New bobsleds at Matterhorn - very small and uncomfortable

Are the new Materhorn bobsleds (12/'17) LESS COMFORTABLE than the previous model?


  • Total voters
    27

CalArts

Earning My Ears
Joined
Jan 14, 2018
I am 6' 0'' and about 225 lbs. My girlfriend is 5' 0" and about 105 Lbs. We both felt very tightly packed in our bobsled seat -- very uncomfortable. So much so that we will not go on the ride again. I have no idea how people of larger frames -- and there are many at Disneyland -- feel comfortable in these new bobsleds as they try to stuff themselves into the seat. Is my experience common?
 
I am 6' 0'' and about 225 lbs. My girlfriend is 5' 0" and about 105 Lbs. We both felt very tightly packed in our bobsled seat -- very uncomfortable. So much so that we will not go on the ride again. I have no idea how people of larger frames -- and there are many at Disneyland -- feel comfortable in these new bobsleds as they try to stuff themselves into the seat. Is my experience common?

The Matterhorn seats have always been cramped and uncomfortable, so I'm not sure they're more so today. The ride is actually a little smoother today than it was before the big refurbishment.
 
The Matterhorn seats have always been cramped and uncomfortable, so I'm not sure they're more so today. The ride is actually a little smoother today than it was before the big refurbishment.

A more smooth ride? This was not our experience. Because of the much tighter fit in the bobsled we felt that all of the drops and jolts were much more jarring. Our experience throughout the ride was less free and comfortable.
 


The Matterhorn seats have always been cramped and uncomfortable, so I'm not sure they're more so today. The ride is actually a little smoother today than it was before the big refurbishment.

No, it’s worse. And the sleds are smaller. I’m smaller than I was before it was all refurbished but the sleds are a tighter fit. :)

Fun ride but I’ve just assumed that they’ve given up trying to make them comfortable.

They aren’t even trying. The CMs there after the big refurb was done said that they wanted it to feel like a real alpine bobsled.

Mission accomplished on something I never wanted to experience.
 
The track has never been changed, so the ride is just as bumpy as it has ever been. The new cars are a tighter fit I think. The leg room is what really bothers me. But they did add a cushion on the bottom, and I think that helped some. If you don't like a bumpy ride, you won't like this ride.
 


I am 6' 0'' and about 225 lbs. My girlfriend is 5' 0" and about 105 Lbs. We both felt very tightly packed in our bobsled seat -- very uncomfortable. So much so that we will not go on the ride again. I have no idea how people of larger frames -- and there are many at Disneyland -- feel comfortable in these new bobsleds as they try to stuff themselves into the seat. Is my experience common?
Yes... the Matterhorn is a tight fit and very bumpy ride.
 
I have a spinal condition and the Matterhorn is the only ride at DLR that I cannot ride without experiencing severe back pain. I obviously don't ride it and haven't in many years, but it was such a disappointment for the ride to be so rough.
 
I am 6’ 4”, 200lbs and didn’t think it felt any different from past sleds. But it has always felt pretty tight, as you can imagine.
 
It's just jolting and uncomfortable no matter what they do. I never noticed it as a kid, though. I thought the slight padding they out in the bobsleds was a bit of an improvement. Just saw the new yeti for the first time on our recent trip!
 
I am 6' 0'' and about 225 lbs. My girlfriend is 5' 0" and about 105 Lbs. We both felt very tightly packed in our bobsled seat -- very uncomfortable. So much so that we will not go on the ride again. I have no idea how people of larger frames -- and there are many at Disneyland -- feel comfortable in these new bobsleds as they try to stuff themselves into the seat. Is my experience common?
When did they change the seats? We rode them in November and were comfortable.
 
It has always been bumpy and sometimes downright jarring. I read a lot of complaints about it being worse after the big refurb, but it felt the same to me. My family and I love it in spite of (because of?) the idiosyncrasies.

However, when I was a kid, you got your own bobsled. I honestly can't remember how much different it was then because your perspective is so different when you're young.
 
The "old" bobsleds before the big refurb (a few years ago) had basically 2 seats....but each "seat" could fit 2 adults easy. Even those were much more comfortable with one adult in each "seat". Agree that it has always been bumpy and jarring, but it IS mimicking a bobsled !! And I think it was just last year that they added the padding, so it made it a bit easier. Just scoot forward and don't lean back against the seat. Remember...it is supposed to be a bobsled !! ENJOY !!
 
I think I would prefer a tighter fit in the sleds. My problem is too much room so that I bounce around all over the place during the ride, no matter how tightly I hold on to the bars. In the old sleds, DH could hold on to me to weight me down. Now, the best I can do is to pack myself in with jackets and hoodies all around me to sit on. And, most importantly, remember not to ride Matterhorn too often so I can recover in between rides!
 
I actually like the changed to the Matterhorn. When we first started doing DL again back in 2013, we did Matterhorn only to find it caused massive headaches. We decided to only do it once a trip, and that was for the kids. And actually, it was me because my wife wouldn't do it. This last trip in Nov, she finally joined us again. The seats had much better cushion on the bottom and backs and it made the ride tolerable. It's still bumpy and jerky, but none of us got off complaining about headaches and neck problems like we used to. It's certainly no Expedition Everest, and it never will be. But at least now it's more than just a park decoration. We can actually ride it again.
 
A more smooth ride? This was not our experience. Because of the much tighter fit in the bobsled we felt that all of the drops and jolts were much more jarring. Our experience throughout the ride was less free and comfortable.
Than when? Little confused on your timeline here. There aren't "new" bobsled seats to my knowledge. (Unless the last time you rode was in the pre-individual bobsled seat era maybe?)
ETA: the main "refurbishment" we're discussing is the 6-month 2012 one. That's what saw the new seating arrangement debut.
 
I actually like the changed to the Matterhorn. When we first started doing DL again back in 2013, we did Matterhorn only to find it caused massive headaches. We decided to only do it once a trip, and that was for the kids. And actually, it was me because my wife wouldn't do it. This last trip in Nov, she finally joined us again. The seats had much better cushion on the bottom and backs and it made the ride tolerable. It's still bumpy and jerky, but none of us got off complaining about headaches and neck problems like we used to. It's certainly no Expedition Everest, and it never will be. But at least now it's more than just a park decoration. We can actually ride it again.
Those cushions made a world of difference! Ugh! I remember back when the seats first debuted and there was no cushioning. That was pure misery. It seems to add a bit more cushioning each time we go.
 
Than when? Little confused on your timeline here. There aren't "new" bobsled seats to my knowledge. (Unless the last time you rode was in the pre-individual bobsled seat era maybe?)
ETA: the main "refurbishment" we're discussing is the 6-month 2012 one. That's what saw the new seating arrangement debut.

I was thinking the same thing, the cars are the same for almost 5 years, but they did add more cushion.

Compared to the legroom/knee-room of the old quadruple-tandem bobsleds, I don't think the post-2012 models has the same amount, but they aren't going to go back.
 

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