Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Splash Mountain


Splash Mountain, a popular flume ride at Magic Kingdom theme park, offers big thrills to big kids, teens and adults.


On Splash Mountain, Gotta Be Movin' On Say goodbye to Br'er Rabbit; he's leaving his home in search of a little more adventure, a bit of fortune and his laughing place—where he can live the life that suits him best. Watch as he outwits Br'er Bear and Br'er Fox, escapes their clutches and slips out of sticky situations. Plummet into dark caves and tumble over gentle waterfalls… until Br'er Rabbit's taunting catches up to him—and he's finally caught! From the confines of Br'er Fox's cave at the top of Chickapin Hill on Splash Mountain, Br'er Rabbit tricks Br'er Bear and Br'er Fox one more time. Don't throw me down, down, down into the briar-brimmed pond, he pleads. Anyplace but there! Of course, this is exactly what they do. Follow him as he plummets over the mountain peak on a 5-story (52.5 feet) fall that ends in a massive splashdown into the refreshing pond: Br'er Rabbit's home, his laughing place. After this ultimate plunge, drift past more southern critters aboard a lively Mississippi riverboat. Sing along with them, for it's a zip-a-dee-doo-dah day! Everyone has a Laughing Place—maybe Splash Mountain is yours.


The Backstory

The wise Br'er Frog has a premonition: if Br'er Rabbit leaves his comfortable briar-patch home on Splash Mountain—protected by the prickly plants and dense, thorny vines—he'll be caught by Br'er Bear and Br'er Fox for sure! Br'er Frog's words don't stop Br'er Rabbit from movin' on. Join him on his journey around and through Splash Mountain.


Will You Get Wet?

The twists, turns and 3 dips that lead to the grand drop down 5 stories of rushing water will either get you damp or drenched. If soaked is your goal, request a seat in the front or sit on the right side of the hollowed-out log. Other Disney Mountains One of 3 Magic Kingdom "mountain" attractions, Splash Mountain shares its big thrill classification with Space Mountain and its location in the Frontierland area with the mild but wild Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Splash Mountain is a themed log flume attraction at Disneyland, Tokyo Disneyland, and the Magic Kingdom, based on the characters, stories and songs from the 1946 Disney film Song of the South. Although there are variations in the story and features between the three locations, each installation of Splash Mountain begins with a peaceful outdoor float-through that leads to indoor dark ride segments, with a climactic steep drop into a "briar patch" followed by an indoor finale.


Story

The different versions of Splash Mountain feature similar stories, albeit with small differences. Each ride presents scenes taken from the animated segments of Song of the South. It tells the story of the adventures of Br'er Rabbit, a mischievous rabbit that leaves his home in the briar patch to look for his "laughing place." Unfortunately for him, Br'er Fox and Br'er Bear, the antagonists of this story, are determined to catch and eat him.


History

At the time it was built, Splash Mountain was one of the most expensive projects created by Walt Disney Imagineering ($75 million). Imagineer Tony Baxter wanted to attract guests to the often empty Bear Country land and make use of the audio-animatronics from America Sings, which was receiving poor attendance. According to Alice Davis (wife of the late Marc Davis), when America Sings closed in April 1988, production of Disneyland's Splash Mountain had gone way over budget. The only way to recover was to close down America Sings and use the characters from that attraction. Baxter and his team developed the concept of Zip-a-Dee River Run, which would incorporate scenes from Song of the South. The name was later changed to Splash Mountain after then-CEO Michael Eisner's mostly-ignored suggestion that the attraction be used to help market the film Splash. The characters from America Sings were used in many scenes, though all of the main characters were specifically designed for Splash Mountain. Dave Feiten was then brought in to animate and fix story and staging problems. Feiten then moved nearly all of the animatronics to new locations and then took out 10 animatronic figures and removed them from the ride completely to improve the show. A version of the popular attraction was planned for Disneyland Paris but scrapped due to budget reasons and the cold weather in Europe.


Location: Magic Kingdom Theme Park Frontierland

Height Requirement:40 inches (102cm) or taller

Category:Water Rides Thrill Rides Indoor

FASTPASS Service

Rider Swap

Pal Mickey Wheelchair Accessible - must transfer from wheelchair

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