Test track broke while we were on it!

[epcotisbest]

Originally posted by wbboy29
I have always wondered what it must be like to be going around victory and have it Zone Stop or break down. It must be a rush. To be going from 65mph to 0 in a matter of seconds, that has got to be crazy..

Believe me, it is a rush. The thing came to a screaching stop in a matter of just a few feet. That thing has good brakes. We were on a sharp curve at a steep angle with smoke surrounding the car. It smelled of burning rubber. We were not upset or angry, just decided it made for a more memorable ride. We only dangled for a few minutes before the technician came out and checked things out then slowly walked us back in where we got to go again. Nothing to complain about, something to remember, it was fun but not something I would want to experience again.
Ricky

 

[TheOneVader]

Originally posted by grizzlyhall
In the words of Strong Bad, "That doesn't deserve a trophy. That doesn't even deserve a pizza!" :lol:

What about a pizza trophy? :lol: I love the SB emails. "And the dragon coem in the NNNIIIIiiiiiIIIIIiiiiiiiiiiIIIIIIIIiiiiiGGHH"

 

[Dayma]

I think I would like to have sse break down for 10 minutes....now thats more fun for me

 

[TheOneVader]

SE always stops while we're on it. I think it's cuz they have to stop it for the peopel in wheelchairs... that always annoys me, but I'm easily annoyable.

 

[Dayma]

SE always stops while we're on it. I think it's cuz they have to stop it for the peopel in wheelchairs... that always annoys me, but I'm easily annoyable.

I love when it stops when I am in Rome and the dark ages....smells sooooo good

 

[donsullivan]

I've been on rides at both DW & DL countless times over the years when they've stopped for various safety reasons. Never has there been a situation where the ride was actually broken, it was always a safety provision that kicked in.

I've had everything from stopping in a rain storm in the geyser pool in Thunder Mountain because one of those summer downpours triggered the train location sensors convincing the computer that two trains were too close together. We got totally drown sine they have a specific controlled restart sequence and couldn't move us until they'd confirmed the actual location of each train by a cast member going out to the site and visibly confirming. Once they had completed that sequence, they could start the recovery sequence.

I'd be really curious if anyone has any statistics on the percentage of ride stoppages that are actual 'break-downs' vs safety shutdowns. I suspect the breakdown number is far-far lower than we might expect.

iI will also say that nearly every time something like this has happened, Disney has offered me the opportunity to ride again with no wait immediately after as to experience things the way there were intended.

 

[WDW John]

Originally posted by donsullivan
I'd be really curious if anyone has any statistics on the percentage of ride stoppages that are actual 'break-downs' vs safety shutdowns.

Yeah, me too. Lots of times you hear people talking about how Test Track 'breaks down all the time' but I don't think it really broke down, it's just the safety.

I don't know but I would guess that an actual break down would take noticeably longer to fix than just a safety shutdown. In a real break down they need to find what broke down, diagnose, get the parts, fix, test, etc. This would be much more lengthy (as in this case, where they had to remove the car from the main track) than resetting a safety problem.

If I remember correctly, Test Track monitors all the cars and will shut down if any 2 get too close to each other. No need to have a car rear-ending another to demonstrate crash testing, eh?

 

[Kenan]

Originally posted by WDW John
Yeah, me too. Lots of times you hear people talking about how Test Track 'breaks down all the time' but I don't think it really broke down, it's just the safety.

I don't know but I would guess that an actual break down would take noticeably longer to fix than just a safety shutdown. In a real break down they need to find what broke down, diagnose, get the parts, fix, test, etc. This would be much more lengthy (as in this case, where they had to remove the car from the main track) than resetting a safety problem.

If I remember correctly, Test Track monitors all the cars and will shut down if any 2 get too close to each other. No need to have a car rear-ending another to demonstrate crash testing, eh?

Every single car is monitored on a computer on a constant basis. The ride will automatically shut down, if the computer feels as if they are too close to each other. We have 5 min stops and 1 hour+ stops, but it all depends on the technical difficulty that is going on.

 

[WDW John]

Originally posted by Kenan
We have 5 min stops and 1 hour+ stops, but it all depends on the technical difficulty that is going on.

But how many are actual break downs and how many are safety stops?

