Mission Space, is it safe?

I think we as a society, Disney, and the other amusment park companies need to take a moment and really truely think, is bigger, faster, more, higher, scarier in a attraction really the best thing? The constant pressure "We" put on Immaginears and or other designers to constanly push the envelope and build up on the trill factor is enormious.

Well now we have a ride that is making people sick. Stop for a second and think about it, The Disney Co. a name that is supposed to stand for wholesomeness and family fun has a ride with Barg bags on it. What would Walt say?

Now not to say that the ride is not beautyfully Immagineared, it is. I can't think of a more completely imersive experance. You really do feel like you are going to space in your tiny capsul and feel the G's etc... Reportedly even former astonauts that have ridden it think so to. But not everyone has the training and phyiscal condition to be an astonaut and it is making those people sick, some of them very sick.

Yes, the german lady and the little boys both had health problems that were time bombs waiting for something to happen. Yes, it was their health problem that was fatal. But who knows how long they would have lived they had not ridden M:S. I understand it, it was not the ride itself that killed them it was their health issue, but the ride was still was the catilist that triggered their health issues fatal reaction. And I know that they still would have had a fatal reaction the any time they were in a high stress situation but I still believe they could have potentionaly had longer lives if they had not ridden M:S.

Don't get me wrong I agree the lady was stupid for riding when she knew she had high blood pressure there are clearly signs that say don't ride if you have ..... , And yes the Mom was negligent for taking her way to young for a thrill ride son on, surely if she knew of his condition she would not have brought him on the ride. But how many of us really pay attention to these signs? On M:S it even seems to be part of the theming and build up of the ride. You can't see the motion of the ride so you don't know what to expect in advance, also think of how many other attractions things start out one way then things go "amuck" as part of the story line. Also, although not people here on the DIS, but many clueless people go to Disney that have not done any reasearch before their trip and would expect that Disney would never have a ride that would make you truely ill. Really consider for a moment that there is a warning sign on Goofy's Barnstormer for Motion sickness & Expectant Mothers etc... also clearly these are not the same caliber of rides but they have the similar warnings! I really think "we" need to come up with some new kind of thrill rating system to help people really understand what they are getting into on each ride.

Another point other people injured at disney have clearly been accidents, Those rides were malfuntions M:S is operating Normaly when people are getting sick. For instance people have been compairing to to what happened on Big Thunder, Cali Screaming, The Columbia, etc , those were clearly accidents Some of them Horrible but clearly accidents. Those rides are not opperating as they were supposed to what they did, Train cars are not supposed to crush someone, car are not supposed to crash into the back of a car still stiting in the station, davits are not supposed to be yanked loose from the dock and hit someone.

Also the the number of people sick is not very clear. It is "the number of people who requested medical attention {from disney} after riding the attraction." It is not the number of people go got sick from riding it. I rode it during previews, I am healthy and do not have any health problems, I don't normaly get motion sick, unfortunealy I am one of the people who got sick, (nasous, vomiting, vertigo, migrane not very fun at all). I tried to tuff it out but was to ill to do anything all that day and all of the next also, but because I didn't take that ambulance ride and expensive visit to Celebration Hospital, I and people like me, are not included in that number. I had known how badly off I was and how bad it could potentaly be, believe me I would have gone to the ER.

In all honestly I have to admit I found immaginearing of the ride to be really truly increadable, (execpt the sick part) there is nothing else like it anywhere. The Disney nut in me would not be happy if I had never tried it. But I will NEVER EVER go on it again. Yes many people can ride it with no problems, great for them. I am just not so sure it belongs in its current form in the One Happly Place for Everyone. I am not saying yank it down tommorrow, I just think it needs a little rethinking. Maybe a place to see what really happens to you and what peoples reactions to it before ride, I dont know? Surly the great minds that are in Immaginearing can come up with something that will keep people like me from getting on it and getting sick without dumming it down so badly that it is not enjoyable ride anymore.
 
MKOATEYW said:
I think we as a society, Disney, and the other amusment park companies need to take a moment and really truely think, is bigger, faster, more, higher, scarier in a attraction really the best thing? The constant pressure "We" put on Immaginears and or other designers to constanly push the envelope and build up on the trill factor is enormious.

