I’m so excited to talk about Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, which makes its return after a lengthy remodel. It has been well executed and it’s as fun as ever–though perhaps in a slightly less bumpy way–at least for the moment. We will cover not only the history of this mountain but of its sister mountains at Disneyland, Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Paris. My business partner, Mark David Jones, joins me to discuss the original opening of Big Thunder here at Magic Kingdom, where he was part of the opening crew. He emphasizes how the attraction was the starting point for massive changes that would emerge at Walt Disney World in the years that followed, making it the resort destination of the world. And of course I’ll give you my play by play review of the attraction in its refurbished state. So join us as Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Returns.

This podcast is produced by myself and Performance Journeys, which offers training, development and consultant support to organizations big and small and entrepreneurs new and established. With a wide variety of resources and long-time in-the-trench experience, we offer workshops, online learning, coaching and more to organizations that want to build their teams, raise organizational excellence, improve leadership and create customer loyalty. Check us out at PerformanceJourneys.com.

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A Range of History

To understand Big Thunder Mountain at Magic Kingdom is to first understand something called the Rainbow Caverns mine train which opened in 1956 in Frontierland at Disneyland. There were already conestoga wagons and pack mules but there wasn’t much to see and the wagons were having some difficulty. The train was brought in to better handle the number of guests, and it was called a train so as to not confuse it with the Disneyland Santa Fe Railroad circling the park.

In 1960 Marc Davis was asked to see if there could be some improvements made to this casual ride through forests and deserts. Retitled The Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland, Marc Davis added humor to the experience with some 200 audio-animatronics creatures from reptiles and birds to beavers and bears. But with waterfalls and the ever enchanting Rainbow Caverns, it was still just a ride and was not nearly as exciting as a roller coaster.

In the late 1960s Imagineer Claude Coats had brought on a Disneyland ice cream scooper by the name of Tony Baxter to help support the building of Fantasyland in the Magic Kingdom when Walt Disney World opened in 1971. That park opened with attractions known to Disneyland like “it’s a small world” and Haunted Mansion. But it didn’t have a Pirates of the Caribbean. That’s because the same Imagineer who improved the Rainbow Caverns Mine Train had a bigger idea in mind–taking a train experience like Rainbow Caverns and a boat ride like Pirates and create Big Thunder Mesa, which would not only include a boat ride known as the Western River Expedition. Roy loved the concept but felt it should be Phase 2 of Magic Kingdom after it opened. So after Walt Disney World opened Tony Baxter started working on that project alongside Marc Davis.

But several issues came to the surface in the early 1970s to include an oil crisis. Money was tighter at Walt Disney Productions, so projects were reviewed. While the Thunder Mesa project was impressive, Tony didn’t like how the train wove through the mountain, more at the speed of the former Mine Train than at the speed of a bobsled. Tony was invited to do his own independent version of a runaway mine train ride. This would be Tony’s first big project. He worked on several versions of the attraction to get it right. It also didn’t help that in the wake of the oil crisis, it was decided to add more affordably a version of Pirates of the Caribbean to Magic Kingdom, which made it seemingly less necessary for the Western River Expedition.

In the mid 1970s after the success of Space Mountain and Matterhorn Mountain Bobsleds there was a feeling that more roller coasters meant bigger attendance for Disneyland. Nearby theme parks were certainly offering more thrills for younger visitors. The Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland, a casual rail ride through forests and deserts had dropped off significantly in attendance. By this time the Pack Mules had ended its trek, and the little town of Rainbow Ridge was starting to feel more like a ghost town back at Disneyland.

With the Mine Train through Nature’s Wonderland  drying up attendance wise, Tony was asked if the train concept could be placed in Disneyland rather than Magic Kingdom. Tony’s focus moved back to the West coast, where he found a way to fit the Big Thunder Railroad concept in by literally flipping its footprint. With this he added a smaller mountain scape in the form of Bryce Canyon, Utah to the mountain, and on September of 1979 opened to the public. It was an instant success.

Still, some of the magic of Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland was kept. First off, the guests queue just below the town of Rainbow Ridge, refashioned for the attraction, but still with all the charm. And during the ascent, mud pots and stalactites frame a sort of rainbow caverns, not as dramatic as Claude Coats, but still part of the magic of the new attraction.

Since then, three other mountains have been built:

Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom. This version is a flip of the track from Disneyland. Still, it sits on a larger piece of property as there is more space. The mountain scape is more like Monument Valley which overlaps Utah and Arizona. 

