Expedition Everest and the Story of the Disco Yeti 

The forced perspective they use on the mountain is pretty incredible. It looks massive compared to its actual size

At least they FINALLY stopped using footage of a functioning Yeti in promotional materials. They were using it well into the 2010s.

Important to remember that the Yeti hasn't actually run in over a decade. If they want to make it run, they will have to rip it out and replace it with a Yeti that works and won't break, as well as all the modifications to the mountain that would be needed to accommodate that. So in summary, it's never getting fixed.

I have ridden Expedition Everest several times - and I STILL had no idea we're not suppose to be on Everest and we're trying to get there. Shows how much I pay attention! [or how poorly they explain that]

You’re correct about the Summer of ‘07! I was there for my first WDW trip and saw the Yeti in all its glory in early July. I didn’t return until 2010 and by then, he was definitely in B-mode. I really hope they find a solution for this figure someday. It was truly a sight to behold.

i remember riding this last time i went to Disney World in 2010 when i was 9 years old… i saw an advertisement for it on the tv in our rental condo and was so excited all day to ride it!! then i had a meltdown about how bad the yeti scared me immediately after getting off 😂 i even remember feeling dread in the waiting queue and thinking “god this yeti is so dangerous look at all this proof of him killing people why is no one else freaking out” 💀

Was just there last week and he wasn’t even lit up, if you didn’t look for him you wouldn’t even know he was there. Kind of sad

I think it’s cool that it just stands there. I know audio animatronics are disneys claim to fame but old fashion dummys I think are great too. They give that “classic theme park vibe” imo.

I remembered watching a documentary on Discovery that focus specifically on this yeti. The planning, the sophisticated technology going on this yeti. It was amazing, they sure boast a lot about it. Then I remember not long after the official opening an article that say the yeti is broken. 😅

The Yeti will never be fixed. The ride still one of the most popular and highest trafficked rides in the park even with its major finale set piece being broken. As mentioned they would have to close it for over a year and it’s probably not worth it to the park. I wish I could have seen it in its intended operation! For me personally the strobe light is really disorienting and uncomfortable and despite having ridden multiple times over many years, I’ve never felt like I’ve really SEEN the yeti properly. I’d rather just have the lights turned all the way on so I can actually SEE the figure even if it’s not moving.

I can absolutely confirm that the yeti was in a mode in May 2007, which was my very first visit to Walt Disney World. When I returned for Presidents’ Day weekend in 2008, it was for sure in B mode because I had noticed that the yeti was not moving, and I thought maybe it was just temporarily broken as animatronics tend to have happen from time to time so my guess is that they shut it off sometime after the summer of 2007.

They did an amazing job designing this ride. I’ve only been on it once, but even standing in line was like being in another world. They really killed it with the Himalayan scenery.

It’s funny to me how as a Floridian, I’m learning more about Disney World from a Brit than I ever did living less than an hour from it. My grandfather even worked there as a painter back in the day. I’ve never heard of these legends like the theft of Buzzy, the abandonment of Discovery Island, and the broken Yeti until I came across this channel. Granted I don’t go there anymore, and don’t talk to a lot of Disney enthusiasts, but still, I just expected to know a little more about it. It’s actually very interesting. The most I heard about was that child that got eaten by the alligator, which all of us rednecks that regularly swim in gator-infested waters have learned to watch out for. I remember as a kid being told to gtfo of the water when my older brother saw a gator go under nearby, that bastard was for sure going right for me. I wouldn’t make a video about that tho lmfao. As tragic as it is, it’s hard not to have a good laugh at a dead child’s expense. RIP little fella… they definitely should’ve had warning signs around the waters of the resort, and those signs should’ve read: “Don’t feed the gators”

I don't know about y'all, but I can see potential for a movie based on Expedition Everest. Give it a King Kong/Lost World vibe with ice age animals to go along with the Yeti. And if it's successful, Disney could use the money from the box office to fix the damn ride.

this channel is so good because i'll be like "seduce me with your defunct disney wisdom" and it's always so fun, full of information, and just an easy listen.

I got to ride this only a few months after it had opened and I remember that we immediately got right back in line after seeing how awesome the Yeti was. Since the coaster is at the very back corner of the park, not a lot of people had made they're way over to the ride so the line was relatively short. I think we could've ridden it 3 or 4 times within an hour or 2. I was at WDW last month and it was pretty sad to see the disco version especially since the strobing makes you almost miss him in the dark. I feel like they should just have fans blowing his fur and ditch the strobing light.

