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ParkHoppin’ with Paul Ruben
Where a million diamonds shine
Innovation is to be celebrated, to be cherished. That's why I was so pleased to revisit Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom to experience the crown jewel in the park's New Fantasyland, the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (see feature on page 40). Disney is a long-time leader in theme park innovations, and this attraction is no exception. Opening last month, it is packed with innovation. The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is a delight not to be missed. It takes guests on a rollicking, musical ride into the mine “where a million diamonds shine.” This family-style coaster features a first-of-its-kind ride system with a train of vehicles that playfully swing back and forth, responding to every twist and turn of the track. The journey is accompanied by music and animated figures from the classic Disney film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. As you can see in the photo, I got a front-seat ride during the media event preceding the official opening. That's Stephanie seated beside me, the escort assigned by Disney to keep me on schedule and out of trouble. Tough job, but she succeeded.
Innovation is found in the ride
system that was built by Vekoma and is reminiscent of the old Arrow suspended coaster that would swing side-to-side from a pivot point above the passengers' heads. Here, however, the cars pivot about a heart-line the length of the train. This is the world’s 50th variation in rollercoaster design. Details of the ride system are found in US Patent 20110319178 A1, filed by Derek Howard and assigned to Disney Enterprises. It describes a ride system that provides guest compartments with a roll degree of freedom through a pivoting connection. The compartment is attached to a track via a chassis. This is attached to the track so that the guest compartment rides substantially above the track but has a roll degree of freedom relative to the chassis. Before Vekoma could build the ride system, however, Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI) had to determine feasibility. Chris Beatty, senior creative director, told me they wanted "to make the quintessential family thrill ride. To develop the ride system, the swinging buckets, we first built a plywood box that could swing, mounted it in the back of a pickup truck, sat in the box, and drove around the WDI parking lot in Glendale, California. Doing this convinced us the ride would work." Big guys riding in a plywood box in a pickup truck? That's innovation? Because of this degree of freedom, g-forces throughout the ride are directed down, through the seat of your pants. It makes for a very, very comfortable ride. But that's not all. Inside the mine, the animated characters, including the dwarfs, Snow White and forest animals, appear more lifelike than earlier animatronics.
The only problem with all this innovation is that Disney owns the patent and is unlikely to licence others to build similar coasters. This means I'll just have to return to the Magic Kingdom to enjoy it, or go to Shanghai Disneyland where a similar ride will open next December.
6
Water World
Ocean Park reveals waterpark plans
The Tai Shue Wan area of Ocean Park, which was closed to guests as part the Hong Kong park’s Master Redevelopment Plan in 2011, is to get a new lease of life by giving birth to a state-of-the-art HK$2.29 billion (US$300m/€220m) indoor/outdoor waterpark.
Operating year round as a “second gate” to the main park, Water World is expected to host up to 10,500 daily guests (or an instantaneous capacity of approximately 7,000). It will open daily from 9am until 11pm and is expected to extend non-local’s time at Ocean Park by up to three-quarters of a day, thereby driving repeat attendance at what is currently China’s busiest theme/amusement park. Set to open in 2017, it will be Hong Kong’s only waterpark, save for a few smaller aquatic facilities.
Intended to become a “must see” destination, the 440,000 square feet facility will span a series of platforms that take advantage of natural hillside topography overlooking Aberdeen Harbour. Double the size of Ocean Park’s fondly-remembered former waterpark, it will be a lot more contemporary in format. A total of 25 attractions will be spread across the indoor and outdoor areas, including the world’s longest lazy river, two wave pools, waterslides, interactive play structures, a surf-rider, infinity pool, spa pools, sea turtle exhibit, flamingo pond and food and beverage facilities. Attraction suppliers have yet to be been selected.
A world away from some of the attractions found elsewhere in Ocean Park, the waterpark’s structure will blend in with the natural environment, preserving the landscape within the Brick Hill valley. The orientation of the translucent- roofed building has been positioned predominantly to face south-west in order to benefit from maximum daylight and offer waterpark guests breathtaking views towards the bay. Formerly known as the Middle Kingdom, the area previously featured an aviary and other bird exhibits, together with a restaurant and entry/exit building that has since superseded by a new entrance plaza at Wong Chuk Hang. Also planned as part of the Tai Shue Wan redevelopment are the Fisherman’s Wharf Hotel and Spa Hotel in addition to new retail, dining and other associated facilities, but first the Ocean Hotel will be developed by Capital Court Limited close to the main entrance of the park. The 495-room property will managed by Marriott International and welcome its first guests as from 2017– just in time for them to check out the waterpark. Between then and now Ocean Park plans to add around 30 new attractions. Opening this summer, Shark Mystique will enable guests to learn
The bold plans call for a multi-level indoor/outdoor waterpark taking advantage of the natural hillside
JUNE 2014
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