- Goofy's Sky School
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Goofy's Sky School The entrance of Goofy's Sky School. Previously known as Mulholland Madness Location Disney California Adventure Park section Paradise Pier Coordinates 33°48′23″N 117°55′23″W / 33.80632°N 117.92304°WCoordinates: 33°48′23″N 117°55′23″W / 33.80632°N 117.92304°W Status Operating Opened February 8, 2001
(as Mulholland Madness)
July 1, 2011
(as Goofy's Sky School)Type Steel - Wild Mouse Manufacturer Mack Rides Designer Walt Disney Imagineering Model Custom Lift/launch system Chain lift hill Height 55 ft (17 m) Length 1,200 ft (370 m) Max speed 27 mph (43 km/h) Inversions 0 Duration 1:45 Height restriction 3 ft 6 in (107 cm) Trains Several trains with a single car. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 4 riders per train. Host Goofy (voice of Bill Farmer, safety spiels) Fastpass available
Single rider line available
Must transfer from wheelchair
Goofy's Sky School at RCDB Pictures of Goofy's Sky School at RCDB Amusement Parks Portal
Goofy's Sky School is a steel wild mouse roller coaster at the Paradise Pier section of Disney California Adventure Park in Anaheim, California. The ride is based on Disney's animated cartoon "Goofy's Glider". The attraction is a retheme of Mulholland Madness which closed in October 2010. The rethemed attraction opened on July 1, 2011.[1]
Contents
History
Goofy's Sky School originally opened on February 8, 2001, as Mulholland Madness.[2] The attraction's original name came from the famed Mulholland Drive in Los Angeles, California, named after the famed engineer William Mulholland.[2] Within the first month of its operation, three accidents occurred on the ride causing it to be shut for a short period of time for repairs.[3] The ride vehicles were themed to the many cars one can find on the Southern California freeway systems, (such as Highway Patrol cars or Classic Surfer "Woodies"). At the end of the ride, a sign on the wall above read "Rental Car Return".[4][5]
On October 12, 2010, Mulholland Madness closed for refurbishment and re-theming as part of Disney California Adventure Park's major refurbishment.[6] On July 1, 2011, the attraction reopened as Goofy's Sky School.[1] The attraction's re-opening is the latest in a series of moves to attempt to introduce classic Disney characters into Paradise Pier.[7]
It has been reported that Goofy's Sky School will be the location of a future E ticket ride.[7][8]
Ride
Goofy's Sky School is a wild mouse roller coaster manufactured by Mack Rides.[2] Walt Disney Imagineering have designed the theme for the ride based upon Disney's animated cartoon "Goofy's Glider". Riders board a plane and navigate a crash course of flying which features sharp turns, steep drops, and sudden stops. Goofy is pictured on billboards throughout the ride teaching guests the step-by-step process of flying a plane.[1][6]
Reception
The original Mulholland Madness ride was often criticized for being an "off-the-shelf", carnival-style ride with a weak theme.[7][9] Brady MacDonald of the Los Angeles Times describes the re-themed Goofy's Sky School ride as "little more than a Band-Aid meant to hide an unseemly scar that earned the Anaheim theme park its on-the-cheap reputation". He goes on to say that an "ordinary Wild Mouse coaster doesn't belong in a Disney park and is an embarrassment" when compared with other Disney coasters such as Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Space Mountain and the Matterhorn Bobsleds. He concluded by stating that "the ride should have been removed rather than remade".[8] In response to the Los Angeles Times' critical review, Screamscape's Lance Hart points out that several other rides (such as Gadget's Go Coaster, Silly Symphony Swings, Jumpin' Jellyfish and Rock 'n' Roller Coaster) are also off-the-shelf and are seen at many other parks around the world. He states that "off-the-shelf rides systems are fairly hard to avoid these days. [...] Sometimes you can dress up a ride system to look different and unique… sometimes you can’t". Lance Hart concludes by saying that "a good wild mouse coaster would be in my top 3 must-have attractions" for a boardwalk style park such as Paradise Pier.[10] Like Screamscape, others have been less critical of the updated ride. Several have stated that the ride is better than its predecessor and that it better suits the theme of a Disney theme park.[11]
Gallery
- Mulholland Madness
References
- ^ a b c Glover, Erin (May 5, 2011). "Paradise Pier Transformation to be Complete July 1". Disney Parks Blog. http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2011/05/paradise-pier-transformation-to-be-complete-july-1/. Retrieved May 5, 2011.
