Saturday is the deadline, at midnight.
I am fine if we both have the same idea, I just hope Tim is too.
Do you smell it? The scent of burning rubble?
Do you hear it? The distant roar of defiance?
Do you taste it? The fear and anticipation?
Do you see him?
No?
You will... very soon.
GODZILLA: ALL MONSTERS ATTACK
Coming Soon to Epcot's Japan
I never wanted to be a Theme Park Apprentice…
I wanted to be a…
Lumberjack!
Leaping from tree to tree, as they float down the mighty rivers of British Columbia! The Giant Redwood! The Larch! The Fir! The mighty Scots Pine! With my best girlie by my side, we’d sing! Sing! Sing!
Oh, I’m a lumberjack, and I’m okay.
I sleep all night and I work all day….
The outward appearance is of a lumber mill with a pine covered mountain behind. The manmade mountain would rest up against the Imagination Pavilion and then extend back, over the top of the O’Canada building and around the Soarin’ building backstage. There would need to be very strategic placement of the mountain but it can be done without removing any existing structures and minimal impact on the rest of the park. The mountain would only be a false front themed only where guests could see it. There is also the possibility of using the second floor of the Imagination Pavilion (currently unused) as a queue area (accessed from the Canada pavilion).
The ride system will be a standard roller coaster track with the modification of an electrical power bar (like a subway) added to supply electricity to the ride vehicle as well as a grooved middle track to provide traction to the vehicle’s on board control system. The ride vehicle will be slightly cantilevered (about 2-3 feet above the track) and have a set of motion base electro-servers as well as the ability to spin 360 degrees. The cantilevered system will be in place to simulate going down a water flume, while the tracks never get wet. The front end section of the first car will be built up a bit in order to keep people from staring at the tracks and spoiling the magic. The ride vehicles will sit four across and four deep. Unlike a true roller coaster, the vehicles will have the ability to start and stop themselves as well as maintain the optimal speed, although many parts will be using gravity to pull the ride along. The different cars of the ride will be able to run fairly close to each other since each vehicle can independently stop itself. The ride control system will be something similar to what Test Track and Pooh’s Hunny Hunt (DLT) use, where each car is controlled individually and autonomously.
Entering the queue line, the ride is themed like a “working” lumber mill. The theme would also be somewhat tongue in cheek, showing old cartoon logic like using a pencil sharpener and a tree to make a single toothpick. There would be demonstrations of how the wood pulp is used to create Kraft Dinner and how the lumber is used to create condominiums for the animals that lost their homes when the trees were cut down. There will also be a demonstration on how the world’s economy rests on the success and acceptance of hockey. (Ok, those were jokes, the actual queue will show off a more rugged side of Canada.) The queue line tour ends at a load station for a boat ride to show you how the trees are floated down the river to the lumber mill.
After entering the vehicle and exiting the station, there is a long lift hill that takes you up to the top of the flume so that you can gently ride back down to the station with the flow of the water. The ride starts off very gently with water flowing down both sides of the boat and the electric motion base simulating gently bobbing in the water. Suddenly, one of the robotic arms manipulating a tree gets the tree too close to the flume shell and breaks the side open. As water rushes out of the new hole, the boat gets stuck in the hole and then gently starts to lean more and more until it gets sucked through the hole dropping down into darkness.
Continued below....
From here, the rest of the theme of the ride is mountain tunnels and the only animatronics we see are of lumberjacks attempting to rescue the people on the ride.
After the drop, the vehicle splashes down in a dark tunnel and starts racing through tunnels with the turbulent water sometimes turning the vehicle backwards, always bouncing the vehicle all over the place and sometimes mounting walls as it screams through tunnels. The tunnels should not be cave black, but dark with various areas of sunlight poking through. Since this is not a regularly used tunnel, the ceiling gets very low sometimes to help with a claustrophobic feel, sometimes the vehicle gets stuck when the cave gets too narrow, and there are a few whirlpools that spin the vehicle. Since the boat is not actually in the water, all of these things can be simulated with a hard programmed system designed to randomize certain effects at certain points somewhat like Tower of Terror and Pooh’s Hunny Hunt.
The animatronic rescuers start panicking with warnings that the "falls" are coming up and that they have only one more chance to rescue the people on the boat. Immediately, the boat goes over a small 15 foot waterfall with the motion base simulating flying out past the falls and then dropping like a rock, only to splash down in the lower pool. Suddenly, everything is much calmer than it has been for a while.
Continued below....
There is the sound of a low rumbling sound of a massive amount of water. The ride vehicle gets sucked into a tiny cave that is pitch black. The vehicle rushes through the tiny cave and then out into a larger cavern with suddenly nothing but air below you. There is an arching drop on the hidden tracks while the onboard system simulates pitching in different directions as if it were free falling.
There is a clunk and the vehicle slows quickly to a stop as you realize that the operator of a tree claw machine has just caught the boat out of mid-air. The tree claw operator then gently puts the boat back into the regular ride trough where the vehicle turns a short couple of gentle corners before stopping at the exit platform.
The ride would be a family coaster with the ability to dial up or down the intensity since you would have control of speed and all of the motion base controls. The ride would ultimately be able to simulate out of control free fall, sliding sideways, spinning, bumping and sticking on objects, among many other effects, basically like Indiana Jones on steroids but much faster, more functions, randomization, and with the tracks hidden from view. Using electro-servers would make the controls a little squashy, but on a boat ride it would work perfectly without the jitters associated with other simulator rides. I could also be talked into mounting an electro hammer on the bottom of the vehicle to simulate hitting rocks on the bottom of the water trough.
Sorry I had to break it up...I was fighting the amount of available space in the submission blank...
Ratatouille- Remy's Adventure from Nick Markham on Vimeo.
