Disneyland Resort (DL, DLR, DCA) Discussion Thread

[coasterfreak101]

August cannot come soon enough.

[X2coasterfreak]

This ride makes me so happy that I live a mere hour away from Disneyland. So stoked to see this whole project in its completed form. It has been a long few years, but finally DCA is complete

[Swimace]

This looks like a really nice addition to DCA. A great family thrill ride/dark ride combo should do really well at this park.

 

The Yeti is at Disney World... Disneyland generally keeps their stuff in working order. When things break down they don't add a strobe, they typically fix it.

 

Just out of curiosity, when has Disneyland ever fixed something that was damaged as extensively as the Yeti? I'm pretty sure DL would do the same thing that WDW did if they were in the same situation.

[Double0Kevin]

Just out of curiosity, when has Disneyland ever fixed something that was damaged as extensively as the Yeti? I'm pretty sure DL would do the same thing that WDW did if they were in the same situation.

 

I'm not going to get into a Disney fanboy fight here, because I honestly just don't care. As far I'm concerned not a single anamatronic could be working on a Disney ride and it would still be better themed than most anything else (except for maybe some Universal rides).

 

I've just found in the past that in general Disneyland's rides are in better working condition and issues are addressed at more rapid pace. Off the top of my head I remember Splash and Big Thunder having quite a few issues for a long time at WDW. As far as the Yeti, yes it's majorly broken... but it has been for years. You would think something that cost as much as that thing would have seen some work by now.

 

Steering us back on subject before this turns into Micechat, RSR looks pretty amazing. I was worried having seen the layout of the show building that it would be too short and leave you kind of unfulfilled. After watching that video, it looks like it will be a great ride and a decent length.

[SoCalCoasters]

^ I was under the impression that it was the engineering of the structure the Yeti was attached to that was having issues, not the yeti itself.

 

I think they'd want to keep the ride (structure) intact rather than run one animatronic that could cause severe structural trauma.

[Double0Kevin]

^Ah, this I had never heard. In that case I withdraw in snide Yeti comments I may have made. I just grouped it with the previous impression I had of WDW.

[SharkTums]

I agree we should try to get back on track here and stop the constant WDW vs. DL but didn't Indy have MAJOR issues before it finally went down for a rehab a year or so ago?

 

Also, you have to remember the parks are soooo different. An average WDW visitor isn't going to care if one animatronic is broken because this is their once in a lifetime trip to the park and they don't know any different. The DL Fanboys freak out at the littlest thing and take to the internet to complain. DL also has the luxury of putting their rides up for rehab for longer and more often again due to their clientele.

[Top Thrill Dragster]

Indy is STILL having issues!

 

The rolling ball effect wasn't working on my two rides last week!

 

At least they fixed the door effect that has been broken for the past year.

[Double0Kevin]

The DL Fanboys freak out at the littlest thing and take to the internet to complain.

 

Well, I almost asked for a refund after seeing Ariel's hair. I mean it looked like ice cream. It ruined my life!

[Kyle Coleman]

From what I saw in that pov it looks like disneyland finally has a worthy neighbor.

[cal1br3tto]

The rolling ball effect wasn't working on my two rides last week!

What? I'm pretty sure that's my favorite part of the ride! They better get that taken care of.

[SLUSHIE]

I don't see how this ride could have too many issues, in fact I think it has to be pretty freakin solid.

 

The ride vehicles are almost exact to Test Track, so reliability should be at least as good as that. As far as show elements, I don't think any of the animatronics are any more complicated than Buzz from the Astroblasters queue or Mr. Potato head from Toy Story Mania. Actually despite that some of them are on a track, they are probably less complicated. Disney does seem to have a history of problems with show elements that reset for each vehicle. Even if the movement of them fails, their eyes and in some cases their mouths can still operate.

 

I'm sure there will still be breakdowns for various reasons though.

[SharkTums]

^It's funny you mention those two specifically as my last ride on both of those rides had BOTH of those animatronics broken!!!

[BaMiTsPaT]

This ride looks awesome! The dark ride elements look fantastic, and the part with the bunny hops looks like a lot of fun too. I wonder what the capacity will be like though...

[OldJJman]

.... but didn't Indy have MAJOR issues before it finally went down for a rehab a year or so ago?

 

It was pretty poor yesterday too. The only thing Divv had to compare it to was Indy at TDS. Doors weren't working. Some lights were not working. Ball wasn't working. And no Paco.

[coasterfreak101]

This ride looks awesome! The dark ride elements look fantastic, and the part with the bunny hops looks like a lot of fun too. I wonder what the capacity will be like though...

 

According to this website (for what it's worth), Test Track runs at an average of about 1200pph, with their record high at 1550pph. Might not be accurate, but if it is I imagine that RSR will run with a very similar capacity, given the similarities in their boarding setup.

[BaMiTsPaT]

^Thanks for the info! How exactly does the boarding on this ride work? The POV I saw starts after the station, so does it load like Test Track, and then split afte the dark ride portion with the first car waiting for the second?

