As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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We just got back from Disney and we rode Splash Mountain MANY times (it's our favorite). We were still able to fit three in a row (two adults and a child) and it really didn't effect wait times from what I could tell - you get in, pull the bar down and they have you pull it up to check almost immediately. We never waited more than 15 minutes and mostly had no wait (of course we were there during a "slow" period). I actually like the lap bars because my 7 year old is a bit "wiggly" and I think he could possibly be one of the "Brer Bear & Brer Fox's" that are stirring up trouble.
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This is a necessity these days. I'd forgotten, but this thread reminded me that when we were in MK in December we actually heard a LIVE PA announcement from Splash Mountain (We were over by Pecos Bills) for riders to please stay in their seats!
Rode SM last Thursday and commented on how the lap bars kept my poncho from flying up!! Ponchos were a necessary precaution due to cold weather - can't keep me from riding into the briar patch!
I did notice quite a few notices posted about remaining in your seats on several rides. More than one reminder on Living with the Land. I also noticed monitors posted on rides that showed CMs (and riders) that each vehicle was being watched. Signs also stated that getting out of ride vehicles would result in expulsion from the park - reminded me of Six Flags!! Seems they've been having problems with guests hopping out of vehicles and wandering around!
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We just rode Splash Mountain on Sunday and did not find the lap bars to be uncomfortable or a hindrance to loading/unloading the ride.
A bus driver told us (and who knows whether this is true) that the reason they installed them was that just before going down the big drop, a guest had stood up in the log and tried to touch or grab the top of the opening. Presumably they were trying to grab the briars or whatever is up there--I wouldn't know because by that time I've got my eyes clamped shut and I'm screaming.
The bus driver is *somewhat* correct. There have been many incidences of guests standing up throughout the ride over the past few years, but there have been serious injuries recently and many ride estops while the CMs chase down errant and unruly guests.
I have a feeling we'll be seeing more and more of these keep-the-stoooopid-guest-in-the-seat bars....
Wow, there is no accounting for how dense some people can be! Sounds like those bars are necessary after all. Reminds me of the guy dh and I saw at the Grand Canyon who walked out onto a teeny, tiny, ledge and did a handstand! All of us were horrified, sure we were going to see him fall to his death. Yet you just know that if someone stood up on Splash Mountain and got seriously injured, they'd be screaming it was Disney's fault and suing them.
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15 total family trips with stays at the Poly, AKL, Wilderness Lodge, Beach Club, Swan, Dolphin, POFQ, Pop Century, All Star Music, Movies & Sports, and Coronado Springs.
It is surprising how many people lack common sense. I have notice the ride stopping a couple of times due to people misbehaving and pure not having in common sense. At least means that the ride should not stop mid ride which is good. If only every had common sense though.
Well, now maybe my not so fearless boys will actually try SM! Besides the drop, I don't think they liked not seeing a lap bar on the logs. Every time we go, they get a bit more brave. It saddens me however, that people can just totally ignore the rules that are in place for a reason. I drum it in my kids heads all the time to respect rules like that and I only hope as they get older and on their own they do not act out in such a stupid way.
Splash Mountain had an unfortunate fatality back in 2000, when a guest exited the vehicle during a ride stoppage and fell between the vehicles. While this change is a bit late to be a direct response to that particular tragedy, I'm sure Disney hasn't forgotten.
I think we all do stupid things at one time or other, and we're particularly susceptible to suspending caution when we're having fun.
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Co-Author, PassPorter's Walt Disney World, PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line, and PassPorter's Disneyland and Southern California Attractions
oh they are installed now???
AWESOME!
the kids and the hubby are making me ride this one and I dont like heights or the feeling of falling so this MIGHT make it a bit better
also the chances of our kids seeing idiots do stupid stuff is smaller now. could you imagine being in that log of 2000?????
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