RIDE TITLE: Ratatouille- Remy's Adventure
RIDE LOCATION: France Pavilion, EPCOT
RIDE TYPE: KUKA-Arm Robotic dark ride
RIDE DURATION: 4:00 minutes
As you enter the France Pavilion, you notice something that wasn't there before. A square, titled appropriately, Ratatouille Square. In the center is a giant fountain, with a golden statue of Remy at the center. Directly behind the fountain is a gift shop which also acts as a small bakery and the exit, for Remy's Adventure.
The entrance for Remy's Adventure is to the right of the fountain. Entering under iron gates which form the Ratatouille logo above your heads, you enter a beautiful garden area that resembles those in France, which winds through the flowers before you enter the restaurant.
As the queue winds through the restaurant, objects such as tables, chairs, paintings, and food will slowly but surely seem to grow bigger as you find yourself to be half a foot tall (the magic of Disney design!). As you walk between the 20 ft. tall tables you find your way into the kitchen and then into the office, where the first pre-show is.
The room suddenly grows dark, and you see Remy walk out of the shadows. He begins to tell you about how he plans to invite all of his rat friends to the restaurant. Then Gustavau (the chef) appears and gives you your instructions.
Once you exit the office, you enter a short queue line before boarding your KUKA-Arm vehicles, designed to look like cut out bokes from the different food in the kitchen.
Then the ride begins. You exit the restaurant and enter the back alley way where Remy meets up with you. Then you travel down the sewer through all the different turns (you just might get wet) before you enter the "Rat World". After flying over the heads of a few hundred rats, Remy has them rounded up and you exit back out of the sewers and into the kitchen.
The rats are turning the place upside down as the eat everything they possibly can. Then Skinner enters to find all of the rats. Now with proof he tries to capture Remy. But Remy jumps off the table, runs into the office, grabs a piece of paper that Skinner was after, and runs out the door.
Skinner then runs out, kicks a chef off his bike, and chases after Remy in an epic chase across Paris. Remy escapes and makes it back to the restaurant just in time to finish making the ratatouille. As you follow Remy through the kitchen, the smells of the amazing food fill the air, as well as fire effects as you pass over the stoves and steam effects as you pass over the pots.
Now you have accomplished everything, and Remy thanks you for your help as you exit the attraction and into the gift shop for your ride photos.
Location: The American Experience at Epcot
Visitors from across America and around the world come to Orlando every year, and many of them never leave Walt Disney World. They never have or take the opportunity to explore the rest of our amazingly beautiful and varied nation. The newest attraction at Epcot's American Experience, "An American Journey", brings the majestic natural wonders, impressive man-made monuments and important historic sites of our nation together and shares them with the world.
This is a flight across America, showcasing major natural wonders and man-made structures that symbolize our nation's beauty and grandeur. It will be a dark ride, using KUKA technology combined with 3-D visual effects, scenic elements and sensory experiences to give the riders the feeling of flying across America and seeing sights that would normally take months if not a lifetime to see in just a few minutes.
There are two major visual elements that unite to bring continuity to the attraction. First is the visual of a bald eagle, flying ahead of and leading the riders on a soaring flight across the country.
Second is the use of the traditional postcards that tourists send home from each state, postcards that, for example, proudly say "Greetings from Idaho!" with an artistic painting of a potato field and the Rocky Mountains in the background.
The ride vehicles carry twelve visitors, three rows of four seats arranged grandstand-style so that there is little or no visibility problems. They are designed sleek and almost aerodynamic, with stylized wings on the sides and a smoothly pointed front, to give the appearance of forward flight and to make riders almost feel like they are riding on the back of a soaring eagle throughout the journey.
There is no narration on this attraction. In some ways it is reminiscent of "Soarin'" in that it uses sight, music and sensory input such as smells, wind, and temperature changes to totally immerse the rider in the experience. Unlike "Soarin'," where the riders are basically hanging with a few slight movements, "An American Journey" carries the riders through the various scenes, with moving HD movie screens, stationary scenery, I-Max technology and LED-walls completely encompassing the riders and convincing them that they are actually flying across America. "An American Journey" unites the best theme park technologies available into the most exhilarating and inspiring attraction anywhere.
The ride begins with the ride vehicle "appearing" to actually fly out of the building and start to soar across the Walt Disney World Resort. Suddenly a bald eagle rises up in front of the riders and leads them on a flight across America. This is not a cartoonish-creation, but an a.a. creation that can flap its wings, adjust its feathers for flight, soar, bank, and in every way possible convince the riders that they are following it across the nation.
Note: Every time the eagle leads the riders from one location to the next, it will fly them upwards into a fantasy region lined with giant postcards from the area states. This will show the riders where in America they are heading, and when they reach the next location, the eagle will lead the riders into the postcard of that state and thus into the scene. I won't repeat this every time, but by the end of the attraction visitors will have seen or entered a postcard from every state in the union.
First stop: New Orleans. Riders glide up the Mississippi River, past the Big Easy to the sounds of Dixieland Jazz and over a beautiful southern plantation mansion.
They proceed up the river to St. Louis, Mo. and actually fly through the Gateway Arch while the Blues is heard playing.
The flight then turns west and heads to:
The Great Plains, where fields of grain spread out as far as can be seen. Soon these fields give way to grassland, and a herd of American Bison is running across the plains with such force that the riders can actually feel them shaking the vehicle. Further west, and the riders find themselves over:
The deserts of the American Southwest, hot, dry, but breathtaking in their rugged beauty. Suddenly the ground drops away and they are flying down and into:
The Grand Canyon. The eagle leads the riders down nearly a mile to the Colorado River at the bottom of the Canyon, with the raging rapids just beneath the riders and the walls of the Canyon soaring far above. The riders fly out of the Canyon and onto their next destination:
Southern California and a quick visit to where it all began, the Disneyland Resort. They soon find themselves flying over the beach, out over the waters of the Pacific, into clouds, and then descending to find themselves over:
Waikiki Beach and the beautiful Hawaiian Islands. After exploring Disney's Aulani Resort and a quick circle around Mauna Loa to check out the volcanic eruption (and a quick sniff of the volcanic smoke), they reenter the clouds, then descend again to find themselves over:
The Bering Sea off the coast of Alaska, over crab boats sailing through the icy waves. The eagle heads to the mainland, over endless forests of evergreens and past soaring mountains, then heads south again, and into the clouds to soon drop down over:
Seattle, where they circle around its most famous landmark, the Space Needle. A quick fly-by of Mount Rainer and its famous cousin Mt. Saint Helens and they begin to return east. Next stop:
Mount Rushmore. After passing this inspiring National Monument to four great American Presidents, the visitors find themselves soaring under the amazing:
Mackinac Bridge, connecting Upper and Lower Michigan and over Mackinac Island.
