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Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith

Coordinates: 48°51′53″N 2°46′48″E / 48.864850°N 2.779931°E / 48.864850; 2.779931
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This article is about the roller coaster at Disney's Hollywood Studios. For the roller coaster formerly at Opryland, see Rock n' Roller Coaster (Opryland).

Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith
A large, red Fender Stratocaster on display outside the attraction in Florida
Disney's Hollywood Studios
Park sectionSunset Boulevard
Coordinates28°21′33.9″N 81°33′38.5″W / 28.359417°N 81.560694°W / 28.359417; -81.560694
StatusOperating
Opening dateJuly 29, 1999 (1999-07-29)
Single rider line available
Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith at Disney's Hollywood Studios at RCDB
Walt Disney Studios Park
NameRock 'n' Roller Coaster avec Aerosmith
Park sectionBacklot
Coordinates48°51′53″N 2°46′48″E / 48.864850°N 2.779931°E / 48.864850; 2.779931
StatusRethemed (converted into Avengers Assemble: Flight Force)
Opening dateMarch 16, 2002 (2002-03-16)
SponsorGibson (Florida)
Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith at Walt Disney Studios Park at RCDB
General statistics
TypeSteel – Enclosed – Launched
ManufacturerVekoma
DesignerWalt Disney Imagineering
ModelLSM Coaster
Lift/launch systemLSM launch
Height80 ft (24 m)
Length3,267.7 ft (996.0 m)
Speed57 mph (92 km/h)
Inversions3
Duration1:22
Capacity1,800 riders per hour
Acceleration0 to 57 mph (0 to 92 km/h) in 2.8 seconds
G-force5
Height restriction48 in (122 cm)
Trains6 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 24 riders per train.
Must transfer from wheelchair

Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith is an indoor launched roller coaster located at Disney's Hollywood Studios within Walt Disney World. Manufactured by Vekoma, the roller coaster opened to the public on July 29, 1999. It uses linear motor electromagnetic technology for acceleration, which propels riders from 0 to 57 mph (92 km/h) in 2.8 seconds. Riders experience up to 5 Gs and travel through three inversions, which include a rollover and a corkscrew. The attraction also features recorded music and appearances from American rock band Aerosmith.

A second installation with an identical track layout opened as Rock 'n' Roller Coaster avec Aerosmith at Walt Disney Studios Park within Disneyland Paris on March 16, 2002. It closed in September 2019 for a planned transformation, reopening as Avengers Assemble: Flight Force in 2022 as part of the new Avengers Campus themed land at the park.

In November 2024, Disney announced that the attraction would be re-themed to the Muppets following the closure of Muppet*Vision 3D and the Muppet Courtyard as Grand Avenue at Hollywood Studios.[1]

History

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In April 1998, Disney-MGM Studios (later named Disney's Hollywood Studios) announced that they would be adding Rock 'n' Roller Coaster.[2] The ride was set to open in 1999 for the park's tenth anniversary.[2] The park hired Vekoma to build the launched indoor roller coaster, and construction began two months prior to the announcement in February 1998.[3] The track layout was completed by June 1998.[4]

Soft opening cast member previews began in June 1999.[3] The following month,[5] the attraction held its grand opening on July 29 with a special, invitation-only party featuring Aerosmith as the guests of honor.[6] Winners were taken to the park, in stretch limousines and received complimentary meals.[7] After a special performance by painter Denny Dent, winners received the chance to ride the roller coaster with one of the Aerosmith band members. A picture from the special event is on display near the exit of the ride.

In each train, there are a total of 120 speakers. There are five surrounding each rider, consisting of two mid-range speakers, two tweeters, and a subwoofer placed under the seat.[8] The Walt Disney Studios Park version of the ride opened on March 16, 2002.[9] It featured the same track layout as the Walt Disney World installation, but the theme and line queue were different.[10] In 2007, the queue was modified to accommodate single riders in addition to FASTPASS.

On December 17, 2015, the Hollywood Studios location hosted a special event to promote the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The queue line featured Star Wars movie posters, the Aerosmith pre-show was disabled and the speakers played music from the film.[11] The same Star Wars overlay also occurred on April 14, 2017.[12]

In 2016, the pre-show video was edited to digitally remove a "crude hand gesture" made by Steven Tyler.[13]

In 2017, the Hollywood Studios location received new television screens mounted in spaces prior to the boarding area. They show loading and safety tips in an effort to reduce boarding time.[14] In addition, the exterior of the main ride building was given a new coat of paint.[15]

It was announced at the 2018 D23 Expo in Japan that the Walt Disney Studios Park location would be closing for a complete theme change to the Iron Man and Avengers franchises of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.[16] After more than 18 years of operation, the attraction officially closed on September 2, 2019[17][18] and was replaced by Avengers Assemble: Flight Force on July 20, 2022, as part of the new Avengers Campus Paris themed land.[19][16][20]

