Expedition Everest broken track effect removed?

[NormC]

I work at Animal Kingdom...and I ride the rides often.

I had also heard 2 weeks ago that the broken track was removed, (heard it from a roller coaster enthusiast). So, I wanted to go see for myself.

I went on the ride Friday, the 13th of June. I was surprised to see the broken track was STILL INTACT. And, I was also surprised to see a bird going up and down,..(which I've NEVER seen there before.)

That just goes to show, you can hardly ever believe rumors.

(and for anyone that might be thinking the Yeti was removed...it was still there)

What rumors? The track was removed, repaired and put back. No rumors. Facts.

 

[natatomic]

I work at Animal Kingdom...and I ride the rides often.

I had also heard 2 weeks ago that the broken track was removed, (heard it from a roller coaster enthusiast). So, I wanted to go see for myself.

I went on the ride Friday, the 13th of June. I was surprised to see the broken track was STILL INTACT. And, I was also surprised to see a bird going up and down,..(which I've NEVER seen there before.)

That just goes to show, you can hardly ever believe rumors.

(and for anyone that might be thinking the Yeti was removed...it was still there)

Or it just goes to show you how late you were to the party.

 

[Kman101]

I work at Animal Kingdom...and I ride the rides often.

I had also heard 2 weeks ago that the broken track was removed, (heard it from a roller coaster enthusiast). So, I wanted to go see for myself.

I went on the ride Friday, the 13th of June. I was surprised to see the broken track was STILL INTACT. And, I was also surprised to see a bird going up and down,..(which I've NEVER seen there before.)

That just goes to show, you can hardly ever believe rumors.

(and for anyone that might be thinking the Yeti was removed...it was still there)

There's video of the track not there. In this thread. Wasn't a rumor. It was removed, refurbished, and put back.

The bird has recently been restored, apparently. It was gone for a while.

 

[DizPunk]

Um, guys, photographic "proof", especially when regarding the Yeti cannot really be proven. I've watched a lot of "Finding Bigfoot", and everything is just speculation.

Silly rumors. How dare you try to prove such things with video equipment?

 

[RunnerEd]

Has anyone checked the back of the mountain to see if the scaffolding that was there to remove the track is still there? If it is and the track is back in place, that may indicate other work going on.

 

[Sassagoula-Rvr]

What if...Everest's Yeti was the REAL THING! And he got loose and made a run for it...so they had to make a stuffed Yeti put in his place...and leak a fake story about some foundation being cracked to cover it all up and insure no panic would ensue!!!

I will now go back to shining my tin foil hat.

 

[Big C 73]

Has anyone checked the back of the mountain to see if the scaffolding that was there to remove the track is still there? If it is and the track is back in place, that may indicate other work going on.

The scaffolding located behind the mountain structure was still present as of last Wednesday.

 

[raven]

Perhaps they could put one of their many thousand minimum wage CMs in a yeti costume and stand in the ride. It would be more effective than the strobe light they have now.

 

[tirian]

I work at Animal Kingdom...and I ride the rides often.

I had also heard 2 weeks ago that the broken track was removed, (heard it from a roller coaster enthusiast). So, I wanted to go see for myself.

I went on the ride Friday, the 13th of June. I was surprised to see the broken track was STILL INTACT. And, I was also surprised to see a bird going up and down,..(which I've NEVER seen there before.)

That just goes to show, you can hardly ever believe rumors.

(and for anyone that might be thinking the Yeti was removed...it was still there)

It was refurbished. There are videos and pics all over the 'net.

 

[Fantasmicguy]

IMO, the yeti will never be fixed. Never. Not after what happened in Paris.

I think the days of large moving parts or animatronics over the heads of guests with no protection in between is over. Mickey's lawyers won't have it.

I know there are a few attractions where that's currently the case... But none that I can think of with as much size and weight (and potential movement) as Everest's Yeti. I'd imagine those few remaining attractions would be grandfathered in.

What happened at Paris?

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

What happened at Paris?

