Originally Posted By gmaletic Does anyone know enough about the technology in WDW's Splash Mountain to know why the ride is so much smoother than the Disneyland version? I know the flume is a foot wider, and that allows niceties like side-by-side seating...but did the flume technology itself come from a different vendor? What's different about it? Thanks.
Originally Posted By brotherdave I believe WDI designed the flume system at WDW and at Tokyo DL. The Disneyland ride was built by O.D. Hopkins, a company that had built many standard style log flumes for other amusement and theme parks. <a href="http://www.hopkinsrides.com/" target="_blank">http://www.hopkinsrides.com/</a>
Originally Posted By FerretAfros I also think that part of it may have to do with the scale of the attractions. In DL, they had tro squeeze Splash into a small area between the Haunted Mansion and Bear Country, with the edge of the backstage property very near by. In WDW and TDL, space wasn't such an issue as the two parks were each about twice the size of Disneyland. This meant that there was room for wider, smoother turns. I'm sure a great deal of it is the manufacturer, but the physical space requirements of each of the different versions also affect how smooth the flume runs.
Originally Posted By dixielandings also the boats hold more people making it heavier therefore clunkier and slower resulting in a smother ride like the difference between a Toyota and a cadillac
Originally Posted By leemac FerretAfros that isn't quite right for TDL. They literally had to shoehorn Critter Country into that slot which is why the land is "long" as opposed to "wide". Splash itself is considerably tighter and it is very noticeable when you are circling the Briar Patch before entering the mountain itself. The outdoor amble is truncated considerably.
Originally Posted By trekkeruss Not only are the boats heavier, they are also larger. The width alone would made them smoother riding... they won't roll as much.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros I thought part of the reason that there wasn't as much outside in TDL was because of the weather. Obviously they own the land behind there now (as TDS sits there), but did they always have that much space there? If they did, I don't see why they couldn't have made it bigger, and just bumped backstage back a little more.
Originally Posted By leemac ^^ Good point. I don't know the answer to that. But the land is hugely contorted and overly complex for my liking. Grandma Sara's Kitchen is a nice restaurant but it is on multi-levels and is pretty complicated to wander around. I don't recall what was there originally and thus removed for Critter Country.
