Theme park cast member stories: In remembrance

Today, though, I'm in no mood to be funny. Like many former and current Disney cast members, I'm heartsick today over the loss of Austin Wuennenberg in yesterday's fatal crash on the Disney World monorails.

So today's cast member story is left as a memorial for Austin. If any TPI readers knew him personally, you are invited to share a story in the comments. Otherwise, we'll use this post as an opportunity to send our condolences, and thanks, to his family, friends and fellow cast members.

Two monorails collide at Walt Disney World, killing driver

The incident happened at the Ticket and Transportation Center at around 2 am. The monorail was returning a handful of guests to the TTC from Epcot.

Eyewitnesses say one train slammed into the back of the other.

Updates from Robert: The driver, Austin Wuennenberg, 21, of Celebration, Fla., was cut from the wreckage at the scene and pronounced dead.

The Disney monorail system remains closed today, Sunday, pending an investigation of the incident.

Dsney's monorail system is equipped with a system that is supposed to shut down the trains automatically when they come too close to another train. Drivers who trip the system during their checkout test, or more than twice during operation, are removed from the monorail fleet and transferred into other departments. This was the first fatality in the history of the Disney World monorail system.

Here is a YouTube video of the immediate aftermath, and guests try to find a way to extract the driver.

I can't tell from the video if it was Monorail Pink hitting Blue or vice versa. I think it was Blue hitting Pink, but I am not certain.

Here is the statement from Disney spokesperson Mike Griffin:

"Today, we mourn the loss of our fellow cast member. Our hearts go out to his family and to those who have lost a friend and co-worker. The safety of our guests and cast members is always our top priority. The monorail is out of service and we will continue to work closely with law enforcement to determine what happened and the approximate next steps."

Let's also not forget that this has been a bad week for Orlando-area theme park employees, with this incident following the serious injury of an employee at Universal Orlando earlier in the week.

From the comments: "Monorail pink was clear of the station and stopped (waiting for the track switch to switch for another beam), and monorail purple was given clearance to enter the station. For some reason, someone gave monorail pink authorization to reverse to back into good position after a slight overtravel. Apparently they never switched it back to forward and monorail pink ran full speed in reverse back into the station hitting monorail purple. The CM [cast member] who died was not at fault, and was doing his job. The fault CM was either the one in the Control Tower, The Pink driver, or the Manager who was supervising the transfer procedure."

Vote of the week: Coke or Pepsi in the parks?

Yes, you can get all the free soft drinks you care for at the Southern Indiana park, provided you don't mind going without Coke. Holiday World's a Pepsi shop, as were the Busch and Cedar Fair parks the last I checked. Disney, Universal and Six Flags parks pour Coke products.

Once upon a time, you could find beverages from both companies in the same park. Pepsi, for example, was the original sponsor of the Country Bear Jamboree at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, while you'd find Coke sponsoring attractions on Main Street USA and in Tomorrowland.

These days, though, the two big soft drink companies have locked down exclusive pouring rights at almost all public facilities, from theme parks to sports stadiums... even for entire college campuses. When I went to Northwestern, students eagerly awaited the evening arrival of "The Sandwich Man" and his food truck, because he sold cans of Coke, while every vending machine on campus dispensed only Pepsi products.

So, which company's drinks do you prefer? (For reference, Coke products include A & W, Barq's, Canada Dry, Coke, Dasani, Dr Pepper, Fanta, Minute Maid, Schweppes, Sprite and Powerade. Pepsi products include Aquafina, Gatorade, Lipton, Mountain Dew, Mug, Pepsi, Sierra Mist, Sobe and Tropicana.)

I'm throwing in a neither option for people, like me, who don't drink the fizzy drinks.

In the comments, please defend your choice, and attack the oblivious know-nothings who picked the other. Have a great weekend, everyone!

Disney, SeaWorld and Universal win 2009 Theme Park Insider Awards

Disneyland leads the winners in this year's Theme Park Insider Awards, selected based on cumulative reader ratings submitted to the site over the past 12 months. Disneyland earned the highest average rating for its attractions and restaurants, among ThemeParkInsider.com readers who submitted ratings for locations at multiple parks during the past year.

Our goal at ThemeParkInsider.com is to give people the best advice on finding the best value in a theme park vacation for their families. The Theme Park Insider Awards provide us the chance to say 'thank you' to the very best of the best in the theme park industry, from its millions of customers and fans.

Best Theme Park - Disneyland Park

"We are always happy when people enjoy and appreciate our product," said Mike Hyland, director of public relations for Disneyland Resort. "Thank you for honoring Disneyland as World's Best Theme Park."

Theme Park Insider's Top Three Theme Parks:

• Disneyland Park
• Busch Gardens Williamsburg
• Universal's Islands of Adventure

Best New Attraction - Manta, SeaWorld Orlando

This year's Best New Attraction is Manta, the new Bolliger & Mabillard flying roller coaster at SeaWorld Orlando. ThemeParkInsider.com readers gave Manta the highest average reader rating among all attractions that debuted between June 1, 2008 and May 31, 2009.

"We've known since the early design stages that Manta would be crowned as one of the world's top thrill rides, there's just nothing else like it," said SeaWorld spokesperson Nick Gollattscheck. "And to have Manta named Best New Attraction by readers of Theme Park Insider is quite an honor. They are our biggest fans and people who know an incredible thrill ride when they see one."

Theme Park Insider's Top Three New Attractions:

• Manta, SeaWorld Orlando
• Prowler, Worlds of Fun
• Diamondback, Kings Island

Best Theme Park Hotel - Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando.

"The entire team here at Loews Portofino Bay Hotel is thrilled and delighted to receive this honor," said General Manager Paul Leclerc. "Our loyal guests mean so much to us and ensuring their satisfaction is our highest priority. Our commitment to delivering a taste of 'la dolce vita' - the sweet life - to our guests is stronger than ever."

Theme Park Insider's Top Three Theme Park Hotels:

• Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando
• Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge at Walt Disney World
• Disney's Wilderness Lodge at Walt Disney World

Best Theme Park Restaurant - Les Chefs de France, Epcot.

• Les Chefs de France, Epcot
• Mythos Restaurant, Universal's Islands of Adventure
• Sharks Underwater Grill, SeaWorld Orlando

Congratulations to all the winners and finalists... and thank you for providing us such great places to spend our vacations!

Soft opening for Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit this weekend?

Universal's been testing the ride with water dummies this week and witnesses report a much swifter, smoother ride than they've seen on test runs in the past. Universal's replaced track and support systems on the ride to get it operational and the next step would be runs with real passengers.

Expect runs with employees first. But if those go well, hey, folks who just happen to be hanging around the ride entrance when ops are ready to make another test run might get their chance.

(And if that is you, full reports will be expected from you, back here on TPI!)