Body Wars
| Body Wars | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Epcot | |
| Area | Future World |
| Status | Closed |
| Opening date | October 19, 1989[1] |
| Closing date | January 1, 2007 |
| General statistics | |
| Attraction type | Motion simulator |
| Designer | Walt Disney Imagineering |
| Theme | Human body |
| Music | Leonard Rosenman [2] |
| Vehicle type | Motion Simulator |
| Vehicles | 4 |
| Riders per vehicle | 40 |
| Duration | 7:00 |
| Height restriction | 40 in (102 cm) |
| Director | Leonard Nimoy [3] |
| Sponsor | MetLife (October 19, 1989 – June 2001) |
 Must transfer from wheelchair | |
Body Wars was a simulator ride at the Wonders of Life pavilion at Walt Disney World Resort's Epcot in which the riders were "shrunk" and carried out a mission inside a human body. The ride was based upon the Advanced Technology Leisure Application Simulator. The ride is no longer in operation along with the other attractions at the Wonders of Life pavilion, which opened on October 19, 1989, and closed on January 1, 2007.
Attraction description
Queue
Guests entered the queue as "observation team members" and were told by overhead announcements that they must pass the "level 1 and level 2 dermatopic purification screens" to enter the body-probe vehicle.
In the queue and loading area, announcements were made about details of the four bays.
Boarding
Dr. Cynthia Lair had volunteered to be miniaturized to observe a splinter. The guests were told they would board vehicle Bravo 229 and would be shrunk. Their mission was to meet up with Dr. Lair and bring her out. Captain Braddock would be the guests' pilot.
Guests learned that their "LGS 2050"-type probe vehicle weighed approximately 26 tons, but once miniaturized, weighed less than a drop of water.
Ride
The guests' vehicle, Bravo 229, moved from the bay to the miniaturization room, where technicians focused a "particle reducer" on the ship. Their ship and crew mates were shrunk and sent under the subject's skin. White blood cells were seen on their way to destroy the splinter.
The guests arrived at the splinter, meeting with Dr. Cynthia Lair. She began to take a cell count when she was accidentally pulled into a capillary. Captain Braddock followed her into the vein, entering an unauthorized area. The captain steered Bravo past the heart and into the right ventricle. The guests entered the lungs where the doctor was being attacked by a white blood cell.
The captain used his lasers to free the doctor. By now, the ship was very low on power. The doctor suggested that they use the brain's energy to recharge the ship. Passing the heart's left atrium, the ship went through the artery to get to the brain. A neuron contacted the ship, allowing it to regain power and de-miniaturize outside of the body.
Attraction facts
- Cast:
- Tim Matheson as Captain Braddock
- Dakin Matthews as Mission Commander
- Elisabeth Shue as Dr. Cynthia Lair
- Vehicle names: (all bays and vehicles were fictional except for Bravo 229)
- Bay #1: "Zulu 174"
- Bay #2: "Bravo 229"
- Bay #3: "Sierra 657" and "Foxtrot 817"
- Bay #4: "Charlie 218"
Used same ATLAS Technology as Star Tours.
Current Status
As of November 2014, the four simulators have been dismantled and removed from the ride building. The queue is still intact, but most of the lighting and electronic equipment has been removed. The show building is currently used for storage for the Epcot Food & Wine Festival, along with the Flower & Garden Festival. As of November 2016, The queue is being slowly dismantled while few remnants remain. The empty simulator rooms still sit to this day blocked off by their former entrances. The exit area has had the same treatment, with all signage removed. Red archive tags have been applied to the beginning MET Sign, and to the Body Wars safety information sign near the exit.
See also
- Epcot attraction and entertainment history
- Wonders of Life
- Incidents at Walt Disney World
- Advanced Technology Leisure Application Simulator - the technology underlying Body Wars.