They proceed south and soon are crossing Lake Michigan for a quick detour down Lakeshore Drive in Chicago. Heading east again and soon they find themselves flying over a raging river, when suddenly the water drops away and the riders are flying over Niagara Falls. They climb out of the Niagara Gorge and head south to :
New York City. The towering skyscrapers of Manhattan and lights of Times Square surround the riders, as they head to the southern tip of the island and past the Statue of Liberty. A quick fly-around of Lady Liberty's head and torch and the eagle leads the riders on to:
Philadelphia and Independence Hall, with the Liberty Bell, the Betsy Ross House, and images of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution surrounding them. Finally, the eagle flies on to:
approaching from the Lincoln Memorial, flying over the Reflecting Pool, past the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, around the Washington Monument, and towards the U.S. Capital building, as fireworks light up the sky and the music soars into a triumphant conclusion of this inspiring, exciting adventure. The riders fly into the brilliantly-lit sky beyond the magnificent dome, surrounded by red, white and blue fireworks and dozens of fluttering American flags.
The riders "return" to The American Experience filled with a deep pride in America and a new appreciation of its amazing variety of natural and man-made wonders.
LOCATION: Germany
RIDE TYPE: 3-D Dark Ride
QUEUE: The queue takes you through Germany's famous Black Forest, Home to many of The Brothers Grimm fairytales. Interesting things to help pass the time include queue line games that display trivia from popular Grimm fairytales. Compete for the high score against everyone who's currently in line with you.
RIDE VEHICLE: The vehicle has 3 rows (featuring stadium seating) with a small center aisle separating the vehicle into two halves so that each row seats 4 (2 on both sides of the aisle). The restraints are a lap buckle and shared lap bar. The ride is loaded from the front and features continuous loading. The vehicle does not rotate once it leaves the loading area, thus you always move towards your right.
Below is a basic layout of the attraction that also explains some of the technical aspects of the attraction.
SCENE 1-THE CLASSIC STORY OF RAPUNZEL:
The story is read by Diane Kruger (known for her rolls in both Inglorious Basterds (I do know it’s spelled incorrectly) and National Treasure). She was born and raised in Germany, and in the following video, you can hear Ms. Kruger’s accent as well as pleasant reading voice that will work perfectly for this attraction (the first half anyways).
The ride begins as you make your way through Germany’s famous Black Forest (blending seamlessly with the queue). Night has recently fallen, the frogs and toads are croaking a delightful ambience, and a few fireflies buzz around lightning your way through the serene forest. The air smells fresh and wild and a low fog hides the forest floor from view. A owl’s hoot echoes through the trunks.
The narrator’s voice comes through the speakers and begins the experience…..
“Welcome (or should I say Willkommen ) to Germany’s Black Forest! My, it sure is a beautiful evening isn’t it? Well it’s actually the perfect evening because it was on a night much like tonight that the story of Rapunzel begins…”
At this point, the environment in front of you changes to a video screen but the transition is done without much notice. The screen is shaped like a huge semi-circle. The area in the center is hidden from view and contains all the mechanisms that project what is seen on the screen. Multiple vehicles can be viewing the screen at once because there are multiple projectors.
“Not many people know that the story of Rapunzel actually comes from the Brothers Grimm Fairytales. Many stories including Cinderella, Snow White, and the Princess and the Frog all can be traced back to this story book.”
An 8-foot high story book awaits you
The book opens and the pages flip to the story of Rapunzel. The book follows you on your trip around the semi-circle screen. The background is made to look like the forest set you just exited. Your 3-D glasses increase the effect of dimensionality and make everything appear to be more realistic. (No cheesy, in your face, effects here!)
On one side there is a blank page and on the other is an illustration that has the appearance of an oil painting. As the story is read, the words appear, as though being written, as the narrator speaks them. The illustration comes to life and acts out what is being read.
BTW, each new quotation is a page turn.
“There once was a man and a woman who wished for a child and after many months, the woman learned that she would be having a child.”
“Next door to the couple lived an evil enchantress, Dame Gothel. Behind her house, Dame Gothel had a garden full of delicious fruits and gorgeous flowers.”
“One day, the woman next door saw in the garden a beautiful rampion (or Rapunzel fruit). She wanted it very badly, but Dame Gothel had built a high wall around her garden and she did not share her fruits or flowers.”
“The woman wept for she could not have this delicious fruit. Her husband soon inquired, ‘Why are you crying my dear? For this rampion is only but a fruit.’ His wife replied, ‘But if we do not have this fruit, our baby may not be properly fed.’”
“And so, the next night the man sneaked into Dame Gothel’s garden and stole a handful of rampions, but before he could escape, he was confronted by Dame Gothel herself!”
“’How dare you steal from me!’ cried Dame Gothel. ‘For this I shall punish you by taking away your newborn child. You need not worry though’ explained the enchantress, ‘for I will take care of it like I was its mother.”
“Only but a few days later did the woman give birth to a beautiful baby girl with gorgeous green eyes. The enchantress soon came to take the child away. Dame Gothel named the girl Rapunzel and soon the baby began to grow long, magnificent, golden hair.”
“At the age of twelve, Dame Gothel trapped Rapunzel in a tower with neither stairs nor a door that was located deep in the heart of a forest. Anytime the enchantress wished to visit, she would call to Rapunzel’s tiny window.”
