Walt Disney World Epcot Discussion Thread

Sounds awesome. I wish Japan had that much Sake variety.

This sounds awesome! Tequila is yummy! Hopefully I would walk that off just in time to down a Grey Goose slushie!

editz: They should finally build a Russia pavilion so they can do one of these with vodka.

QFT

While we're at it, bourbon fest in America please.. and how about some Canadian whiskey and real good German beer

It's right next to Test Track... this is going to be fun.

While we're at it, bourbon fest in America please.. and how about some Canadian whiskey and real good German beer

How about just some good beer.....anywhere in Epcot!

Unibroue in Canada is generally good enough for me. I LOVE La Fin du Monde

It's about time, now I can finally enjoy a real margarita instead of those weak, frozen ones.

This is going to make starting in Mexico while drinking around the world a lot more difficult.

^ Difficult? You can't even make it half way around now!

^Let the record show that we (myself and the two Aussie Assholes) did in fact make it all the way around the world.

But now that I have to trade the margarita for a shot of Tequila...

^ I do remember you making it all the way around, but you were pretty freakin blitzed by the U.S. stop!

I'll definitely be checking this out on my next stop to Epcot! The only question left is...will there be worms?

^Let the record show that we (myself and the two Aussie Assholes) did in fact make it all the way around the world.

Let the record show, this is the first time Joey has ever made it "all the way" in anything.

I'll definitely be checking this out on my next stop to Epcot! The only question left is...will there be worms?

I hope not, there's not supposed to be worms in any tequilla, ever!

^ the worm goes with the Mezcal (wich is another kind of alcohol) not with the Tequila.

Ok so here I go with my inside info.

As you probably remember I used to work for the San Angel Inn restaurant (wich is the one inside the pavillion, and the owners of the Cantina, and all the food services on the Coronado resort).

Well I arrived to work there on June 07 and we started to get the rumors about the renovation around august.

Then around November 07 myself and another 3 friends got asked if we wanted to do some extra hours helping them in a presentation at Coronado´s Rix Lounge. We said yes and we went there. To our surprise the presentation was about the renovation. Jim Mcphe (former Epcots vicepresident) was there, and a lot of Imaginers and disney people.

So we got to se the blue prints for the new cantina. The cantina was going to be demolish and a bigger new was was going to extended into the lagoon. It was going to cover that little pebble beach thats now there. It was going to be an open kitchen quick service restaurant, with huge windows for indoor viewing of Illuminations.

The San Angel Inn was going to be taken to a gourmet level. With more elaborated food.

Now the Tequila bar was also in the plans. Its going to be decorated as an old Tequila factory, with the tequila barrels, leather furniture, and Tequila experts to show you all about that drink.

Those where the original plans. I now know that the Cantina renovation got cancelled, I presume bad economy, maybe in the future.

I wish all the plans can be realized cause its going to give the pavillion a new and fresh look to it.

If you have any questions ill be glad to respond

Joel

^ Awesome! Thanks for the info, Joel. I'm anxious to see how it all turns out. I really love the idea of expanding the Cantina as per the original plans. Maybe one day soon.

I can almost taste that tequila now!

Heres a pic of me and some friends at work.

Faride, Erika and Joel

Thought this article about Disney's new attraction that opens wednesday and their answer to Robo Coasters (more or less) would be a good read.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/10/14/disney.math.ride/index.html

*Note how the writer calls Toy Story Mania a roller coaster.

Happy browsing!

Disney debuts do-it-yourself thrill ride

updated 11:35 a.m. EDT, Wed October 14, 2009

By John D. Sutter CNN

(CNN) -- Any kid can dream up a roller coaster. But those who visit a new exhibit at Walt Disney World's Epcot theme park can actually take a ride on their fantasy creations.

Epcot on Wednesday opened a new attraction called "Sum of All Thrills," which lets kids use computer tablets to design a virtual roller coaster, bobsled track or plane ride. After inputting their designs, kids climb into a robotic carriage that uses virtual-reality technology to help them experience the ride they've created.

