Cmdr_Crimson
Well-Known Member
It still makes no sense why it's played in Space Mountain's area when it was better where it was before and since they changed it from a Transit Authority....
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Tomorrowland Transit Authority Peoplemover
- Thread starter deltaandthebannermen
- Start date
It still makes no sense why it's played in Space Mountain's area when it was better where it was before and since they changed it from a Transit Authority....
Walt Disney1955
Well-Known Member
Love the ride, I don't know if I've ever waited more than a couple minutes to get on it. Love it. Still an "old school Disney" ride for me. Love how it takes you in the dark in certain places. Basically an overview of Tomorrowland in one shot. Why Disneyland has just let theirs rot is beyond me. Why did it close in the first place over there?
Walt Disney1955
Well-Known Member
Also, that voice "Now approaching Space Mountain............." has always sounded, to me, like Don Pardo the late voice of Saturday Night Live. I know it probably isn't him, but it's similar.
Brit Girl Lynne
Member
We ride this many times - our son loved to have his own car. We just used to sit back, chill outside of the heat and yes, we’ve been known to have the odd nap or two.....
Sometimes we just got off and went straight back round and got on again 
Done the same on the railroad too.....
Sometimes we just got off and went straight back round and got on again Done the same on the railroad too.....
crxbrett
Well-Known Member
To be a part of the 'New' Tomorrowland, Disneyland wanted to update it and make it into a more exciting and thrilling attraction. So they redid it and utilized the track to make an ill-conceived, haphazard attraction called the Rocket Rods. Ugh. One of THEE worst decisions ever in terms of Disneyland mistakes. Budget cuts and time constraints lent a very big hand in why it ended up being an engineering nightmare/mess, but regardless, it was still a bad idea even in concept form.
Pete Renaday voiced that iteration of the narration spiel, but you are right, it had a very monotone Don Pardo sound to it!
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danyoung56
Well-Known Member
For what they were, the Rocket Rods were a lot of fun, especially if you got the front seat. But they could have done it better.
crxbrett
Well-Known Member
It was ill-conceived from the beginning. They tried to rush the project and in doing so, cut the budget so the imagineers couldn't redo the track with properly banked turns/curves like they had planned. A huge mistake. Basically once the attraction opened, it immediately began to break down daily for long periods of time due to the strains being put on the re-purposed and flat PeopleMover track.
The attraction also had a extremely slow load times and had a very low capacity, which coupled with the constant breakdowns, meant it usually had a 90-180 min wait. It was a disaster. Not to mention the ride sped through all the great areas that were meant to be scene at a slow, tour like pace.
Eventually Disney closed the ride to refurb and fix it, but it never did re-open. It's one of the shortest lived attractions in Disney park history and only was around for about 18 months.
At some point, not sure if it was after the closure or just before, it was discovered that the constant high speeds the new attraction was putting on the old track, which was never designed for high speeds or constant stress, was slowly being comprimised and ruining it and would need to be rebuilt or completely redone. Essentially killing the attraction's future at that point.
Having gone on it 3 times, I can say it was a train wreck. It was boring - too slow to be a thrill ride, yet too fast to be relaxing or educational or useful as a tour attraction showcasing Tomorrowland. Adding salt to the wound was the fact that Disney replaced an attraction that had quick loading times, high capacity as a people-eater and was perfectly fine as is and just needed a slight redo, not to mention was popular with most people - with something that negated all of those advantages and broke down nob-stop and only lasted 18 months.
Even worse, the tracks still stand above Tomorrowland today as a constant reminder of Disney's blunder. They were too cheap to redo the attraction properly, then too cheap to fix or correct it and closed it and then were too cheap to remove the tracks. Arguably two of Disneyland's worst ideas ever, Light Magic and Rocket Rods, both came during the awful Pressler years in a span of only a couple of years and both came and went never to be seen again, faster than you can say "Bob's yer uncle!"
I have always loved DW's PeopleMover. And after what happened to DL's, it only makes me appreciate it all the more.
crxbrett
Well-Known Member
I apologize I went on a bit of a tangent. But the PeopleMover was one of my favorites growing up at DL and it's demise was so meaningless.
I really do have to admit that DW's PeopleMover is still one of my favorite attractions. I try to ride it at least once every single day I am at the MK, if not more. I raved about it so much that even my GF who got to experience DW for the first time last year, admitted she was skeptical of the PM but is now a believer!
Anways, sorry about the Rocket Rods rant.
I really do have to admit that DW's PeopleMover is still one of my favorite attractions. I try to ride it at least once every single day I am at the MK, if not more. I raved about it so much that even my GF who got to experience DW for the first time last year, admitted she was skeptical of the PM but is now a believer!
Anways, sorry about the Rocket Rods rant.
KBLovedDisney
Well-Known Member
*Bing Bong* "Now approaching Mickey's Star Traders."
I miss those announcements
I miss those announcements
geekza
Well-Known Member
No apologies necessary. There are many of us who love the Peoplemover. I've never been to Disneyland, but I make a point of riding the WDW version at least once on every trip. It's always a wonderful way to relax and feel a cool breeze. Plus, I love being able to steal even a brief glance at the original EPCOT model. It reminds me of what a visionary Walt really was.
If you've never seen It's a Great, Big, Beautiful Tomorrow: The Futurism of Walt Disney, it's a fantastic documentary about Walt's interest in futurism and especially the original EPCOT project. It's feature-length, so be prepared to get sucked in for a while.
crxbrett
Well-Known Member
Thanks! I will definitely watch this!
Yeah, there's something so exciting, yet relaxing about riding the Peoplemover! WDW's was always the better version, too. Nice and smooth. I still love that feeling when you begin to approach Space Mtn and as you speed past the sign and enter the mountain and everything gets dark. So fun! I always love hearing the TL Speedway cars puttering by on that stretch, too.
muddyrivers
Well-Known Member
*Bing Bong* "Now approaching Mickey's Star Traders."
I miss those announcements
Speaking of which, does anyone have an MP3 of that Bing Bong sound that was on the old narration of TTA? It would make a great alert tone for my phone!