Mission: Space (or is it puke machine?)

[wolfaroo]

I am very prone to motion sickness, but I am going to try dramamine so I dont have to pass on so many rides this visit (sept). I will report my results!

 

[ahecht]

My girlfriend and I both can't stand spinning rides at all -- just looking at the Tea Cups makes us sick, and Cyber Space Mountain at DQ knocked her out for the rest of the evening. However, we both did okay on MS on the Orange side. No ill effects at all.

A couple of years ago, right before they started the green/orange thing, I had dinner with a friend-of-a-friend who turned out to be a MS CM. According to her, the top reasons people vomit or feel sick are (in order):

1. Dehydration -- getting dehydrated in the Florida heat is VERY easy, and when you are dehydrated it is much harder for your body to get enough blood to your brain under high g-forces. You can be dehyrated WITHOUT feeling thirsty, and this is the number one reason people faint or feel sick for hours after riding. If your urine is dark yellow or if drinking causes a brief headache or "head rush" feeling, you are dehydrated. I apologize for the crudeness, but it's a good idea to follow the old hiking motto: "when the weather is getting hotter, make sure your pee looks like water". Drink water or sports drinks -- caffinated beverages and sodas prevent your body from absorbing liquids.
2. Turning your head or body -- As long as you keep your head and body facing straight forward, your inner ear interprets the spinning as simply high g-forces. As soon as your body or head rotates, the coriolis forces cause your inner ear to get very confused, causing nausea. Don't look at all the flashy lights, don't look down at the joystick or buttons, don't look at your neighbors. This is especially a problem with parents who turn their heads to see if their kids are okay during the ride.
3. Closing your eyes or ignoring the screen -- As mentioned by other posters, when your body feels motion without visual cues, it gets confused and you get nauseous. Keep your eyes open and focused on a specific spot at the center of the screen. If you think you might get sick, ignore the buttons you are supposed to push -- the "computer" will push them for you if you forget.
4. Anticipation -- many people are so freaked out by the warning signs and horror stories that they have talked themselves into nausea before they ever get on the ride (and the giant spinning space station in the queue doesn't help). The CM said that a significant number of the people that throw up do so while standing in the hallway outside the ride where the roles are assigned. Therefore, the key is to relax -- everything is going to be fine.

Yes, some people have preexisting heart, blood pressure, or inner ear conditions that cause them to be affected, but most people who have problems have them due to the above four reasons. If you think you might have problems, ride at the end of the day (assuming you have been keeping yourself hydrated all day) so that you can sleep off any ill effects.

 

[xipetotec]

Okay, so I will be a first timer when it comes to my WDW trip this January. I have heard many things about Mission: Space, mostly that it is awesome but has a history of making people sick. I even heard somewhere a person died after getting off?????

Is it really that intense? I know they have two different options regarding intensity. I would love to try the more intense version but am kinda scared.

Thoughts?

We *love* it. It is probably the closest you can get to an "astronaut fantasy" at the moment. you feel the lift-off, you feel Gs when catapulting around the moon. It's an awesome ride. I only wish the controls actually DID more for the ride, but it's still great.

To me, taking the "mild" ride is like riding space mountain in a straight line. People argue that they should be able to ride it without getting sick, or feeling G's, but that's what the ride was about! Should i ride a roller coaster with no drops?

Motion sickness would be the only factor here for me and my group, and we've found that as long as you follow the guidelines and keep your eyes on the screen, you should be fine.

 

[kellypooh]

Yes this is exactly how I felt -- I don't think I could have handled it for much longer! I don't think it was necessarily the spinning that got to me -- it was just the intense pressure (of course, that's caused by the spinning). I didn't feel dizzy or anything -- until I got up, that is.

I felt the same way the first (and only!) time I did the orange version. I didn't feel sick -- just couldn't stand the intense pressure on my chest. I have ridden the green version several times and love it!