On November 22, 2024 in conjunction with the announcement of the closure of Muppet*Vision 3D, Disney announced that Rock 'n' Roller Coaster will be re-themed to feature The Muppets, but would retain the same name.[1][21][22]

Ride experience

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The pre-show of the attraction was modified over time. The most recent version features band member Joe Perry asking Chris, the Disney cast member in the pre-show, to grab his black Les Paul guitar. The cast member in the pre-show area then proceeds to pick up and remove a black guitar signed by Joe Perry from the set. The pre-show film also includes a roadie saying "Hey, Joe, I'll get it for ya." in the background as a backup, in the event that a cast member is not available to participate.[23]

Queue

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Disney's Hollywood Studios

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As guests enter the line queue, they walk into a high-ceilinged circular room themed to a fictional record label called G-Force Records. Walls are decorated with ceiling-high guitars and digital posters of Hollywood Records artists, and the floor depicts a giant record. These digital posters sometimes display guests' names as recording artists, accomplished by short-range RFID scanners that read their MagicBands and Magicband+'s[24] Also on display to guests is a small exhibit of recording instruments in the stand-by queue.

As part of the pre-show experience, guests are asked to wait outside the doors of Studio C. Different musical instruments can be heard being played in Studio B during a rehearsal. As guests enter Studio C, Aerosmith is working on an instrumental recording of "Walk This Way" with a sound engineer (Ken Marino). The band greets the guests as their manager (Illeana Douglas) walks in interrupting, telling the band they're running late to a scheduled show. As the band gets ready to depart, Steven Tyler stops and says they can't leave the guests behind. Joe Perry and the rest of the band agree, as the manager sarcastically replies, "Well, guys, what do you expect me to do? Send them all with you?" Steven pauses and says, "Wait a minute. I love that idea. How about some backstage passes?" The manager reluctantly agrees and makes a phone call ordering a "super stretch" limo, calling it a "really fast car" that will take everyone across town to the show. The limo that Aerosmith boarded in the background peels out, leaving their manager behind to her disappointment. As the scene ends, "Walk This Way" resumes playing but this time with vocals. Guests are permitted to exit the pre-show area and board the ride.[25]

Walt Disney Studios Park

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The former Paris version was similar, except guests entered a building themed to the fictional Tour de Force Records. The story focused on Aerosmith, working with engineers, creating a revolutionary new music experience at the Tour De Force Records studios. After watching the pre-show which features Aerosmith's Steven Tyler hyping up the ride, guests were lured into the testing area where they boarded one of five Soundtrackers, the prototype vehicles for the new experience.

On-ride

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As the limo leaves the parking garage, Bill St. James, the radio DJ of LA's Classic Rock Station, begins a short commentary, usually followed by a traffic report in the surrounding area where Aerosmith's concert is taking place. The limo stops in front of a highway tunnel where a highway sign flashes humorous messages like: "Traffic bug you? Then STEP on it!". (In the Paris version, instead of guests being taken on the Los Angeles freeways, the Paris version is based around an Aerosmith music video.) Building up anticipation, seconds before the limo is launched, Steven Tyler counts down from five, launching the limo from 0 to 57 mph (92 km/h) in less than 2.8 seconds at "one!". As the limo enters the tunnel, the on-ride photo is taken and a selection of Aerosmith songs play.

After a long straightway, the limo rises up into the Rollover element, which is a two inversion element,[26] and then some less intense over-banked turns. During the ride, there are neon signs on the side of the track, designed to mimic road signs; in the Paris version, lighting rigs, projectors, strobes, and smoke effects are used in place of the road signs that exist in the U.S. version. The limo continues along the track, until it reaches the third and final inversion, a corkscrew, and ending the ride with more banked turns as well as a camelback hill. The limo proceeds to the VIP backstage area, where guests exit through the red carpet towards the on-ride photo screens at the gift shop.

Soundtrack

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The giant red Fender Stratocaster outside of the Disney Rock 'n' Roller Coaster at night
The garage sign in the ride's load area

Disney's Hollywood Studios

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Walt Disney Imagineering worked with Aerosmith to produce a special soundtrack for the roller coaster. Each coaster train features different Aerosmith songs, some containing some new lyrics written specifically for the attraction; for example, "Love in an Elevator" is sung as "Love in a Rollercoaster".

There is a 6th limo in the fleet that has no license plate and is always "in refurbishment." The vehicles are rotated in and out of use after a period of many thousands of laps around the track. However, the maintenance teams will switch out the plate and add the proper song to the new vehicle every time a rotation is made.

In addition, prior to the 2007 refurbishment:

  • The ride featured Uncle Joe Benson, a well-known Los Angeles rock radio DJ, as the station's DJ. Bill St. James, former host of ABC Radio's Flashback, currently provides his own voice as the DJ of "LA's Classic Rock Station."
  • The UGOBABE license plate is been used as UGOGIRL.
  • Steven Tyler displayed the Shocker gesture when agreeing to offer backstage passes.
  • The "Chris" that Joe Perry asked to grabbed the black Les Paul was portrayed by a cast member who took a black Les Paul off of the recording studio set.
  • Only the UGOGIRL and BUHBYE limos had actual countdowns[27] (As a result, Steven Tyler has commentary while counting down when it was added to the other limos).

