Vrooommm, Vrooommm

We got to Epcot early this morning.  Each day of the week one of the 4 theme parks at WDW will open an hour early for guests staying "on property" as they call it.  This is another little perk you get for paying to stay at a Disney hotel or in the campground.  That one extra hour can save you about 4 hours later in the day as you will not find those long lines from 8:00 to 9:00 am.  During that hour you can get to 2 or 3 rides before the regular crowd enters the park.  Usually you will wait only 10 minutes or so during those extra early hours.  They also have some of those extra "magic hours" at the end of some days and you can stay at Epcot or the Magic Kingdom until midnight or 1:00 am.  Not for us, thanks....we're sleeping by then and even Mickey Mouse won't keep me up that late.

We went to the Test Track attraction first thing this morning.  Disney people don't like to call them "rides" so they are all just attractions.  Test Track is a great attraction,  and one of the best at Epcot.  It is sponsored by GM and they don't fail to let you know it.  That doesn't detract from the pleasure and fun of this ride attraction.  In typical Disney fashion, this attraction takes you through a maze of a waiting line that shows you different types of the testing done on automobiles before they are ready for the public.  It is all a large collection of exhibits exploring the different aspects of auto testing.  I think this display area is done for 2 reasons.  #1...to actually show you things about the testing of cars  #2...to keep you entertained so you don't realize you could be miserable waiting in a long line.  By most afternoons the wait will be 60 to 80 minutes.  OR...you can get a Fast Pass ticket (free).  This allows you to come back at a later time in the day and get into a special line that will load right onto the ride.  Wait time is about 10 minutes.

This vehicle is one of the first things you see when you enter the building where the line forms.

This is the windshield test area.

Here is a crash test dummy.  Any volunteers for this job?  Workampers?

This is the type of car you ride in.   You remain indoors for most of the ride which takes you through brake testing, suspension testing, steering and cornering tests and many more.  After those are finished you zoom outdoors on a special track and your car will accelerate on the track circling the building at speeds up to 67 mph.  Don't wear your mouse ears on this ride, you will lose them.  We picked up a Fast Pass when we first got there and then held it for an hour.  During that hour we got in the regular line and went on the ride once.  Then when our Fast Pass time was ready we went on a second time.  It was a lot of fun.

Here are a few more of the photos I took showing some of the special flower displays throughout Epcot.  (click on any photo for a larger view)

Until next time.....so long for now!