Friday, January 16, 2009

Stuck In 1981..... Only For Another 3 Months


It was happy times last week when word came out that Walt Disney World's Space Mountain was announced to go down for a major rehab from the middle of April until 'late 2009'. I loved this news, as I have been yelling for a while that this ride desparately needs a rehab. My thought process was more along the lines that the ride was needed updating to get with the times, more so then the roughness of the ride (it was a bit rough, not unbearable, but not smooth). I especially thought the WDW version needed a reworking after riding the incredible Space Mountain they have at Disneyland.

The following things have been announced as part of the refurbishment:
- layout is the same
- new track
- new queue
- new roof
- more modest then disneylands 2 year makeover

A couple of things that I am still holding out hope for:
- On Board Audio
- Updated Effects
- New Post Show

Even though I may not get everything I'd like out of a Space Mountain Refurbishment, its still good to see some major projects at WDW moving foreward. That got me to thinking about other rides that I would like to see recieve a bit of retooling at 'the world'

Everest - gotta get the Yeti working
Star Tours - really needs more of a complete overhaul then a rehab, whether it be HD monitors, new storyline, 3D, its another stuck in the 80's ride
Great Movie Ride - needs to get with the times a little bit, while I still like the ride it is 20 years old and some of the animatronics look a bit creepy and they could really switch out a scene or two with something more modern

1 comment:

Christopher said...

I would be very surprised if they don't update the post show since it's still the same as when it was sponsored by FedEx, just without the signs and sounds. Every time I get off Space Mountain I find myself say, "In the future, packages will be sent to distant planets through beams of light" over and over again. I do agree with all of your other 3 ride changes. One of the main bills for Everest was the massive moving Yeti. The fact that it's not working is kind of embarrassing. Star Tours and the Great Movie Ride are classic attractions but do need to be updated just like Space Mountain.