"This is really the next generation -- where there's a lot more personalization involved" in the amusement-park experience, said Eric Goodman, Disney's lead project manager on the ride.

This make-your-own-ride approach appears to be a growing trend in the world of amusement parks and museums. Taking cues from the video game industry, park and ride designers have realized that people -- especially young ones -- want to interact with and even design their own thrill rides.

In addition to the new Epcot ride in Orlando, Florida, two Disney theme parks feature a ride called "Toy Story Mania," which lets riders shoot at targets as they roll down the track and, in doing so, shape their own ride experience. Another Disney attraction, CyberSpace Mountain, caters to adults and kids by letting them customize their own virtual ride from a menu of drops, loops and other features.

Universal Studios in Florida opened a roller coaster in August called the "Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit," which lets people create their own personal musical soundtrack for their ride.

Don't Miss

Internet addiction linked to ADHD, depression in teens

Sexy architecture alive and well in Middle East

Interactive rides are in the "baby stages" so far, since roller coasters and theme-park attractions are so expensive to build, but interaction and personalization promise to be running themes in the industry, said Bob McTyre, president of Apogee Attractions, which has has helped design rides for Disney, Universal Studios and others.

McTyre was not involved in the new ride at Epcot.

He said theme park designers frequently bring up ideas such as roller coasters with three possible endings, allowing riders to choose which path to take.

But those big ideas quickly hit a roadblock: the high costs of implementing such a project, he said.

Shawn McCoy, vice-president of marketing and business development at Jack Rouse Associates, another amusement-park design firm, said this desire for interactivity in amusement parks takes its cues from video games.

"There's also a definite need to compete with video games or the gaming industry -- where [players] have control over all of the elements, from the environment to the players' movement," he said, noting that museums and zoos also are taking notice of the trend.

The "Sum of All Thrills" ride at Epcot employs a robotic arm -- more commonly seen assembling cars at an auto plant -- to let kids experience their roller coaster creations.

Sitting in a carriage with their legs and arms outside the ride, kids watch a video version of their ride while the arm moves them from side to side and up and down to simulate the feeling of a real roller coaster. Fans blow air at the riders at various speeds to give people the sensation that they're moving forward.

Goodman, the Disney designer, said the robotic arm and carriage come "pretty darn close" to replicating the real roller coaster experience.

Kids design their experience on touch-screen computers, using a digital ruler and pre-selected track options to construct their rides. If a person tries to build something physically impossible -- a hill that's too steep for the cars to climb, for example -- then they're asked to retool their ideas.

Disney hopes the interactive nature of the Epcot ride also helps kids learn that math and science can be fun.

"I think it's really empowering for the kids to realize that the math doesn't control them. They get to control the math," Goodman said.

The Raytheon Company, a maker of weapons and defense systems, said it sponsored the exhibit as a way to get middle-school aged kids more interested in careers in math and engineering.

Nice coincidence for TPR to be visiting on opening day.

Rmeinds me of this EPCOT classic:

They are going retro on us, with a new millenium twist!

^Wow! I'm ashamed to have forgotten that. Good call!

^ Ditto on the "Wow." I hadn't forgotten about it, but couldn't find a picture of it for the life of me. Matt, my Epcot brother, thank you for posting that.

The old design process looks like the love child of one of those WTF Arrow loopers and a jet coaster.

Could you ride the old attraction as well, or was it just a design process? (Either way, seems impressive for the 80's.)

^ Dan, the old program was very limited. I believe there might have only been two different tracks that program allowed you to build, all along the way that little beaver lisped his way through the process, telling you, "Hey! That's sssshweell!"

Once you completed it, the program let you watch a first person view of the ride, complete with people screaming. It was very basic, but addicting.

^ I don't recall there being too many track choices or anything. It was pretty basic stuff, and once completed, you just stood in front of the monitor and watched a POV of your creation. Still, definitely ahead of its time for certain.

EDIT: Jeesh, I need to get quicker on the draw.