Mission Space Orange, what’s so bad?

I love Orange and don’t think it’s that bad. I get motion sick easy (can’t ride Star Tours), and Orange barely bothered me. My husband, who hates spinning, thought the tilting back on the ride was scarier than the spinning.
 
Add me to the list of people who love orange. I got queasy on Alien Swirling Saucers, but love any ride with those centrifugal forces. And the story line is also pretty awesome. I also can get claustrophobic, but the positioning is comfortable enough for me and the ride short enough that has never bothered me.
 
There is no way I would ever ride orange. I am an audiologist in a medical clinic so I see dizzy patients every day. When you spin, you are displacing the fluid in your inner ear which causes you to get dizzy.

I gather you don't take many ballet classes? Humans have the ability to suppress our reaction to spinning.

I also have to laugh a little, because kids I knew spun for the fun of that feeling all the time, even when they weren't on the playground. It was a kind contest actually: Kids spun until the ground felt uneven, then attempted to walk in a straight line without falling. Falling = failure and ridicule. Everyone learned to avoid falling!

********

Young (ballet) dancers learn a technique called 'spotting' to avoid feeling dizzy when they spin. Essentially, they try to stare at one spot as much as possible. (Maybe a photo on the wall.)

Initially, the technique = keeping their eyes and head fixed as long as possibly while their body rotates. When they can no longer hold their head in that position, they rotate their head all the way around - as quickly as possible, without allowing their eyes to focus on anything except that one spot (the photo again).

Mid-level dancers can easily tell when another dancer is 'spotting.'

Advanced dancers' brains actually adapt, as dancers learn how to suppress this reaction in their brain, and they learn to feel less dizzy.

In theory, everyone has the ability to suppress their level of dizziness and build up a tolerance for spinning using this spotting technique.
 
I've never ridden the orange side. I don't know that I'm particularly susceptible to motion sickness, but I've read so very many reports of people experiencing it on the ride. I've never had any problem with sickness on any ride or attraction. Mind you, I'm not claiming to be the sharpest crayon in the box, but I figure if there's some chance I might feel sick after riding it and then have to curtail my day at Epcot then I'd just be wasting all that money I paid for the trip. So I skip it rather than roll the dice. I'll ride the green side once every few years when there is need for a time filler
 


Orange never bothered me, although I always feel like I get a free face lift and for some reason I have this irrational feeling that my blood vessel is going to be ripped off my heart.

My ex wife on the other hand went on orange once and got VERY sick. We sat inside the building on the bench for the exit queue for almost 30 minutes before she could move without throwing up and the Disney CM has to get her several drinks of water in that time. She didn't feel right for hours after that and wouldn't even get on green to this day.

In short, being on orange feels like James Bond in Moonraker.
436949
 
I gather you don't take many ballet classes? Humans have the ability to suppress our reaction to spinning.

I also have to laugh a little, because kids I knew spun for the fun of that feeling all the time, even when they weren't on the playground. It was a kind contest actually: Kids spun until the ground felt uneven, then attempted to walk in a straight line without falling. Falling = failure and ridicule. Everyone learned to avoid falling!

********

Young (ballet) dancers learn a technique called 'spotting' to avoid feeling dizzy when they spin. Essentially, they try to stare at one spot as much as possible. (Maybe a photo on the wall.)

Initially, the technique = keeping their eyes and head fixed as long as possibly while their body rotates. When they can no longer hold their head in that position, they rotate their head all the way around - as quickly as possible, without allowing their eyes to focus on anything except that one spot (the photo again).

Mid-level dancers can easily tell when another dancer is 'spotting.'

Advanced dancers' brains actually adapt, as dancers learn how to suppress this reaction in their brain, and they learn to feel less dizzy.

In theory, everyone has the ability to suppress their level of dizziness and build up a tolerance for spinning using this spotting technique.
I danced for 20 years. I know about spotting and how to spot. Never got dizzy turning. None of that kept me from almost passing out on Mission Space Orange. There is no way to spot because the environment appears to NOT be spinning. It fools the brain and no dance training overcomes that because we are trained to compensate for what we see. NEVER AGAIN.
 