 

[TheOneVader]

Originally posted by Kenan
Every single car is monitored on a computer on a constant basis. The ride will automatically shut down, if the computer feels as if they are too close to each other. We have 5 min stops and 1 hour+ stops, but it all depends on the technical difficulty that is going on.

THat's probably what happened when it "broke down" on us. We were slowed for 5 mins, but actually we were still moving. It was probably gettign us a little farther ahead of the car behind us.

 

[ucf disneyfan]

Thats why Test Track was having so many problems in the beginning of its career. Everytime cars got too close to each other the ride had to be stopped. On a ride like Splash Mountain the ride stops but you can still dispatch logs. Then when you get some logs out of the station you start the ride back up again. This isn't as easy on a ride like TT because you have some parts where the ride goes from 65 to 0 if it breaks down. Its immpossible to start the ride back up with the car immediatly doing 65 again.

And to answer most peoples speculations......most of the ride breakdowns are just for minor safety reasons. The computer systems that run the rides are very intelligent. If the computer senses that something might go wrong it will tell you to cycle out the guests and shut the ride down. Sometimes the ride breaks down because it's tired. As funny as it sounds, sometimes the ride just needs to take a 20 minute nap. Other times it might not agree with a button you pressed and will shut down. Overall, everything is done as a safety precaution. Disney trys to make people feel as safe as possible. But sometimes the breakdown can just cause people to feel made and frustrated.

 

[Mary Ellen]

Originally posted by wbboy29
. To be going from 65mph to 0 in a matter of seconds, that has got to be crazy.

Can anyone say whiplash :lol:

 

[Dayma]

Sometimes the ride breaks down because it's tired. As funny as it sounds, sometimes the ride just needs to take a 20 minute nap. Other times it might not agree with a button you pressed and will shut down. Overall, everything is done as a safety precaution

ummmm is this supposed to make me feel comfortable speeding around the building at 65mph? he he...

 

[epcotisbest]

We did not feel scared or frightened in any way, but boy does this thing come to an abrubt stop. I feel like our saftey was the priority, as it should be.
Ricky

 

[WhatAreTomatoes]

Somewhat Related...

I had the unique opprotunity to ride "Rockin Rollercoaster" when a saftey cut-out stopped the ride. Apparently, when a controll, fuse, or sensor box located at any point throughout thr ride is opened, the ride stops in case someone is in the ride building without authorization. We were zooming out of the second loop and all of the lights came on, then we were stopped at the braking section right below the sign that gives the exit for the civic center. Ooooh, man after 20 minutes of waiting around, a couple of CM's rushed up the 24 (seirousley scary high, espically since the stairs are made of grate metal) flights of stairs to let us out. To quote one of the CM's:
"Don't get out to your left. You won't like the outcome."
Needless to say, we all got out to the right, onto SOLID gound. It rocked. If anyone's interested in what else i saw down there just let me know.

 

[Hurricane]

I rode Space Mountain when I was 8, the lights came on and the ride e-stopped, probably the most scared i had been to date. Then a few years ago my parents were on TT (my sister and I were on a car ahead of them taking advantage of the single riders line) and THE WHEEL FELL OFF OF THEIR CAR. TT e-stopped (we were stopped right under the thermal image after the speed loop, they were stopped in the crash test

 

[77johnson77]

was it a sudden halt

 

[disneydummy125]

I've had it stop when we were speeding around the outside of the building. It was pretty cool, especially since we only had to wait for a few minutes and we got to ride again!

 

[Yen_Sid1]

Basically, there are 2 types of stops. Ride Stops and E-Stops. Ride stops are common, the ride stops but all the power still on. It allows maintenance time to look at the problem and correct it. A E-stop is a non-recoverable event, they evacuate everybody, then fix the problem then restart the ride which could be quite a while.

 

[Steve4wdw]

The rumored time (though it's possible I happened to be there)

Hey, at least they didn't build an automobile ride that goes up to 65 miles per hour with no safety controls at all.

But then again, I guess they didn't need to because most of us have that ride in our drive way.

Except of course for the time rumored in july of '97 when to test what would happen if the system were to crash and the ride didn't stop they turned off all safeties and the car ran the outside embankment and promptly removed itself from the track to go into the building.... I"ve heard this from a few CM's so not just one rumor...though I suppose no one's ever officially confirmed it.