The promise of any Disney park is that you can, for the duration of your visit, turn your mind off to the problems of the world. Disney has made a deal with you, implicit in the purchase of your ticket, that says they will do everything in their power to transport you away from our normal, flawed world and into one free of conflict and far removed from realty. You can, at a Disney park, escape.
This conceit came into being at the hand of Walt Disney himself, who envisioned a place where parents and children could come to be entertained together, and where he and his staff of Imagineers could create real magic. When Disneyland first opened in 1955, it was this premise that sat at its core: Come to Disneyland and we’ll make you believe in magic again. That was Walt Disney’s doing.
And so, when new attractions pop up at Disney parks around the globe, us Disney fans like to imagine how Walt might feel about them, should he have had the opportunity to experience them. Oftentimes, that thought experiment ends negatively (“Stitch? Walt’s spinning in his grave!”), but sometimes, the company that bears his name produces a gem absolutely worthy of its founder.
I would argue that one of the greatest examples of that idea is Soarin’ over California at Disney’s California Adventure (and its twin, Soarin’, at Epcot in Orlando). I firmly believe that Walt would absolutely adore this attraction, largely because it has all the hallmarks of the kinds of attractions he designed. For instance:
1. It gives guests an experience they otherwise couldn’t have
At the end of the day, guests visit Disney parks to experience something they’ve never experienced before. This was always the point, and so, Walt made sure to fill his namesake park with attractions that could show guests something new – like, say, a cruise through a lush and well-inhabited jungle, or a flight aboard an enchanted pirate ship en route to Neverland. He famously wanted the Jungle Cruise to feature real animals before eventually coming around to the fact that this would have been nearly impossible to pull off using 1950s technology.
This is, verbatim, the reason why Soarin’ exists. Its designers wanted to give Disneyland and Walt Disney World guests the experience of flying in a hang glider. As most people would either be unable or unwilling to do this in real life, Disney decided to recreate it for us. And, the result is something that is absolutely unmatched.
To this day, guests can’t help but applaud when the ride is over like a baby during a game of peak-a-boo. What causes this spontaneous cheering isn’t even the sensory overload, but rather, the fact that they’re experiencing flight for the very first time. Whether it’s real or a simulation doesn’t actually matter – for those few minutes, Walt Disney Imagineering has given you the power to fly, and that’s something Walt would be immensely proud of.
2. It uses brilliant and newly developed technology
Actually designing the Soarin’ structure was an enormous engineering nightmare. Imagineering worked through several iterations of technological schemes that might enable them to lift hang-glider vehicles up into the OMNIMAX screen in order to create the ride’s now famous flying sensation. The only problem was that none of these plans actually worked.
Thankfully, it turns out Imagineers are a rather diligent bunch, and one by the name of Mark Sumner decided one night at his house that he’d had enough.
So, he went up into his attic and found his old erector set and began toying around with it. Eventually, he’d put together a model that seemed like it might work and brought it into the office the next Monday. Sure enough, that model kickstarted the production process that brought Soarin’ over California to life.
What’s particularly amazing about that story isn’t even the fact that Sumner used a 40-year-old children’s toy to build a working model of a multi-million dollar attraction, but rather, it represents the norm for Imagineering.
Ever since the time Walt was running things, Disney’s Imagineers have sought up new and innovative ways to solve problems. That problem solving ability led them to create some of the most technologically advanced concepts in theme park history — things like the omnimover, tubular steel roller coasters, and, of course, Audio-Animatronics. Creating new technology is what Disney does, and Soarin’ making use of such a new mechanism is simply in keeping with that tradition.
I like to think that Walt would have loved that story about the erector set – I think seeing the model would give him great joy, not just because the ride itself is so wonderful, but because it was made out of necessity from one of his Imagineers.
3. It’s a ride that can be enjoyed by everyone
Walt created Disneyland because he wanted a place where parents and children could play together. In his dedication of the park in 1955, Walt said, “Disneyland is your land. Here age relives fond memories of the past, and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future.” He made sure his park would speak to adults and their need to remember the past and children, who almost always are looking forward into the future.
Nowadays, theme parks like to offer attractions that micro-target certain groups – experiences like thrilling roller coasters or fairy tale meet and greets. Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom has an attraction that allows children to play make believe with Belle from Beauty and the Beast and an attraction that honors the legacy of each of the American presidents. There really is something for everyone.
But what makes Soarin’ unique is that it is an attraction for all. It’s not overly thrilling, but it’s not deadeningly dull. It’s not aggressively hip, but it’s not needlessly nostalgic. It touches on something that anyone can connect with, and it lets them enjoy its thrills at their own pace.
If you ride Soarin’, you’ll be riding it with everyone else who visits Disney’s California Adventure or Epcot that day. It doesn’t separate people by size, age, or motion-sickness. Like Walt always wanted, it’s an attraction that can truly be appreciated by all.
4. It showcases how beautiful the world can be
Image: Disney
Yes, escapism is fun, but it’s not everything. Escapism can make you forget your problems, but it doesn’t get rid of them. Escapism is like a warm coat you can wear in the winter – yes, you feel warmer, but it doesn’t make the winter end any sooner. Escapism is great, but it’s not real magic.
Real magic is when someone makes you look at the crude, imperfect world you inhabit each day, and allows you to see the beauty and promise within it.
Walt was obsessed with showcasing the beauty of the world we inhabit. He invented Circle-Vision 360 as a way of showing off just how amazing and majestic the natural world is. Epcot is littered with attractions that draw their lineage back to that exact impulse from Walt – attractions like Impressions de France and O, Canada.
And, years later, Soarin’.
It’s easy to show people a princess or a dinosaur or a rocket ship and make them feel happy. It’s much harder to show them the world they live in and ask them to look at it with fresh eyes. It requires an optimism and an infectious spirit. And, importantly, it requires an appreciation of the world as it is, warts and all.
Walt had all of that. He knew how people felt in their day to day lives, and he knew how to make them forget about it. But, perhaps the greatest thing he could do, was allow them to reconnect with their world in a newer, stronger way. For him, that often involved reconnecting with the natural beauty of our planet – and that’s a technique Soarin’ picks up lovingly and effectively.
Soarin’ shows people something they could see with their own eyes, and yet, when it’s done, they applaud anyway – as though they’re seeing something that couldn’t possibly be real. Somehow, Soarin’ makes the real world seem magical again.
Not bad for something dreamed up on an erector set, eh Walt?
