Feb. 22, 2007: The Old Matterhorn

[rstar]

Great article on the Old Matterhorn!

Are there any photos from the hollow inside? I use to think I had imagined seeing it, I didn't realize it had been "filled in" until years later. I was born the same year as the Matterhorn so I was pretty young when I saw the hollow interior.

Thanks for the great work!

~Bob

[HBG2]

Are there any photos from the hollow inside?

I've wondered the same thing. I've never seen a photo anywhere. I remember the old Matterhorn well enough, and there MUST be pix out there somewhere of the interior.

I think it's interesting to see Disney's learning curve. The bobsleds were the first fully-themed thrill ride, but the Alpine thematics were directed almost entirely to people OFF the ride. Once you were on it, they figured that you didn't care, since it's a roller coaster, fer cryin' out loud. Eventually they learned that riders DO like thematics, and the Matterhorn was retroactively brought in line with this realization, which ensured that it didn't clash with BTMRR, Space Mountain, etc.

[tokemo]

I have pix of the MAtterhorn interior now, just scanned. How do I get them to you Werner?

[Werner Weiss]

I have pix of the MAtterhorn interior now, just scanned. How do I get them to you Werner?

Great!

Please e-mail the pictures to [email protected] with "Yesterland" as part of the subject name. (My ruthless spam filter devours notes that don't include "Yesterland" as part of the subject name.)

Please provide a note granting permission for me to use the images on Yesterland, MiceChat, MiceAge, and on sites that link to Yesterland.

Just to make sure there’s no misunderstanding, Yesterland is essentially a hobby site, so I don’t pay for any submissions. (I now have some advertising to recover some of my costs, but Yesterland isn’t really a business.)

[Werner Weiss]

I've now received pictures (from 1971) of the open interior of the Matterhorn.

I'll post them on Yesterland.com this week or next week. I'll post the link on MiceChat.

[rstar]

Cool! Thanks guys! I thought holding on to a camera on a shaky ride might have prevented most people from taking pictures.

And now that I think about it, the 'E' Ticket magazine had a photo from inside the open air Matterhorn. This is where I first realized I had not just drempt it all up. Memories can play tricks, you know?

Thanks Werner, for updating! I've enjoyed your work since for a long time! I look forward to seeing the pictures on your site!

[Werner Weiss]

Cool! Thanks guys! I thought holding on to a camera on a shaky ride might have prevented most people from taking pictures.

It would have been difficult to take pictures while riding in a Matterhorn bobsled, but the Skyway provided a not-quite-so-shaky spot from which to take pictures of the inside of the Matterhorn.

Thanks Werner, for updating! I've enjoyed your work since for a long time! I look forward to seeing the pictures on your site!

Thank you! I'll post the Matterhorn interior pictures to Yesterland next week, but I can't promise which day. Please don't expect crystal clear, detailed images. The pictures are remarkably good for having been taken with a Kodak Instamatic camera using the limited light in the interior of the Matterhorn.

The current Old Matterhorn page is already too heavy with images. (I feel sorry for anyone who tries to view that page with a dial Internet connection.) So I'm going to have to set up a new page.

[Alpine]

For those mentioning that the bobsleds don't look too much like bobsleds, it's because the 1978 bobsleds were originally from the Florida Space Mountain. There also weren't the lifting brakes divided into block sections on the old version- the spinning tire/flywheel boosters were all that kept bobsleds reasonably spaced and running safely all the way down the mountain if something was slowing one sled down for whatever reason.

Very cool page, though the engineering geek within hungers for a few more technical tidbits... like how many sleds ran on the original version.

Looking forward to an interior picture.