“Dame Gothel would say, ‘Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair to me.’ and Rapunzel would lift her up using her 40 foot long hair. Rapunzel would occupy her time by singing, hoping that one day someone would hear it and rescue her.”
“After many years, as Rapunzel was nearer to becoming a woman, a prince was passing by the tower and heard Rapunzel’s delightful singing.”
SCENE2-THE STORY GETS TANGLED
This is the point where the ride gets more exciting. As the next page turns, the vehicle quickly jolts and there is a whirl of color and you are suddenly looking at none other than Flynn Rider himself. The Background set is real and looks much like the forest from earlier in the ride. Flynn Rider is shown using much the same technology as is found in the queue of Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, but is enhanced thanks to your 3-D glasses.
Rider hops off a boulder while waving his hands and shaking his head “Who ho ho ho Stop right there ms. narrartor lady.”
“Pardon me?” questions the narrator.
“You’ve got it all wrong, that’s not how the story of Rapunzel goes!”
“Well Mr……”
“Rider, Flynn Rider at your service.”
“Well Mr. Ryder you seem to know quite a bit about this story so why don’t you tell us how the story really goes.”
“That sounds like a good idea ma’am I think I will do just that. I have hunch too that my revisions will make this story a bit more interesting.”
SCENE 3-THE REAL STORY OF RAPUNZEL
At this point your vehicle moves into the “simulator circle” (refer back to the layout diagram to better understand how this part of the ride works).
The following quotations are from Flynn Rider as he is now the narrator. You are now seeing the story of Rapunzel (or more accurately, Tangled) as though you are in it.
“First of all, Ms. Rapunzel is the royalty not me. Just as the story goes, she was taken when she was a baby by that dastardly Dame Gothel, but stolen not given, there's the difference. This is her parents’ kingdom. Up until only a few months ago Rapunzel was missing. Luckily she was found (with a bit of help from yours truly) and everyone now lives happily ever after, but that’s the end of the story it’s best to go back a bit further.”
During the above narration, you have the sensation of flying over the kingdom shown below. The wind in your hair, the smells of the shops and eateries below, the 3-D effect, and the simulator platform beneath you enhance the effect.
“Dame Gothel did in fact lock poor princess Rapunzel away in a tower and yes we all say something about ‘letting down her hair’. At the time Rapunzel had no idea that she of all people would be a princess. My was she beautiful when I first met her. Speaking of how I met her, I did not hear her singing as I roamed through the woods, no!, it was much more exciting than that!”
During the above part, you are flying around Rapunzel’s tower. You can see Dame Gothel being hoisted up thanks to Rapunzel’s hair as well as hear Rapunzel’s beautiful singing.
“Although I am ashamed to say it now, I was a thief back in those days. In fact I stole Rapunzel’s tiara from her own parents! How ironic!? Anyways when one steals, they are usually chased and that’s what happened to me, I was chased, and chased, and chased until finally I hid. And guess where I decided to hide? In the tower where the girl with the 40ft hair and a nearly lethal frying pan lived!”
The above scene is one from the perspective of a horse rider who is chasing Flynn Rider. The simulator does a great job of increasing the realism of this part of the ride. You can see Rider constantly looking back with a sack in hand holding some sort of stolen treasure.
“Needless to say, she fell in love with me the minute I gave her the ‘smolder’ and soon we were off and away on a perilous adventure that included gigantic dams , ugly thugs, and singing thieves!”
Here you feel like you are on a rushing river. Actually, you are on the water that has just burst from the infamous dam scene. Just before being crushed by a falling stone column, the scene ends.
You now back out of the simulator circle and enter the final scene. As you slowly make your way around the final bend (again refer to the layout diagram for a better understanding), your vehicle gradually rotates much like an omnimover so that you have the best view of the scene. Also,you hear this final quotation from Flynn Rider:
“Eventually I got her to fall in love with me and we both lived happily ever after, at least thus far anyways.”
The scene is the famous part of the movie when Rapunzel and Rider float out to see the lanterns. It appears as though you are gliding across the water. Rider and Rapunzel are both in Audio-Anamatronic form and some of the lanterns are real while others are part of the projected background.
Before disembarking, the vehicles turn back to their loading/unloading position. The exit of course leads out into a gift shop called “Unbraided”.
Hope you all enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing and imagining it!
"Welcome, tourists! You have been hired to explore Mt. Vesuvius, the monster volcano that is infamous for destroying the town of Pompeii! Please board your vehicle so our expedition can begin!"
This welcoming message would be told to you by an archaeologist (a hologram, like the ones in the Forbidden Journey) when you enter the queue, which is based around an archaeological site underneath a tarp. You see Animatronic archaeologists working on their computers, digging, etc.
You eventually approach your vehicles. 6 guests fit per car, 3 in a row (there are 6 cars total). Once everyone is settled in with the lap bar over them, the ride begins.
Your ride begins with a chain lift up a 70 foot hill. A radio transmission comes on and would say,
"Hello everyone, us at base will be using this radio to hear what's going on. You can't reply, but we'll be able to hear everything that's happening."
You approach the top of the volcano and your car travels slowly through a cave full of different types of rock. Suddenly, the vehicle stops and the cave starts shaking.
"What's that noise? I hear.....rumbling............Oh no. This can't be. It's not scheduled to.......all right tourists, you're going to get out of here fast. THE VOLCANO IS GOING TO ERUPT!!!"
The vehicle starts moving again as lava (simulated, of course!) starts pouring from the walls inside the cave. The vehicle speeds up as it approaches the drop.
The vehicle then rockets down the track, which turns right in a downward helix.
"Hold on!!!" You hear the archaeologist yell over the rumbling of the volcano. Your vehicle speeds up a small hill before it continues speeding down the track.
You are now at the base of the volcano. Your car is still traveling at high speeds as you enter the ruins of Pompeii. Building are in ruins, victims cast in ashes lay everywhere, and chaos ensues when you enter a closed in street.
You speed through a street, surrounded on both sides by buildings. As you travel through, the building simulate being collapsed, and you make it out of the street just before it collapses.
