What's wrong with the Yeti?

[maxmouse]

I read a post about people would fix if they were in charge and a couple people said that they would fix the Yeti. Did something happen to it?

 

[kat3668]

There is a crack in the base of it and it would cost millions for them to fix it. So they have just opted to leave it as is for the time being. The animatronics were just to sophisticated for the base it sits on causing it to crack.

 

[maxmouse]

So it just stands there and does nothing?

 

[Reddy]

yep - for my son I'm thankful it doesn't move - don't think I could get him back on it if it did tried to grab him (I know dinosaur is out of the question now)

 

[The Hodge]

I think The Yeti is just lazy. He has no trouble tearing up the track, he must be winded by the time you pass under him.

 

[bleeps]

It seems highly unlikely that the Yeti will ever be repaired. We happened to see a re-run, recently, of a History Channel Modern Marvels program about WDW, and a big point was made that the structure was built up around the Yeti so that it could never be removed. Since it doesn't prevent the ride from functioning otherwise, they have no real incentive to spend the $$$ it would take to repair it (if that's even possible).

 

[X_Mickeys_Pal_X]

I swear the yeti moved when i was there april this year? maybe it really is cursed

 

[Queen2PrincessG]

This just seems odd to me. I'm not sure if I believe that it is simple a "crack" causing it not to move.

 

[Gonzo82]

The yeti has been broken for years now. When EE opened, the yeti would move and make a swipe at your train. He's been broken since at least 2007 though, and is now only a static, unmoving figure. Disney uses strobe lighting to try and simulate movement, but the general consensus is that this is a poor substitute. For a long time it was thought to be a structural issue; the yeti's foundation wasn't strong enough to withstand his movement and cracked. However, lately there have been reports that there is a lubrication issue in addition to/instead of the cracking foundation.

As to why the yeti hasn't been fixed, there are conflicting reports on whether the yeti can be removed or not, but the real reason is that Disney is unwilling to spend the money to fix the yeti and, due to the lack of attractions in AK, is unwilling to shut the ride down for the necessary amount of time.

 

[The Hodge]

If you look carefully you can see the Yeti is wearing white ear buds, he is listening to the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack on his iPod. He is distracted and forgets to swipe at the ride vehicles.

 

[chartle]

This just seems odd to me. I'm not sure if I believe that it is simple a "crack" causing it not to move.

Yes a crack is that bad since it can and most likely will lead to total failure i.e. it falling on the track and the train running into it or even it landing on a train and really, how can put this without being gory, touching someone in way thats not going to give them a magical day.

The Yeti reaches out which puts a major strain on the structure.

 

[JacksLilWench]

If you look carefully you can see the Yeti is wearing white ear buds, he is listening to the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack on his iPod. He is distracted and forgets to swipe at the ride vehicles.

Gonna go watch that movie now, thanks!!

 

[Queen2PrincessG]

Yes a crack is that bad since it can and most likely will lead to total failure i.e. it falling on the track and the train running into it or even it landing on a train and really, how can put this without being gory, touching someone in way thats not going to give them a magical day.

The Yeti reaches out which puts a major strain on the structure.

I guess I just assumed that the engineers would have taken that into account when building it. If not, then I'd be scared to ride the ride at all. I think there is more to it. The Yeti moving was the big part of the ride so I would have to think they thought about the structure and how it was standing FIRST and then built it accordingly. Unless someone was really having a bad day and that totally slipped their mind.

 

[stargazertechie]

I guess I just assumed that the engineers would have taken that into account when building it. If not, then I'd be scared to ride the ride at all. I think there is more to it. The Yeti moving was the big part of the ride so I would have to think they thought about the structure and how it was standing FIRST and then built it accordingly. Unless someone was really having a bad day and that totally slipped their mind.

No, it really is that simple. The repetitive motion required for the Yeti to swipe and then ratchet back into position in time for the next train car caused significantly more stress on the foundation than the engineers had accounted for. It cracked the foundation, and if the yeti was left in full operation, there is a high probability that it would break loose and potentially kill an entire train of guests.

