Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith

Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith
A giant red Fender Stratocaster greets Aerosmith enthusiasts outside the ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort
Disney's Hollywood Studios
Coordinates 28°21′33.9″N 81°33′38.5″W / 28.359417°N 81.560694°W / 28.359417; -81.560694
Status Operating
Opening date July 29, 1999 (1999-07-29)
Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith at Disney's Hollywood Studios at RCDB
Pictures of Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith at Disney's Hollywood Studios at RCDB
Walt Disney Studios Park
Coordinates 48°51′53″N 2°46′48″E / 48.864850°N 2.779931°E / 48.864850; 2.779931Coordinates: 48°51′53″N 2°46′48″E / 48.864850°N 2.779931°E / 48.864850; 2.779931
Status Operating
Opening date March 16, 2002 (2002-03-16)
Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith at Walt Disney Studios Park at RCDB
Pictures of Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith at Walt Disney Studios Park at RCDB
General statistics
Type Steel – Enclosed – Launched
Manufacturer Vekoma
Designer Walt Disney Imagineering
Model LSM Coaster
Lift/launch system LSM launch with catch car
Height 80 ft (24 m)
Length 3,403 ft (1,037 m)
Speed 57 mph (92 km/h)
Inversions 3
Duration 1:22 (Pre-show is 3:12)
Capacity 1800 riders per hour
Acceleration 0 to 57 mph (0 to 92 km/h) in 2.8 seconds
G-force 5
Height restriction 48 in (122 cm)
Trains 5 (max. 4 in operation) trains with 6 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 24 riders per train.
Sponsor Hanes (2008-present)
Fastpass available
FastPass+ available
Single rider line available at Disney's Hollywood Studios

Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith is a launched roller coaster located at Disney's Hollywood Studios within Walt Disney World and at Walt Disney Studios Park within Disneyland Paris. Manufactured by Vekoma, the enclosed roller coaster features LSM electromagnetic technology, and the first of two installations opened at Disney World on July 29, 1999. It features recorded music and appearances from Aerosmith. The second installation opened at Disneyland Paris on March 16, 2002, and it is considered the fastest roller coaster in France.[1]

Rock 'n' Roller Coaster accelerates from 0 to 57 mph (92 km/h) in 2.8 seconds. Riders experience up to 4 G's and travel through three inversions, which include half-vertical loops, half-corkscrews, and a sea serpent roll. Both versions of the attraction feature five trains, although only four can run at one time. It was announced in February 2018 that the Paris version of the ride will close for renovations, and that its theme would be changed to the Iron Man and Avengers franchise.[2] The Hollywood Studios version will remain unchanged.

History

Construction on the ride in Florida began in February 1998,[3] with cast member previews and a soft opening initially held in June 1999.[3] The grand opening of the ride took place on July 29, 1999,[4] with a special, invitation-only party,[5] with Aerosmith as the guests of honor. Winners rode to Disney's Hollywood Studios in stretch limousines and were treated to an all-you-can-eat buffet and bar.[6] After a special performance by painter Denny Dent, winners got the chance to ride the roller coaster with one of the Aerosmith band members. At the exit of the ride, outside of the gift shop, there hangs a picture from the special event. The paintings Denny Dent made of the five band members hang in various employee office locations on Walt Disney World property.

The pre-show has changed from when the attraction first opened. Currently, band member Joe Perry would ask "Chris" to "grab my black Les Paul." A Disney cast member in the pre-show area would then pick up and remove a black guitar signed by Joe Perry from the set. The script uses the unisex name "Chris" so either a male or female could play the part. Although not used as often as when the ride first opened, the position is still used from time to time (generally, if the attraction is overstaffed). The film also includes a roadie saying "Hey Joe, I'll get it for ya" as a backup, in the event that a cast member is not available for the part.

The Walt Disney Studios Park version of the ride opened on March 16, 2002.[7]

In 2007, the queue was modified to accommodate single riders in addition to FASTPASS.