You speed through for a few more seconds before the brakes go into effect and you pull up to the archaeological site.
You exit the vehicle and go through the exit queue. The same archaeologist who greeted you begins speaking.
"Well....that expedition didn't go as planned. Sorry about that. On the bright side, you guys got a good look at the volcano and the town of Pompeii. Thanks for coming! Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to have a word with a certain alert system."
You then enter the gift shop, "Vesuvius Outpost", where you can buy different souvenirs, such as hats, T-shirts, and other memorabilia.
RIVER OF DREAMS:
A Tanuki's Eye View of the Art of Japan
Located in the rear of the Japan Pavilion, this attraction will use the same Japanese palace facade currently in use which houses the rotating art and cultural exhibits for the area.
Guests will enter the queue through the gates of the palace and enter its halls filled with Japanese artwork which is referred to later in the ride, these include origami, paintings, musical instruments and so on. The queue then exits the palace and heads into a Japanese Zen garden including a gazebo, koi pond and bonsai trees. The queue then enters a lush bamboo forest and then into "Tanuki Glen". "Tanuki Glen" will feature live Tanuki, known as the raccoon dog , which feature heavily in Japanese folklore. These will be some of the few tanukis actually on display in the United States and as such will be something most Americans have never seen before. Signs on the enclosure will detail information on how the tanukis figure into Japanese lore and give zoological background on them.
Passing into the final stages of the queue, guests now find themselves in a show building set at night in an idyllic Japanese scene filled with Japanese lanterns, fireflies and torii gates as they wait to take a seat in a boat shaped like an origami crane. The ride vehicle boats are flat bottomed and seat 12 in four rows of three passengers.
Guests then take a seat aboard the ride vehicle boat which floats through the waterways of the Japanese park and then head into a bamboo forest as a voice (the voice of actor George Takei)welcomes us to Japan and is pleased to meet us. We then float past a small shop with a Tanuki Statue out front. The traditional Tanuki statue in front of a store is said to grant the proprieter good luck and financial success.
The Tanuki is our host for this ride, he speaks:
"Konichiwa everyone! Welcome! You may call me Friend Tanuki. I'm a...well...I'm a Tanuki as you may have guessed. We Tanuki are magical Japanese creatures. We have big eyes to understand our world. We bring good luck and success in business and big tummies to drum with...well, just for the fun of it. HA! HA! We also have a reputation for being mischevious and (he changes into an origami dragon) the ability to change shapes. I can be an origami dragon (he breathes smoke at us) or I can be a stodgy businessman ( he changes into a Japanese businessman)I can even be an Italian plumber (he turns into Super Mario, which in turn transforms into Mario in his Tanuki suit from Super Mario Bros. 3 and then changes back to his Tanuki form) or I can just be lovable, mischevious me! HA! HA!"
"The people of Japan love me and I love them, they create so much beauty and art, so I'm going to show it off to you. First stop is just ahead."
We then crest the lift hill and turn into a large dark room full of Japanese letters projected on the walls.
"For those of you who can't read Japanese, these letters mean nothing to you, but to my people they are not just letters but pictograms. Japanese letters are art in and of themselves. Each letter represents an actual object. Let me show you."
Our Tanuki guide then takes animated form and flies across the room, changing a letter into the object they represent.
"Just use your imagination. This letter looks a little like a tree, doesn't it? Well, guess what? That's exactly what it is! (the letter turns into a real tree) and this letter looks like a house....and this like the sun....and this like a temple....and this like a fish."
Friend Tanuki appears around the room changing each letter into the physical representation of what it is, finally filling the room with a lush and full landscape.
"There are at last count over 100,000 letters in the Japanese language. Luckily only about 3000 are used in everyday language, I know I could never keep up with them all! Let's move on, I've got lots more neat things to show you."
"Its very pretty isn't it? Up until the 15th century all paintings looked like this. Very beautiful but lacking any depth, it didn't look real. But then Japanese painter Shubun introduced the use of perspective and true 3D worlds emerged on the canvas. It went from this....to this!
Friend Tanuki then snaps his fingers and the entire flat room expands out towards the boat and away from it. The mountains shrink into the background and the trees and samurais move towards us using hydraulics to give a literal translation of 3D.
"A lot more impressive, isn't it?"
We then float into the next room, a full 3D flat paneled version of the classic Japanese painting style of giant waves with volcanoes in the background, a fishing boat barely hanging onto its moorings in the midst of a storm at sea.
"Sometimes they look a little TOO real."
Friend Tanuki then disappears and storm gusts hit our boat, lightning strikes, thunder crashes, salty ocean spray hits us in the faces as a water mist curtain screen (like that used for the Davey Jones Pirates scene) cast the image of a wave coming over us as we slide down a waterfall. The boat hits the bottom of the falls and we see Friend Tanuki giggling at us.
"Oh, I'm sorry for laughing at you...but oh you should have seen your faces!"
Our boat then floats into a more serene scene of a Japanese garden while a Kabuki theatre play is being performed by animatronics. Along with the actors on stage are a Taiko Drummer and a musician playing the Shamisen (a lute like stringed instrument). Friend Tanuki watches from the audience.
"Now Japanese art is more than just origami, paintings and writing. Its also the live arts. The amazement of live theatre and the blissfullness of song. I love songs! There's even a song about me school children sing."
He sings:
TAN TAN TANUKI NO KINTAMA WA,
KAZE MO NAI NO NI,
BURA BURA
"Even in modern life, Japan continues to make art that the whole world enjoys, including a new favorite of mine....Anime!"
At that the scrim moves aside and the modern street is replaced with an animatronic and animated version of the city all in anime style. Everything is cartoony with referces to classic anime like ROBOTECH, VAMPIRE HUNTER D, SPEED RACER, POKEMON, GUNDAM WING, AKIRA and FULL METAL ALCHEMIST. Fans of anime will see something new with each ride through this scene.