I gather you don't take many ballet classes? Humans have the ability to suppress our reaction to spinning.

I also have to laugh a little, because kids I knew spun for the fun of that feeling all the time, even when they weren't on the playground. It was a kind contest actually: Kids spun until the ground felt uneven, then attempted to walk in a straight line without falling. Falling = failure and ridicule. Everyone learned to avoid falling!

********

Young (ballet) dancers learn a technique called 'spotting' to avoid feeling dizzy when they spin. Essentially, they try to stare at one spot as much as possible. (Maybe a photo on the wall.)

Initially, the technique = keeping their eyes and head fixed as long as possibly while their body rotates. When they can no longer hold their head in that position, they rotate their head all the way around - as quickly as possible, without allowing their eyes to focus on anything except that one spot (the photo again).

Mid-level dancers can easily tell when another dancer is 'spotting.'

Advanced dancers' brains actually adapt, as dancers learn how to suppress this reaction in their brain, and they learn to feel less dizzy.

In theory, everyone has the ability to suppress their level of dizziness and build up a tolerance for spinning using this spotting technique.
And that is also how you tell patients to suppress dizziness. I am very aware of that. But a ballerina or an ice skater isn't going to spin as fast as the ride.
 


And that is also how you tell patients to suppress dizziness. I am very aware of that. But a ballerina or an ice skater isn't going to spin as fast as the ride.

True.

I never claimed spotting or practice was a cure for M:S motion sickness, and carefully worded my earlier post.

For myself....well... I think both sides of M:S are fairly boring. I have been on both sides a number of times but we rarely bother to ride it these days. There are better ways to spend our precious (and expensive ) WDW minutes.

More broadly though, over time, I have very much been able to desensitize myself to the extreme motions of theme park rides.

On a few rides, I more or less, on my own, came up with a couple techniques that are similar to spotting on ride that spin. Instead of looking at a photo on the wall. I mostly look down, and focus on something very close.

It helps to count or focus on breathing: RnRC only lasts 90 seconds total. The launch and first loop = 1 long exhale.

On some rides, it helps to close your eyes part of the time.

It helps to be hydrated.

Pre-rides, healthy foods help: lots of fresh produce = optimum nutrition. Post ride, a little sugar sometimes helps.

Biggest help of all is a strong mentality. Tell yourself it will be bad= it will be bad.

Tell yourself, "I have survived this before, and I can do it again! " = ride gets more enjoyable, especially when you actually enjoy part of that ride. Focus on the fun!
 
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I've never ridden the orange side. I don't know that I'm particularly susceptible to motion sickness, but I've read so very many reports of people experiencing it on the ride. I've never had any problem with sickness on any ride or attraction. Mind you, I'm not claiming to be the sharpest crayon in the box, but I figure if there's some chance I might feel sick after riding it and then have to curtail my day at Epcot then I'd just be wasting all that money I paid for the trip. So I skip it rather than roll the dice. I'll ride the green side once every few years when there is need for a time filler

Give it a try sometime at the end of your day. If you've never gotten motion sick on rides before you should be okay. Have you ridden any rides with centrifugal forces before? I'm thinking fair type rides where all the riders stand on the outside of a ring and spin and then the ring tilts on its side or the floor drops out as the forces pin you to the outside. It's similar.
 
Orange is fun, even after a few beers.

Whoa there, space cowboy! I love Mission Space Orange but that just triggered a flashback to my most terrifying experience on it. Not the building dread from multiple, multiple warnings and the "are you sure, absolutely sure, that you want to go on this ride" check ins but rather watching the couple in front of me chug multiple beers before getting on the ride. There was the helpful cast member who let them know they couldn't take the drinks on the ride and pointed at the nearby garbage can but... why waste good beer? Chug, chug, chug... "Please don't end up in my line, please don't end up in my line, please don't... son of a space monkey!" Thought about sitting the round out but sometimes you have to face your fears... claustro-emetophobia specifically, in this case.

