Ride Discussion: Test Track.

[tloolgb]

I'm torn on Test Track.
On one hand, I see that it is a very popular attraction. As someone said, the thrill for those afraid of circles heights and actual thrills. It suceeds. It always has a line, and buisness wise, once it got open, it is a strong attraction for EPCOT, everyone can ride it, and it is enjoyable to 99% of the world.

But then there is the fan sense.
I mean the queue is great, it has a lot to see, which is nice (especially once EPCOT's management realized that keeping standby outside and letting FP run through the queue inside was stupid). You can always see something cool in the queue.
The ride itself is fun too. I mean going 60 mph in a convertable around nice banked turns when you don't have to do anything is fun. The scenes inside are interesting too. You don't just go for thrill, you see scenes first.
But on that same line, you really only care about the thrill on TT because there is nothing to learn in the scenes beforehand, so it takes forever to get to and then it is too short.
I think Test Track's biggest problem is it has no magic. There are few sounds you could hear outside EPCOT and think "TEST TRACK!". There is no good music. There are no scenes that you long to go back and see.
It's like LMAX. It can be a hassle to go see, and it's fun but not great.

I don't hate it, but I don't think I love it. I have not ridden it since last summer though I have been in EPCOT 3 times since then. When I go for long trips I make sure to FP it on my way to Mission:Space in the morning, but now once is enough.
It's there, I ride it, I don't long to ride it though and I don't miss it if I skip it.

[Bmxmom]

My daughter and I took our first trip to WDW about 3 weeks ago, and Test Track was one of the rides we were most excited about. We got a fastpass and then got in the regular line to experience the whole queue. I have to say the line was much more interesting than the ride. I was totally disappointed as the ride didn't seem fast or thrilling or interesting at all. The tests were all so dull, the bumpy part was barely even noticeable, the braking test was totally boring, the heat and cold tests were completely predictable and the speed tests just felt like there was no real speed involved. I told myself that once we got outside, the ride would really get going, but boy was I mistaken!! The only reason we even went back for the fastpass ride was because my daughter liked it a little more than I did, and wanted to try it again. If it had been up to me we would have skipped the second ride! What a disappointment...it was the only thing on our whole trip that didn't live up to our expectations!

[keith - SuPeR K!]

I was totally disappointed as the ride didn't seem fast or thrilling ... and the speed tests just felt like there was no real speed involved. I told myself that once we got outside, the ride would really get going, but boy was I mistaken!! ...it was the only thing on our whole trip that didn't live up to our expectations!

+1

the concept is neat, but there really is no thrill to this attraction which so many people claim to be *thrilling* - it's like OMG we're in a car going not even as fast as we did driving into WDW!!!111 THRILL! ...not

i guess i would have liked it better if i didn't read so much praise about it being an awesome, thrilling ride before i rode... i was expecting the outdoor part to be much more exhilarating...

with all that said, i still like this attraction and the concept of going through a test facility and seeing all the things they do... i would definately ride it again and will probably enjoy it much more since i know what to expect this time...

[kcnole]

It may be good that it's been broken the few times I've been. It was so hyped up on all the literature I'd gotten that it was The single one biggest attraction I was excited about. I was so disapointed to find it was broken, I may have been even more disapointed had it been working. lol Who knows.

[MickeyMania]

WOM stuff

I can see why World of Motion went. While I appreciate the old look of the exterior, it's pretty much the same ride as elsewhere through the park. The story it tells is also very car oriented with little busses, trains, or airplanes to get in the way of the GM advertising. It is also essentially the same ride experience as SSE, Horizons, and the original JII.

To be honest, I watched Martin's old home video tribute for it, and I feel asleep some way through in front of my computer, when I woke up, I thought I was watching the original version of Spaceship Earth.

[TheManator]

Am I the ONLY one that loves this ride?
From the loud banging of the quere, to the sound proof room. To the pre-show, to the loading queue, to the hot lamps, the cooler, the mist, the thermograph, the bumps, the neat flourecent lighting, the speedup, the fake wall that opens to the outside. I love it.

I rode this ride during it's soft opening, and I will always ride it. Hell, I even have about 10 pics of me on the ride.

I love it.

[pyrateslife4me84]

Am I the ONLY one that loves this ride?
From the loud banging of the quere, to the sound proof room. To the pre-show, to the loading queue, to the hot lamps, the cooler, the mist, the thermograph, the bumps, the neat flourecent lighting, the speedup, the fake wall that opens to the outside. I love it.

I rode this ride during it's soft opening, and I will always ride it. Hell, I even have about 10 pics of me on the ride.

I love it.

