Has Epcot's wild ride tamed down?

[askmike1]

I think the biggest reason as to why less people have gotten sick on M:S is that they actually know what the ride is going to be like. The initial people saw the warnings but dismissed them because they didn't think Disney could build that type of thrill ride. Now, if you don't see the warnings, you are either blind and deaf or very oblivious to the world.

As for safety, I'd feel safer riding BTMR 100 times than riding any other park's ride once.

-Michael

 

[TheOneVader]

You should feel safe at any theme park. It is 1,000,000 times safer in an amusement/theme park than driving to it.

 

[Robfasto]

Mission: Space has not been tamed...

Although Disney did make changes to the ride the greatly reduced the 'puke' factor on the ride.

1) They now pump 54º air in everyones face, this helps to keep the head cool which in turn lowers the risk of motion sickness.

2) They have added an announcement after you board the vehicle which suggest you do not look side to side and keep your eyes forward looking out the wind screen.

Other than that the ride is the same.

 

[Jekyll Baker]

Mission: Space has not been tamed...

Although Disney did make changes to the ride the greatly reduced the 'puke' factor on the ride.

1) They now pump 54º air in everyones face, this helps to keep the head cool which in turn lowers the risk of motion sickness.

This is the only part of the ride that I absolutely hate. To me, it's very uncomfortable and makes my eyes water.

2) They have added an announcement after you board the vehicle which suggest you do not look side to side and keep your eyes forward looking out the wind screen.

Other than that the ride is the same.

I've purposely looked from side to side during the ride, just to see if it made a difference (in other words, to see if it made me feel ill), and it doesn't affect me any different. In fact, the first time I rode M:S was in Sept 2003, and I rode it TWICE in a row on a full stomach right after a big breakfast - good thing I don't get motion sick. Now I go on it to relax and almost fall asleep sometimes.

Oh, and don't forget the addition of the air sick bags.

 

[DCL]

The first time I rode Mission: Space was right after eating dinner. I do not get motion sickness or anything like that, and found the ride to be no worse than a regular rollercoaster. However, I am aware that Mission: Space is probably more intense than most, if not all rollercoasters out there.

In terms of Disney's safety standards, I have never even questioned the safety of a ride on their property. When I am at other parks, however, I have to gather up the courage to get on their rides. The past two times I've been to the local Six Flags, SF New England, my friends and I have been on rollercoasters while they broke down. This past summer, I believe, a man was killed while riding the Superman Rollercoaster there. The summer before that, on the same ride, two trains crashed into each other at the station. From that point on, through the summer, it wasn't safe for them to have more than one ride train on the tracks at a time. This is why you'll never see me at a Six Flags again :lol:

It makes me glad to be able to go to a place which puts such a great emphasis on the safety of their guests, especially when it's obvious that some other parks don't.

 

[HM999thGhost]

out of curiosity does anyone know at what RPM or MPH the centrifuge spins at? Its an amazing speed and the wind it must cause in those rooms must be tremendous! Although slightly frightening to think about the speed you are traveling at in thsoe things.. but a great attraction nonetheless

 

[Indy95]

out of curiosity does anyone know at what RPM or MPH the centrifuge spins at? Its an amazing speed and the wind it must cause in those rooms must be tremendous! Although slightly frightening to think about the speed you are traveling at in thsoe things.. but a great attraction nonetheless

I believe it spins at or around 25 mph. Somebody please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Mission: Space has not been tamed...

Although Disney did make changes to the ride the greatly reduced the 'puke' factor on the ride.

1) They now pump 54º air in everyones face, this helps to keep the head cool which in turn lowers the risk of motion sickness.

Thats teh only thing that keeps me from losing it. Tho the last time we rode i had just been at China and eaten.... was very "let me hold on to the ground for a few minutes and hold on for dear life"....

 

[SpaceRacer2003]

Dave.... I think the phrase is "Stop the World I Wanna get Off" I had that feeling once but it was after a series fairly quick re-rides.

Indy... good guess, but not quite... remember "It is Intense"

 

[PhotoDave219]

Yeah, i think we've all held onto the grass before because the world was spinning too much.....

