The Unique Rides Of Disneyland: The Matterhorn Bobsleds

Anaheim, California is home to Disneyland, the first of the Disney theme parks ever built

. Conceived in the mind of Walt Disney himself and all aspects of the build overseen by him as well. Every subsequent park has followed this park's example from design to the principles of this first historic park. Its popularity and influence grew exponentially once the doors were opened in 1955 - from the original theme park into a bustling venue of rides, accommodations and shopping. Today, there are parks all over the world bearing the Disney name; the Walt Disney World resort in Florida, as well as locations in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Paris. The standard rides like Splash Mountain and the Haunted Mansion are found in every park, but some are found only in the original California location.

The Matterhorn Bobsleds

This attraction is made up of two intertwining roller coasters. It was the first tubular steel roller coaster ever built that had a continuous track, when it opened at the park in 1959. During the building of the Sleeping Beauty Castle moat, the idea took form; for awhile the dirt that was piled up in the spot between the Tomorrowland and Fantasyland areas, became a popular lover's lane area and picnic spot. At one time Walt Disney wanted to use real snow in a toboggan ride creation, but it turned out to be too difficult an endeavor to build. Instead, the spot became home to the bobsled coaster ride, and remains so today.

The mountain is built using forced perspective, so that it looks much taller than it actually is. Employees in climbing gear are often seen scaling the peak throughout the day, adding to the Swiss Alps theme. Riders of the Matterhorn are loaded into one of the two tracks, in cars that resemble bobsleds; there is one lift hill that pulls both sets of cars up, and the rest of the ride is powered only by the gravity of that initial high point. The end of each track features a splash-down pool; these act as a braking mechanism and help to cool the bobsleds. In the 1970s, the ride underwent a major renovation that included an addition of an Abominable Snowman to thrill riders. The monster is actually three different Animatronic figures situated along different parts of the ride; they roar at riders and have red glowing eyes.

The Matterhorn Bobsleds are only found at Disneyland in California; it is the only ride of its kind on the planet. However, the tracks at Space Mountain in Florida's Walt Disney World are inspired by the Matterhorn designs (though aren't identical). The Animal Kingdom, also in Florida, contains an attraction called Expedition Everest with similar elements--but rather than dodging the Abominable Snowman, riders face a terrifying Yeti in an abstracted Himalayan mountain. The Matterhorn remains one of the rides designed by Walt Disney himself, and proudly unique. On your next visit to the park, make sure you take the time to see it!

by: Robert Nickel

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