I believe in the third lift scene some suspended rockwork scenery broke loose and injured some guests. There have also been several cases of falling rockwork at WDW. The Tree of Life lost a branch (which is concrete) recently and prompted them to put up rope netting around the perimeter (which actually won't do much to stop it though). And before its big 2013 refurbishment some rockwork fell in the queue area of Splash Mountain also prompting tarps to be installed over the area (they've apparently since removed them and fixed the problem during its big refurb last year). I don't believe any has hit guests so far yet at WDW though, but there have been close calls.

It's nothing that wouldn't be preventable with proper upkeep and maintenance. But since 1994 Disney has seen fit to throw caution to the wind and systematically cut their maintenance budgets and crews all across the parks. If they continue such neglect, there may well be an accident sooner or later. It's only luck that has prevented such an accident from happening at WDW thus far, all of the rockwork fell in guest and cast frequented areas and could have easily hit someone had there been someone standing there at the wrong time. I'm glad it hasn't so far, but the lack of accidents has actually given them a reason to NOT improve maintenance around the parks. The Disneyland deaths due to improper maintenance in Eisner's later years prompted a huge reformation of the way that park's upkeep was handled. It's sad that it took death for such change to occur, I hope that's not what it takes for WDW management to clean their own act up.

 

[Mike S]

I believe in the third lift scene some suspended rockwork scenery broke loose and injured some guests. There have also been several cases of falling rockwork at WDW. The Tree of Life lost a branch (which is concrete) recently and prompted them to put up rope netting around the perimeter (which actually won't do much to stop it though). And before its big 2013 refurbishment some rockwork fell in the queue area of Splash Mountain also prompting tarps to be installed over the area (they've apparently since removed them and fixed the problem during its big refurb last year). I don't believe any has hit guests so far yet at WDW though, but there have been close calls.

It's nothing that wouldn't be preventable with proper upkeep and maintenance. But since 1994 Disney has seen fit to throw caution to the wind and systematically cut their maintenance budgets and crews all across the parks. If they continue such neglect, there may well be an accident sooner or later. It's only luck that has prevented such an accident from happening at WDW thus far, all of the rockwork fell in guest and cast frequented areas and could have easily hit someone had there been someone standing there at the wrong time. I'm glad it hasn't so far, but the lack of accidents has actually given them a reason to NOT improve maintenance around the parks. The Disneyland deaths due to improper maintenance in Eisner's later years prompted a huge reformation of the way that park's upkeep was handled. It's sad that it took death for such change to occur, I hope that's not what it takes for WDW management to clean their own act up.

So that's why those tarps were there?!?! I always thought they were just doing some work painting or something. If Disney seems so intent on not building new attractions in a timely manner the least they could do is maintain the ones already there TDO's cheapness truly knows no bounds.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

So that's why those tarps were there?!?! I always thought they were just doing some work painting or something. If Disney seems so intent on not building new attractions in a timely manner the least they could do is maintain the ones already there TDO's cheapness truly knows no bounds.

Yeah prior to its big 2013 refurb, Splash Mountain was quite literally falling apart. No joke, not trying to over-hype the problems, the condition it was in was literally THAT bad. There was a big thread for it a while back-
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/splash-mountain-falling-apart-literally.855607/

Besides the numerous animatronics not moving, dirt and mold everywhere and a serious paint job being needed desperately, the rockwork started crumbling and falling apart. The structural issues were already noticeable in the final lift hill with the roof leaking badly, but the final straw was concrete pieces falling in the queue area. That prompted tarps to be set up in the load area (which probably wouldn't have done much to stop a big chunk whatsoever). And not long after a major refurbishment was approved and carried out, i'm guessing largely because the ride was not structurally sound. Thankfully the refurb seems to have been a big success, and there was another refurb a couple of months back that also seems to have helped some of the water effects in the laughing place (and likely fixed some remaining issues that they didn't cover in the first refurb).

