Before there was Space Mountain, Tomorrowland had Flying Saucers. This outdoor attraction allowed guests to glide along effortlessly in their vehicles over a cushion of air. Or at least that was the theory. As you can see in this July 1965 photo, most of the guests seemed to be clumped together along the edge. Difficult to maneuver and at times a bit of a legal risk (think bumper cars with less protection!), this attraction went bye-bye when New Tomorrowland took over the 1950's version in 1967.
Despite their shortcomings, you can see that this gent in the argyle socks was having the time of his life.
I'll be curious to see how Disney California Adventure is going to reinvent this attraction when Luigi's Flying Tires debut next summer with Cars Land.
See more vintage Disneyland Flying Saucer photos on my Flying Saucer web pages.
I want to ride the Flying Tires when they finally debut, but the concept seems way less cool than a flying saucer.
ReplyDeleteOh man, when they worked, they rocked! I too, can hardly wait for Luigi's Flying Tires!!
ReplyDeleteI remember these fondly, I was disappointed when they were taken out, but they did break down a lot.
ReplyDeleteSeems like they had a movable boom the whole width of the "field", so when time was up, the boom slid over and squeezed all the cars against the deck edge, then you got out, either on the deck or the boom and walked to the exit.
Did the cars have individual motors or was the air supplied from the field below? I seem to remember an exhaust smell, but that might Autopia crowding in...
I have a great picture of me riding this with my Mom, just found it.
JG
The following link will explain it all. It was a great ride (but really noisy) and I was able to test it before the opening.
ReplyDeletehttp://progresscityusa.com/2009/03/19/patent-pending-disneylands-flying-saucers-1966/
It was a long wait and a short ride, but it was worth it! And yes, they seemed to break down for a few hours at a time on each visit. Look forward to riding them again after all these years! And hopefully they have solved the reliability issues.
ReplyDeleteI loved the Flying Saucers, so I guess I was the right weight for them. I always hear that they broke down a lot, but I have no memory of themn breaking down a lot. I guess I was lucky.
ReplyDelete