NPR feature on Expedition Everest

[carolina_yankee]

NPR's "Weekend Edition- Saturday" has a feature story, "Slower, yet Scarier: A New Roller Coaster Era?," on slower roller coasters which focuses on Disney's Expedition Everest. ExE is held up as a standard for a new breed of coaster that uses theming and other techniques to enhance experience, rather than relying on speed.

Audio will be added after 1 pm today.

Dirk

 

[T-1MILLION]

I see what they are saying but it really is not anything new to Disney..

Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, now Everest, and the Revenge of the Mummy.the coaster with theme and dramatic sets and effects have been around...I guess other parks are all going to try and get more themed coasters now. This should be interesting.


-Preston

 

[carolina_yankee]

I agree - I never thought of Disney having fast coasters to begin with (except RnR and CS in DCA). I don't get to amusement parks often, so I don't know that the typical speed is these days. I just remember a visit to Six Flags in the San Francisco Bay Area a couple of years ago. All it was was a bunch of steel girders with cars whizzing this way and that. Fun sensations, but ultimately boring.

Anyway, part of my interest in this story is NPR covering a Disney attraction. That doesn't happen often! :lol:

Dirk

 

[T-1MILLION]

Thanks for the link by the way!:wave:


-Preston

 

[DisneyDellsDude]

50mph on a roller coaster is enough for me.:lol:

 

[Number_6]

I think what they are trying to get at is that coasters like Sheikra and Kingda Ka seem to have been built completely with speed in mind. Add to that most new coasters that have been built in the US in the last 10 years or so and you'll find that for the most part, they seem like they are just going for more speed and theming ends up being a different paint job. Space Mountain and BTM were built long ago, but they were really in the minority for theming on coasters. RnRC is a good example of blending speed and theme, but Everest blows that away. I haven't been on RotM at all, but from my understanding from what people tell me, it is also excellent with its theming. Since they seem to be bringing a resurgence in popularity for theme coasters, we may be seeing more of these built or planned in the next 5-10 years, which is definitely a good thing.

 

[DarkMeasures]

Well I would rather ride the Coney Island Cyclone than ride Top Thrill Dragster. I never seen the point of huge coasters just because they never take advantage of all the momentum the trains carry. I mean look at Top Thrill, it is a 9 second ride. I rather have a ride a third the speed but last for at least 3 minutes.

 

[Sergeant Tibbs]

Audio will be added after 1 pm today.

Dirk

They're putting audio on Everest? or are you talking about the link.

 

[carolina_yankee]

Audio link for the story. Sorry.
Dirk

 

[ReallyBigKid]

Well I would rather ride the Coney Island Cyclone than ride Top Thrill Dragster. I never seen the point of huge coasters just because they never take advantage of all the momentum the trains carry. I mean look at Top Thrill, it is a 9 second ride. I rather have a ride a third the speed but last for at least 3 minutes.

Have you ever rode Top Thrill Dragster? If not what are you basing your opinions on? Top Thrill Dragster, while maybe short is completely and ulterly awesome and terrifying at the same time. There aren't words that will really descrive it...but the fact that you launch so fast that you can't breathe during it is incredible.

It all depends on what you are looking wanting. Give me fast and smooth over old and jerky any day.