Well now we have a ride that is making people sick. Stop for a second and think about it, The Disney Co. a name that is supposed to stand for wholesomeness and family fun has a ride with Barg bags on it. What would Walt say?
Um, I hate to interrupt this flight of fantasy, but there have been rides that make people sick for over 100 years, at least. People get sick on the Mad Tea Cups, people get sick on Space Mountain, the IASM song has been know to drive folks into violent rages, and let's not forget the hundreds of thousands of spin-and-puke rides in weekend carnivals all around the country. Anyone familiar with the rides known as "Round-up" or "Gravitron" know that those rides offer greater g-forces than M:S and for much longer periods of time. Hey, people get sick on airplanes - they have barf bags, too. So society has to intervene because "now we have a ride that is making people sick"? Sorry, wrong answer.
MKOATEYW said:
I am just not so sure it belongs in its current form in the One Happly Place for Everyone. I am not saying yank it down tommorrow, I just think it needs a little rethinking. Maybe a place to see what really happens to you and what peoples reactions to it before ride, I dont know? Surly the great minds that are in Immaginearing can come up with something that will keep people like me from getting on it and getting sick without dumming it down so badly that it is not enjoyable ride anymore.
Now it is clear: this poster needs other people to keep her from getting on rides. Reminds me of the compulsive gamblers who blame the casinos for letting them in: "I can't control myself; I don't know my own limits". Yeesh. :rolleyes:

I will continue to ride M:S, in full knowledge that it is safer than most of the trivial activies I perform daily (showering, driving, eating) and believing that, if I do die on M:S, then I couldn't have found a more appropriate place to pass from this world to the next. But while I'm still in this world, I hope that we can be safe from those who would demand the world be wrapped in gauze with no sharp edges, just so they can feel "safe".

IMHO - YMMV - Be well!
 
As unfortunate as the deaths are, they will NOT deter me as well as DH from riding...we love MS!!!!!
 

My DS (8) and I just rode this last Monday (10th) with no problems. I think this was a freak accident, and maybe she had no idea that she had this problem. I will definitely ride again without hesitation
 
There are enough warnings before actually going on this ride...it made me THINK that I was claustraphobic and afraid of dark and enclosed spaces! :rotfl:

Note: A young boy also died on SPACESHIP EARTH...the slowest moving ride in the park...he thought he'd be funny by trying to get off on the stairs when the ride was going backwards...he slipped and fell...
Point blank...accidents happen.
 
MKOATEYW said:
Well now we have a ride that is making people sick. Stop for a second and think about it, The Disney Co. a name that is supposed to stand for wholesomeness and family fun has a ride with Barg bags on it. What would Walt say?
(and) Yes, the german lady and the little boys both had health problems that were time bombs waiting for something to happen. Yes, it was their health problem that was fatal. But who knows how long they would have lived they had not ridden M:S.
Just as with any theme or amusement park, Disney has various attractions that appeal to - nay, attract - different guests. If it were four parks full of FantasyLand rides, I may have gone once, not the thirty or so times I've been there so far. NOBODY is making ANYBODY ride any particular attraction. Mission: Space provides AMPLE warning, and Guests can exit the ride any time until the doors close. As for how long these two guests would have lived, well, first I believe in predestination. This WAS when they were supposed to die (I know that sounds crass and that's not my intention). What about the person who died in a car accident yesterday? If they hadn't gotten into the car, or hadn't taken the route they did, who knows how long they would have lived? What about the person who died in his or her sleep tonight? If she/he hadn't gone to sleep, who knows how long they would have lived?
 
I think MS is safe. I do think somethings just happen. As others have stated, you can have deaths/accidents anywhere. I work in fitness...Believe me, deaths and serious accidents occur in fitness facilities but you never hear about that. I think the media likes the Disney world angle on it....

Common sense is a rarity in today's world. :cool1:
 
We just got back last night. We rode M:S on Saturday (practically a walk-on). I have gone on this ride about a year and a half ago. The "take-off" is definately toned down. We all agreed it was not nearly as intense as before. It did not however take away from the ride......we still loved it, and will ride it again during future vistis. I was standing next to a little boy (maybe around 5 years old) he was with his parents and they said this was his 5th time riding it that day!
 
As I sit here reading all these posts, I have to wonder. If you go to a par, say Busch Gardens, and you watch one of those really nasty (imho) coasters. You say to yourself..."Ah, I don't think so....I could have a heart attack on that drop!!" and you bypass it. But, you go to WDW, hear all the great things being said about M:S, and figure, "Hey, no drops, no inversions...this one is for me!". But, if you have any condition at all, it could be exacerbated by this attraction....as well as the one at BG. But, because you can see 'what you should be afraid of' at BG you make the choice not to ride. At WDW, you don't get to see what is going to happen to you, figure it's pretty safe (which it is if you're healthy) and on you go....only to find that it has made you nausous, dizzy, and just plain 'punk' for the rest of the day.
I gotta tell you....those coasters at BG would have the exact same heartstopping effect on me. I love RnRC but since I can't see what's happening, it doesn't bother me. If it were to be outside, and I could see that track, well, that could be a whole different scenario.
I wonder how many people that have gotten sick on M:S do any of those huge coasters, or other whirling, spinning type rides with no ill effects.
 
