Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Big Thunder Mountain Railroad | |
 |
|
| Land | Frontierland |
| Theme Parks | Walt Disney Parks |
| Locations and Opening Dates | |
| Disneyland | September 2, 1979 |
| Magic Kingdom | September 23, 1980 |
| Tokyo Disneyland | July 4, 1987 |
| Disneyland Paris | April 12, 1992 |
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is a roller-coaster attraction at the Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris theme parks.
Contents |
[edit] History
The attraction first opened at Disneyland in 1979, with the Magic Kingdom's larger version opening in 1980. The other two versions are called simply Big Thunder Mountain; Tokyo Disneyland's version opened in 1987, and Disneyland Paris's opened in 1992. Hong Kong Disneyland does not have a Big Thunder Mountain Railroad attraction, or a Frontierland, for that matter.
The ride is a relatively mild indoor/outdoor roller coaster based on the concept of a runaway train careering through an abandoned mine complex. In contrast to Space Mountain, where the tracks are largely hidden from view, the thrills are meant to come from the perceived instability of the mine and its threats to collapse.
Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain's design is based on the hoodoos of Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. All the other parks' versions are based on the rising buttes that are located in Utah/Arizona's Monument Valley.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was designed by Imagineer Tony Baxter and ride design engineer, Bill Watkins. The concept comes from Baxter's work on the runaway mine train segment of Marc Davis' Western River Expedition showroom, Thunder Mesa.
[edit] Attraction facts
[edit] Disneyland
- Grand opening: September 2, 1979
- Designers: WED Enterprises Tony Baxter
- Manufacturer: WED Enterprises
- Build Type: Steel Tube Tri-Rail Design
- Propulsion Method: 3 Main Lift Hills with LIM boosters
- Vehicles: 6. Only 5 trains can be used on Big Thunder Mountain at a time.
- Cars per train: 5
- Guests per train: 30
- Train names:
- U.B. Bold
- U.R. Daring
- U.R. Courageous
- I.M. Brave
- I.B. Hearty
- I.M. Fearless
- Length: 2671 ft (814 m)
- Height: 50 ft (15 m)
- Highest rock: 104 ft (32 m)
- Top speed: 36 mph (45 km/h)
- Ride duration: 3:14
- Height requirement: 40 in (1.02 m)
- Total site area: 2.5 acres
- Total track length: 2,780 linear feet
- Lifts: 3 train lifts - each 133 feet high
- Maximum Train Dispatch Interval: Varies upon how many trains are running. with one train 72.0 seconds with five trains 42.0 seconds
- Ride system: Steel - Sit Down
- Ride Control System: Custom PLC Controlled
- Extra options:
[edit] Magic Kingdom
- Grand opening: September 23, 1980
- Designers: WED Enterprises
- Manufacturer: Arrow
- Ride duration: 3:25
- Ride system: Steel - Sit Down
- Category: Mine Train
- Length: 2780'
- Speed: 36 mph
- Elements: 3 Lift hills
- Trains: 6 trains with 5 cars per train. Riders are arranged 2 across in 3 rows for a total of 30 riders per train.
- Extra options:
[edit] Tokyo Disneyland
- Grand opening: July 4, 1987
- Designers: Walt Disney Imagineering
- Manufacturer: Arrow
- Sponsor: The Dai-Ichi Mutual Life Insurance Company
- Ride duration: 3:40
- Height requirement: 102 cm
- Ride system: Roller Coaster
- Extra options:
[edit] Disneyland Paris
- Grand opening: April 12, 1992
- Designers: Walt Disney Imagineering
- Manufacturer: Vekoma
- Ride System: Roller Coaster
- Ride Model: Vekoma Custom MK-900 M
- Capacity: 2424 riders per hour (RPH)
- Length: 4921' 3"
- Height: 72' 2"
- Top Speed: 40.4 mph
- Ride Duration: 3:56
- Number of Trains: 5 trains with 5 cars per train
- Height requirement: 39 in (0.99 m)
- Extra options:
[edit] Accidents
- A guest, Marcelo Torres, was killed on the Disneyland incarnation in a derailment on September 5, 2003, purportedly as a result of neglected ride maintenance.[1] The court case surrounding this was settled out of court in 2005 and a scholarship fund was set up at Brooks College, a Southern California university, in Torres' name for aspiring animators as Torres was seeking a career in animation.[2]
[edit] Trivia
- The attraction is said to have been inspired by Thunder Mesa, an element of the Western River Expedition, a canceled attraction that was to have been built at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom in the mid-1970s.
- The sound effects of the actual ride train going on the tracks were used in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) for the mine cart sequence.
- At Disneyland, this attraction replaced the Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland. The town you pass through at the end of the ride was a part of that old attraction, and many of the animal animatronics throughout the attraction were originally from Nature's Wonderland.
- In 2006, artist Banksy placed an inflatable doll dressed as a Guantanamo Bay detainment camp prisoner (orange jumpsuit, black hood and handcuffs) beside the tracks.
[edit] References
- ^ themeparkinsider. ""Our own analysis found that the accident was caused by incorrectly performed maintenance tasks required by Disneyland policy and procedures that resulted in a mechanical failure," park spokesperson Leslie Goodman told the L.A. Times." http://www.themeparkinsider.com/news/response.cfm?ID=1389
- ^ Brooks College. "In the statement, Torres' parents, Jaime and Carmen Torres, announced the establishment of an art scholarship at Brooks College, from which their son, who studied graphic design, graduated in 2003." http://www.nbc4.tv/news/5453261/detail.html
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
[edit] Official links
- Disneyland - Attraction Profile
- Magic Kingdom - Attraction Profile
- Tokyo Disneyland - Attraction Profile
- Disneyland Paris - Attraction Profile
[edit] Additional links
- MousePlanet's Investigation over Disneyland's accidents on Big Thunder Mountain
- Disney Mountain Rides - Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Disneyland Resort - The Matterhorn | Space Mountain | Big Thunder Mountain | Splash Mountain | Grizzly Peak
Walt Disney World Resort - Space Mountain | Big Thunder Mountain | Mount Mayday | Splash Mountain | Mount Gushmore | Forbidden Mountain
Tokyo Disney Resort - Space Mountain | Big Thunder Mountain | Splash Mountain | Mount Prometheus
Disneyland Resort Paris - Big Thunder Mountain | Space Mountain
