Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith
From Disney's Hollywood Studios Wiki
Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith (commonly referred to as simply Rock 'n' Roller Coaster) is an enclosed steel roller coaster ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios. It opened on July 29th, 1999 and is located at the end of Sunset Boulevard.
There is an attraction of the same name at the Walt Disney Studios Park, but the ride itself is very different.
The roller coaster accelerates from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 2.8 seconds (making this the second-fastest ride at the Walt Disney World Resort, behind only Test Track in Epcot) and the riders experience 4.5g (44 m/s²) as they enter the first inversion, more than an astronaut does on a space shuttle launch. Both versions feature five trains, although only four can run at one time. The others are kept in backup, while being serviced (each train is rotated out periodically).
[edit] Attraction Synopsis
After winding through a shaded outdoor queue, guests enter the offices and recording studios of record label G-Force Records, whose lobby is decorated with posters of real acts signed to labels owned by The Walt Disney Company.
Next, guests are led into a room looking into the recording studio, where the five members of Aerosmith are shown finishing a recording session of their hit song "Walk this Way. The group's manager, portrayed by Illeana Douglas, enters and informs them that they're late for a concert. Lead singer Steven Tyler expresses regret at being forced to leave the band's fans and requests backstage passes for the entire group. The band then departs by limousine to "the Forum" (a reference to a famous Los Angeles concert venue). The harried manager summons a "super stretch" limo, to carry guests to the concert and directs them outside.
The pacing of the film is such that there is brief pause between the time that the band mentions to their manager that they should do something for their fans and Steven Tyler agreeing. The interval of time is just long enough that the line "How about some backstage passes" can be shouted from the audience, making it appear that the band takes the suggestion. Steven Tyler's next line is "Wait a minute, I love that idea. How about some backstage passes?"
Guests exit the recording studio and pass through an alley into a parking garage, owned by "Lock 'n' Roll Parking Systems". In here, guests waiting in line can see the ride's launch and sharp-eyed guests can spot the curtains in above 'apartment windows', sway from the 'force', caused by the launch. Guests then board a waiting 24 seat stretch limo for the trip across town to the concert.
After loading passengers, the "limo" stops at the entrance to a tunnel. Music is playing and an overhead variable message sign displays a series of several different messages until a countdown. After the countdown, the car is then shot into the tunnel at 57 mph (92 km/h) and the souvenir photo is taken. The roller coaster goes through three inversions, two of which are roll-overs and one of which is a corkscrew on a winding track, intended to represent various Los Angeles Area Freeways, including Interstate 5, Interstate 10 and U.S. Route 101, as evident by the street signs that periodically appear on the side of the coaster. The attraction ends when the limo arrives at Aerosmith's concert backstage, letting guests off onto a red carpet.
While considered "extreme", Rock 'n' Roller Coaster has been described by roller coaster enthusiasts as being smoother, less jerky and less uncomfortable than some similar extreme roller coasters.
[edit] History
Cast Member previews for the ride were initially held the last week of June, 1999. On 29 July 1999, the ride officially opened with a special, invitation-only party, with Aerosmith as the guests of honor. 96.5 WHTQ, a local radio station, held a contest in which listeners could win tickets for themselves and three friends to attend the special event. Winners rode to the Disney's Hollywood Studios in stretch limousines and were treated to an all-you-can-eat buffet and bar. After a special performance by painter Denny Dent, winners got the chance to ride the roller coaster with one of the Aerosmith band members. At the exit of the ride, outside of the gift shop, there hangs a picture from the special event. The paintings Denny Dent made of the five band members hang in various employee office locations on Walt Disney World property.
The pre-show has changed from when the attraction first opened. Originally, band member Joe Perry would ask "Chris" to "grab my black Les Paul." A Disney cast member in the pre-show area would then pick up and remove a black guitar signed by Joe Perry from the set. The script uses the unisex name "Chris" so either a male or female could play the part. Although not used as often as when the ride first opened, the position is still used from time to time (generally, if the attraction is overstaffed, or a Cast Member is just plain bored). The film also includes a roadie saying "Hey Joe, I'll get it for ya" as a backup, in the event that a cast member is not available for the part.
In 2007, the queue was modified to accommodate single riders in addition to FASTPASS.
In 2008, Hanes became the sponsor of the attraction, so some more Hanes related elements have appeared around the attraction, including a guitar pick with the Hanes logo on the iconic guitar in front of the attraction.
[edit] Soundtrack
There are five speakers per seat, a total of 120 per limo. Aerosmith worked with Disney Imagineers to produce a special soundtrack for the roller coaster. The speakers on each car are located in the headrests. Songs featured include:
"Nine Lives"
"Love in an Elevator"
"Walk This Way"
"Young Lust"
"F.I.N.E."
"Love in a Roller Coaster" (An Edited version of "Love in an Elevator" exclusive to the ride)
"Back in the Saddle"
"Dude (Looks Like a Lady)"
"Sweet Emotion"
The ride formerly featured Uncle Joe Benson, a well-known Los Angeles, CA rock radio DJ, as the station's DJ. Currently, Bill Hart, the host of ABC Radio's "Flashback", provides the voice for the DJ of "LA's Classic Rock Station" which is what you here in the queue line.
