Can't remember where I heard this ... possibly it was a "Disney Dish" podcast with Len Testa and Jim Hill ... supposedly the support structure on which Yeti was built is cracked or defective in some way. They cannot restore Yeti to his former glory without shutting down the ride for a long time and doing major structural work to the innards of the mountain.
If this is true then presumably they decided that they can't afford to shut down what is the only really exciting ride in the entire park. The only other "thrill" in DAK, such as it is, is wondering which person in the Kali River raft will be the one to get 100 gals of water down their backside when the raft hits the bottom of the slide.
I still really, really enjoy EE even with a defective Yeti. I loved DAK even before EE was built, but I have to admit that to many people this park won't be worth a visit if there is no coaster running.
Kind of embarrassing for the Disney company, that they have left DAK so bereft of rides that they can't afford to fix the one really good ride that they have. Busch Gardens Tampa seems to be financially successful with a lot of expensive animal displays and at least 5 or 6 major thrill rides and many smaller rides and shows, they have a train like DAK _and_ a sky tram which is a very handy way to get across the park. DAK was obviously a blatant copy of BGT, so why the cold feet about adding the rides that they need to actually make it "nodazoo" ???
I like your analysis...but differ on a couple of things....
AK was NOT built to mirror Busch Gardens...it was intended to draw off some business...but disney has been very careful and consistent with maintaining their desire for a "different" concept.
This serves them several ways....first it is an attempt to offset some of the distaste (mainly by adults) at zoos...which tend to get very much a "love or hate it" type attitude towards
It also serves disney to maintain this because they can hide behind it - as they have - to justify whatever they want to do or NOT do at AK. The park opened light (even after asia) and had never been convincing addressed...and they can use "that's not our plan" for whatever may be questioned of the park because the "story" is largely unknown and completely amoebic in nature. Intentionally.
That said...while animal kingdom definite has a more detailed feel than busch or sea world orlando....if fails to make a good enough effort to satisfy the paying customer to the same level. they just let it sit there...by and large...and it has shown.
perhaps the avatar expansion is a real plan to bring her up to date...we'll see.
The other thing is that EE was never a "top notched" ride - even when it worked.
It was a good "disney" ride when it worked...and a lot of fun if not technically advanced (ride itself) and a pretty standard dark ride concept (beyond the yeti).
but if the reports are true - and the yeti will not be anywhere close to repaired until they shut the whole ride down (year minimum...probably talking 2) to basically take it apart and repair the yeti foundation that is encased in the foundations for the coaster and the shell...then there is no way to expect more outta this thing.
And it would cost a fortune...100 mil at disney rates wouldn't surprise me.
so it is a fairly weak g force ride...without the yeti, its a basic coaster variety.
and they can't fix that...
rockinrollercoaster is a standard ride too...but the story makes it cool. EE was like that...but the yeti kills it. so now its simple physics and gravity...and if that's the only thing you got - then it falls well short.
I would ride Montu on a repeat until i hurled before i bothered to get on everest as it currently stands...it just has no juice for something thats fairly new and cost what was a ridiculous sum of money.
FAILURE!!!!