Tokyo Disneyland. This park has Westernland, not Frontierland. But it does have a Big Thunder Mountain, more compressed, but similar in look and style to the one at Magic Kingdom. The big difference here is that the last turn goes right instead of left, turning into a cave with a more high-speed finish. It is considered the best hybrid of Disneyland and Magic Kingdom versions.

Disneyland Paris. This one is the most unique of all coasters in that the ride is boarded along the Rivers of the Far West but then speeds under the river to an island where it goes through a three lift hills and then roars back under the river to the boarding area. It is so unique that most fans have come to love this version more than most. 

The video shows the differences in the four mountain experiences. Pivotal is that they all learned from each other, and they all have been created to meet not only the design needs of the park but of the guests as well. These mountains are universally loved.

You can see a comparison of the mountains here!

My business partner, Mark David Jones, had a 28 year history with Walt Disney World, to include opening Big Thunder Mountain. Hear from him his experience and how this attraction was a stepping off point for the Walt Disney World Resort as it moved into the 1980s with Epcot and enormous growth.

Impressions de Mountain

You can see the entire entry, queue and attraction here.

• Lots of construction all around
  • Concrete linings around the former Rivers of America
  • River bend being shortened by Haunted Mansion
  • Considerable space “Beyond Big Thunder”
  • Fencing extends around the mountain

• Height Requirement moved from 40″ to 38″
• Queue & Appearance Freshened
  • Smoke coming from a smokestack
  • Water elements in place–though not completed through
  • Clarksdale wagon touched up
  • Fireworks shells removed
  • Most interactive elements seem to be functioning
  • Story is still very much in place

• New track has been put in place
• Trains have been completely refurbished–Smooth experience

• New Cavern Scene
  • Scenes are individually lit or spotlighted on the way
  • Bats are everywhere
  • It isn’t Rainbow Caverns in the sense of the waterfalls that were once inside the original, but it is very much as colorful if not more than the original
  • Caverns go from colorful to a menacing red
  • Water spurts from the top as you emerge outside

• Hard to appreciate Tumbleweed details without Walt Disney World Railroad
• New Ending Scene
  • Veins of gold point you forward
  • Mother load of gold appears
  • Big choir chorus emphasizing the gold reveal
  • Still a disappointing run after the ending scene. It’s slow to gather steam and when it does, the ride is suddenly over.
• Still its the “Wildest Ride in the Wilderness” especially at Magic Kingdom

Disneyland Insights: Inspiration, Ideas & Magic for You and Your Organization

If you like this kind of nerdy insight on all things Disney, then check out my newest offering. For over a year I’ve been capturing and sharing stories of Disneyland, while creating a new online tool for you to explore all of them in one place. It’s called Disneyland Insights: Inspiration, Ideas & Magic for You and Your Organization and it’s an interactive, multimedia experience. This is truly designed for those who are seeking to find new ideas that will guide you to 

1. Provide Individual & Organizational Leadership Excellence
2. Create Employee Engagement & a Team Culture
3. Offer a Superior Customer Experience

Not only does the content through examples, stories and models play to these themes, but each section provides “Souvenirs for You and Your Organization”. They are reflective questions that may be used to better the work or operation you may be lead or be part of. And in that instance, it is more of a business focus. In fact, many may utilize funding set aside in their organization for training and development to purchase this volume.

Click here to order Disneyland Insights: Inspiration, Ideas & Magic for You and Your Organization. It’s also available on the show notes page of our podcast. Whether you’re on a comfy sofa at home or on Main Street, U.S.A. this experience allows you to navigate through all nine lands to explore some 100 locations where you can find Disney insights that will be inspire and guide you and your organization. 

Books From Your Host at Disney Insights

Also, if you’re looking to grab something today, go to Amazon where you will find four of my books available for purchase. Three explore Disney at length, and one explores world class businesses to include Disney. Check them out!

My newest book, A Century of Powerful Disney Insights, Volume I 1923-1973, The Walt & Roy Disney Years is available! 

Also, check out my two of my other books, The Wonderful World of Customer Service at Disney and Disney, Leadership and You. 

Also, for those examining other business benchmarks beyond Disney, check out Lead with Your Customer: Transform Culture and Brand Into World-Class Excellence.

Thanks for joining us for this podcast. Know that as in the title of my organization, Performance Journeys, it’s as much about the journey as it is about performance. Find the second star to the right, and keep going straight on till you reach it. Follow the compass of your heart, and know that with a smile and a song, a little faith, effort and pixie dust, your dreams can come true. After all, if we can dream it, we can do it. Until next time, bright suns, we’ll see you real soon!