It was announced at the 2018 D23 Expo in Japan that the Walt Disney Studios Park variation of the ride will be closing for a complete theme change to the Iron Man and Avengers franchise.[2]

Ride experience

Queue

Guests begin the queue by entering through a small and narrow tent, with boxes designed like instrument cases decorating the scene. The guests then wait in an unshaded, gridded-queue area (if the queue is long), and then proceed to a ramp that takes them back and forth, to curve around the front of the building, behind the giant electric guitar, and into the "G-Force Records" recording studio. Guests then enter a circular room with a high ceiling decorated with a giant record. Guests can see posters featuring artists Disney has signed, other miscellaneous and famous bands/singers and even the guests themselves. These posters are displayed via LCD screens and are able to display a guest's name to customize the visual as they walk past.[8] Guests then continue immediately to enter a small room with doors covered in marbles and a small exhibit of recording instruments. Guests can interact with the marble doors and often do, and if they take the time to look at the exhibit, they will see various funny parts (i.e. the person who organized and presented the exhibit is named Mike Rofone). Guests are then called by a Cast Member to join other guests (this is where the Fastpass+ line and Stand-by lines merge) to enter the studio that Aerosmith is recording in. Guests wait for the recording to stop, and the automatic doors eventually open. As guests enter, the song "Walk This Way" plays, except, after the introduction is played, the vocals and guitar cut out, leaving only the bassline and drums (the guitar occasionally comes back in). Guests see Aerosmith and their engineer (played by Ken Marino) recording and wait momentarily, until the band is interrupted by their manager (played by Illeana Douglas). The manager tells the band that they have a show to get to, and they can't stay with the guests any longer. Steven Tyler expresses discontent with this outcome and suggests to his manager to get the guests to their concert, along with backstage passes. The manager reluctantly accepts, after a few seconds of persuasion. After she accepts to give the ride and tickets to the show, the guests see her call her assistant "Sal," who she tells to get a "stretch" limo. After a few seconds of thinking, she takes it back and instead asks for a "super stretch." She then tells the guests that she has gotten a "really fast car" for them to ride to the concert because the show is all the way across town. Guests then see the limo with the band in it already peel out of the lot, leaving the manager behind.

The automatic doors open to the outdoor parking garage, where guests will be boarding their limos. As the doors open, the audio for "Walk This Way" plays as guests exit. Guests walk along a fence that separates them from the limos. Immediately after entering the garage, guests see the limos that are ready to be launched off from 0 to 57 MPH in 2.8 seconds. As cars launch off, guests hear echoed and intense screaming, and extra added sound effects. Guests then proceed from here through a short line to board their limo.

Ride

While the guests wait for the ride to begin, a radio DJ presents the safety spiel, followed by a traffic report. The highway sign flashes humorous messages like: "Traffic bug you? Then STEP on it!" Guests wait for the car ahead of them to finish the ride, and eventually they hear an introduction (which varies, and includes messages such as "We're only just getting started!" or "Hold on, here we go!"). After this introduction, Steven Tyler alternates between each ear the countdown of "Five, four, three, two", as they hear the introduction of the song they're about to hear. As Tyler gets to 2 in the countdown, he skips 1 and guests suddenly begin to accelerate from 0 to 57 MPH in less than 2.8 seconds. During this initial second, the on-ride camera takes the photo of the guests. After a long straightway, the car proceeds to do a Roll Over (sea serpent) roll, which is a two inversion element,[9] and then some less intense maneuvers. During the ride, there are neon signs on the side of the track, designed to mimic road signs. The car continues along the track, until it reaches the third and final inversion, a corkscrew. Finally, guests perform a humpback as they enter the "VIP parking" section for the fictitious concert. Guests wait in a tunnel at a stop for a moment, then proceed to the VIP backstage area, where they're greeted by a red carpet and monitors displaying their ride photos. Guests then exit through the gift shop.

Soundtrack

The giant red Fender Stratocaster outside of the Disney Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster at night
The garage sign in the ride's load area

Walt Disney Imagineering worked with Aerosmith to produce a special soundtrack for the roller coaster. Each coaster train features different Aerosmith songs.

There is a 6th Limo in the fleet of ride vehicles of Rock 'n' Roller Coaster. This vehicle is without a license plate, and is always "in refurbishment." The vehicles are rotated in and out of use after a period of many thousands of laps around the track. However, the maintenance teams will switch out the plate and add the proper song to the new vehicle every time a rotation is made.