It hasn't looked this good in a long time apparently, people who have ridden it since the refurb (I haven't had the chance) say it looks great and videos seem to indicate it's being kept in pretty good shape so far. But we'll have to give it some time to see whether they're going to keep it in proper shape (I wouldn't count on it). One hopes they see fit to keep it in good condition this time instead of letting it rot away and fall apart like they did. Though with MM+ eating away at the company's profits, it's a concern that they'll just slash maintenance even more to try to cover its costs. There are tons of other rides and attractions still in desperate need of maintenance work. Not to mention the brand new Dwarf coaster is already reportedly having issues with its AAs...

 

[Mike S]

Yeah prior to its big 2013 refurb, Splash Mountain was quite literally falling apart. Big thread for it a while back-
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/splash-mountain-falling-apart-literally.855607/

Besides the numerous animatronics not moving, dirt and mold everywhere and a serious paint job being needed desperately, the rockwork started crumbling and falling apart. It was already noticeable in the final lift hill with all the leaks happening in the roof, but the final straw was some concrete pieces falling in the queue area. That prompted tarps to be set up in the load area (which probably wouldn't have done much to stop a big chunk whatsoever). And not long after a major refurbishment was approved and carried out. Thankfully the refurb seems to have been a big success, and there was another refurb a couple of months back that also seems to have helped some of the water effects in the laughing place.

It hasn't looked this good in a long time apparently, people who have ridden it since the refurb (I haven't had the chance) have said it looks great and videos seem to indicate it's being kept in pretty good shape so far. But we'll give it a year or two and see how it looks then. One hopes they see fit to keep it in good condition this time instead of letting it rot away and fall apart like they did. Though with MM+ eating away at the company's profits, it's a concern that they'll just slash maintenance even more to try to cover costs. Not to mention the Dwarf coaster is already having issues with its AAs...

So the leaking in the lift hill was also due to neglect. Wow this just gets worse and worse. I also agree that Splash Mountain is basically perfect now since the refurb. I even saw the jumping fountains working in the laughing place on my most recent ride, something I didn't see even on my first ride after the refurb.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

So the leaking in the lift hill was also due to neglect. Wow this just gets worse and worse. I also agree that Splash Mountain is basically perfect now since the refurb. I even saw the jumping fountains working in the laughing place on my most recent ride, something I didn't see even on my first ride after the refurb.

The leaking wasn't present originally and has since been fixed apparently, so yes i'm quite certain it was neglect of some sort. Though it was the falling rockwork that I would assume ended up forcing their hand (safety reasons and all). Thankfully they gave it a proper budget this time. When it reopened, it was almost perfect from a show perspective and basically looked brand new. Not something i'm going to praise them for as keeping rides in proper shape should be a given, but i'm happy it's back to looking good again.

I hope to get the chance to ride it this year (or soon at least). I haven't been on it in PROPER shape since about 1997 (and even then it was probably showing signs of wear since the maintenance slashes of '94). By the time I returned in 2010 it was in AWFUL condition already, and continued to degrade over the course of the next two years. Was an AWFUL mess and i've not ridden since it was fixed up. Best to ride it now while it's still in good shape. No telling whether it'll remain that way for very long.

 

[wilkeliza]

The leaking wasn't present originally and has since been fixed apparently, so yes i'm quite certain it was neglect of some sort. Though it was the falling rockwork that I would assume ended up forcing their hand (safety reasons and all). Thankfully they gave it a proper budget this time. When it reopened, it was almost perfect from a show perspective and basically looked brand new. Not something i'm going to praise them for as keeping rides in proper shape should be a given, but i'm happy it's back to looking good again.

I hope to get the chance to ride it this year (or soon at least). I haven't been on it in PROPER shape since about 1997 (and even then it was probably showing signs of wear since the maintenance slashes of '94). By the time I returned in 2010 it was in AWFUL condition already, and continued to degrade over the course of the next two years. Was an AWFUL mess and i've not ridden since it was fixed up. Best to ride it now while it's still in good shape. No telling whether it'll remain that way for very long.

