water in POTC boats still an issue! (small rant)

[peacefulmama]

We rode this week. Our boat had minimal amounts of water in it when we got in, but not enough to get shoes wet. They packed the first 4 rows with 4 adults per row, my 6 year old and I in the 5th row. We got splashed a bit on the drop, more than we ever had before on that ride but not anywhere near enough to be uncomfortable. The first two rows screamed when they were splashed and the first row was definitely soaked from head to toe.

 

[lorenae]

We rode three times I think this week. We never got wet and there never was standing water in any of our boats. Today, we sat in the last row and most of the people in our boat were smaller than average. It seemed like they were a ton of cheerleaders today in the Magic Kingdom so they had three skinny cheerleaders in the front row and a few others, and the boat was not packed tightly full. I did hear squeal at the end of the drop and assumed one of the cheerleaders got a little wet. Everyone else was fine including us.

 

[jeeptruck]

I have never had a problem but I can understand why some boats could have a problem. It most definitely could be a weight issue...as well as a multitude of other things that are hard to replicate in testing. FWIW I have a masters in Naval Architecture & Marine Engineering. I typically don't pay too much attention to the design of the boats because I am on vacation and not working haha. I will be in MK on the 15th and will see if I spot any water boats . Again I'll just reiterate that there could be SO many reasons why one boat gets water in it and another doesn't. Also sometimes the solutions we get to design problems are impractical to actually implement or do not work for every set of initial conditions. Initial conditions are so important in marine dynamics. I could draw some separatricies to further explain my point but that may be going to far for even my Disney nerdiness

 

[jeeptruck]

Also 01Dec11 the average weight of an adult was upped from 160lb to 185lb for passenger vessels. While I'm not saying Dosney designs their boats to SOLAS and ABS standards, I'm sure they use something similar for regulation purposes. While doing the refurb this could have had some unintended consequences on new boat design / old track / weight of passengers. Again who knows? All I know is that as engineers we never purposely design something to perform sub-par. For all I know they could have already come up with a fix and are just waiting for an appropriate time to be able to implement it.

 

[Halle]

OMG, DH and I first rode POTC December1975 (our honeymoon). There was a technical issue and the boats stopped as we got to the the bottom of the ramp. The water went out and then a wave came back into the boat, we were totally soaked. Forty years later still something we talk about when we are waiting to go on the ride.

 

[BridgetR3]

There are now signs posted stating that you may get wet on the ride. I don't think complaining will do any good as they are warning you of the possibility. With that said, when we were there two weeks ago, people were coming off more soaked than Splash Mountain but we really didn't get too wet.

 

[Mrs.Milo]

We rode POTC late Oct, first row, 4 adults. Totally soaked. Totally disgusting. What bothers me is the thought of that dirty water that's been rolling around in the ride for who knows how long rolling over dirty feet and shoes, totally splashing my bottom. Is that water chlorinated? I doubt it.

After 36 years at Disney riding Pirates, this was totally different than the "normal" we were used to. We did stop at the end to report to the CM at the exit that we felt the boats were over filled. We don't plan on riding for awhile.

 

[agavegirl1]

I was reading reports of getting wet on PoTC long before my October 2014 trip and before the refurbishment recently completed. We rode twice in Octob(2nd and 3rd rows). We did notice water in the bottom of the boat and had to rearrange my feet for the duration of the ride so as not to have wet shoes. Apparently, the focus of this refurb had nothing to do with getting wet. I posted the photo of the "You may get wet" sign way back on page whatever. It was taken in October of 2014. I actually posted way over a year ago that depending on temperatures, I may need to wear a dollar store poncho on the ride. I didn't, but did see a few avid planners who did. This is an ongoing issue. Not in the least bit new.

 

[Gisele]

its unbelievable to me that this problem has not been fixed.
my parents were at MK yesterday and said there was at least a couple inches in the boat.
they sat in the 4th row and after the drop the water sloshed all over the place and they got their feet wet.
my dad complained to a CM when he exited the boat but that CM did not care.
he filed a complaint at guest services as well.
i am going to submit a complaint via the disney world website and i will not be riding it when i'm there on friday as i find it ridiculous that we should get our feet wet because disney doesn't get the point that they need to fix it!

Why don't ya just roll up your pants and put your feet up a bit?

 

[Gisele]

We rode POTC late Oct, first row, 4 adults. Totally soaked. Totally disgusting. What bothers me is the thought of that dirty water that's been rolling around in the ride for who knows how long rolling over dirty feet and shoes, totally splashing my bottom. Is that water chlorinated? I doubt it.