I still can’t believe I got to see A-mode yeti when I was a kid. Something I definitely won’t forget.

The Yeti is impressive, but Universal built two giant King Kongs in the late 80s and turned a soundstage into a night in New York City and had multiple shark animatronics living in a lagoon, so of course we can be critical of Disney for making an unreliable animatronic and then never fixing it

Pretty head-shaking how Disney didn’t design repairs in mind in some of its attractions. The showgirls don’t move anymore, and there’s a crack in the Disneyland Haunted Mansion ballroom mirror that can’t be repaired unless they remove the entire mirror. How sad that Disco Yeti will not dance again. Thanks for the video! Seen it at least twice!

You deserve more views my friend

When I was younger, I never knew there was an actual yeti. I guess I closed my eyes for disco yeti out of fear. I look for him now though.

For some reason this yeti absolutely terrifies me. Like an actual primal fear lmao

Regardless, this is still an epic ride. I went on it for the first time in February with one of my friends about 7 times and still remember it very fondly

I went on this ride with my family in December 2007, when we got off the ride there was a man at the front of the ride who was sat there not getting off. Turned out he lost consciousness due to his heart condition and ended up dying. The ride was closed for the rest of the day and re-opened the day after. I believe there is an article about it somewhere / on wikipedia if anyone would like to verify. Still was one of my favourite rides at Disneyworld overall

I rode it with my grandmother. The ride itself is super cool. It’s one of those rides where you don’t even really feel like you’re waiting for a ride because there’s so much to look at. I went in 2008 and I swear I saw the yeti. But I could be misremembering. I feel like I saw him twice during the ride, him tearing the track an them him reaching out.

And that’s how… DISCO YETI WAS BORN

Great video. I also saw it move in summer 2007, I was 10 and rode it 3-4 times. It moved every time.

This is a really well written and well executed video, I’m surprised it doesn’t have way more attention!

Disco was overbuilt, is way too heavy to be on a 45 foot high perch. You dont have to be an engineer to understand that that 45 foot metal perch will move (bend) when Disco swings his heavy arm and body. They are saying they will have to disassemble part of Expedition Everest Mountain to fix or repair Disco Yeti and down time is in the years, not months. My bet is Disco will be dancing until the ride closes. He is too heavy for the perch and will damage any repairs they can make again. Perhaps they can make a lighter version of Disco Yeti, hang him over the track with slight movement, or have the track area dark, black out and when you hear that loud Yeti growl, a light flashes on to find him right above the riders passing under him. Be better than him Discoing on the side lines, might as well have turned him off completely with no lights, out of sight, out of mind. Huge blunder di$ney, and they can't fix it. Dance away Disco.

I had 3 rides on EE recently and whilst an A-mode Yeti would be very nice, Disco Yeti is perfectly acceptable and as you alluded to, this has pretty much become the norm in peoples' expectations now. EE is still a fantastic coaster with some great theming. Thanks again for another great video.

I wonder if they'd consider scaled down movement, maybe focusing on the face, to avoid some of the strobing light

I have never cackled harder than I did at 8:40 - that caught me off guard lmao 😆 On another note, I've ridden this before and had no idea that's actually kind of terrifying that it's so heavy and just there above tons of people. 😧

I remember when me and my family went in 2006 went it was opened that year. I’ll never forget seeing the yeti.

First and only trip to Disney World happened around 2007, part of a highschool trip. Was working then, most impressive part of the trip, honestly.

I went to disney world in 2015 and I didn’t go on Everest, but the rest of my family did, and I remember them telling me about how disappointing the Yeti was and how it didn’t even move after our guide book had hyped it up as the most advanced animatronic ever. It left me confused for years, until now! I finally know the lore!

One of my fav rides from my first and to date only time at Disney world

You could cover Tomb Raider: The Ride, from Kings Island. It had the same issue that it was so big and powerful that it was shaking itself apparent so they had to renovate the ride!

This ride is the most adventurous theme imagination original idea for a ride I've seen and watched on POVs and on theme park channels for a good long time. I'm always fascinated with mountain adventure stories and climbing new heights and mountain sights in general. The Himalayas are just an iconic landmark for real and so was the Mattherhorn mountains and the Alps and of course the Appalachian mountains and the Black hills and the smokey mountains. Basically its a wonderment to just look up at the national landmark and curiosity just fills in the gaps and many things form in your mind. Now make a ride theme about a snowy peak and a violent yeti chasing you everywhere - chef's kiss just brilliant. But anyway in recent years the update the disney company has done is make a bluish light at the end showing the Yeti in full and on top the overpass you travel under to escape him and the mountain. That's always been terrifying, the monster hiding in the dark. Now he is fully seen like the Matterhorn yeti in spots of the ride

I was there in 2019 and I got to see it in it’s full glory, so I guess they still switch over to A mode once in a while

Honestly, though I’m sure it was really cool to see it move, the strobe effects are really effective in making you think it is moving. I had no idea during my trip in January 2019 until coming home and doing research that it didn’t move.

