Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

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Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
ThunderMountainDay.jpg
The exterior of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
Magic Kingdom
Land Frontierland
Cost to build 17 million
Opening date November 15, 1980
Ride duration 3:25 minutes
Height requirements 40" (102 cm)
Site area 108,900 sq ft
Audio-Animatronics 20
FastPass + Yes

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is an attraction located in Frontierland

Attraction History

The concept of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad goes back to the Thunder Mesa expansion that was going to be added to Frontierland in the early 1970s. When Walt Disney World opened, it did not include a Pirates of the Caribbean attraction, because Disney thought that people in Florida would not be interested in pirates, because there was already much pirate lore in the Florida culture. Instead, it was assumed that the American West would be a more interesting subject, and the concept of the Thunder Mesa expansion was born. Designed by Imagineer Marc Davis over the course of many years, the Thunder Mesa expansion would have taken place in Frontierland, in the form of a mountain called Thunder Mesa Mountain. The Thunder Mesa expansion would have included a dark boat ride (like Pirates of the Caribbean) called the Western River Expedition. The new attraction would have taken guests through various Old West scenes, and featured an astonishing 150 Audio Animatronic. Also included in the expansion, were plans for hiking trails, a mule ride, and a runaway train attraction. Due to high guest demand however, Disney decided it needed to build a Pirates of the Caribbean attraction in Disney World in 1973. With the addition of Pirates, the Western River Expedition was no longer needed. Even as Marc Davis tried to keep his project alive, it was clear that the project would be too expensive. Disney was already using its funds to build Space Mountain, the Carousel of Progress, the WEDway People Mover and the Star Jets in Tomorrowland and there was not enough money to construct another large expansion. The final strike against the construction of Thunder Mesa came in 1973 when Imagineer Tony Baxter showed his plans for mine train, thrill ride, called Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. The new attraction took some the best elements of the Thunder Mesa mine train ride, but without the expensive show building. Although Baxter suggested that the ride could be built next to the Western River Expansion building, only Big Thunder Mountain Railroad ever saw the light of day. Although Disney liked the idea, the planned Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was put on hold until the completion of Tomorrowland. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was the first attraction in Disney World to be designed by a computer, which allowed Imagineers to create a much smoother ride. Imagineers however had a different problem. Although they knew how to make the attraction look appealing, the computer did not. In fact, it took Imagineers nine different designs before the computer accepted one without making changes. Construction eventually began on the attraction in 1979 and it opened to the public on September 23, 1980. On January 9, 2012, Big Thunder Mountain was closed for its first refurbishment. During the refurbishment, every single piece of track was redone and the entire attraction was repainted. Furthermore, many of the attraction’s special effects that had become non-operational were fixed. Disney also announced that in 2013, Thunder Mountain would be getting a new “interactive” queue.

Official Backstory and Queue

On November 19, 2012 Disney announced a new backstory for Big Thunder Mountain. According to Disney:

Barnabas T. Bullion is the founder and president of the Big Thunder Mining Company. The longtime mining magnate comes from a powerful East Coast family and considers gold to be his very birthright by virtue of his oddly appropriate name; in fact, he considers the ultimate gold strike to be his destiny. And that is why he is having so much trouble with Big Thunder Mountain. According to superstitious locals, Big Thunder Mountain is very protective of the gold it holds within, and the unfortunate soul who attempts to mine its riches is destined to fail. And so far that prophecy is coming to pass. The mine has been plagued by mysterious forces and natural disasters ever since. And yet the Big Thunder Mining Co. is still in operation. In fact, Bullion is discovering new veins of gold and digging new shafts every day, offering a closer look at the Big Thunder mining operation than ever before. But a word to the wise for anyone attempting to visit the mountain: watch out for runaway trains.”

Disney Parks Blog

In the queue, guest climb up the hill before reaching the station building. As they climb, guests will notice old mining equipment all around them, because the station building was at one time the offices of a mining company. In the building, guests can also see a portrait of Barnabas T. Bullion, the president of Big Thunder Mining Company. After winding through the station building guests finally reach the loading area. After getting into the trains they are warned by The Prospector to keep their arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times, "Because this here is the wildest ride in the wilderness!"

Music played in the Queue

The musical loop played inside the queue for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is approximately 20 minutes long and features 14 songs. The songs included are:

Barnabas T. Bullion, the president of the Big Thunder Mining Company.
  • West of the Wide Missouri
  • All Aboard the Mine Train
  • California Gold
  • Rock Candy Mountain
  • Saloon Willy
  • Old Yeller
  • Pecos Bill
  • Old Betsy
  • Tavern in the Town
  • Roamin' the Lawless West
  • Buffalo Gals
  • Rock Candy Mountain
  • Hand Me Down My Walking Cane
  • There's No Place (Like Home)

Ride Plot

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad begins with guests leaving the loading station. The train immediately enters a dark tunnel and makes a left hand turn. While in the tunnel the sound of bats screeching can be heard. Inside the tunnel, the train makes a right hand turn and then begins to go up the attractions first hill. On guest’s right, a series of caverns can be see, before the train makes its way to the top of another hill. After another drop, the train turns right and goes up two small hills. At this time it is possible to see another runaway train pass by. The trains then enter the town of Tumbleweed.