[coasterfreak101]

It loads four cars at a time, similar to Test Track. They move out, and a CM is waiting to do the seatbelt check, also just like Test Track.

 

When Lightning and Sally direct you to Luigi's tire shop, every other car goes left/right. So there are two tire shop rooms, then the cars come together for the Sherriff's spiel and then line up and wait to race!

[Justice]

I'm fairly certain RSR has a significantly higher capacity due to loading 4 vehicles at a time (Test Track does only 3), separate loading and unloading, and the dual racing section. According to Al Lutz, its right under 2000 pph, and is almost identical to that of Indy.

[COASTER FREAK 11]

I got to ride Racers a lot over the weekend, and it a great ride! All the animatronics are so life-like and fluid! And the race portion is a blast too! Its not the fastest ride in the park, but it feels fast because you're flying by all the rocks and such. The bunny hops are fun, and the dive into the tunnel after the last turn is great!!

 

Mater's Junkyard Jamboree is a total surprise hit! Its doesn't look like much, but when you're on it, you really whip around! Its also a lot more fun if you have a friend to smash into haha.

 

Luigi's Flying tires is an odd ride. It is fun ride, but takes a bit of getting used to. Its best to have a few friends out on there with you in other tires. Also, the Italian Beach Balls add a lot of movement and fun to the ride. It also has a long ride cycle so you can take a quick moment to get the hang of flying your tire. Its a good fun ride, and most will enjoy it enough. In the end, I find it more fun to watch then actually ride.

 

The land as a whole is great, its really well thought out and the detail is really cool. It does remind me of the level of detail, thought and planning that went into Disney Sea and I really hope we see more of this in the future rides at all the Disney parks.

 

The food and shopping is great as well. There are so many unique items in the land. One of the most popular ones are the Luigi's Flying Tires hats! Its a nice white wall tire...that you put on your head!

 

I did not experience any of the entertainment in the land so I cant speak to that, but it looks like it will be pretty good.

 

The whole thing is a solid A, and I cant wait to go back and hang out there!

 

 

Also over the weekend, I got to visit Buena vista St. and eat at the new Carthay Circle theater. Buena Vista is really great! All the stores are theme appropriately for their store fronts and remind me of a 1920' LA. They did a great job here with making all real. Also, on the west side of the street they added a lot more retail space that was previously taken up by the stroller rental area. And both sides connect all the way through like the Mains St. stored do. The whole new entrance is so well themed, and so drastically altered that its hard to even remember the old entrance.

 

After walking down Buena Vista, we went to the Carthay Circle Theater for dinner. This is the most fantastic food location on property, with its amazing food from Chef Andrew Sutton of Napa Rose and its immaculate interior. The lobby and public lounge have a great atmosphere and set up. There are 4 dining rooms and two patios with seating, also three smaller semi-private rooms.

 

The food there is great, and personally I think it is better then Club 33. Last night, Chef Andrew Sutton described the menu as "Crisp, fruity, and light. And describes a more Southern California style cuisine, compared to Napa Roes which is a more Northern California cuisine." I got to try 5 appetizers, 5 entrees, and 2 desserts and there was nothing I didn't like. Its was all great flavors and the portions are perfect. Here are some of the thing we ate:

 

The Menu.

Firecracker Duck wings.

Organic Strawberry Mango Salad

Crispy Gorditas

Grilled Jamaican Jerked King Fish with a tropical salsa of pineapple, mango, black beans and lime.

Grilled Angus Filet with Sautéed mushrooms, Gremolata of red flame grapes, blue cheese, red onion, and Parsley.

Bacon Wrapped Shrimp on summer roasted corn, grilled zucchini, and basil salsa.

 

Overall, the expansion of Disney California Adventure will be a massive success and I cant wait to be able to enjoy all they have done again.

[COASTER FREAK 11]

It loads four cars at a time, similar to Test Track. They move out, and a CM is waiting to do the seatbelt check, also just like Test Track.

 

When Lightning and Sally direct you to Luigi's tire shop, every other car goes left/right. So there are two tire shop rooms, then the cars come together for the Sherriff's spiel and then line up and wait to race!

 

The split offers two different experiences: Left is Luigi giving you new tires and right is Ramon giving you a new paint job. The Ramon is really funny with Flo in there too being all sassy, haha.

[Double0Kevin]

^ And it looked like Doc Hudson that gives the pre-race spiel/advice, not the sheriff, is that right?

[COASTER FREAK 11]

Correct. You see the sheriff behind the "Welcome to Radiator Springs" sign toward the beginning of the ride. Doc is on the lift before the race and then he is on the radio the entire race acting as your crew chief.

[coasterfreak101]

^^^Oh, okay! Shouldn't have offered up my thoughts just based off a video!

 

^^I knew when I hit the submit button that he wasn't the sherriff, but I just couldn't think of his name! So yeah, that guy.

[COASTER FREAK 11]

Haha, its ok. I went through luigi's mostly.