I have an odd question i guess. Why is the Space Mountain in WDW a single rider and the one is Disneyland has it where two people can sit side by side? Any info would be good 
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Space Mountain
- Thread starter Just A Big Kid
- Start date
wdwjmp239
Well-Known Member
Originally posted by Just A Big Kid
I have an odd question i guess. Why is the Space Mountain in WDW a single rider and the one is Disneyland has it where two people can sit side by side? Any info would be good
Maybe the one in Disneyland is older than the one in Disneyworld and the design is different?
Here I go again.. putting in my two cents... hey.. i'm just trying to get the ball rolling here.. RobFL? Care to answer this one?
cymbaldiva
Active Member
Originally posted by Just A Big Kid
I have an odd question i guess. Why is the Space Mountain in WDW a single rider and the one is Disneyland has it where two people can sit side by side? Any info would be good
I don't know...I know that the WDW promo videos show the double rider cars but that they never actually had them...
Any info on this Tramp? I trust your opinion!
:animwink:Actually, the one at WDW is about 2 years older than the one at DL.
The side-by-side seating arrangement increases ride capacity. When they built the one at WDW, it was essentially Florida's version of the Matterhorn, in which people sit single file in bobsleds. Even the track is similar to the Matterhorn. Capacity at the Florida version isn't really a problem because the building there is large enough to hold two tracks. At DL, the building is somewhat smaller and they only have one track, so if they went with the single file "bobsled" rockets, lines would have stretched a lot longer. So they came up with the side-by-side design. The same thing happened with Splash Mountain (only it was the other way around). When the built the original at DL, they went with the classic single file seating that exists on all log rides. The Tokyo version came next and they were forced to go with the side-by-side due to cultural reasons (Japanese patrons aren't as hip on sitting on each other's laps on a ride apparently). In doing so, they discovered, once again, that ride capacity increased with this seating arrangement so that's why they did it that way at WDW.
The side-by-side seating arrangement increases ride capacity. When they built the one at WDW, it was essentially Florida's version of the Matterhorn, in which people sit single file in bobsleds. Even the track is similar to the Matterhorn. Capacity at the Florida version isn't really a problem because the building there is large enough to hold two tracks. At DL, the building is somewhat smaller and they only have one track, so if they went with the single file "bobsled" rockets, lines would have stretched a lot longer. So they came up with the side-by-side design. The same thing happened with Splash Mountain (only it was the other way around). When the built the original at DL, they went with the classic single file seating that exists on all log rides. The Tokyo version came next and they were forced to go with the side-by-side due to cultural reasons (Japanese patrons aren't as hip on sitting on each other's laps on a ride apparently). In doing so, they discovered, once again, that ride capacity increased with this seating arrangement so that's why they did it that way at WDW.
cymbaldiva
Active Member
Very interesting...I did not know that Merlin!
Thanks for the 411!
Thanks for the 411!
Good info Merlin.. think they will ever switch to the 2seaters?
mickeyfanatics
New Member
Merlin, you took the words out of my mouth. The track at WDW would have to be wider to handle the side by side cars. It is amazing, I was just at DL this summer and that SM building is half the size of the one at WDW. The track at DL is much faster, tighter, and has more helixes than the one at WDW. I like it better.
Did SM at WDW ever have "bobsled" style cars? For some reason, I remember them being that way, but now they have single file individual seats.
(I never liked the bobsled style rides...sometimes I didn't enjoy knowing what the guy behind me was REALLY thinking, if you get my meaning!
)
(I never liked the bobsled style rides...sometimes I didn't enjoy knowing what the guy behind me was REALLY thinking, if you get my meaning!
)
jmarc63
New Member
Originally posted by The Mom
Did SM at WDW ever have "bobsled" style cars? For some reason, I remeber them being that way, but now they have single file individual seats.
(I never liked the bobsled style rides...sometimes I didn't enjoy knowing what the guy behind me was REALLY thinking, if you get my meaning!
