There's a certain demographic of Disneyland park guests who tell you that Space Mountain is the best ride in Disneyland. These are people who are probably 13 -35 and have put the venerable mountain ahead of Indiana Jones Adventure, often regarded as their second favorite ride.
And then there is a certain segment of park guests who would not get on Space Mountain if they were getting poked by a cattle prod. Space Mountain = No Way Man. I think one of the reasons Mrs. DisneylandTrveler and I have yet to eat at Red Rockets Pizza Port is the entrance to the dining facility takes you right by the Space Mountain entrance, at which point Mrs. DLT will be bend over in convulsions and come up with the sever case of the heebee-jeebees. "It messes with my head" will be a standard excuse for not going on. I've heard this for close to 15 years. No sense in even asking anymore about the possibility of a ride on Space Mountain.
But she's not alone. Of all my fellow Disneyland Travelers at work, they are divided about 50 - 50 in whether they ride space mountain or won't go near the place. There is no middle ground with the ride. You love it or hate it. There is never a "eh....it's just alright comment" about the ride.
And that's alright too because it leads to an aura of mystery about the ride. Always fun to hang around the exit corridor and hear the "never again" comments with the guests pouring off the ride. So what's the big deal? Space Mountain is not especially large or especially fast. As for as coaster types, I believe it is labeled as a wild mouse ride. But the thing about Space Mountain is that for a few carefully placed scenes of light, the coaster is almost completely ridden in the dark. Now a space mountain veteran who knows every twist and every turn can have a lot of fun flinging their way through the dark, but a first time ride may find this quite unsettling to downright frightening.
Count me as a Space Mountain fan. On a hot day, its rather refreshing to have that cool air blowing against your face (which increases the illusion of speed.). My only objection is I always get to ride early before the crowds show up if I ride by myself. But like Indiana Jones - that's really is a long, lonesome walk going by yourself. It's well worth the walk as Space Mountain truly is one of Disneyland's great attractions.
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| The altered Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy Starts in Mid September through Halloween. |
Last time I was at Disneyland, I went on Space Mountain for the first time in my life. I adored it and wished I could go again, but the line was rather long. As we were coming out, we saw a young girl, probably in her mid to late teens, who was shaking and stumbling around. She had to sit down by the side of the walkway and her friend was trying to talk to her and she wasn't responding for a minute. We waited until she responded to make sure she was okay, but wow! That's an intense reaction!
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