Cousin Elrod, one of the last inhabitants of Tumbleweed.

Tumbleweed

When guests enter Tumbleweed they will notice that town has been flooded. On the left hand side of the town, riders will see the Dry Good Store and the Gold Dust Saloon which seems to be having a party on the second floor. On the right side of the tracks, a Tumbleweed sign says that they population went from 8015 to 247 to 15, before now reading "dried out". Next to the sign, guests can see one of the few remaining residents of Tumbleweed, Cousin Elrod, who floats along in his bathtub. Also in Tumbleweed on the riders left hand side is the rain man, Professor Cumulus Isobar, whose rain making machine seems to have worked a little too well. As the train passes through Tumbleweed riders will notice that the train seems to be sway from side to side.

Dave V Jones Mine and Boneyard

As guests exit Tumbleweed and head towards the boneyard, the train passes through another tunnel called the Dave V Jones Mine. As riders continue on, they go up another hill and eventually down a 540 degree helix to the left. At this time, there is a lot of scenery to see including Audio Animatronic mules, a billy goat, a road runner and a snake which all populate the mountain landscape. After passing the animals, the train enters another tunnel, when suddenly an earthquake hits. As the rock rumble and shake, it seems that they will soon crush and bury guests, however The train makes it out just in nick of time. Now in daylight, the train drops away to the left towards the Rivers of America, before making another short turn and entering another tunnel. The train then enters the boneyard scene.

In the boneyard scene, guests pass the bones of a dinosaur in the side of the mountain. As the train rolls on, it passes through geysers which shoot up on either side of them. The trains then hit a final break run and return to the station.

Fun Facts and Trivia

  • The town of Tumbleweed was called Dry Gulch in promotional material prior to 1980. Dry Gulch was the name of a western town in Mac Davis' unbuilt Western River Expedition [1].
  • The mountain that houses the Big Thunder Mountain was modeled after Monument Valley in Arizona.
  • The path that guests exit Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is called Nugget Way.
  • The proprietors of the Dry Goods Store in Tumbleweed are D. Hydrate and U. Wither.
  • In the queue for the attraction guests can see crates from the fictional Lythum & Hyde Explosive Company.
  • Another crate in the queue comes from the Clarksdale Miners Supply.
  • Big Thunder Mountain Railroad takes up approximately 2.5 acres of land.
  • Barnabas T. Bullion looks very similar to Imagineer Tony Baxter
  • The track length of the attraction is 2,780 feet.

Jason Surrell Backstory

According Jason Surrell in his book “The Disney Mountains: Imagineering At It's Peak” Tony Baxter came up with this back story:

"In the Disneyland version, gold was discovered in Big Thunder country in the 1850s, shortly after the Gold Rush began near John A. Sutter's Mill in California, leading to the formation of the BTM Mining Company. But the locals believed Big Thunder Mountain and the land around it to be sacred, and a protective supernatural force dwelt deep within the mountain to protect it from anyone who might deface it in the pursuit of profit. At first, the mining operation went along without incident, but as the miners began using explosives to blast deeper and deeper into the unforgiving rock and laying tracks for the mine train they'd use to retrieve its golden bounty, the mountain's ancient fury was unleashed. Strange noises emanated from a newly opened mineshaft. The spirits of long-dead miners could be heard tapping on the boarded walls of abandoned tunnels. Cave-ins became common occurrences. And then the narrow-gauge engines began rolling out of the station with no human hands at the controls. Entire trains, most times packed with unsuspecting passengers, would race driverless, at breakneck speed, along the spiraling steel and wooden track. The miners began to concede that perhaps the locals were right all along. Maybe the mountain --and their mine -- was cursed. They abandoned their posts, the BTM Mining Company went bust, and soon Big Thunder became just another ghost town dotting the Old West."

This backstory was given with the opening of the Disneyland version of the attraction in 1979 and may or may not be the backstory for the Walt Disney World version. Mr. Baxter’s backstory has since been superseded by the official Disney World backstory released in 2012.

References

http://www.theneverlandfiles.com/tnf/disneyworld/thundermesa.php

http://www.wdwmemories.com/disney-world-big-thunder-mountain-railroad.html

http://www.neatorama.com/2011/05/20/neatorama-facts-big-thunder-mountain-railroad/

http://www.2719hyperion.com/2007/02/snapshot-lytum-hyde-explosives-company.html

http://www.wdwradio.com/2007/09/big-thunder-mountain-railroad/

http://land.allears.net/blogs/jackspence/2009/07/big_thunder_mountain_railroad.html

Surrell, Jason. The Disney Mountains: Imagineering at Its Peak. New York: Disney Editions, 2007. Print.

http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2012/11/walt-disney-imagineers-unveil-the-backstory-of-barnabas-t-bullion-prioprietor-and-president-of-big-thunder-mining-company/
  1. https://www.facebook.com/139910379361960/photos/a.139918122694519.19888.139910379361960/1042615299091459/?type=3&theater