Friend Tanuki has also been "anime-ized" and looks on rather approvingly at his creation.
The scene ends with anime styled Japanese girls pointing cameras at you, they take your picture, flashbulbs pop.
"Well now, (Friend Tanuki reappears in his original animatronic form) I'd say you all now know a little bit more about the people of Japan and their art. Ah, MY people, aren't they great? So creative too, what clever beings they are indeed. I'll see you all around, maybe you'll see ME too! HA! HA! HA!"
Friend Tanuki then disappears in a puff of smoke as the boats head into the unloading dock.
The exit area will feature a small kiosk offering Friend Tanuki plush dolls and free digital copies of your onride photo which can be emailed anywhere in the world. In the photo, your likeness will be digitally changed to look anime like with Friend Tanuki right over your shoulder giving the "V" peace sign as the Japanese are known to do when photos are taken of them.
Ride will last appx. 7 minutes
I realize ALOT of people tend to post on Saturday, so be conscientious of that everyone. It has become at time where the site has become overloaded by extreme posting.
If, we do end up having a large amount of non-posters, it is likely that we will not be having double elimination challenges throughout the first 5 challenges. I only made it double elimination due to the amount of contestants that joined. However, it might have to change. Guess we will see tomorrow! Have a great night everyone!
It is now the afternoon, and still we only have 7 proposals. Keep in mind that if you don't post by tonight there are no exceptions and no second chances. I have emailed you guys and have posted the due date multiple times and in email. Thanks.
Ying and Yang
Through out history and mythology and even Disney, Dragons are portrayed as villains in most cultures, especially European and Scandinavian cultures. In Chinese culture and mythology is vastly different!
Chinese dragons traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, hurricane, and floods. The dragon is also a symbol of power, strength, and good luck. The dragon also symbolized great power and was very supportive of heroes and gods a la Mushu.
Well, just as water destroys, they said, so can some dragons destroy via floods, tidal waves and storms. They suggested that some of the worst floods were believed to have been the result of a mortal upsetting a dragon. And that’s what you have done, I mean we have done!
The 4 Dragon Kings in which the people of the earth has misused and mistreated the life giving power and potency of water. They believe that humans have polluted, contaminated and over fished and destroyed some aquatic life! So they have decided to unleash Yinglong, the fabled dragon said to be responsible for the Great Deluge in China or in other religions the Great Flood, and bring about the second Great Deluge!
But there are other Dragons out there that have accepted that over the years that humans have destroyed and misused the sea and rivers but have acknowledge this have been reversing there ways. Feilong and Dilong are part of this group and trying to convince the Dragon Kings to stop Yinglong from bringing the floods to the Earth.
So Feilong and Dilong have decided to go and visit the Dragon Kings temples and bring humans to the Crystal Palaces and try to convince to stop Yinglong from destroying the world, again!
Attraction:
Building and Pre-Show
The attraction is housed in a what looks like an ancient Chinese temple to the Dragon Kings, as you enter it looks like the inside of the Dragon King temple which depicts myths and storied of dragons throughout Chinese culture. You are then ushered into an enclave or naïve of the temple where the pre-show begins.
The pre-show area is a small enclosed room where on the walls depicts the first Great Deluge where Yinglong destroyed the Earth. Then the lights flicker and turn off and a mist appears and the Dragons Feilong and Dilong appear and explains to the people what have happened and need your help to elude Yinglong and convince the Dragon Kings to stop him and save humankind.
Ride
Feilong and Dilong have decided that they are going to carry you and others to the Crystal Palace.
The ride is a Duel Lay-down Launch Coaster featuring 2 loops, a double helix and other twist and turns that we all love in a roller coaster!
The Coaster will be start inside the building and actually on a couple occasions go outside for a few seconds. During the ride Yinglong will appear using theme lighting and black lights. There will also will be water sprays, splash downs and other things that will make the rider feel that a flood is actually coming!
The ride will also include a vertical helix that booth sides do at the same time doing it in the same area!
End
The ride ends with you eluding a head on collision with Yinglong and reaching the Crystal Palace. The Dragon Kings are so impressed that mere humans can first off and survive the journey to the Crystal Palace but also elude Yinglong that humans then have the ability to change there ways protect the Earth. With the persuasion of Feilong and Dilong the Dragon Kings call off Yinglong and stop the floods!
Attraction Type: SFX Show/Motion Simulator
Location: Japan Pavilion, World Showcase, Epcot
Building Description: Guests approach the large and unassuming ride-building past the large tower that is Japan’s centerpiece. The façade is a business-office type facility in futuristic art-deco style, to push the idea that this attraction takes place in the not-so-distant future. The only clue as to what lies within the building is the symbol of the G-Force (Japan’s Godzilla Defense team) emblazoned above the main entrance; a large stylized letter G with a Godzilla siloquette inside. A blast of cool air hits visitors as they enter the clean work environment.
Inner Queue Part 1: Guests have now entered the lobby of G-Force HQ. Moving quickly, they pass the receptionist’s desk. From time to time, a CM will man the desk, portraying the hassled receptionist as he/she deals with incoming calls about possible monster sightings. Moving on past the lobby, guests enter a long metallic hallway. Monitors are suspended from the ceiling every few feet, showing a short documentary on the G-Force.
The G-Force are a multi-national team of experts created to defend Japan and the rest of the world from giant monsters. The monsters are treated the same as natural disasters, like hurricanes. Their movements are tracked and predicted so the populace can prepare and the G-Force can arrive first to chase them away. On the rare occasion that a monster is captured, it is transported to Monster Island, a small, tropical, man-made island fifty miles off the coast of Japan. There is still one monster that troubles the G-Force; Godzilla, the so called King of the Monsters. The documentary goes into detail of Japan’s history with Godzilla, from his first appearance in 1954, all the way to the failure of Operation: Destroy All Monsters. Godzilla is the only monster the G-Force has never captured.