The rock work wasn't the only thing that caused the massive refurb. My safety in motion instructor was a manager of maintenance at one point and would tell us stories about how the drive shaft that basically ran the whole thing would break down every single day. Disney was spending more to have a crew get over to MK and emergency fix it every day to get it back up and running then they spent in the entire refurb. At least that's what I was told. That on top of the terrible show lead to a refurb.

 

[Mike S]

The leaking wasn't present originally and has since been fixed apparently, so yes i'm quite certain it was neglect of some sort. Though it was the falling rockwork that I would assume ended up forcing their hand (safety reasons and all). Thankfully they gave it a proper budget this time. When it reopened, it was almost perfect from a show perspective and basically looked brand new. Not something i'm going to praise them for as keeping rides in proper shape should be a given, but i'm happy it's back to looking good again.

I hope to get the chance to ride it this year (or soon at least). I haven't been on it in PROPER shape since about 1997 (and even then it was probably showing signs of wear since the maintenance slashes of '94). By the time I returned in 2010 it was in AWFUL condition already, and continued to degrade over the course of the next two years. Was an AWFUL mess and i've not ridden since it was fixed up. Best to ride it now while it's still in good shape. No telling whether it'll remain that way for very long.

You should definitely try to go and see it if you can. On my trip last weekend there was absolutely nothing wrong with it.

 

[wilkeliza]

Also to keep my posting on topic I was in the world last weekend and the "broken" track was there and much to my amazement the eagle was also working. I've been going to WDW several times a year since 2010 and this is the first time I have ever seen the bird. I was so excited. Now if they will just fix the dang yeti.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

Barring unforeseen issues I hope to visit WDW in a couple of months (and those issues may indeed crop up as I hoped to visit prior to now).

The rock work wasn't the only thing that caused the massive refurb. My safety in motion instructor was a manager of maintenance at one point and would tell us stories about how the drive shaft that basically ran the whole thing would break down every single day. Disney was spending more to have a crew get over to MK and emergency fix it every day to get it back up and running then they spent in the entire refurb. At least that's what I was told. That on top of the terrible show lead to a refurb.

Yeah I figured it was a lot of elements that finally forced their hand, not just one. Though i'm guessing the falling rocks had a substantial hand in it. Splash Mountain in my experience had always been rather prone to breakdowns even when rather new (not surprising as i'm guessing it's quite a complex and tricky ride to keep working), but it seemed to have gotten far worse in recent years. I'm glad to hear someone in the company was concerned about the show elements though too. It had become a serious joke online and i'm guessing even a lot of regular guests noticed and complained about the broken AA's. There are plenty of other rides at WDW that need major help as well.

I'm guessing whatever they did during this year's refurb was more mechanical in nature. The laughing place certainly seems to have more consistent water effects in recent videos. It looked like they were doing work on the flume and drop as well from pics, so i'm guessing they were addressing issues that could cause more frequent breakdowns.

 

[Mike S]

Barring unforeseen issues I hope to visit WDW in a couple of months (and those issues may indeed crop up as I hoped to visit prior to now).


Yeah I figured it was a lot of elements that finally forced their hand, not just one. Though i'm guessing the falling rocks had a substantial hand in it. Splash Mountain in my experience had always been rather prone to breakdowns even when rather new (not surprising as i'm guessing it's quite a complex and tricky ride to keep working), but it seemed to have gotten far worse in recent years. I'm glad to hear someone in the company was concerned about the show elements though too. It had become a serious joke online and i'm guessing even a lot of regular guests noticed and complained about the broken AA's. There are plenty of other rides at WDW that need major help as well.

I'm guessing whatever they did during this year's refurb was more mechanical in nature. The laughing place certainly seems to have more consistent water effects in recent videos. It looked like they were doing work on the flume and drop as well from pics, so i'm guessing they were addressing issues that could cause more frequent breakdowns.

I remember watching this rather shocking video of how bad it got thank god for that refurb.