The original WDW SM car were replaced a few years back. the original design was where you would sit on the others lap. In the newer cars the cars have individual inline seating.
MrPromey
Well-Known Member
Originally posted by The Mom
Did SM at WDW ever have "bobsled" style cars? For some reason, I remeber them being that way, but now they have single file individual seats.
(I never liked the bobsled style rides...sometimes I didn't enjoy knowing what the guy behind me was REALLY thinking, if you get my meaning!
Yes they did and I HATED them!!! They used to have two seats to a car with two cars so each train could hold up to eight people. My first time on the ride I *just* tall enough to ride and sat in the very front of the front car. By the time we got off, I had the seat belt around my neck and I was all curled up in the fiberglass nose of my car. It wasn't till I was at least a foot taller that I willingly went on it again.
CaptChris
New Member
I think the new cars are great! Individual seats, and individual lap bars. i am a fairly skinny person, and rode Big Thunder Mountain with a heavy person. We shared a lap bar, but the lap bar was not on my lap, but about six inches above it! I felt like I was going fly out!!!!!
Timekeeper
Well-Known Member
New Cars
When exactly did SM in WDW get the "new" cars? I recall the ride vehicles they have now as having been there for at least 10 years ...same as the type of ride vehicle holding the 3 astronaut passengers that used to be displayed in front of SM before the adjacent arcade was built. (Thus, 3 individual seats and lap bars.)
One change I noticed a few years back was the nose of the cars had been painted from red to the blue color that matches the rest of the car. Why did they change the red noses of the cars to blue? The red nose look can also be seen on that same exterior display mentioned above.
Tk
When exactly did SM in WDW get the "new" cars? I recall the ride vehicles they have now as having been there for at least 10 years ...same as the type of ride vehicle holding the 3 astronaut passengers that used to be displayed in front of SM before the adjacent arcade was built. (Thus, 3 individual seats and lap bars.)
One change I noticed a few years back was the nose of the cars had been painted from red to the blue color that matches the rest of the car. Why did they change the red noses of the cars to blue? The red nose look can also be seen on that same exterior display mentioned above.
Tk
cymbaldiva
Active Member
I'd like to know when the new cars came in too...the first time I rode Space Mountain was in '89, and frankly I was so terrified at the time that I don't even remember much about the cars! :lol:
GoofyMike29
New Member
Space Mountain, in WDW, used to be a double rider, about 15-17 years ago. I have pictures where my father and I ride in the same car...good times, good times
jmarc63
New Member
goofy what do you mean by "double rider" If you mean side-by-side seating WDWs SM was never like that. the cars always had an inline seating arrangement. Just that the original cars were Bobsled style( sitting on anothers lap 4 per car) where the newer cars have indivual rider seats(3 per car).
mickeyfanatics
New Member
SM at WDW got the new cars around 1990 when they were building SPlash Mountain at WDW. They original SM at WDW had the same bobsleds like Matterhorn at DL. They decided that the new config would be safer.
GoofyMike29
New Member
I mean that a person could sit in front while one sat in the back, but in the same car
Lee
Adventurer
Unless I'm sorely mistaken, the current Matterhorn trains are in fact the old WDW Space Mountain trains. (Much like how the DL Small World boats are old WDW Pirate boats.)
WDW's Space track would have to be at least a foot wider to accomodate side-by-side seat trains, the guage is simply too narrow.
They have prototypes ready to replace the DL Space trains. They are, of course, side-by-side seaters, with built in audio (finally), and are painted with the "chromilussion" process so they change colors depending on your angle of sight.
WDW's Space track would have to be at least a foot wider to accomodate side-by-side seat trains, the guage is simply too narrow.
They have prototypes ready to replace the DL Space trains. They are, of course, side-by-side seaters, with built in audio (finally), and are painted with the "chromilussion" process so they change colors depending on your angle of sight.