Moving along the hallway, guests pass the Monster Island surveillance room. The room is unmanned, and guests may notice a disturbing fact on the multiple view-screens; Monster Island is deserted. This knowledge in mind, guests exit the hallway into the first pre-show room.
The trams are similar to Disaster's subway cars. 48 people are in each group. Once everyone is situated, the tram moves foward down a dark tunnel and enters the bunker proper. Suddenly a massive AA foot of Godzilla crashes through the ceiling. The trams barely escape. Cpt. Martin orders the guests bbe loaded onto Mass Evacuation Hovercrafts.
The trams stop and unload. The 48 guests are seperated and put on two 24 person simulator vehicles.
The ride film is entirely CG.
The doors close and the view-port opens, revealing the inside of the shaft. The vehicle shudders as the platform raises on an elevator until it reaches the doors leading to the outside. As the doors open, the mammoth head of Godzilla stares back at guests. His eyes narrow and he bellows in rage.
Rapid fire laser blasts strike Godzilla. He roars and pulls away, stomping out of view as the X-Omega Attack Ship flies past.
The hovercraft lurches forward out of the shaft and into the city proper. The city is heavily damaged. Buildings are on fire and are partially destroyed. The sounds of chaos are everywhere. The vehicle makes a sharp left and blasts into the noon sky. It enters a steady incline flying high above the burning city. Rodan suddenly buzzes the craft, setting off alarms.
The craft plunges nose first towards Tokyo Bay, but Ebirah, the giant crab, surfaces and grabs the craft in one claw. He brings it close to examine it, then rears back and hurls it towards the city. Just before it crashes into a building, the craft is intercepted and secured on the back of Mothra.
Mothra doesn’t make it very far before Rodan again attacks. The transport slips and slides around Mothra's back as she dodges and weaves in an aerial dog-fight. With a scream of rage, Rodan slams into Mothra head on, sending the transport foward again into the air. Just before slamming into a massive wall of steel, the stabilizers kick back on and the vehicle halts in mid-air.
The vehicle pulls back and heads right, passing burning and crumbling buildings on either side. The transport turns left... slamming directly into a massive golden chest. The vehicle pulls back to reveal the three angry faces of King Ghidorah.
Ghidorah blasts lightning at the transport, but the transport ducks it and retreats backwards into the sky. Ghidorah flaps his wings, following quickly. The transport turns and flies an evasion course through the clouds, dodging Ghidorah's lightning coming from behind.
As the transport breaks through the clouds, Mechagodzilla is sighted, charging it's main mouth blaster cannon. The transport dips down and barely dodges the blast. Ghidorah's scream is heard and the transport turns to see him fleeing. An alarm goes off in the cockpit. The transport sets down on the street to cool. The huge steel head of Mechagodzilla slams into the pavement directly in front of the transport. The vehicle turns to see the headless body of Mechagodzilla. It lights up with the blue of Godzilla's radioactive blast and explodes, blinding the guests for a moment. When the light fades, Godzilla is revealed. He roars a challenge and charges the vehicle. The transport flees. Godzilla pursues, his heavy footsteps shattering windows along-side the vehicle.
Martin comes over the radio and orders the guests to lead Godzilla into Tokyo Bay. Once there, a laser grid will keep him out.
What follows is a game of duck and weave as the transport dodges Godzilla's claws, feet, and tail. Water splashes as Godzilla enters Tokyo Bay. Godzilla bites at the transport and the transport barely clears his head, bumping it slightly, as the transport flies over him. The transport swings sharply just in time to see the net of lasers appear, blocking Godzilla.
Godzilla roars at the transport and begins to charge his atomic breath. He blasts the transport, but the shields keep the transport from being destroyed. Instead, it is pushed back until it crashes back into G-Force HQ.
Cpt. Martin and Cpl. Honda walk in front of the transport and congragulate the guests. The floor collapses, sending the transport into free-fall until it crashes in the basement. Guests exit the transport and head down a short hall-way into the gift-shop; Godzilla Gifts.
Atlas Mountain Adventure Tour
The Morocco Pavilion at Epcot
Morocco, home of the highest peaks of northern Africa’s Atlas Mountains, has started tours of these majestic mountains
As guests enter Morocco, signs and advertisements point deep into the pavilion toward Disney’s latest mountain range. As guests pass Restaurant Marrakesh, they enter a large courtyard themed to a courtyard in a Moroccan’s home. A large wooden carved sign above the entry of the courtyard reads, “Atlas Mountain Adventure Tour” in Arabic, English, and Spanish. The queue plays soft gnawa music (a typically mystical Moroccan type of music) and a small stage lies in the extended queue for a live Moroccan band on busy days. Local news stories (fake of course), facts and rumors of the Atlas mountains, and Moroccan advertisements clutter the walls of the courtyard. The next part of the queue, which is indoors, contains a large old mural of the Atlas Mountains while the opposite wall displays pictures of various cities of Morocco. The extended queue has pictures of the Atlas Mountains on its walls. After the main part of the queue, guests are ushered into the preshow. A live tour guide gives guests a safety spiel and tells them a basic outline of the journey. Each tour guide in the preshow acts differently. Some will portray an overly enthusiastic person, while others may portray a very monotone person, or even a nervous wreck of a person. Each one will twist the script in order to perform their type of person. After the preshow, guests walk outside to the loading station which is designed similarly to the Kilimanjaro Safari loading station. Guests board the 4 seat by 4 seat vehicles, designed to look like large jeeps, and the adventure begins.
Review and poll tomorrow!
*sorry for the rushed ending. I was tired after my trip and if I can, I will add a little more to the part with * around it tomorrow
LOCATION: China Pavilion
RIDE TYPE: Indoor coaster
QUEUE: The queue starts in a large warehouse, much like the actual Terracotta Army. There is a pit in the center of the room where you can see a small re-creation of the army. The next room is a small museum with exhibits on the Terracotta Army, along with life-sized re-creations of the soldiers and the horses. Finally, the groups are sorted into separate rooms where they get an introduction video. Dr. Royce, played by Sigourney Weaver, welcomes them.
