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EPCOT was the second theme park at Walt Disney World and originally opened as Epcot center
on October 1st, 1982.
{Walt Disney} Epcot will take its cue from the new ideas and new technologies that are
emerging from the creative centres from american industries.
Many of the original Epcot Centre attractions were great storytelling vehicles.
They were designed to educate the public on subjects such as technology, transportation
and nature.
A lot of these old rides and attractions were fan favourites but as our world progressed
so did the attractions leaving a lot of them as defunct pieces of the past.
Many people reminisce about the old days at Epcot but there are many hidden reminders
of these lost attractions; you just need to know where to look.
So while exploring the park’s history, today we’re gonna be counting down the Top 5 Hidden
Secrets of Extinct Rides at Epcot.
Number 5 One of the opening day attractions in 1982
was World of Motion.
This omnimover dark ride was sponsored by General Motors and took you on a humoured
journey through the history of transportation.
here at the World of Motion shows how people from thought the ages have searched for and
found better ways to get from here to there.
With 24 different show scenes that included over 100 animatronics, it was similar to Spaceship
Earth except it only spoke about transportation.
Well, in the mid 90s the attraction began to see a major decrease in popularity and
Disney decided to close World of Motion in January of 1996, making it extinct.
Test Track would become the replacement and after months of delays and complications the
ride officially opened in March of 1999 and General Motors remained the attraction’s
Sponsor.
Disney reused the original World of Motion building creating a new experience where you
took on the role of a crash test dummy going through testing procedures.
This version of the ride was actually a lot of fun.
Well in 2012 GM’s contract was up and Chevrolet became the attraction’s new sponsor.
Test Track received a complete overhaul which meant getting rid of the realistic crash test
scenes and creating new environments that were much more futuristic looking.
Well this new version of the ride actually allowed Imagineers to incorporate some tributes
to World of Motion.
This here is the old World of Motion Logo and if you look at the right side of the wait
time sign, you can see the logo is hidden in the corner.
You can also spot the logo on the trash cans as well as in the loading area right here.
As you make your way into the outdoor portion of the ride, there’s a few more hidden details
that are really easy to miss.
The first is the brownish sign on the left which shows a futuristic city similar to the
original model for Epcot.
Well the finale of World of Motion showed this modern city and the sign acts as a little
reference to that scene.
It’s also pretty ironic that after the capability test, theres what looks like a very similar
futuristic city and I think it’s safe to assume it also references the scene from World
of Motion.
Now immediately after the first sign, you’ll see this other sign with some letters and
numbers.
Well if you read this acronym out loud it says Fun to be Free and that’s actually
the name of theme song from World of Motion.
{Music} together a care, to do what you wanted to do its fun to be free.
Again, the World of Motion logo can be found on this sign as well.
In the new Epcot logos released at D23 to go along with the park’s transformation
thats already underway, it seems as though they’ve brought the old World of Motion
Logo back.
We can only imagine that this is the new official logo for test Track.
So with the original intent of Test Track 2.0 making a callback to World of Motion,
is seems as though it’s a full circle moment as it becomes an official part of Test Track.
Number 4 Heading into World Showcase, Malestrom opened
with the Norway Pavilion in July of 1988.
This water based dark ride took you through many scenes depicting the sprit and charm
of Norway from the mythological trolls of the Viking Days along with the Polar Bears
of the arctic and oil rigs of the seas.
Malestrom continued to draw crowds since it was only one of two rides in World Showcase
but in October of 2014 Disney closed the ride to make way for a new experience.
In June of 2016 Disney opened Frozen Ever After as a response to the wildly successful
animated film Frozen.
Now theres quite a stark contrast between the reality of Malestrom and the fantasy world
of Frozen so there isn’t much leftover but there are a couple things to take note of.
Since Frozen Ever After used the same ride system and track as Malestrom, the longship
ride vehicles were reused so this begins to create a little sense of familiarity in the
attraction.
Next when you head into Elsa’s Ice Palace, this was where you were able to find the three
headed troll on Maelstrom.
{Trolls} Over the falls!
As you were sent back there was a swirling light effect and if you look up at the ceiling
on Frozen Ever After you’ll see this same lighting effect is still being used but that’s
not all.
During the Polar Bear scene on Maelstrom, you were able to find these puffins on the
left hand side.
Well after your ship passes marshmallow and heads down the drop, you’ll find the puffin
animatronics from Maelstrom on the right hand side.
Recycling these figures into the snowy mountains outside of Elsa’s Ice castle acts as one
of the most noticeable tributes to the extinct Disney ride and reminds us that the spirt
of Malestrom still lives on.
Number 3 The Germany Pavilion is incredibly vibrant
and although it’s never had an attraction, it is home to an extinct attraction concept.
The Rhine River Cruise was a water based dark ride that was supposed to have a home right
here in Germany.
It was said that you were supposed to experience the history and culture of Germany as you
traveled past famous landmarks down Germany's most famous rivers.
