Fallen Branch Aftermath - Safety Nets Installed

[Clive]

What exactly are we looking at in that picture?

 

[Andy]

Beneath the Yeti's hangout, taken in 2011. :thumbs:

 

[Dr. Emmett Brown]

Speaking of the Yeti

The ghastly Himalayan primate was the next stop on our tour, and seeing the beast up close with the lights on was worth the price of admission (the price was $0.00, not to demean to tour, just to be funny). The thing was massive, its face horrifying, even in a well lit environment. They explained to us how the fur weighs a ton, is made of up actual animal fur, and can be completely removed to expose the audioanimatronic skeleton. We also learned that the attraction itself cost $90 million, and the Yeti alone was $20 million. And it hasn’t been fully operational since 2009. The sweeping motion it executed every time a train went by was too much for its foundation, causing so much force it was tearing its roots out of the ground. To fix the beast, they would have to shut down the attraction. To shut down to attraction would mean a loss of five to eight thousand guests in the park a day, and they do not want that.

I feel like removing an animatronic of that size would only take a few days and could be done during an off-peak season, and placing it back in the attraction could also take a few days during an off-peak season. Yeah, you'd have no Yeti for a while on the most popular attraction at DAK, but you'd get him back for a while once him, and the foundation, are fixed.

 

[Teebin]

Where did the picture and text above come from? Who took it and who wrote it? The facts sound grossly over-hyped.

 

[Andy]

It came from a blog written by a UCF student in Disney's College program. The students were given a behind the scenes tour of EE. Give a me a few and I will find the original post.

 

[Teebin]

It came from a blog written by a UCF student in Disney's College program. The students were given a behind the scenes tour of EE. Give a me a few and I will find the original post.

No prob. Found it.
http://mainstmonitor.blogspot.com/2011/06/going-behind-scenes-at-expedition.html

 

[Andy]

^ Thoughts...

 

[ReelJustice]

No way they built everything on a Rhode/WDI project for $70m.

 

[Teebin]

^ Thoughts...

If Disney in truth paid 20 million for that giant stuffed toy you get to see for 2 seconds (if you notice it at all, many new riders do not), then Disney imagineering has become the worst bang-for-the-buck design/execution team in the world. There has to be a miscommunication here.

 

[Splatter]

If Disney in truth paid 20 million for that giant stuffed toy you get to see for 2 seconds (if you notice it at all, many new riders do not), then Disney imagineering has become the worst bang-for-the-buck design/execution team in the world. There has to be a miscommunication here.

Well said but it is only a giant overstuffed today because of them not funding to fix it. The current lighting is the reason you only can get a glimpse of it for a brief moment of time. When the set was fully lit and functional it was rather freaky coming up to the swatting giant beast. It was not a dim strobe light. It was fully seen and seemingly ready to swipe your train off the tracks.

 

[Teebin]

Well said but it is only a giant overstuffed today because of them not funding to fix it. The current lighting is the reason you only can get a glimpse of it for a brief moment of time. When the set was fully lit and functional it was rather freaky coming up to the swatting giant beast. It was not a dim strobe light. It was fully seen and seemingly ready to swipe your train off the tracks.

I have only ridden it with it functioning fully back in 2005-2006. I have never seen a b or c mode. And I rode it many many times when it was functioning. A major percent of people didn't see the thing as I asked them what they thought or overheard people asking if the yeti shadow was all there was. I promise you that some people that had little idea what to expect ever saw the thing when it was fully operational. They were "what?, where?" at the unload.

 

[Dr. Emmett Brown]

I have only ridden it with it functioning fully back in 2005-2006. I have never seen a b or c mode. And I rode it many many times when it was functioning. A major percent of people didn't see the thing as I asked them what they thought or overheard people asking if the yeti shadow was all there was. I promise you that some people that had little idea what to expect ever saw the thing when it was fully operational. They were "what?, where?" at the unload.

Disco Yeti is B mode, correct? Then what is C mode?

 

[Splatter]

Now would be a great time to shut that area down. Maintain and fix this issue and take the opportunity to also work on Its Tough to Be a Bug so it can have a proper refurbishment.

 

[Teebin]

Disco Yeti is B mode, correct? Then what is C mode?

It has been so long, but I believe B mode was slight movement and C is strobe. I think this is correct.

Update... I did see the Yeti in C mode once. It was my last visit and shortly after that I let my AP expire. Coincidence? :wave:

 

[Dr. Emmett Brown]

Now would be a great time to shut that area down. Maintain and fix this issue and take the opportunity to also work on Its Tough to Be a Bug so it can have a proper refurbishment.

Bug actually had a decent refurb last September. Got all the animatronics working again (finally).

 

[Splatter]

Bug actually had a decent refurb last September. Got all the animatronics working again (finally).

Decent is an interesting word. It was a quick fix and Hopper is sitll down far too often than he should be for reasonable 101s. Also they could of easily upgraded the film projection and Hopper to Disneyland's standards. If they HAVE to do so much work on the area, now would be a great time to refurbish it all anyway.

