Soarin'
| Soarin' Over California | |
|---|---|
| File:Soarin CA.jpg | |
| Ride statistics | |
| Attraction type | IMAX type hang glider simulation |
| Designer | Walt Disney Imagineering, Mark Sumner |
| Music | Official Album 2001 |
| Duration | 4:41 |
| Capacity | 87 guests per show |
| Screen height | 80 ft |
| Film speed | 48 frames per second |
 Single rider line 1 | |
 Must transfer from wheelchair | |
| Soarin' | |
|---|---|
| File:Soarin.jpg | |
| Ride statistics | |
| Previous attractions | Kitchen Kabaret (1982-1994) Food Rocks (1994-2004) |
| Must transfer from wheelchair | |
Soarin' Over California is a simulator attraction at Disney's California Adventure Park, part of the Disneyland Resort. The same attraction was built four years later at Epcot, part of the Walt Disney World Resort, as Soarin'.
Description
The attraction takes 87 guests at a time on a simulated hang glider tour of the Golden State, flying over San Francisco, Redwood Creek, Napa Valley, Monterey, Lake Tahoe, Yosemite National Park, Palm Springs (actually shot in nearby La Quinta over the golf course at PGA West), Camarillo, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, San Diego, Malibu and Los Angeles. The ride ends with a flight over Disneyland at Christmas, with a Christmas parade traveling down Main Street, U.S.A., decorations on Sleeping Beauty Castle, and fireworks.
Concept
The original idea for Soarin' Over California (which was originally to be called Ultra Flight--which is the name inscribed on the Tower Consoles at DCA) was conceptualized in 1996. It was to feature an OMNIMAX screen with an inverted track allowing guests to fly over California's landmarks. The attraction would have three load levels and the system would operate on a horizontal cable, much like a dry cleaner's rack. This plan was canned, however, when it was determined that the construction and labor costs for that design would be astronomical. It seemed that Soarin' wouldn't become a reality until Imagineer Mark Sumner came up with an idea using an erector set and string. This design would allow for efficiency and the ability to load on only one level, thus cutting construction and labor costs greatly. The engineering design, with the motors and use of cable, is very similar to The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.
Ride design
The vehicle consists of three rows of seats under a wing-like canopy. After guests have been safely restrained in the vehicle (using standard lap seat belts), the canopy descends and a cantilever system lifts the chairs forward and into the air with the guests' feet dangling free. The vehicle is lifted forward so that guests look into a large, concave movie screen onto which scenes of California are projected. Since the vehicle is moved forward into the dome, the effect is such that guests can only see the images projected on the screen and are given the sensation of flight. The attraction features two theaters, each with three carriages.
To enhance the illusion of flight, subtle vertical movements of the seats are synchronized to the film. According to cast members who operate this attraction, the carriages do not move horizontally. Sensations of horizontal motion are created using a combination of vertical carriage movement and then turning image on the screen. In addition, scents complementing the various scenes are injected into the air streams blowing on riders. In the Ventura orange field scene, for example, guests are treated to the scent of orange blossoms. The mountain scenes are accompanied by the aroma of evergreens. The Monterey and Malibu scenes have the scent of a sea breeze while the Palm Springs and Anza-Borrego scenes feature the fragrance of sagebrush. The ride also features golfing, snow skiing, river rafting, kayaking, horseback riding, hot air ballooning, and the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds.
The ride system is a Walt Disney Imagineering-developed motion-based technology, based on a conceptual Erector Set model created by Imagineer Mark Sumner. One million pounds of steel provide the ride structure and 37 tons are lifted during each ride cycle.
The scenes were shot with an IMAX HD frame rate (48 frames per second, double conventional output for regular films) and projected onto an OMNIMAX style screen.
Versions
Disney's California Adventure
Soarin' Over California is one of the most visited attractions at the entire Disneyland Resort (facing tough competition from fan favorites over at Disneyland) and usually has wait times from 30-150 minutes. However, the attraction is tied into the park's FASTPASS system, thus giving the option of bypassing a long wait. The actual show is four minutes and fifty-one seconds long.[citation needed]
Queue
While waiting in line, guests have the opportunity to visit the Wings of Fame, an homage to aircraft giving significant contributions to the Aviation Industry of California. Such planes included in the Wings of Fame are the P-51 Mustang, SR-71 Blackbird, and the Bell X-1. Further passing the Wings of Fame is a small section dedicated to inividuals who have also contributed significantly to the Aviation industry of California such as Amelia Earhart, Jack Northrop, The Wright Brothers, and Chuck Yeager. With each acknowledgement of their contribution is a small informative background of each aircraft or individual.
Preshow
Before being boarded into the hangar, guests are placed in one of three preshow areas, thematically named "Alpha Gate", "Bravo Gate", or "Charlie Gate." While waiting in this area, guests have the opportunity to interact with Cast Members. Just before boarding, guests watch a pre-boarding video hosted by their chief flight attendant, Patrick, portrayed by actor Patrick Warburton.
Epcot
Soarin' officially opened inside The Land pavilion on May 5, 2005.
The Epcot cast member costumes resemble flight attendant costumes, while the Disney's California Adventure versions are airfield crew costumes. The idea is that you take a flight to California, rather than already being there and touring.
Queue
The Epcot standby queue originally featured pictures of natural wonders from around the world, not just California. There was, and still is, very little reference to the fact that the ride takes you only to California. The queue currently utilizes a new infrared technology that allows guests to participate in interactive games. Your childrens hights will get checked 2 diffrent times before boarding.
Soundtrack
Outside the ride building at the California Adventure version and in the queue hallways in both versions, inspirational music from a variety of films, many of them war- or flight-themed, is played, including Patton, MacArthur, Air Force One, The Blue Max (all by Jerry Goldsmith), Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story (by Randy Edelman), The Last Starfighter (by Craig Safan), Apollo 13 and The Rocketeer (both by James Horner), Always (by John Williams) and the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers (by Michael Kamen). The Air Force Song and Jupiter from Gustav Holst's orchestral suite The Planets are also included, based on their use in The Right Stuff. In the California Adventure version of the attraction, the "History of Aviation in California" hallway of the queue is supplemented with the score to many different films.
The score for both versions of the ride is the same and was composed by Jerry Goldsmith, who is said to have come down from his first ride in tears. In addition to finding the ride visually beautiful and magical, he said that his father was a pilot who loved all things Californian. I'd do anything to be part of this project, Goldsmith said. I'd even score the film for free. The ride's score can be found on Music from Disney's California Adventure and the newer Walt Disney World official albums, and is also played as part of a loop in the Disneyland Resort's and Epcot's entrance plazas.
References
- "Amusement Apparatus and Method - Patent #6,354,954". US Patent & Trademark Office. Retrieved June 3.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - Mechanism to lift riders into dome and simulate flight. - "Apparatus and method for curved screen projection - Patent #6,727,971". US Patent & Trademark Office. Retrieved November 16.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - System to project into dome while maintaining illusion of being at the same point of view as the camera. - "Soarin'". WDWHistory.com. Retrieved April 10.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - "Soarin'". IMDB.com. Retrieved April 10.
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- Soarin' Over California Attraction Operating Guide
See also
External links
| World Celebration |  | |
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| World Discovery | ||
| World Nature | ||
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