Well Germany was an opening day Pavilion in 1982 and during the initial construction,
part of the show building was already built that would have housed the load and unload
areas.
It was planned for phase two but like many of the World Showcase pavilions, phase two
never happened so the Rhine River Boat ride was cancelled.
Well if you head to the back of the pavilion towards the restaurant, theres a mural that
covers the back wall, and this is actually where the entrance of the Rhine River boat
ride was supposed to be.
If you knock on the wall, you’d hear its hollow and up close it looks very temporary.
Originally this wall had wooden gates but Disney covered the opening to this building
around 1987 and never spoke about the attraction again.
I mean everyone loves a classic Disney water based dark ride and it’s really unfortunate
that this one never made it into Epcot.
Maybe one day Germany will get its very own ride but for now, beer and pretzels it is!
Number 2 Step into the Future with Horizons.
Step into the future today.
To celebrate the park’s one year anniversary, Horizons opened on October 1st 1983.
Sponsored by General Electric, Horizons was another omnimover based dark ride and took
you through scenes that envisioned what the future would be like.
By using audio animatronics and intricate show scenes, it was Disney storytelling at
its finest and combined all of the pavilion ideas of Future World into one attraction.
It was a fan favorite but shortly after GE pulled out as a sponsor in 1993 Horizons closed
unannounced in December of 1994.
However this wasn’t the end since it reopened a year later in December of 1995 since World
of Motion was set to close in January to make way for Test Track and the now extinct Universe
of Energy was down for refurbishment.
This unexpected reopening gave Horizons an extra 3 years of operation then it was closed
again, this time for good, in January of 1999 once Test Track began its soft opening.
Now there is a rumour that Horizons closed due to a large sinkhole around the attraction,
but whether that’s the actual reason for closing or not, the building was demolished
by July of 2000.
Its pretty crazy to think that’s almost 20 years ago.
Then in August of 2003 Disney officially opened Mission Space leaving the days of Horizons
in the past.
Now with Mission Space you get the chance to experience a mission to mars and passing
through the queue before your mission you’ll find this gravity wheel.
Horizons had a scene where the family was walking through their own gravity wheel but
the gravity wheel in Mission Space has one specific hidden tribute to Horizons.
In the centre of the wheel you’ll find the Horizons logo and this is not the only place
at Mission Space Where you can find it.
After exiting the ride, if you head through the gift shop the cash desk has a very obvious
Horizons logo on the front of it.
So the attraction isn’t complexly forgotten about but there is one more Horizons remnant
left over.
This planter right here in front of Mission Space is the same planter that used to be
in front of Horizons.
If you take a look at this google maps view you’ll see its in the same irregular hexagon
shape as the former show building
Number 1 Another Future World attraction that you weren’t
able to find on opening day at EPCOT centre was Journey into Imagination which opened
in March of 1983.
This one of a kind omnimover dark ride featured two protagonists, Dreamfinder and Figment,
who explored the power of imagination through vibrant show scenes.
One of the most memorable scenes was where we were introduced to these characters.
{Dreamfinder} You’ve got a Figment.
Oh
figment of imagination.
{Figment} Dreamfinder i’m just right!
{Dreamfinder} Not quite!
Look Figment some new friends have joined us
{Figment} Can they Imagine too?
{Dreamfinder} Of course, Imagination is something that belongs to all of us.
{Figment} Everyone can think of new things.
{Dreamfinder} Thats right figment.
The sequence operated on a turntable and there were 5 identical scenes rotating simultaneously.
Well in October of 1998, Journey Into Imagination closed to make way for what was to be a substantial
improvement to the original ride, but later we found out this was far from reality.
The current version of Journey into Imagination with Figmnet does not include the Dream Finder
but there is a little hidden tribute to this beloved Disney parks character.
As you make your way into the sound lab, the very first door it reads Dean Finder which
is a little play on words and tribute to the Dream Finder.
Now just when you thought that 1998 would be the last time anyone would see Dreamfinder’s
Dream Mobile, well you’re wrong and just in luck because one of the 5 vehicles still
exists to this day at Epcot.
Mousegear opened on October 1st, 1999, one year after the original Journey Into Imagination
closed.
The amazing Imagineers incorporated one of the Dream Mobiles into the store’s cog and
spoke theme.
Although its missing some pieces such as the plaid cover on the back, it is one of the
5 original vehicles from the ride hidden right in plain sight.
Now with the transformation of Epcot fully underway, MouseGear is getting a total revamp
and is set to close sometime in very early 2020.
The concept art for the transformation from D23 shows a complete retheme so if you find
yourself at Epcot be sure to get one final glimpse of the Dream Mobile before it flies
away forever and becomes a figment of our imagination.
So what’s your favorite hidden secret from Epcot and if you could bring back just one
of these extinct rides, which one would you choose and why?
I’d love to know!
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