Big Thunder Refurbishment - Early 2012

[JungleSkip]

EDIT: It's official. January 9-March 31 2012.

While great, I HATE that this is the only time MK E tickets ever go down for refurb. There really should be one ride down for refurb at a time throughout the year. I dunno how Splash is going to hold up without a refrub.

 

[JungleSkip]

UPDATE: Big Thunder will be closed until May 28th, so this will be a very lengthy refurb. Hopefully we'll see some queue enhancements as well as everything on the ride looking great.

 

[ChristopherSE]

This is exciting, actually. I hope they fix any effects that are down and (wishful thinking, I know) put some more in place. I love looking for easter eggs, or just details I missed before.

 

[d a n n y]

Really hope nothing is delayed and it opens up on time. Gonna be there in June, most likely

 

[jtsalien]

So I heard on a recent interview with Bob Gurr that WDI has some very big plans for Big Thunder Ranch in Disneyland, and since we heard on another thread that Avatar isn't all Disney has up its sleeve, what do you think the chances are that something will be happening in WDW's Frontierland? The Lone Ranger just got the green light again, and Depp's success at the box office could be enough to spark some interest in the parks.

Could this rehab be in preparation for something bigger in the future?

 

[JungleSkip]

So I heard on a recent interview with Bob Gurr that WDI has some very big plans for Big Thunder Ranch in Disneyland, and since we heard on another thread that Avatar isn't all Disney has up its sleeve, what do you think the chances are that something will be happening in WDW's Frontierland? The Lone Ranger just got the green light again, and Depp's success at the box office could be enough to spark some interest in the parks.

Could this rehab be in preparation for something bigger in the future?

Frontierland has been talked about since before Fantasyland was announced.

That being said, I REALLY hope Lone Ranger has nothing to do with a possible expansion there. The movie has turdburger written all over it...

 

[jtsalien]

Frontierland has been talked about since before Fantasyland was announced.

That being said, I REALLY hope Lone Ranger has nothing to do with a possible expansion there. The movie has turdburger written all over it...

I don't really think it should either, but people keep saying this movie can revive the western movie in Hollywood. Which, in reality, has nothing to do with how good the movie really is. If Depp can help Disney rake in the bucks that's all that matters. Even if the movie doesn't get a specific attraction, they could be encouraged to move forward with whatever they're working on thanks to an increased interest in the old west.

 

[Tbad556]

In my opinion, it's far too early for any Lone Ranger to be planned. The movie was just confirmed to return yesterday. If anything, the idea should be nothing more than blue sky until the movie progresses a little further and they have an idea of what the critics are saying. :shrug:

 

[jtsalien]

In my opinion, it's far too early for any Lone Ranger to be planned. The movie was just confirmed to return yesterday. If anything, the idea should be nothing more than blue sky until the movie progresses a little further and they have an idea of what the critics are saying. :shrug:

It probably is. And Bob Gurr said nothing spefic about the plans he saw. Just that it was big and impressive. This could have nothing to do with the movie, this just seems like an opportune time to me. If anyone is interested, the interview was on the most recent episode of the Season Pass Podcast.

 

[reilysclone]

I did hear some rumors of a possible Lone Ranger layover on Big Thunder earlier this year, and given that John Lasseter wants to see new films incorporated in the parks as soon as they're released, it wouldn't surprise me if it was seriously discussed. But we'll see. I heard similar plans for Prince of Persia and Sorcerer's Apprentice and you saw how those turned out.

 

[ChristopherSE]

I swear, if Disney takes another classic ride and slaps on a logo I'm not going to be happy. We all know how well that worked for Extra-TERRORestrial.

 

[TSSD]

A Lone Ranger overlay on BTMR? God, no!

 

[jtsalien]

I've been reading around on other sites about the movie, and apparently out of the 3 or 4 train robberies/crashes, one of them has a Big Thunder tie in. But I would take that with a huge grain of salt. There is so much about the movie that has and probably will change.

 

[zbob1992]

I personally am against ANY theme park turning their rides into billboards for upcoming movies.

 

[jtsalien]

I personally am against ANY theme park turning their rides into billboards for upcoming movies.

To be fair, this is pure speculation on everyone's part. It's not like they're gonna slap Depp's face on the front of the train and call it a day. You can incorporate movies into a park tastefully.

 

[ChristopherSE]

From Screamscape:
(10/11/11) Screamscape sources tell us that the plan for the Big Thunder Rehab is to perform an extensive rebuild / rehab to the ride’s track system. It is also expected to only be closed through to May 12, allowing for a few weeks of extra padding if needed between then and Memorial Day Weekend.
(10/19/11) When Big Thunder closes for its extended rehab, look for the ride to receive a major track refurbishment package, said to be similar in scope to what was done to Space Mountain last time around. Even better… look for Big Thunder to get a little NextGen love and feature new surprises when it reopens.
(10/21/11) Work has begun to prepare Big Thunder for it’s track work project coming up, and they’ve begun to remove most of the wooden railroad tie pieces from the track sections where they are going to be doing work. You can see picture of the newly exposed and very coaster looking track sections posted to Westcoaster this week.

Here are the pictures:

 

[U-Phone]

thats cool. cant wait to see the changes in May when i go up to Orlando for my state competition.

 

[TheDecemberists]

Oops. I showed my nephew some videos of BTM (he's obsessed with trains) because we'll be there in March. He's gonna cry now.

 

[KRAKENvsMANTA]

I hope May 12 is a concrete date for Big Thunder's re-opening. That's the exact weekend I'm making annual Disney trip. If Big Thunder AND Test Track are both down, I'm going to be a little upset.

 

[BJCool]

Da Mouse has a new photo update from all around the BTM: http://damouse.com/2012/02/05/big-thunders-mountainous-refurbishment-underway/