What if the Expedition Everest car flew off the track?

[RetroCOTfan]

CoP was one of the original rides at WDW when it opened in 1972 so WDW's CoP was already in place and operating in Florida before that event. The building at Disneyland that was used for America Sings was the original CoP building. It is still there and is DL's Innovations building now if I recall correctly.

It was a tragic freak accident that involved a CM not a Guest. You guys sure have a way of dramatizing an innocent question. The OP will be afraid to go through the turnstiles at the entrance before you're done.

Actually, CoP wasn't an opening day attraction in 1971. CoP didn't open in the MK until January 1975, on the same day as Space Mountain. And you're right, the CoP building in Disneyland was repurposed into the America Sings attraction.

 

[metzgardesign]

Every single time I go on EE, I freak out at this part:

My fiance made me ride in the front seat and it really freaked me out. So of course, I wondered, what if the car didn't stop? Would those tracks be strong enough to stop this car? Has anyone else ever wondered about this?

Just sing "I'm goin' off the rails on a crazy tra-ain" all the way down. It will make the trip seem more fun.

Bonus: You will get to bypass the disco-Yeti at the end!

 

[metzgardesign]

It would slow down when it got to the bottom. It's a physics thing.

"It's not the fall that kills you.....It's the sudden stop at the end."

 

[SDSorority]

We rode COP a few weeks ago, and in the last room, someone got up and left with their kid. The scene ended - we didn't rotate - and it started all over again. People were upset and started leaving the theater, and a very panicky CM came on the loudspeaker saying, "DO NOT LEAVE THE THEATER! STAY IN YOUR SEATS! THE RIDE WILL NOT ROTATE IF YOU OPEN THE DOORS!" Naturally, this meant the majority of the people in the theater panicked and kept trying to leave the ride.

I think we sat through it 6 times total. The most amusing part was when a bunch of people left (CM still flipping out on the loudspeaker, which was understandable), a group came INTO the ride. I guess they were from another room? But they were looking for the hidden Mickey in the last scene, found it, and left with less than 10 seconds to go in that scene. They eventually just stopped the ride and escorted the rest of us out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHHQnZD9fZ4

 

[goofyernmost]

You're right - I was thinking of the characters in the ride shipped out to various places.

And I didn't dramatize anything, someone asked, I showed them the information.

Just want to clear up something...I wasn't talking specifically to you when I made that statement...I was referring to the thread in general. Sorry I didn't make that clear.

 

[MinniesYooHoo]

I always wondered what would happen if the carrousel of progress freaked out and started spinning like 600 mph... And the great big beautiful tomorrow song sounded like the chipmunks singing....

 

[BunsenH]

"It's not the fall that kills you.....It's the sudden stop at the end."

Not if you jump up just before it hits.

 

[BunsenH]

It's not possible for it to "fly off the end of the track". End of story.

Even if the brakes failed, you aren't going fast enough to punch through the end AND you're traveling uphill so gravity is working against you.

I don't know. Something took out the owl that used to be there.

 

[North of Mouse]

"What if" ANY coaster, or most any ride for that matter, malfunctioned and dumped you? People have died from Mission Space People seek more and more "thrill" rides (not me, LOL) like the new coaster at Dollywood, the Wild Eagle, where you are literally hanging off the sides?? THAT is beyond

 

[stasijane]

What a nice morbid, thought provoking thread to read while I am first waking up and eating my breakfast.

 

[metzgardesign]

Not if you jump up just before it hits.

Well.....you can't do that. Then they'll just stop the ride! Duh!!

 

[Jennasis]

"What if" ANY coaster, or most any ride for that matter, malfunctioned and dumped you? People have died from Mission Space People seek more and more "thrill" rides (not me, LOL) like the new coaster at Dollywood, the Wild Eagle, where you are literally hanging off the sides?? THAT is beyond

The people who died on M:S had pre-existing health conditions that SHOULD have prohibited them from riding such a thrill ride.

 

[Dr.Girlfriend]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHHQnZD9fZ4

Ahhahahahahaha similar- our CM was a woman with an Australian accent!

 

[GenevieveRaqs]

My fiance made me ride in the front seat and it really freaked me out. So of course, I wondered, what if the car didn't stop? Would those tracks be strong enough to stop this car? Has anyone else ever wondered about this?

It's natural to be freaked out here...they designed the ride that way! But, remember, those torn up tracks you're looking at are NOT what's stopping the cars from going over the edge. That's just a prop. The ride itself is stopped by other fail-safe means. There are numerous coasters throughout the world that have a stop-reverse track, and I don't know of a single case of cars flying off the end. You're safe, even if it IS totally freaky to be staring off the edge!

 

[Pmctn]

Just take comfort in the fact that if the car flew off the track
1. You would make international news
2. Any video of you ride would circulate on the internet for posterity
3. Your family would receive a very large settlement from Disney
4. Your last words would be screaming like a school girl

 

[vitani88]

Just take comfort in the fact that if the car flew off the track
1. You would make international news
2. Any video of you ride would circulate on the internet for posterity
3. Your family would receive a very large settlement from Disney
4. Your last words would be screaming like a school girl

Thank you for this.

 

[kaligal]

If any coaster went flying off the tracks, you'd probably be injured or die.

This point is driven home on the coasters that tip you so that you're zooming face-first toward the ground.

I cannot think of a cooler way to go, though!

 

[lsulindy]

Just take comfort in the fact that if the car flew off the track
1. You would make international news
2. Any video of you ride would circulate on the internet for posterity
3. Your family would receive a very large settlement from Disney
4. Your last words would be screaming like a school girl

I would try really hard to eke out an "If Walt were alive..."

 

[EPCOTatNight]

Op, the ride isn't moving fast enough to launch a few thousand pounds off the track. Also, the brakes are probably magnets which make the chances of failure less likely.

The purpose of a thrill ride is to scare the crap out of you so much you want to get back on. I love the front row of EE. You get a great view as you go over the first drop.

Great for view, but horrible for thrill. The front seat is halfway down the hill before the train hits full speed while the back seat is the fastest. I always sit in the back.

"What if" ANY coaster, or most any ride for that matter, malfunctioned and dumped you? People have died from Mission Space People seek more and more "thrill" rides (not me, LOL) like the new coaster at Dollywood, the Wild Eagle, where you are literally hanging off the sides?? THAT is beyond

Someone has actually died on EE also.

 

[mesaboy2]

<bites finger> "There doesn't seem to be any track...."