I never knew Big Thunder was taken from Mine Train Thru Natures Wonderland

[mitchk]

I was just watching a Disneyland promotional video from 61', and they profiled (actually the whole ride) Mine Train Thru Natures Wonderland. On the ride audio, (or at least what was dubbed over) they went behind a waterfall, and it was called Big Thunder. Im guessing that's where Tony got the name from. Anyone know for sure? :wave:

 

[mitchk]

I guess no one else knew that

 

[unkadug]

Big Thunder Mountain RR replaced the mine train, so perhaps it's just an homage to it's predecessor.

http://www.yesterland.com/minetrain.html

 

[darthspielberg]

Yeah. The part of the ride when you go up the first lift hill with the crystals and stuff is a tribute to the Nature's Mine ride. The BTMR in Disneyland occupies the land that Nature's was originally on. I assume the tribute is in Disney World's as well due to the rides being similar in design (Just flipped, and Disney World's has more track)

 

[mitchk]

Thanks :wave: , but I already know all about the whole WRE saga, and how a smaller version, also flipped version of BTM was built in DL, and everything that went along with it. I have done a lot of research on this. I just thought it was interesting that none of of the things I have saw mentioned the Big Thunder waterfall in MTTNW, as being part of Tonys homage to the defunct attraction (but not really, because he finished BTM in 74' :shrug. We all know Tony grew up going to the park all the time, and the start of Big Thunder Mountain is a tribute to the Rainbow Caverners(sp). But Big Thunder Waterfall ......... new to me :shrug:

 

[darthspielberg]

Tony talks about it a bit in the "Imagineering the Magic Kingdom" DVD they sell at the Emporium (and Mickey's Star Traders, I think. Not sure)

(Which is not really worth the money. Martin Smith does better videos than they did. It nice to hear Marty Sklar and Tony wax nostalgically about the park though)

 

[mitchk]

Big Thunder Mountain RR replaced the mine train, so perhaps it's just an homage to it's predecessor.

http://www.yesterland.com/minetrain.html

Yup, Big Thunder Falls ........... :wave: I think that is still new info to a lot of people :wave:

 

[MarkTwain]

There were Little Thunder falls too if I remember correctly...

And a lot of the elements in DL's BTMRR also came from Nature's Wonderland... like the dinosaur skeleton, and the town overlooking the queue.

 

[Mansion Butler]

I know Thunder was originally designed from MK. Were those elements going to be a part of it, or were they introduced when it was built in DL and then carried over to MK?

What I mean is, would the dino skeleton, for instance, have been in Big Thunder in Orlando if it had been built in Orlando first?

 

[MarkTwain]

I know Thunder was originally designed from MK. Were those elements going to be a part of it, or were they introduced when it was built in DL and then carried over to MK?

What I mean is, would the dino skeleton, for instance, have been in Big Thunder in Orlando if it had been built in Orlando first?

Probably not. As I understand it, Thunder Mountain wasn't simply designed for MK and then pulled over to Disneyland. Thunder Mountain was attached at the hip to Western River Expedition as part of MK's Thunder Mesa project, so that when Thunder Mesa was shot down, Thunder Mountain was believed to have completely died with it. But when Disneyland was looking at ways to boost its roster of thrill attractions to compete with the other amusement parks popping up around it, as well as a way to revive interest in the aging Mine Train, Tony Baxter pulled out a revamped Thunder Mountain as the solution. So at that point it was still probably not planned for the MK. Baxter then kept elements like the dinosaur bones and the teetering rocks as a sort of homage to the attraction it had replaced. When BTMRR became a huge hit at DL and was cloned to the MK a few years later, those elements weren't repeated, since the WDW version didn't replace anything.

 

[Jerm]

When BTMRR became a huge hit at DL and was cloned to the MK a few years later, those elements weren't repeated, since the WDW version didn't replace anything.

BTMRR were being planned for both parks at pretty much the same time. The DL one was done a year before the MK one but it was supposed to be the other way around, just things got in the way.