The ride formerly featured Uncle Joe Benson, a well-known Los Angeles rock radio DJ, as the station's DJ. Currently, Bill Hart (known as Bill St. James), the host of ABC Radio's Flashback, provides the voice for the DJ of "LA's Classic Rock Station."

The height requirement on this ride is 48 inches.

Walt Disney Studios Park attraction

Rock 'n' Roller Coaster also exists in Disneyland Paris' Walt Disney Studios Park, named "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster avec Aerosmith".

Although the track layout is identical to its Orlando counterpart, the theme of the ride differs—instead of guests being taken on the Los Angeles freeways, the Paris version is based around an Aerosmith music video. Lighting rigs, projectors, strobes, and smoke effects are used in place of the road signs that exist in the U.S. version. The name of the record company is Tour de Force (instead of "G-Force") Records, and the vehicles in Paris are called "Soundtrackers" instead of limousines.

The story of the Paris version is that Aerosmith, working with engineers, have created a revolutionary new music experience at the Tour De Force Records studios. After watching the pre-show which features Aerosmith's Steven Tyler hyping up the ride, guests are lured into the testing area where they board one of five Soundtrackers, the prototype vehicles for the new experience.

A unique aspect of the Walt Disney Studios version is that each Soundtracker has its own theme. There are five different lightshows and five different soundtracks, one for each Soundtracker. The themes are as follows:

  • Soundtracker 1: green lightshow theme; plays "Back In The Saddle" and "Dude Looks Like A Lady".
  • Soundtracker 2: purple lightshow theme; plays "Young Lust," "F.I.N.E." and "Love In An Elevator."
  • Soundtracker 3: multicolour lightshow theme; plays "Love In An Elevator" and "Walk This Way."
  • Soundtracker 4: red/yellow lightshow theme; plays "Nine Lives."
  • Soundtracker 5: blue lightshow theme; plays "Sweet Emotion (live)."

The minimum height at Parc Walt Disney Studios is 1.2 metres (47 inches).

Iron Man and Avengers retheme

It was announced at the 2018 D23 Expo in Japan that the Walt Disney Studios Park variation of the ride will be closing for a complete theme change to the Iron Man and Avengers franchise.[2] The ride will close in summer 2019.

Hidden Mickeys

  • One in the pre-show (found on a small chalkboard in the bottom right corner of the sound room (this one was made by a cast member and changes at times)
  • One in the pre-show (found on the ground, formed by three coils of wire).
  • One in place of each "Expiration Date" for the license plates on the limos.
  • Many on the floor in Studio C, hidden in the carpet pattern.
  • Three on the ride track itself (one found on a yellow sign behind a red limo, two on the ground in a cityscape area).
  • Two in the tile mosaic in the rotunda before the recording studio near the marble doors.
  • One in the post show area to the right as one enters this area.
  • Many on Steven Tyler's shirt on the poster outside.
  • One on Joe Perry's medallion on the outside poster.

Speakers

In each train, there are a total of 120 speakers. There are seven speakers per seat including one subwoofer (under the seat)[10] and six located in the headrest. There are 820 speakers located in the ride's show building and launch area (not including the train). This makes a total of about 900 speakers in the attraction.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Record Holders". rcdb.com. Duane Marden. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith at Walt Disney Studios Park to Receive Marvel Transformation". Disney Parks Blog. February 11, 2018. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  3. 1 2 Anderson, Jamie J. (July 23, 1999). "Wild ride of music and speed". The Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved January 30, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ Abbott, Jim (July 30, 1999). "Aerosmith rocks, new coaster rolls". The Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved January 30, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Best bets". The Orlando Sentinel. July 30, 1999. Retrieved January 30, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "WHTQ Rock n Roller Coaster Featuring Aerosmith - Photo Gallery". 96.5 WHTQ. Archived from the original on December 2, 2000. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  7. ↑ "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith". D23. August 10, 2017. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  8. ↑ McCabe, Adam (April 19, 2016). "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster introduces personalized rock posters at Walt Disney World". Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  9. ↑ "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster - Walt Disney World - Disney's Hollywood Studios (Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA)". rcdb.com. Retrieved 2016-02-03.
  10. ↑ Thomas, Mike (August 1, 1999). "Episode I: The Coaster Wars". Restless Native. The Orlando Sentinel - Florida Magazine. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
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