I love it...but only when I don't wait two hours to ride. At least the indoor queue has A/C and eye candy...when the eye candy is working. I think it's a cool ride but the outside loop should be at a faster speed, as originally planned. Get those cars up to 90 mph and you'll have a thrill ride!

[MickeyMania]

As to the connection to NASCAR, that is the MOST popular and growing sport in the country. To call its fans trailer trash, is showing a lot of ignorance to the market place. It is simply the HOTTEST sport out there, growing faster than baseball, football, basketball, and hockey combined. There must be a lot of common people out there who love it.

GM makes cars. Cars run at NASCAR. Connecting GM to NASCAR would only improve people's opinion of GM cars. I don't believe that riding as a test dummy improves people's opinion of GM's cars.

To be kind about it, NASCAR is something you either get or you don't. You either think it's a sport or it's a bunch of guys going real fast in left turns. I live in a big NASCAR town because the track is the only real full-sized sports venue we have. But not everybody is a fan.

The people who aren't fans, won't care for it. The people who are fans know the cars go over 200MPH and Test Track doesn't. Furthermore, WDW has that Driving Experience thing at the track south of the Polynesian.

[MickeyMania]

The tests were all so dull, the bumpy part was barely even noticeable, the braking test was totally boring, the heat and cold tests were completely predictable

I totally agree. I expect the bumpy part to knock me out of my vehicle, the braking test to send me into a faux tree, and the heat and cold tests to be reversed so that I'm freezing under the hot lamps and melting in the freezer. Now that's not predictable!

Also, Spaceship Earth needs to re-theme. From the outside "show" it looks like you're going into a ride about the history of communication, but then you get inside and it turns out you're on a ride about the history of communication. Boring! Predictable! I believe they should mix it up and put out signs talking about a slow ride through human history while inside is a rollercoaster with a loop that acutally follows the inside walls of the sphere.

[fundesign]

Ah, please re-read the quote... lol

fundesign, no hard feelings, but this is pretty poorly written. I felt it was just perfect to make fun of!

BTW, welcome to MiceChat. I'm Bill, the crazy one here. Though everyone says I know everything, so if you have any questions about yourself, fell free to ask me, because chances are that I know more than you.

Though if you want the PR spin on anything, just Ask Mike, TheDisneyInqusisitor. He can help you out.

Seriously, welcome to MiceChat.

Hey Bill! Uh oh...now it's on! I love your "Mad Lib" approach at satirizing my post. Yes (no comma because I don't feel like it) I first posted this on the imagineerebirth blog. When I saw the title of this thread on Micechat, I thought there would be no point in rewriting what was already submitted. Why would I care if anyone noticed? By the way, another reason Test Track always has lines is because the capacity sucks!

What about my post is "poorly written?" I think it brings the point home succinctly enough. Are you one of these people that nitpick about spelling and grammar because you want to avoid having a real point? Was there any idea expressed in my post that was indiscernible due to grammar? For your sake I will watch my grammar mo better to insure dat yo dont pic on me no more. I just noticed the "cue" reference. That is pretty funny. My bad. The British would be appalled at my spelling error. By the way, if you are going to make fun of someone's grammar, why not be sure that you don't suffer from the same laziness in grammar and spelling. You should look up the spelling for the word "lose." I think you meant to say "loose."

Anyway, (comma included for your edification and comfort) your reply was written in jest so I will take it that way. No hard feelings. Now on to addressing your arguments. As I pointed out later in my post, Test Track is the only linear track thrill experience at Epcot. So Soarin' and Space don't count. Just because someone likes roller coasters doesn't mean they will enjoy a lovely spin around Epcot's waste of "space." In this case I'm not just talking about pure g's, I'm referring to the type of thrill. You could probably consider Norway to be a thrill ride because of its two drops. Among the four "thrill rides" at Epcot, Test Track is unique because of the speed and track. But even if you include the four attractions, that doesn't change the argument at all. The only reason THEY are the most popular is because there is nothing else to compare them with. In my opinion they are all mediocre attractions in comparison to Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror, Indiana Jones and several other Disney thrill rides. But what else will the thrill seeker do while at Epcot?

The carnival reference was used as an analogy. An analogy is a logical inference including similarity in some respects between things that are otherwise dissimilar. So you see, Epcot is dissimilar in many ways to a carnival but is similar because they both utilize amusement type rides. No, I'm not comparing Epcot to a carnival (although I could probably compare parts of Animal Kingdom and California Adventure). That is for another post. What I'm doing is using my experience at the carnival to relate how the average thrill-seeking Epcot guest must feel. Carnivals have more "spin and puke" rides than anything else. Epcot has more dark rides and shows than thrills. So where will you find most of the thrill-seekers? That doesn't mean they think Test Track is great anymore than I thought the carnival dark rides were great, it just means they have no other choices.