- ^ a b c Marden, Duane. "Goofy's Sky School (Disney California Adventure Park)". Database Entry. Roller Coaster DataBase. http://www.rcdb.com/732.htm. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ^ "Accident-plagued coaster shut down". Lodi News Sentinel. 7 March 2001. http://news.google.com.au/newspapers?id=va1AAAAAIBAJ&sjid=9iAGAAAAIBAJ&dq=mulholland-madness&pg=3770%2C725460. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ^ Carter, Chelsea J. (14 January 2001). "Disney set to open new park". The Albany Herald. http://news.google.com.au/newspapers?id=ny9EAAAAIBAJ&sjid=UbEMAAAAIBAJ&dq=mulholland-madness&pg=1070%2C2191383. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ^ "Goofy's Sky School soft opening period begins at Disney California Adventure". Theme Park Tourist. 27 June 2011. http://www.themeparktourist.com/news/20110627/4280/goofys-sky-school-soft-opening-period-begins-disney-california-adventure. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ^ a b Rivera, Heather Hust (6 August 2010). "Disney California Adventure Park Expansion Continues with Goofy’s Sky School and Cars Land". Disney Parks Blog. http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2010/08/disney-california-adventure-park-expansion-continues-with-goofy%E2%80%99s-sky-school-and-cars-land/. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ^ a b c MacDonald, Brady (25 April 2011). "Goofy's Sky School: Disney California Adventure set to reopen reworked coaster". Los Angeles Times. http://www.latimes.com/travel/deals/themeparks/la-trb-goofy-sky-school-disney-04201120,0,167845.story. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ^ a b MacDonald, Brady (28 June 2011). "Review: Disappointing Goofy's Sky School coaster marks end of Paradise Pier makeover at Disney California Adventure". Los Angeles Times. http://www.latimes.com/travel/deals/themeparks/la-trb-disney-goofy-sky-school-06201127,0,2129333.story. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ^ "Paradise Pier section". Orange County Register. October 14, 1998. http://www.mouseplanet.com/dca/pier.htm. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ^ Hart, Lance (29 June 2011). "Disney's California Adventure". Screamscape. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5znUwOxjz. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ^ Fields, Eugene W. (27 June 2011). "Sneak preview of new ride at Disney park". Orange County Register. http://www.ocregister.com/news/-306112--.html. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
Disney California Adventure attractions Buena Vista Street (Opening in 2012) Red Car TrolleyHollywood Pictures Backlot Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue! · The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror · Disney's Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular · Disney Junior - Live on Stage! · Muppet*Vision 3D · Turtle Talk with Crush · Animation Academy · Character Closeup · Sorcerer's Workshop · The Hollywood Backlot StageA Bug's Land It's Tough to Be a Bug! · Bountiful Valley Farm · Flik's Flyers · Francis's Ladybug Boogie · Heimlich's Chew Chew Train · Princess Dot Puddle Park · Tuck & Roll's Drive Em' BuggiesGolden State Paradise Pier Ariel's Grotto · California Screamin' · Mickey's Fun Wheel · Goofy's Sky School · Golden Zephyr · Games of the Boardwalk · King Triton's Carousel of the Sea · Jumpin' Jellyfish · The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Undersea Adventure · Silly Symphony Swings · Toy Story Midway Mania!Cars Land (Opening in 2012) Entertainment Categories:- Roller coasters that opened in 2011
- Steel roller coasters
- Wild Mouse roller coasters
- Mack Rides roller coasters
- Goofy
- Paradise Pier
- Roller coasters at Disney California Adventure Park
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