Space Mountain - Loading Area

Sections: Specials | Pictures | Sounds | Tips | Facts and Figures

Specials

The Loading Area some textual descriptions (selected excerpts from the Report-section)

Pictures

Row 11

Noone seems to have ever taken a photo of those brass numbers in the ground of the station

by FeLIX

Arriving train, quite fast ...

(c) The DLP-Guidebook

Entering the Loading area

by Alan Taff

Entering the Loading area

at The DLP-Guidebook

No queuing on the mezzanine

at the Space Mountain Homepage

Sorting the guests ...

at the Space Mountain Homepage

Safety instructions

The following warning text can be found while you're standing in the queue behind the control room:

ATTENTION ! Les montagnes russes de Space Mountain vous emméneront à une allure vertigineuse dans une aventure où vous affecteurez vrilles et loopings à 360°. Pour votre sécurité et votre confort vous devez être en bonne santé et n'être affecté d'aucun trouble cardiaque, vertébral ou autre, ni du mal des transport, susceptible de s'aggraver à l'occasion de cette aventure. Les futures mamans ne devraient pas monter à bord. WARNING ! Space Mountain is a high-speed turbulent roller coaster-style adventure that includes a corkscrew loop and a 360° loop. For safety and comfort you should be in good health and free from heart conditions, motion sickness, back or neck problems or other conditions that could be aggravated by this adventure. Expectant mothers should not ride. [no food] [no smoking] [no flash photography] [no ear rings]

The loading area seen from outside

at the Space Mountain Homepage

The turn immediately after departure

at the Space Mountain Homepage

Train leaving the station

at The DLP-Guidebook

Loading Area seen from outside

at The DLP-Guidebook

Train arriving at the station, Boarding of passengers

at DLPfan.ORG

Space travellers arriving

SM Loading Area at night

at the Web-version of the DLP-FAQ, (c) Disney)

The train has just left the station ...

by FeLIX

One of the many exit signs

by FeLIX

This sign announcing a space exposition during the Space Festival in August 1995 is still standing between the loading area and the cannon!

by FeLIX

Poster opposite the control room (above the stairs) in the loading area:
Notice the 3 cannon balls forming an upside-down Hidden Mickey!
"Ad Luna In Flatula Gloria" is Latin and means "To the moon in a blaze of glory"

by FeLIX

Sounds

Voice Overs

Very hard to notice but they exist: Spoken safety instructions in the loading area! Several spiels exist both in French and in English. Due to the noise level in the loading area not all words could be understood so far.

Here's a low quality recording of one annoucement: voiceover.mp3

• Attention mesdames et messieurs les explorateurs, vous allez bientôt commencer un voyage spectaculaire, de la Terre à la Lune ! Veuillez vérifier que tout vos effets personnels sont bien attachés avant la mise à feu. S'il vous plait, restez derrière la ligne rouge, le train fusée traverse actuellement le point de rentrée de décélération rapide vers la gare.
• [...] Welcome [...] space [...] Please secure [...] Please stay behind the red line to avoid [...] Bon voyage!
• Bienvenue chers passionnés de l'espace, préparez-vous à rencontrer les merveilles sans égal de l'Epoque Lunaire, en vous assurant que tout vos effets personnels sont bien attachés. Le train fusée arrive à vitesse fulgurante. Nous vous demandons de rester derrière la ligne rouge. Bon voyage!
• The Baltimore Gun Club announces the imminent return of the projectile to earth. For your safety, please remain behind the red line! Secure all loose items in preparation for blast-off!
• Les membres du Gun Club de Baltimore ont l'honneur de prévenir les voyageurs du retour imminent du projectile sur la Terre. Pour votre sécurité, veuillez rester derrière la ligne rouge, veuillez vous assurer que vos effets personnels sont bien attachés avant la mise à feu.
• Ladies and gentlemen, please stay behind the red line [...] the rocket train returns [...] Secure all your personnal belongings as you prepare for blast-off. Ad Luna in Flamma Gloria. To the Moon, in a Blaze of Glory.
• Mesdames et messieurs, s'il vous plait, il est impératif que vous restiez derrière la ligne rouge jusqu'au retour du train fusée sur la Terre. Attachez vos affaires, en préparation pour le catapultage. Ad Luna [the "u" of "Luna" is pronounced with the french accent, as "u", not "ou" with the latin pronounciation] En avant vers la Lune, dans un Flambloiement de Gloire.
• Attention attention, you're about to aboard in a spectacular journey from the Earth to the Moon. [...] Secure all [...] please remain behind the red line [...] the rocket train [...]

Transcribed by Nicolas

Live Space Mountain atmosphere

of the loading area part: smqueue2.mp3 [430kB 1m49s 32kBps]

Track 18, "Space Mountain", 5:27 long, on the new CD 'Une Journée à Disneyland Paris', is a slower orchestral version of the Space Mountain theme.

REPORTED: FeLIX, 14 Jul 1999

I just want to remark that the Space Mountain track on the new CD comes from the waiting queue. In 1995 you could hear this music in the Voie Stellaire gehört, but lately I've heard it only at the "hangar" (boarding).

REPORTED: David G. Ravenswood, 18 Jul 1999

Now I've also heard the second part of the CD-track in the Voie Stellaire. I don't know if the first part was also played because I just entered. It's likely to be that the whole track can still be heard as it was in 1995. If I remember rightly it is immediately followed by the Rocketeer music.

UPDATED: David G. Ravenswood, 8 Sep 1999

Now I definitively know that the whole Space Mountain track from the CD "Une Journée ..." is played in the whole Space Mountain area, including the waiting queue.

UPDATED: David G. Ravenswood, 25 Nov 1999

Here is an excerpt from the track on the new CD:

spacemountainarea.mp3 [1m42s 32kbps 407kB] (at The Sound of Magic )

Tips

>Finally, when riding Big Thunder Mountain try to get a back seat!
>This is usually possible, as the cast members fill the train up
>from the front but will always (in my experience anyway) nod
>indulgently if you ask to go to the back. The ride is *much*
>better - faster and wilder - from the back.
This is often the case with many roller-coasters, including Space Mountain. The trouble is that after the first chain lift through the grotto, the front of the Big Thunder is already going down the hill whilst the back is still clearing the chain and it gives you that "held back" feeling. With Space Mountain, the car is deccelerating as it nears the top of Columbiad so the front of the train goes very slowly over the top and into the mountain.

REPORTED: Ian Grey in the DLP mailing list, 2 Apr 1998

Facts & Figures

Dispatch interval	36 seconds (5 trains running)
			45 seconds (4 trains running)
			60 seconds (3 trains running, 2 stations)
			70 seconds (3 trains running, 1 station)
			90 seconds (2 trains running)
Maximum Theoretical	2400 guest (5 trains)
Hourly Ride Capacity
(THRC)