Well, you got me on the "themeing" spelling. My life is now complete (5 points). Do you not understand that I was being a bit satirical with my reference to Bill? I know that is not his real name and I know he is an actor. Since I don't know his real name and I'm sure many others don't either, I used his character name. The point is that his dialog is boring and his delivery is dry. Please try and follow along as you attempt to pick apart each paragraph. What I'm doing here is calling attention to the fact that Test Track's only redeeming value is its entertainment aspect (or what little there is). My point in bringing up the education and inspiration is that there is none and that there should be more than just a romp through an ugly warehouse. Please refer to Epcot's mission statement. You may look at it as an exciting look behind-the-scenes of a GM testing facility. Most guests look at it as a car ride that ends with a 30 second speed segment. Most will have forgotten about anything that took place before the speed test.

In the next paragraph you sarcastically state that Epcot attracts the thrill-seekers. I'm know what Epcot's taget demographic is. I think they might have missed the mark with Mission: Space regarding thrills but not with Test Track. The only thing they did right was make Test Track's final thrill sequence family friendly. Most of my comments are directed at those that think Test Track is such an exciting ride with respect to its kinetic thrills. That's the whole point, it is targeted not at the ultimate thrill-seeker, but the family super market. Can't we get something more than a 30 second speed loop and warehouse replete with cheap scenic flats for our $75 Million though?

Are you suggesting that Disney must continue to build its future attractions utilizing the same low budget short cuts as the example projects I pointed out in order to continue operating at a profit?

In the paragraph where I point out the inconsistency of riding in an electric car, you seem to think that making it appear to be a real automobile would be impossible. With the right sound system, cryo, transducers and ScentAir they could have made an effort toward decent THEMING. Would I like to smell gasoline through the whole ride? No more than smelling a Stink Bug in "It's Tough To Be A Bug."

The last thing I'd like to address is your insinuation that I was fired as a ride designer. I don't speak from a bitter ex-ride designer perspective. The nature of this business is not only cyclical but also project oriented. I left the last job to pursue my own business. I am now leading the design team for a high-profile dark ride that you'll see open domestically in two years. I'm also negotiating to come on as a producer for a very elaborate theme park project overseas. On top of this, I have several ride and show related patents to my name and have contributed my design talents, both creatively and technically, to many of the attractions you know and love today. Perhaps I'll add the electric motor car effect to the list of inventions. So despite my latest lazy writing efforts, I think I have earned my right to speak out authoritatively against the recent onslaught of sub-par attractions.

Thank you for your very warm welcome to Micechat.

[tloolgb]

it's like OMG we're in a car going not even as fast as we did driving into WDW!!!

That wasn't me that passed you...

[JiminyCricketFan]

To be kind about it, NASCAR is something you either get or you don't. You either think it's a sport or it's a bunch of guys going real fast in left turns. I live in a big NASCAR town because the track is the only real full-sized sports venue we have. But not everybody is a fan.

The people who aren't fans, won't care for it. The people who are fans know the cars go over 200MPH and Test Track doesn't. Furthermore, WDW has that Driving Experience thing at the track south of the Polynesian.

As to some people not liking NASCAR might make them not like a ride themed to it, I really don't care for GM vehicles, but I still like Test Track...

The posts that say that the first half of test track, the bumps, braking, and heat tests, are not really fun. I agree with you. The fun part of the ride is breaking through the wall and going fast for a few seconds. Even though it is not going as fast as those who drove to WDW, it IS THRILLING because the exposure to the wind makes it seem faster.

The fast part is the part I love. That is the highlight of the ride and keeps them coming back. If that was missing, and all you did was the braking, bumps and heat, then this would be a super DULL attraction.

Test Track is a great half an attraction.

[captsmith84]

Hey Bill! Uh oh...now it's on! I love your "Mad Lib" approach at satirizing my post. Yes (no comma because I don't feel like it) I first posted this on the imagineerebirth blog. When I saw the title of this thread on Micechat, I thought there would be no point in rewriting what was already submitted. Why would I care if anyone noticed? By the way, another reason Test Track always has lines is because the capacity sucks!

What about my post is "poorly written?" I think it brings the point home succinctly enough. Are you one of these people that nitpick about spelling and grammar because you want to avoid having a real point? Was there any idea expressed in my post that was indiscernible due to grammar? For your sake I will watch my grammar mo better to insure dat yo dont pic on me no more. I just noticed the "cue" reference. That is pretty funny. My bad. The British would be appalled at my spelling error. By the way, if you are going to make fun of someone's grammar, why not be sure that you don't suffer from the same laziness in grammar and spelling. You should look up the spelling for the word "lose." I think you meant to say "loose."