 

[Disneyhead]

Here is a pretty detailed explanation of the Yeti's problem (From MiceChat):

"Multiple sources have confirmed that Disney's Imagineers have a VERY serious problem on their hands regarding the infamous "Disco Yeti". Expedition Everest enthusiasts have known for some time that the complex animatronic has been parked in B-Mode and Disney does not appear to be in any hurry to return the figure into its fully functional state. The concrete and steel foundation supporting the Yeti may be cracked and the repairs required will result a prolonged closure of the attraction.

If waiting until a scheduled refurbishment to repair the Yeti's foundation were the only obstacle facing Disney, then Expedition Everest fans' impatience would be tempered with the knowledge that the Yeti will eventually be fixed. But the real obstacle may be insurmountable.

You see, the Imagineers designed Expedition Everest as three separate and independent structures. First, the mountain itself. Second, the roller coaster track and track supports. Third, the foundation, support beams, and animatronic skeleton of the Yeti itself. Construction of all three structures was so complex that Disney had to rely upon a 4D software modeling program known as ConstructSim (a product of Bentley Systems, Inc) to help them coordinate the complex construction timeframe and coordination schedules.

There are rumors that a serious mistake in the application of ConstructSim resulted in improper staging of the Yeti foundation and support structure construction. The error in sequencing prevented adequate curing of a portion of the Yeti's foundation prior to the overlapping fabrication of mountain elements and roller coaster track. The premature construction produced additional stresses on the animatronic figure's foundation and produced excessive stress points. The mountain and roller coaster track construction, in turn, prevented the foundation from being visible to construction inspectors.

Expedition Everest was too complex in its design to allow construction without a 4D software like ConstructSim. Conversely, repair work on the Yeti's base will require selective removal of parts of the mountain structure and ride track structure. This refurbishment will also require extensive software previsualization. Disney's Imagineers must figure out what went wrong in the original construction previsualization before they can trust any future refurbishment previsualization.

A construction defect this critical in a project this complex can be a very daunting task for any organization to overcome -- even a group as talented as the Disney Imagineers. The question is -- will the Disney Corporate Bean Counters allow the Imagineers to fix the problem, or will they decide that "Disco Yeti" is "good enough"?"

http://micechat.com/forums/walt-dis...n-yeti-expedition-everest-mystery-solved.html

 

[Dr. Emmett Brown]

Decent is an interesting word. It was a quick fix and Hopper is sitll down far too often than he should be for reasonable 101s. Also they could of easily upgraded the film projection and Hopper to Disneyland's standards. If they HAVE to do so much work on the area, now would be a great time to refurbish it all anyway.

Now really isn't the best time, considering peak season starts this week. Doing a massive refurb in late August/September would be preferred.

 

[TheDecemberists]

Here is a pretty detailed explanation of the Yeti's problem (From MiceChat):

****

this makes me a sad panda

 

[Andy]

Here is a pretty detailed explanation of the Yeti's problem (From MiceChat):

"Multiple sources have confirmed that Disney's Imagineers have a VERY serious problem on their hands regarding the infamous "Disco Yeti". Expedition Everest enthusiasts have known for some time that the complex animatronic has been parked in B-Mode and Disney does not appear to be in any hurry to return the figure into its fully functional state. The concrete and steel foundation supporting the Yeti may be cracked and the repairs required will result a prolonged closure of the attraction.

If waiting until a scheduled refurbishment to repair the Yeti's foundation were the only obstacle facing Disney, then Expedition Everest fans' impatience would be tempered with the knowledge that the Yeti will eventually be fixed. But the real obstacle may be insurmountable.

You see, the Imagineers designed Expedition Everest as three separate and independent structures. First, the mountain itself. Second, the roller coaster track and track supports. Third, the foundation, support beams, and animatronic skeleton of the Yeti itself. Construction of all three structures was so complex that Disney had to rely upon a 4D software modeling program known as ConstructSim (a product of Bentley Systems, Inc) to help them coordinate the complex construction timeframe and coordination schedules.

There are rumors that a serious mistake in the application of ConstructSim resulted in improper staging of the Yeti foundation and support structure construction. The error in sequencing prevented adequate curing of a portion of the Yeti's foundation prior to the overlapping fabrication of mountain elements and roller coaster track. The premature construction produced additional stresses on the animatronic figure's foundation and produced excessive stress points. The mountain and roller coaster track construction, in turn, prevented the foundation from being visible to construction inspectors.

Expedition Everest was too complex in its design to allow construction without a 4D software like ConstructSim. Conversely, repair work on the Yeti's base will require selective removal of parts of the mountain structure and ride track structure. This refurbishment will also require extensive software previsualization. Disney's Imagineers must figure out what went wrong in the original construction previsualization before they can trust any future refurbishment previsualization.

A construction defect this critical in a project this complex can be a very daunting task for any organization to overcome -- even a group as talented as the Disney Imagineers. The question is -- will the Disney Corporate Bean Counters allow the Imagineers to fix the problem, or will they decide that "Disco Yeti" is "good enough"?"

http://micechat.com/forums/walt-dis...n-yeti-expedition-everest-mystery-solved.html

I feel smarter after reading that :mickey2: I still hope that one day it will be fixed.