“Welcome students! My name is Dr. Royce and I am the head of our dig here. We at Acme Archaeology are really excited that we have a new batch of interns at the dig-site. We’ve been here in Xi’an digging since 2000, and we have made some fascinating discoveries. But I’m not the one in charge of briefing you; especially since you all should’ve done your homework on this site and our research. Dr. West is already down in the pit waiting for you. All you have to do is get in the mine carts and they will take you down to him. He’s been down there for a while. I actually haven’t even seen him today. Anyways, he’s probably getting impatient. You better get a move on.”
VEHICLE: The ride vehicles are designed to seat 16 people, 4 rows of 4. They are very nondescript. They are all black and look like carts that would take people down into a mine. Basically like the vehicles from Revenge of the Mummy.
RIDE: The ride starts off very slowly, heading down into the pit. For most of the ride there are soldiers on both sides of the cart, but for now everything is pitch black. All of a sudden, bright lights come on and there is an announcement: “We need all Acme personnel to leave the pit immediately. Do not travel alone, everyone must be in pairs.” The lights go off again, and the cart goes around a corner. There is a ghostly figure above the soldiers in front of the vehicle.
“I, Qin Shi Huang, have given you many warnings, and you have refused to heed them. Now your ignorance will be punished. You will become my soldiers and become an example to your friends.” The cart takes an immediate drop, without warning and goes through a few turns and dips. Again, the track is lined with soldiers. Some of the soldiers would actually move, but it would probably take a few rides for most people to notice that. The cart stops in a room, and Dr. Royce’s voice is heard over the p.a. again.
“I know you guys can hear me. Follow my instructions and I can get you out of there.” The ride launches forward. The rest of the journey goes as follows: Dr. Royce shouts out the instruction, i.e. “Right”, “Left”, “Down” etc., then the cart does it.
The ride is basically a two-act ride, with the break in between. It is about 5 minutes long. The ride ends at the opposite end of the tent and you make it out of the pit alive!
Located in the back part of the France pavilion is the entrance to Le Tour de France w/Lance Armstrong. The entrance is a large black and yellow building that features the logo and images of Lance on the front of it. Like many other EPCOT rides, each typically has a sponsor. It only makes sense that the3 sponsor of this ride would be Nike LIVESTRONG. The cue is inside and takes you through walk through of the many accomplishments Lance has gone through, aw well as a detailed history of the Tour itself. (along the lines of Everest’s cue) You then enter a large room with a screen viewable for the many people inside the room and a video of Lance comes on. He proceeds to tell you that the tour is happening right now and that today's stage is a mountain stage up the infamous Alp D’Huez. This is arguably the toughest mountain riders face of all mountains seen in the Tour. Lance invites you to join in and stay behind him so that he can help in making you the winner of the Stage!
THE RIDE:
After boarding your bike it is guided along the track through the team buses into an area that appears to be the starting line and there are hundreds of riders around you. This is actually a room that has a 360 degree screen around you and this is all a part of the movie.(think the king Kong part of the movie tour at Universal) There are 10 of these rooms that branch off the main track to keep the ride moving at a quicker pace. As the race begins you are joined together with the rest of your teammates and are at the front of the peleton. (the peleton is the main pack of the race) After cycling through the city for a bit it ends up being just you and lance at the start of Alp D’Huez.
Dominick: The short and sweet, but quality entry of yours was pleasant. I think the big problem you had was making it so choppy throughout the entire post. It seemed as if you kept coming up with new ideas, once you saw other people's postings. Withing further challenges, try to come up with more original concepts, than following so closely to a movie. Good first try.
Jeff: The ride sounded great! I love me the lumberjack theme. Although it sounds a bit like a previous entry by someone in theme park apprentice, you made it your own. Great work and ride sounds like a blast! One of my favorites.
Nick: You always seem to make this really good videos. I know you were a bit distraught by having the same theme as Dominick, but I think yours came across as a bit more original and thought out.
James: I feel like this ride could actually come into existence. Great work, as usual. It sounds absolutely amazing. While it does sound close to Soarin', I feel like this could be adapted as the replacement of Soarin'. It works well, however, in the American pavilion. One of my favorites.
Adam: You have grown so much over the past few competitions. I think that you made this ride sound amazing. I thought the placement in Germany was very unique, and definately never thought of. Would work great as a Fantasyland Dark Ride as well.
Andy: Interesting ride concept, unfortunately I feel that Disney would have trouble with building a ride so close to the one built at Busch Garden. Still a very good idea for Italy in Epcot.
Joseph: I found this ride to be absolutely stunning, original, and innovative. I think you did a great job showcasing the culture of Japan. Absolutely wonderful storytelling. My favorite of the week!
Dan: I thought the idea of a yin and yang coaster was very good. Coaster sounded epic and thrilling, what Epcot is in desperate need of!
Thomas: I think you did a great job with bringing this Godzilla attraction to life. It sounded intense, scary, and epic! One of my favorites.
David: I'm so gald you decided to create a ride for Morocco. It sounded like a fun ride. The only complaint I have is the use of animal emphasis in another Disney attraction. Jungle Cruise is the classic aa animal ride, and Kilamanjaro is the advanced version with real animals. Good work.
Eric: The coaster sounded cool, I would have loved to have known some more details about it. Still a very good concept, that was definately unique.
Colin: Another original idea. It sounded cool to actually put guests into the tour de France. Great work, and I'm glad to have you part of the competition.
As for the rest of the 7 apprentices, in the words of Mr. Trump, "You're Fired". Thank you for not participating, but signing up. I will end here, to avoid me going any further into my anger.
I know that my ride was very similar to Escape From Pompeii at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. However, I personally experienced that ride, and it was rather boring. The only parts that scared me were the pillar collapsing and the drop. I feel that my submission would be much more thrilling than EFP.
I'm really not trying to be rude! Please don't take this the wrong way. I'm fine with what you said for my submission, but I just think it would be much different than Busch Gardens' ride.