Anyway, (comma included for your edification and comfort) your reply was written in jest so I will take it that way. No hard feelings. Now on to addressing your arguments. As I pointed out later in my post, Test Track is the only linear track thrill experience at Epcot. So Soarin' and Space don't count. Just because someone likes roller coasters doesn't mean they will enjoy a lovely spin around Epcot's waste of "space." In this case I'm not just talking about pure g's, I'm referring to the type of thrill. You could probably consider Norway to be a thrill ride because of its two drops. Among the four "thrill rides" at Epcot, Test Track is unique because of the speed and track. But even if you include the four attractions, that doesn't change the argument at all. The only reason THEY are the most popular is because there is nothing else to compare them with. In my opinion they are all mediocre attractions in comparison to Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror, Indiana Jones and several other Disney thrill rides. But what else will the thrill seeker do while at Epcot?

The carnival reference was used as an analogy. An analogy is a logical inference including similarity in some respects between things that are otherwise dissimilar. So you see, Epcot is dissimilar in many ways to a carnival but is similar because they both utilize amusement type rides. No, I'm not comparing Epcot to a carnival (although I could probably compare parts of Animal Kingdom and California Adventure). That is for another post. What I'm doing is using my experience at the carnival to relate how the average thrill-seeking Epcot guest must feel. Carnivals have more "spin and puke" rides than anything else. Epcot has more dark rides and shows than thrills. So where will you find most of the thrill-seekers? That doesn't mean they think Test Track is great anymore than I thought the carnival dark rides were great, it just means they have no other choices.

Well, you got me on the "themeing" spelling. My life is now complete (5 points). Do you not understand that I was being a bit satirical with my reference to Bill? I know that is not his real name and I know he is an actor. Since I don't know his real name and I'm sure many others don't either, I used his character name. The point is that his dialog is boring and his delivery is dry. Please try and follow along as you attempt to pick apart each paragraph. What I'm doing here is calling attention to the fact that Test Track's only redeeming value is its entertainment aspect (or what little there is). My point in bringing up the education and inspiration is that there is none and that there should be more than just a romp through an ugly warehouse. Please refer to Epcot's mission statement. You may look at it as an exciting look behind-the-scenes of a GM testing facility. Most guests look at it as a car ride that ends with a 30 second speed segment. Most will have forgotten about anything that took place before the speed test.

In the next paragraph you sarcastically state that Epcot attracts the thrill-seekers. I'm know what Epcot's taget demographic is. I think they might have missed the mark with Mission: Space regarding thrills but not with Test Track. The only thing they did right was make Test Track's final thrill sequence family friendly. Most of my comments are directed at those that think Test Track is such an exciting ride with respect to its kinetic thrills. That's the whole point, it is targeted not at the ultimate thrill-seeker, but the family super market. Can't we get something more than a 30 second speed loop and warehouse replete with cheap scenic flats for our $75 Million though?

Are you suggesting that Disney must continue to build its future attractions utilizing the same low budget short cuts as the example projects I pointed out in order to continue operating at a profit?

In the paragraph where I point out the inconsistency of riding in an electric car, you seem to think that making it appear to be a real automobile would be impossible. With the right sound system, cryo, transducers and ScentAir they could have made an effort toward decent THEMING. Would I like to smell gasoline through the whole ride? No more than smelling a Stink Bug in "It's Tough To Be A Bug."

The last thing I'd like to address is your insinuation that I was fired as a ride designer. I don't speak from a bitter ex-ride designer perspective. The nature of this business is not only cyclical but also project oriented. I left the last job to pursue my own business. I am now leading the design team for a high-profile dark ride that you'll see open domestically in two years. I'm also negotiating to come on as a producer for a very elaborate theme park project overseas. On top of this, I have several ride and show related patents to my name and have contributed my design talents, both creatively and technically, to many of the attractions you know and love today. Perhaps I'll add the electric motor car effect to the list of inventions. So despite my latest lazy writing efforts, I think I have earned my right to speak out authoritatively against the recent onslaught of sub-par attractions.

Thank you for your very warm welcome to Micechat.

Electric Motor Car... sigh... what a ride. I truly miss that ride.
And honestly, the entire post I made was actually a joke. (even my comments defending Test Track) I didn't expect any reply at all, let alone a long read! lol. But please, don't worry about proving yourself to me. I am not a big fan of Test Track. And I agree that people do it for the reason that there's nothing else to do, and that's why it does well. And JTTCOTE is far superior. Even the Rocket Rods might be considered superior if they still worked. So, don't worry about defending yourself with me. Personally, I had an idea once that to improve Test Track, it should be re-themed to Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. I mean, maybe Mr. Toad could be the truck driver. lol