Luckily it didn't go sideways (or any ways, everyone kept their cookies in place) but definitely increased the tension of ride. They didn't look great after the ride and they totally missed their button presses... still amazed we didn't slide off the end of that cliff at the end after they missed the emergency retro-rocket thingy or whatever macguffin button press.

So, it shouldn't have to be said, but I'll say it anyways... don't drink and fly in an enclosed in a small confined space with strangers while experiencing simulated g-force through extreme spinning mechanisms. Just... don't. Please, just don't.
 
Whoa there, space cowboy! I love Mission Space Orange but that just triggered a flashback to my most terrifying experience on it. Not the building dread from multiple, multiple warnings and the "are you sure, absolutely sure, that you want to go on this ride" check ins but rather watching the couple in front of me chug multiple beers before getting on the ride. There was the helpful cast member who let them know they couldn't take the drinks on the ride and pointed at the nearby garbage can but... why waste good beer? Chug, chug, chug... "Please don't end up in my line, please don't end up in my line, please don't... son of a space monkey!" Thought about sitting the round out but sometimes you have to face your fears... claustro-emetophobia specifically, in this case.

Luckily it didn't go sideways (or any ways, everyone kept their cookies in place) but definitely increased the tension of ride. They didn't look great after the ride and they totally missed their button presses... still amazed we didn't slide off the end of that cliff at the end after they missed the emergency retro-rocket thingy or whatever macguffin button press.

So, it shouldn't have to be said, but I'll say it anyways... don't drink and fly in an enclosed in a small confined space with strangers while experiencing simulated g-force through extreme spinning mechanisms. Just... don't. Please, just don't.
Wait! That was you???
 
Had a bout of vertigo a few years back due to a sinus infection. Have never been able to ride teacups again since. Have never been affected by spinning feeling on Mission Orange though. It's not the same sensation. Quite honestly all I ever feel on Mission Space is a little tightness in the chest. That being said I think OP's DS4 may be a little young for the orange side unless he's very daring 4-yr old.
 
Tried it once - it was the pressure that got to me - felt really wiped out after the ride and it took a good couple of hours before I felt normal again.
 
I would never put a 7 and 4 year old on the orange side, but that's just me. A 4 year old boy, WITH a previously unknown diagnosed heart condition, literally died on the Orange side.

We were at the parks when that happened. To this day - my nephews ( 8 & 12 at the time) will not ride that attraction. They are now young adults.

I tried to get them to go on the "chicken" side - they will not budge. It's also not good for someone who has claustrophobia.
 
Claustrophobia!!!

I am very claustrophobic. I had read all about the differences between the orange and green sides, but somehow did not research the claustrophobic tiny capsule you are in.

I waited in line, all the way until we were supposed to enter that tiny thing and chickened out!
 
My claustrophobia is a lot better when there are only 3 people in a capsule not four. I've lucked out several times on that. Won't let my family ride orange, as I don't think it's really worth it to risk having someone feel ill and ruining part of or the rest of the day. Green is okay, not great. Better with kids along who take the button-pushing seriously.
 
I love Mission: Space with a passion and have only done orange, but I have to work my nerve up and need a strong drink afterwards (definitely not before!) I am probably not the typical rider. I absolutely hate most “thrill rides” because I can’t tolerate sudden drops. They don’t make me feel sick, just terrified. I can handle Space Mountain, but that is about my limit, and honestly I am not a fan of the drops even on that and my husband hates it, so usually we skip that one. But I love spinning—can ride the Mad Teacups and it just makes me giggle. I have no problem with motion simulators like Soaring.

The first time I rode Mission: Space, the motion and the graphics made me really feel like I had gone into space. I think it even made little tears come out of my eyes, just because it was such an intense feeling. It feels really weird, but in an interesting way. I’ve only ridden it maybe three times total, and the last time, in 2015, I remember thinking that they really needed to update the graphics to make it look realistic, but it still felt really awesome. And made me feel a little swagger after getting off. “I’ve just been to *&$^*#&^#$ Mars!” Then I head to Mexico for a margarita to help calm back down. :)
 

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