They can't repair it without taking the entire ride offline, as the yeti is built INTO the ride, and they'd have to pretty much destroy a section of the mountain to get her out and replace her and fortify the foundation.

 

[The Hodge]

Gonna go watch that movie now, thanks!!

Disco Yeti would be proud!

 

[Dan Murphy]

I think it will be a long, long time before he ever, if ever, operates again as designed. I see strobe lights on him for years to come.

 

[cwcooper810]

is he still covered by the curtain or whatever? Or did they put him back in strobe light mode? A friend of mine was very upset that on his one trip to WDW, the Yeti was covered

 

[PlutosRHM55]

I'm a bit confused right now, firstly because this is the first time I've heard that there is a problem with the Yeti's foundation. I heard it was basically animatronic "suicide", where, with the movement of the Yeti's arm, the whole animatronic "threw out his back", which is to say the whole back section of the animatronic broke and he could never move after that. The problem with the Yeti and the mountain being built around him was, to fix this issue, they would need to take him out of the mountain entirely and do all the repairs that way. I may be wrong, but that's the story I've heard for quite along time across many DIS sites.

The other part that confuses me is the Yeti is sorta fixed now. I forget when, but a few months back, they actually started doing some little patch-ups on the Yeti and that's why he was covered up for some time. Then, through a friend I met on here, who is in the DCP at the moment, rode the ride, sometime around the end of April I think and she said the Yeti was working again. Like it wasn't the whole swinging motion, but an arm did come down and reach for the passengers once again. So did it break again or is this thread unaware of this piece of information?

 

[stargazertechie]

I'm a bit confused right now, firstly because this is the first time I've heard that there is a problem with the Yeti's foundation. I heard it was basically animatronic "suicide", where, with the movement of the Yeti's arm, the whole animatronic "threw out his back", which is to say the whole back section of the animatronic broke and he could never move after that. The problem with the Yeti and the mountain being built around him was, to fix this issue, they would need to take him out of the mountain entirely and do all the repairs that way. I may be wrong, but that's the story I've heard for quite along time across many DIS sites.

The other part that confuses me is the Yeti is sorta fixed now. I forget when, but a few months back, they actually started doing some little patch-ups on the Yeti and that's why he was covered up for some time. Then, through a friend I met on here, who is in the DCP at the moment, rode the ride, sometime around the end of April I think and she said the Yeti was working again. Like it wasn't the whole swinging motion, but an arm did come down and reach for the passengers once again. So did it break again or is this thread unaware of this piece of information?

"Disney would not discuss issues with the yeti beyond referencing the "stress" caused by the figure's movement. The most popular theory among company followers: The yeti's swiping-arm motion was so powerful that it has weakened the base of the animatronic, forcing Disney to shut it down to prevent further damage. (The yeti is one of three separate structures that make up Expedition Everest, along with the roller-coaster track and the mountain shell; none of the three structures touches.)" http://www.orlandosentinel.com/busi...ws-yeti-everest-073110,0,7228738.story?page=2


And no, the yeti wasn't working in April. She may have seen "disco yeti" with the strobe lights, but the arm hasn't swung in a couple of years now.

 

[chartle]

The other part that confuses me is the Yeti is sorta fixed now. I forget when, but a few months back, they actually started doing some little patch-ups on the Yeti and that's why he was covered up for some time. Then, through a friend I met on here, who is in the DCP at the moment, rode the ride, sometime around the end of April I think and she said the Yeti was working again. Like it wasn't the whole swinging motion, but an arm did come down and reach for the passengers once again. So did it break again or is this thread unaware of this piece of information?

Note some of what I'm typing is speculation of mine and others.

A few months back or so there were reports that the Yeti was behind a tarp and was being worked on.

It then came out that they may be working on adding other supports to the arm to relieve some of the stress, kind of like a Muppet or even reprogramming it to only move the arm and not the whole body.

Also some people claimed to see this new motion. I was there the first week of May rode it twice and saw Disco Yeti both times.

I guess whatever they did or were thinking of doing didn't work.