I think it is quite safe for people in reasonably good health.

It probably has more warnings than any ride on Earth, but it seems to be a magnet for people with health problems. I guess the problem is that it doesn't look or sound like a thrill ride. When people hear "Rock'n'Roller Coaster" or "Tower of Terror", they know it's a serious ride! Or when they see a 13-story hotel or a 300 ft steel monster, they know to stay away.

But "Mission: Space" sounds so friendly, just like "Energy Adventure", and it's easy to imagine you are going on a nice little trolley ride to Mars. Maybe they should call it "Astronaut Boot Camp" and put up a fake 100 ft rocket booster on top of the pavilion.
 
I think that it is up to the individual. When we went to Disney in 2004, my DH, father and I all got FP's for MS. I read a few of the signs around warning about what you were going to experience I regretfully told DH and my dad that I was not going to do it. I just didn't feel 'up' to it after reading all of the warning signs that surround the enterance to it.

Warning signs are PLASTERED all around MS, so if you read those - still go on it and get sick I think it's your fault. It is a parent's responsibility to keep their child safe and I feel sorry for the 4 year old who died on it. What were his parents thinking taking a child who had a heart condition on that ride? Even if your child is begging you to go on a ride - you are the grown up and if it isn't safe for the child then don't take them on it! If your child is healthy and meets the safety requirements by all means take them on the ride if they want to go.

To those not riding it who feel that it isn't safe - Good for you! I am glad that you made an informed decision based on the information that you were given.

To those riding it who feel that it is safe and love it - Good for you! I am glad that you made an informed decision based on the information that you were given.
 
I will not ride MS, because I know that I am prone to getting sick. Anything else, who knows? Its my vacation, and I don't want to spend the rest of the day feeling not quite right. There are many other things that I know I can ride with no problems, so I can forego MS. For me it is not worth it to even try it.

Pam
 
I have never ridden MS and we are going next week. What is it like? Is it one of those simulator rides? I think those are so cool, but yeah, I do get motion sick on like Star Tours and Back to the Future at Universal (sorry for bringing up that 'other' park :) ). Is this ride like those?
 
cinderkelli said:
I have never ridden MS and we are going next week. What is it like? Is it one of those simulator rides? I think those are so cool, but yeah, I do get motion sick on like Star Tours and Back to the Future at Universal (sorry for bringing up that 'other' park :) ). Is this ride like those?

It spins like a gravitron at the local county fair. However, not knowing before you don't really get that sensation (i.e. I couldn't tell you when the machine starts spining or whatnot) The sensation is absolutely amazing. It feels like you are in the cockpit of the shuttle and that you infact are LEAVING earth.

Best simulation I have ever been on! Kudos to disney for making a very realistic ride! :thumbsup2
 
This is going to sound like I'm really a hypochondriac, but I'm not. I just don't want to die. =) I really want to go on Mission: Space, and when I was younger had gone on all kinds of "spin cycle" type rides where you're plastered to the wall inside a cylinder with no ill effects. I love the tea cups. I love roller coasters (unless they bang your head from side to side). You'd think if I had some kind of anyeurism (sorry, can't spell today) it would have already burst, but I haven't gone on one of those rides for probably 10 years or so. I promise I won't hold anyone on this board liable, but should I go? I'll probably be fine, I'm just overly worried about it.

jenny
 
Of course it's safe. The last couple of people who died on this ride shouldn't have been anywhere near Mission: Space, let alone on it.
 
Like others have said, the ride will spin you around very fast like those spinning rides at the fair. I haven't been able to ride those spinning rides since I was a kid because I even get dizzy swinging on a swing. However, it is different for me on M:S. Because your eyes are focused on images on a screen, you don't see objects spinning by you. You just feel a strange sensation. This, surprisingly, did not make me feel dizzy at all. I thought the sensation felt incredible. I can see how the ride would make a lot of people sick though. I don't think the ride is dangerous for a healthy person.
 
rwcmath said:
I've riden MS twice, and didn't realize that if I was taking medication for high blood pressure, then I have high blood pressure. I figured it was under control. Well, I thought the ride was OK, and I was glad that we didn't have to go back to earth from Mars, but I probably won't ride it again.

rwc :)

I started taking medication for high blood pressure last year. Prior to a trip to Six Flags Great Adventure, I specifically asked my doctor whether I should skip rides that have a high blood pressure warning. He told me that I now have "controlled high blood pressure," and I should be fine on those thrill rides.

Now I just have to decide if I trust my doctor's opinion enough to risk riding M:S. :)

Tom in Poughkeepsie
 


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