 

[Atta83]

The thing that gets me is when people read the warnings saying o that wont happen to me, dont follow them, and then complain on how there should be warnings. As for me I rode Misson: Space 3 times in a row, slow time and I was a single rider, and not once did I get sick. I mean if you have any type of motion sickness dont ride. I have felt safe on this ride plenty of times, there are other rides, like the ones here at Astroworld , that make me not feel so safe...like the one time I almost fell out of teh Ultra Twister cuase the guy locked the restraintes when my wasnt down all the way......*sigh*

 

[SpenceMan01]

I went on Mission: SPACE about a month ago and while it was thrilling, it wasn't as intense as I was expecting. It's a darn cool ride though!! Awesome!

As far as safety is concerned, I feel safe at Disney parks. I also feel very safe at the 2 Cedar Fair parks that I've been to (Cedar Point and Valleyfair, which I worked at as a ride op). To be honest, I think as far as ride operators go, Cedar Fair edges out Disney. At CP and VF the ride ops physically check every harness/lap bar and every seatbelt before they send the train out of the station. At WDW (RnRC, BTMRR and SM), the ops check it, but nowhere near the level of what CP and VF ops do. I especially noticed it on Rockin Roller coaster. The ride op didn't even check my harness (but I did). Even so, with WDW's safety record, I certainly feel safe there.

Now Six Flags on the other hand... :lookaroun

 

[Austin1]

I love mission:space!!!, it's so cool but I did get kinda sick after a went on it and drank a coke before hand. Just eat afterwards

 

[DisneyFreak529]

I have always flelt safe on there rides to. I know this question might have been asked before but how is Mission Space?? Is it really intense or just hipped up to much???

 

[Horizons78]

I know this question might have been asked before but how is Mission Space?? Is it really intense or just hipped up to much???

It all depends. I suffer from migraines from time to time. I used to be able to handle all kinds of stuff including racing. Not so much anymore. Even with the available information, I had to ride MS. It was awesome. Did I pay for it afterward? You betcha! Within 15 minutes I knew a migraine was on its way. I ended up back at AKL puking like a man possesed. I was very glad that I had waited until the end of the day to ride, otherwise it would have ruined my whole day.

I honestly believe that if I werent succeptible to the migraines, I would have been fine.

 

[MichelleBelle]

Horizons - I too suffer from migraines... have since I was 13. I get them like twice a month and they can be triggered really easily, I feel your pain!!

I LOVED Mission Space... and felt absolutely fine after riding it. I would have gotten back on it! For those people that go on and get sick/hurt/heart problems, etc... they shouldn't have been on it in the first place. You get warned like a gazillion times (even AS your getting to your seat) not to go on if you think you have ANY problems that would cause you to get further impaired on the ride. I don't blame the ride for the people that were at the hospital, I blame the people... unless they had some condition they were completely unaware of... other than that, there's no excuse. Do some people get motion sick? Of course! But don't ride a ride that TELLS you that you will experience forces that could turn your stomach if you know for a fact that you won't be able to handle it. I know some people can't predict if they will feel awkward after, so that's not their fault, but people that already feel "off" or have conditions that they know should keep them from riding have no excuse.

I think the thing that makes M.S. so stomach churning is the fact that you spin sideways... if it were a forward motion it would be more tame, but even though you can't tell where you're going, your body knows it's moving in a really unnatural way... Speeding up and slowing down are definately the most intense parts of the ride, but I think as long as people follow the guidelines of the ride and prepare yourself for the experience then they should be fine.

 

[Horizons78]

Horizons - I too suffer from migraines... have since I was 13. I get them like twice a month and they can be triggered really easily, I feel your pain!!

My thanks and rep points to you! :wave:

 

[PurpleDragon]

The first few times I rode Mission: Space were great experiences, it was intesne but not too intense. However the last time I rode was with a bit of a sinus headache accompanied with some sinus pressure. Let me tell you that sinus problems intensify the ill feeling you get on that ride. Since the sinus cavities are connected to the ears, it causes a pressure fluctuation in the inner ear, and when that is aggrivated by intense spinning, whoa watchout boy!!! I never got sick , but it took everything I had to "keep it down". So that could be a reason people get sick or uncomfortable on that ride, a simple cold can cause major problems with riders.

As far as saftey, I feel 100% safe in WDW parks, I know that they have a very high set of safety standards, as well as backup shut off systems with other systems to back those up. They have all bases covered, I think if a ride did malfunction the worst thing I would worry about happening to me is that I would have to sit in motionless ride vehicle for a rediculously long time, but that would be about it.


Oh and Horizons and MichelleBelle, I suffer from Migraines too!! However I have you both beat, I get about roughly 2 a week. I go thru imitrex like its candy sometimes. I always have to keep the shots on hand just in case I get a bad one.