Soarin' closed indefinitely

[elizabethswann]

Whew, that's a relief that the problem got sorted. I would have been real upset if it was down here in DCA. Dumb people...

[Len90]

Soarin' had the blinking lights above the carriage to detect seatbelt fastening AND there is a lot of supervision to ensure that each flight took off with no guests wandering about.

I do think that in the near future shoulder restraints or some sort of device that is pulled down from above will be incorporated.

[Amy]

Soarin' had the blinking lights above the carriage to detect seatbelt fastening AND there is a lot of supervision to ensure that each flight took off with no guests wandering about.

I do think that in the near future shoulder restraints or some sort of device that is pulled down from above will be incorporated.

Yes, they have to protect the stupid from themselves and others in some fashion...

[cousininmiami]

Actually what I noticed a couple weeks ago when I was there, the screen looked like it was in need of cleaning. Like there was a couple of globs of something that had been thrown on the screen? I also noticed that there was some kind of a string or dust or something on the lens of the movie that kept moving around. I think most people wouldn't notice it at all but being that I have seen Soarin' so many times, it was quite apparent to me.

I think this goes back to Disney needing to spend some money continuously on cleaning, repairing and refurbishing like I said in my thread about the disrepair that the Carousel of Progress. So maybe if they have to close Soarin' down for a few days to increase security, maybe they can clean the screen and lens too!

[Amy]

Actually what I noticed a couple weeks ago when I was there, the screen looked like it was in need of cleaning. Like there was a couple of globs of something that had been thrown on the screen? I also noticed that there was some kind of a string or dust or something on the lens of the movie that kept moving around. I think most people wouldn't notice it at all but being that I have seen Soarin' so many times, it was quite apparent to me.

I think this goes back to Disney needing to spend some money continuously on cleaning, repairing and refurbishing like I said in my thread about the disrepair that the Carousel of Progress. So maybe if they have to close Soarin' down for a few days to increase security, maybe they can clean the screen and lens too!

I noticed that comment on a few boards too. I don't know how hard it is to clean those IMAX-type screens, but it does seem like something that could be done at night by maintenance. The lens of the projector or film should be a fairly easy thing to clean too...

[Goofyfan]

What? Really? Was there an injury?? Was it at DL or WDW???
I hope they come up with a fix soon!!!
EDIT: Well I did a little investigation (aka Google searching) and it looks like a couple guests at the EPCOT Soarin' unfastened their seat belts and got out of their seats before the show started. They were standing on the side of the theater and a CM noticed them there, which led to the attraction being shut down.
The odd thing it that there is very little chatter on the various Disney boards about the incident.

You know...If that is true......It always takes some idiots to ruin something positive for all the others....It ticks me off when some people always try to find a way around the system.....I hope they were thrown out of the park for ruining probably thousands of honest well behaved guests enjoyment. guests spends a lot of money to go to Disney.

[Wizzard419]

How long was it actually closed for? It sounds like only part of a day.

[Jacca5660]

How long was it actually closed for? It sounds like only part of a day.

I think about 36 hours.

[Amy]

How long was it actually closed for? It sounds like only part of a day.

I think about 36 hours.

Definitely long enough so that some guests were probably unable to experience the attraction

.....It always takes some idiots to ruin something positive for all the others....It ticks me off when some people always try to find a way around the system.....I hope they were thrown out of the park for ruining probably thousands of honest well behaved guests enjoyment. guests spends a lot of money to go to Disney.

I've always thought the same thing. I was really mad when I first started reading about those two guys that were hopping on and off Horizons. I figured they were people trying to be malicious. But after I got into a little way, and saw that they were actually documenting the last few months of Horizons, plus they have some awesome backstage pictures and videos that they shared, I was kind of glad there are those out there willing to take a little risk. Little different in that situation where the attraction was at the end of it's life though...

[Soarin08]

Soarin' had the blinking lights above the carriage to detect seatbelt fastening AND there is a lot of supervision to ensure that each flight took off with no guests wandering about.

I do think that in the near future shoulder restraints or some sort of device that is pulled down from above will be incorporated.

I wouldn't be surprised if post-Test Track this ended up happening. I'd bet on it.

[Len90]

Soarin' had the blinking lights above the carriage to detect seatbelt fastening AND there is a lot of supervision to ensure that each flight took off with no guests wandering about.

I do think that in the near future shoulder restraints or some sort of device that is pulled down from above will be incorporated.

I wouldn't be surprised if post-Test Track this ended up happening. I'd bet on it.

It's the only logical progression Disney could take. Keep in mind the carriages go over the pit and are tiered so row 1 is going to be at least 40 maybe 45ft off the ground.

As for the maintenance... From what I understand Soarin' is not full digital so that is why you will see the dust. With the massive projection, one little speck can look like a huge piece. As for stuff on the screen, there is just no way to stop people from being stupid.

[Jacca5660]

Because of a life long friend who is a 23+ year maintenance tech at EPCOT, I know it's all about the cheep fix and they aren't gonna do anything with the programming. That would require a multi-million dollar loss!

[Wizzard419]

It might not even be a "fix" as much as a change in training for the workers to make sure they can't bypass it again.

[momeja]

It might not even be a "fix" as much as a change in training for the workers to make sure they can't bypass it again.

That's exactly what I thought after reading Stupid Guest Tricks. They just needed to train the staff to check each guest/seatbelt to ensure the guests have strapped their seatbelts around them and not under them.

[Wizzard419]

If I recall, that's partially why all seatbelted rides make you put your hands up at the inspection. It prevents someone from holding the slack on their belt (well one of the ways, other options are probably sitting on the slack and using a pen to jam the return on the belt.