My problem with the system, which does work
by the way, is that it redistributes people to other lines which then become
longer, plus those who choose not to use the reservations system (or don't
know about it) have to wait outside in the hot sun instead of inside like
normal, and everyone - once they gain admission into the normal queue line
- just runs through the queue to the ride boarding area. All that money
spent on the queue and air conditioning... just wasted.
Which Space Mountain is fastest?
The Paris Space Mt. travels the fastest, at 43 m.p.h., while the other ones
reach maximum speeds of roughly 30 m.p.h.
Why does it feel like you're traveling
so much faster than that? There are a couple reasons for this.
First, because it's dark it simply feels faster since you cannot see scenery
whiz (or crawl) past you. Second, the darkness also serves to mask your
direction, so you never know when it's time to turn or which direction (well,
you do know a little, especially if you're very familiar with the ride).
Third, and most surprisingly, there are fast air currents in the ride building
in the Anaheim version; all the mountains have fans placed strategically
throughout so that a vortex of air is created, and a rushing sensastion
on the ride is enhanced by this fast-moving air. Don't believe me? Try getting
stuck sometime and having to evacuate. It's there.
Why does the ride sometimes appear
faster than other times? Does it depend on time of day or maintenance
schedules? In theory, maintenance is not a factor, though it could
play a minor role (rockets travel slightly faster at night because they've
had many continuous runs, and a warmer track means a slightly faster ride).
The primary reason your flight speed varies is that the total weight of
your rocket is different every time -- a heavily loaded rocket will travel
faster than a lightly loaded one. It works like this: a heavier rocket has
more inertia when traveling, so its speed is decreased by a lesser amount
when rounding corners or traveling uphill (whereas a lighter rocket with
less inertia slows more going uphill and around corners). Thanks Vince for
the help there!
As for daytime/nighttime, let me
allow Cast Member Magus (at Orlando) to tell you: "In the mornings, the
trains are what we call cold. The grease on the wheels is thick and looks
like play-do or some type of black putty, during the day however, the
trains heat up and the grease gets thin like a water type lubricant causing
the trains to go much faster at night. The only exception to this rule
is if we have a breakdown which would cause all of the trains to become
"cold" again. As the trains heat up during the day, we raise the dispatch
interval, or "the time the train leaves the dispatch break and enters
the 'gravity area'". In the mornings, a train leaves the dispatch every
29 seconds and has a complete running time of about 2:45. As the day goes
on, we 'dial down' the dispatch interval to 21 seconds and the trains
make a complete circuit in about two minutes a only about 20 or 21 seconds.
The top speed for the morning on average is about 25 mph where the top
speed later on in the day is anywhere between 29 and 32 depending as you
said, on the weight of the train."
How tall do you have to be to ride
Space Mountain? It depends. It's 44 inches at Orlando, 40 inches
at Anaheim and Tokyo, and a stunning 51 inches to ride in Paris. The reason
is that this one features inversions, and thus has an over-the-shoulder
restraint system, and that just doesn't work until a certain height.
Who is the sponsor of Space Mountain?
At Orlando and Anaheim, Fed-Ex is the sponsor (originally, it was DASA -
Disneyland Aeronautics and Space Administration). Tokyo Disneyland, which
is owned by the Oriental Land Company, has different arrangements; their
Space Mountain is sponsored by the Coca-Cola Company of Japan. Space Mountain
at Disneyland Paris does not, to my knowledge, have a sponsor.
Is that Shannen Doherty in the
safety video at the Anaheim Space Mountain? No, it's not. Looks
like her, though, doesn't it? That is in fact the 1995 Disneyland Ambassador
Kathleen - she just happened to be the Ambassador when Space Mountain Anaheim
underwent its extensive rehab. If you look closely you can see her nametag.
How can you tell if the music is
playing at the Anaheim and Paris Space Mountains? Prior to boarding
(you can't see it once you sit down), glance at the very back end of the
front car in the rocket. The "back-bumper" of that car has a little red
indicator light; if it's lit, then the soundtrack will be working on your
rocket.
What does Space Mountain look like
with all the lights on? I think I'm some sort of jinx. I've seen
the Paris, Orlando, and Anaheim mountains with their lights on, and I haven't
been to Orlando or Paris that often. Basically, the ride looks like an imposing
mass of black-painted (sometimes unpainted) steel - in Florida the tracks
are painted gray with red and yellow stripes at the sensor locations - and
when you see it, you have to wonder that people don't bump (or lose) their
heads on that ride, it's so convoluted! The tracks are also, as you might
imagine, quite dusty from never getting washed down. My favorite Space Mountain
experience is not riding with the lights on (which I've done at a private
party) but rather with EVERYTHING (lights, special effects, music) turned
off at Anaheim for an employee event. It's eerie, and very much like a ride
through space.
What inside jokes are there in
the queue lines? I don't know of any at Tokyo (not having been
there yet), and there are few at Paris. I find it humorous personally that
the safety video in Paris, while delivered in alternating French and English,
has constant English subtitles. Watch for any signage that states Discovery
Mountain - the ride's original name.
The Orlando and Anaheim queue lines,
though shaped differently, share the same queue video. In that video,
look for the following things: Charles Fleischer (Roger Rabbitt's voice)
as a used-satellite dealer; a hidden Mickey created by a satellite folding
out its wings (ears); and the blastoff video from Mission to Mars/Flight
to the Moon in one of the commercials.
In Anaheim, there is a mock-up spaceship
hanging over the loading zone and designated "DL2000," while the identical
Orlando version is inside the ride and is designated "XL2000."
Has anyone ever died while riding
Space Mountain? You've probably heard the rumor that a passenger
was decapitated while riding Space Mountain Anaheim; at least I have. I
think this is Urban Legend; people have died while riding the attraction
before, but I believe that their deaths have been caused by such things
as heart attacks (it is fairly well accepted that one such death in Paris
was due to a heart attack).
One version of this story has that
a test dummy in the Orlando Space Mountain was the thing which lost a
head.
According to critical consensus,
which is the best Space Mountain?
It's hard to get anyone to agree on this. For me, it's Disneyland Paris.
In addition to its radically different track scheme - featuring loops,
corkscrews and the like - it also has illuminated props to marvel at DURING
the ride, stunning exterior architecture and design (especially at night),
a queue line that travels THROUGH the middle of the mountain to build
your expectations, it is the only Space Mountain that actually tells a
story, and, finally and most convincingly, the soundtrack is simply wonderful.
Uplifting and inspirational, and done in a "classical" style.
Do you accept or want submissions
to this site? Absolutely.
I am always on the lookout for more pictures of Space Mountain from any
park, or other information you have to offer. Click here to
email me with your new
information, donated pictures, or feedback. Be sure to remove "NOSPAM" from
the email address.
What about video and audio recordings?
For legal and storage reasons I do not offer video or audio clips and
do not anticipate doing so in the future.
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