After 36 years at Disney riding Pirates, this was totally different than the "normal" we were used to. We did stop at the end to report to the CM at the exit that we felt the boats were over filled. We don't plan on riding for awhile.

Wow! 36 years of riding pirates sounds both exciting and exhausting! But titillating! Lol.

 

[huggybuff]

I'm not arguing that people don't get wet. I'm saying no one is getting Kali river wet. There's a big difference between the two.

Wrong. I had been on Kali earlier in the week (November 2015), then rode Pirates as my first ride of the morning that Friday. The level of soaking was the same. On PotC I was seated in the front row, left corner, and was hit with an absolute wave after the drop. I had to run to the bathroom after the ride to make sure my mascara wasn't running down my face. It was. Just like Kali. My clothes were soaked and heavy since I was wearing jean capris. I decided, wth, I might as well ride Splash since I was already as wet as I could get.

Now, I had no idea prior to riding that this was an issue. This was actually my first time riding it at WDW. I assumed it would be roughly the same ride as at DL. I won't be riding it again at WDW and will stick to PotC at DL. However, I'm very disappointed to read this is becoming an issue at DL as well.

 

[Planogirl]

Why don't ya just roll up your pants and put your feet up a bit?

Apparently the riders are sometimes packed in so tightly that they can't lift their feet. I don't understand the need to pack so many people in some of the boats and I just wonder if that isn't contributing to the problem.

 

[Nancyg56]

Apparently the riders are sometimes packed in so tightly that they can't lift their feet. I don't understand the need to pack so many people in some of the boats and I just wonder if that isn't contributing to the problem.

I bet it is. There never was much of a wait at POTC and now with FP+ there seems to be a longer SB line. I am not blaming FP+, because I am not sure if that is the issue or that there simply seems to be more people in the park, but since then there seems to be an effort to get more people on the boats for many rides. POTC and that drop may be paying a price for the additonal people.

 

[cleopenn]

We rode it last week. Getting wet was a concern of min as I really dislike walking around in soaked clothing and shoes.

We didn't even get hit with a drop of water. We were in the middle the boat, three to the bench. The boat was lightly loaded and it did tilt to the right.

However, the bottom of our boat had probably 1/4 inch of standing water. The benches were totally dry, like they were towel dried.

I did notice a sign at the entrance stating you may get wet.

 

[bc7ate9]

Boats are dry today. Didn't even get splashed.

 

[Jennasis]

Boats are dry today. Didn't even get splashed.

View attachment 138786

Rode early this morning. Floors dry on the 3 boats i saw. Our seats were wet. The speed ramp was dry too. Boats were all loaded to the max and ours listed to the right. On the drop we got a spray...we were in front. Glad i wore my crocs as the spray went right into both of my feet.

 

[Planogirl]

Rode early this morning. Floors dry on the 3 boats i saw. Our seats were wet. The speed ramp was dry too. Boats were all loaded to the max and ours listed to the right. On the drop we got a spray...we were in front. Glad i wore my crocs as the spray went right into both of my feet.

I really dislike the reports of the boats listing. It might be harmless but I think that I would be distracted the whole time.

 

[disney world dreamer]

OP here again.
we decided to risk riding on friday night.
it was the last thing we did.
i think perhaps my email may have had an impact because when we got to the front of the line they had 4 boats pass by that all had SEVERAL inches of water in them.
the one we got in only had a little bit of water covering the floor of the boat and we picked our feet up during the drop.
they also put no more than 3 people in a row.

here's a pic of the floor of the boat.
sorry it looks so green because i have a green phone case and when i use the flash it pics up the color of the phone case lol

 

[evilqueenmindy]

Have not been on this since the refurb. Rode yesterday, the floor of the boat was a little wet, but not enough to get anyone's shoes wet. Boat was pretty packed, 4 adults in most rows. myself, SIL, and nephew (7) were in row 4 alone, we sat in the middle of the bench to avoid any canon water.
We got off the boat dry, I heard some shrieks from the front after the drop, so they may have been splashed, but I didn't see them when they got off.
All in all, the ride looked great, our boat didn't stop once (I can't tell you how long it's been since we didn't get stuck somewhere for an agonizing amount of time) the boat did list noticibly on the right side
I have gotten pretty soggy on this ride in the past, and it's always been in the front row.
I'd say avoid the front, and chances are, you'll be fine

 

[muffyn]

There has always been a drop and you always got a little wet. I've been on POTC multiple times since the refurb and have not felt any difference. I've never understood why a little bit of water drives people so up the wall. Still, even if people ARE getting wetter than usual, I would say it's a minor thing to be worried about in the massive scheme of things. My personal opinion, of course.

wow... there must a bunch of delusional pax on this ride , that step into imaginary shoe covering water............