Walt Disney Studios Park

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The vehicles in Paris were called "Soundtrackers" instead of limousines. A unique aspect of the Walt Disney Studios version is that each Soundtracker had its own theme. There were five different light shows and five different soundtracks, one for each Soundtracker. The themes were as follows:

  • Soundtracker 1: green lightshow theme; played "Back in the Saddle" and "Dude (Looks Like a Lady)"
  • Soundtracker 2: purple lightshow theme; played "Young Lust," "F.I.N.E.", and "Love in an Elevator"
  • Soundtracker 3: multicolour lightshow theme; played "Love in an Elevator" and "Walk This Way"
  • Soundtracker 4: red lightshow theme; played "Nine Lives"
  • Soundtracker 5: blue lightshow theme; played "Sweet Emotion" (live, as featured in A Little South of Sanity)

References

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  1. ^ a b Rachel (November 22, 2024). "Monsters and Muppet Updates for Hollywood Studios". Disney Parks Blog. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Roller coaster rides new-attraction wave". The Orlando Sentinel. April 22, 1998. Retrieved October 29, 2020 – via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  3. ^ a b Anderson, Jamie J. (July 23, 1999). "Wild ride of music and speed". The Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved January 30, 2018 – via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  4. ^ Stilwell, Andrew (May 23, 1999). "19 for 99: Rock 'N' Roller Coaster at Disney's Hollywood Studios". Coaster101. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
  5. ^ Abbott, Jim (July 30, 1999). "Aerosmith rocks, new coaster rolls". The Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved January 30, 2018 – via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  6. ^ "Best bets". The Orlando Sentinel. July 30, 1999. Retrieved January 30, 2018 – via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  7. ^ "WHTQ Rock n Roller Coaster Featuring Aerosmith - Photo Gallery". 96.5 WHTQ. Archived from the original on December 2, 2000. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  8. ^ Thomas, Mike (August 1, 1999). "Episode I: The Coaster Wars". Restless Native. The Orlando Sentinel - Florida Magazine. Retrieved January 30, 2018. Under your seat is a giant woofer. Surrounding you but unseen are two mid-range speakers and two tweeters. So you get five speakers blasting you with concert-quality sound.
  9. ^ "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith". D23. August 10, 2017. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  10. ^ Marden, Duane. "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster  (Disneyland Paris)". Roller Coaster DataBase.
  11. ^ "Star Wars takes over Rock 'n' Roller Coaster at Disney's Hollywood Studios for one night only". December 18, 2015.
  12. ^ "Full Schedule and List of Events Released for Star Wars Galactic Nights; Rock 'N' Roller Coaster Overlay Returns". April 14, 2017.
  13. ^ "Disney removes Steven Tyler's shocking hand gesture from Rock 'n' Roller Coaster". Orlando Weekly. August 18, 2016. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
  14. ^ "PHOTOS, VIDEO: New Safety Pre-Show at Rock 'N' Roller Coaster". January 23, 2017.
  15. ^ "PHOTOS: Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Gravity Building Being Repainted For New Lands". August 20, 2017.
  16. ^ a b "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith at Walt Disney Studios Park to Receive Marvel Transformation". Disney Parks Blog. February 11, 2018. Archived from the original on February 12, 2018. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  17. ^ Tuttle, Brittani (February 1, 2019). "Disneyland Paris announces closing date for Rock 'n' Roller Coaster". Attractions Magazine. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  18. ^ "Confirmed "Closing Dooowwwnnnnn" Date for Rock 'n' Roller Coaster at Disneyland Paris".
  19. ^ "Disneyland Paris reveals new image of Marvel-themed area coming to Walt Disney Studios Park". news.disneylandparis.com. Disney. Archived from the original on September 2, 2019. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  20. ^ "Avengers Campus – DisneylandParis News". Retrieved May 25, 2022.
  21. ^ Diller, Nathan (November 22, 2024). "Disney closing beloved Muppets film attraction, relocate characters". USA TODAY. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
  22. ^ McCarthy, Kelly (November 22, 2024). "MuppetVision 3D closing for new Monsters, Inc. Land, but characters will relocate to Rock 'n' Roller Coaster". ABC News. Retrieved November 23, 2024.
  23. ^ "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster - Disney MGM Studios (1999 Pre-Show)". YouTube. December 15, 2020.
  24. ^ McCabe, Adam (April 19, 2016). "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster introduces personalized rock posters at Walt Disney World". Retrieved October 21, 2016.
  25. ^ "7 Facts And Secrets About The Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith". March 18, 2017.
  26. ^ "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster - Walt Disney World - Disney's Hollywood Studios (Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA)". rcdb.com. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  27. ^ https://web.archive.org/web/20060504065854/http://www.rocknrollercoaster.com/rnr5.mp3 [bare URL]
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