Does a Dark Ride have to be on a track?

[nmj91385]

It does not have to have a track to be a dark ride. SGE is a dark ride, but does not run on a track, it dosen't move at all.

Wouldn't SGE be considered a show?

 

[JimboJones123]

How I miss the speed boats at DL -- that was fun.

 

[MickeyJman06]

off track

1. TOT
2. IASM

on track

1. PPF
2. Mr. toad
3. pooh
4. HM
5. Dinosaur
6. IDA
7. Alice
8. PDJ
9. MI,MASTTR!
10. etc,

 

[Spaced Out Dude]

off track

1. TOT
2. IASM

on track

1. PPF
2. Mr. toad
3. pooh
4. HM
5. Dinosaur
6. IDA
7. Alice
8. PDJ
9. MI,MASTTR!
10. etc,

Pirates would also be off track.

 

[Spaced Out Dude]

Why isn't ToT a Dark Ride? And part of it is on a track.

Cuz anything that has a fast or speed element to it, isn't a dark ride.

 

[beachclubbasics]

TOT isn't.

Theoretically you are correct, but the technology that they use is basically a trackless track that uses a sensor line and a laser that reads the line and keeps the elevator where it should be.

Pooh's ride in TDL is truly trackless..it is steered by GPS.

 

[beachclubbasics]

Pirates would also be off track.

There is actually a guide that is under the water that keeps the boats in line...it's two rails that run parallel to each other and the boat floats between them. Sometimes you can actually feel the sides or front of the boat hit the rails. Same goes for IASW.

 

[CThaddeus]

Wouldn't SGE be considered a show?

Or an atttraction.

 

[Spaced Out Dude]

There is actually a guide that is under the water that keeps the boats in line...it's two rails that run parallel to each other and the boat floats between them. Sometimes you can actually feel the sides or front of the boat hit the rails. Same goes for IASW.

Yah, I know it's on a track, but if that guy said Small World was off track, then wouldn't Pirates be? I was just adding to his thoughts, not necessarily agreeing with him.

 

[peter11435]

Cuz anything that has a thrill element to it, isn't a dark ride.

Ummm.... Indy and Dinosaur are both dark rides.

 

[Spaced Out Dude]

Ummm.... Indy and Dinosaur are both dark rides.

Then let me make that a fast element to it.

 

[wickedfan07]

It does not have to have a track to be a dark ride. SGE is a dark ride, but does not run on a track, it dosen't move at all.

How can something be a ride if it doesn't move...? :shrug:

 

[cloudboy]

So if you had bumper cars in a dark building with normal black-light sets, and instead of going around in circles you were encouraged to circulate through the sets, would that not be a dark ride?

 

[MickeyJman06]

Pirates would also be off track.

WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i saw the track for POTC on The new editon of WDW: Behind The scenes

 

[Spaced Out Dude]

WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i saw the track for POTC on The new editon of WDW: Behind The scenes

I have allready explained why I said that:

Yah, I know it's on a track, but if that guy said Small World was off track, then wouldn't Pirates be? I was just adding to his thoughts, not necessarily agreeing with him.

 

[SnowFire]

CDEDBD wings?

LIB! MR ducks.

(Someone had to do it... )

 

[WDWFigment]

Is this asking if an attraction can not have a track and by definition still be a dark ride, or is it asking if engineering will allow a dark ride to not have a track?

If it's the former, I generally hadn't thought of any of the rides that are being termed "hybrids" here as dark rides, but that's because they're always marketed as thrill rides. I'm sure they'd call IASW and Peter Pan something besides dark rides (which only states the basic quality they both share) if they could, but what else is there to describe them? I would think any attraction that takes place primarily in the dark could be termed a dark ride, we just aren't used to it because they are better described by other terms.

 

[Disneylander07]

From what i know. TOT is not on a track at all. Its on Wired Guided System. A data cable is embedded in the ride floor with sensors on the bottom of the Vehicles that when rode over tell the vehicle what to do.

 

[Tom Morrow]

^ Correct, sir.

Also, if a ride has high speed elements as well as dark ride segments, then its definitely a dark ride hybrid.

Examples: Tower of Terror & Revenge of the Mummy - both begin as dark rides and turn into thrill rides.

In response to the original question, I personally don't think that a dark ride has to be on a literal track... and boat/log flumes like Pirates and Splash Mountain count.

 

[Justin Jones]

Theoretically, no ride really needs a track. Like someone already mentioned, the technology exists. Sensors in the vehicle are simply programmed to follow sensors in the floor. With that said, though, I should add that it would be highly unlikely for Disney to ever produce a ride such as a trackless Indiana Jones. If you notice, all of the trackless rides move rather slow. If some computer malfunction were to occur, and the vehicle drifted away from the sensor, it probably wouldn't roll more than an inch before the whole ride shut down (because the car was moving slowly to begin with). If a glitch ever occurred in a fast moving vehicle, I'm sure you could imagine the unsettling results.