I was able to see the Yeti in full mode early 2007 and then on my next trip to Animal Kingdom, which was January of 2008 I saw the Yeti in what everyone is calling in "Disco Mode" but on that day, I didn't even know about this being broken. I remember looking up as we passed under the Yeti trying to take in any details in the few seconds I got to see it, then thinking to myself "I don't remember this looking like that the last time I was on the ride." and "I don't think this moved at all." with seeing the flashing lights and fans positioned to blow the faux fur to simulate movement. More than 15 years for me.

I seen the yeti back in 2007isb-2010? I’m 28 now the memories of it still give me chills lol

Im glad i got to ride it the first time i ever went to disney a few weeks after everest opened. I was like 10 and that yeti was honestly traumatizing lmao.

I went to disney world for the first time in December of 2008 and this was the ride I was most excited for. I'm almost positive i remember seeing the Yeti move, but it's more likely that it was my child brain and the fog of time.

I rode the ride in ...2010 ... ish. I think. I don't recall the exact year, but the yeti was not in operation. I don't even recall seeing him. I would think if he's too heavy, they could replace the animatronic with a convincing balloon that would move around just with air.

What gets me is: 1) They say they can't get to it, but it looks like you could cut open the back of the mountain and get to it. Everything's scalable. 2) Disney prides themselves on these new fluid motion animatronics but they can't do the same thing here. They already have the technology, they just don't care. They'll build a half dozen new "lands" but can't fix one animatronic that is the climax of an E-ticket attraction.

I think it represents so much of what's going on with Disney now. Used to be great, used to excite, inspire, and surpass expeditions. Now, it's shut off broken features, the incredible engineering and brave design replaced with flashing lights. Soon to be removed entirely and replaced with a screen and projected image. High dollar cost, low rent experience.

As someone commented on another video, if Disney didn't attempt to fix this during the Lockdown then they never will..

No excuse for not fixing this during pandemic. And a hundred other things that should have been done. - astonishing incompetence at Disney these days in every division.

They should make a new one, sell off this one or put it in a museum, and then swap them out so that it doesn't take month's to a year to dismantle, repair, and put it back on. It's about to be 2024, Surely they can make a better installment this time.

I think one of the main reasons why they haven't tried to really find a solution is due to the attendance still being amazing despite their main attraction (The Yeti) not working. That's why. Nothing else. Yes, it's a "complex" issue and there are many I'm sure, but come on, you have not only years to find a solution, but you're the same company to spend 40 something billion dollars to buy FOX, but couldn't "spare any change" on a Yeti? Come on... Before the pandemic they had plenty of time AND money to figure it out. However, it might be the best, with how they do not seem to care about maintaining AAs well. Imagine if the Yeti had an Ursula moment and his head popped off and was dangling by wires, or actually fell completely somehow due to the frequent powerful movements. That's a big guy to have an typical AA malfunction.

At some point in its opening years, either in 2006 or 2007, I got my first rides on Expedition Everest, and I was fortunate enough to ride it when the yeti was working. I wasn’t old enough to appreciate how advanced the animatronic was at the time, but I remember its swinging motion being terrifying. As sad as it is that the yeti hasn’t moved in the last 16 years, it was a sight to behold for its time.

I went on the ride this past January and honestly I saw it for a split second and with myself shaking and bouncing on the ride I barely saw it and I feel like I wouldn't have even noticed the animatronic move if it did.

this and the buzzy video were great! i'm so happy youtube put these on my feed, and i'm excited to see more from you now too! great work

I'm glad I saw the Yeti in its full animatronic glory in ~2006. I just rode it returning to WDW after 18 years, now with my kids, and I was a bit bummed by the static strobo-Yeti. Still a super fun ride, one of the best, and my kids loved it nonetheless. But I do remember the OG Yeti experience, and it was truly amazing 🙂

The last few times I went on the ride that part was so dark and quick I don't even remember seeing disco Yeti.

man, this is actually how i found out THE YETI EVEN EXISTS GDKHEJLWDHIDJO ive only had the pleasure to ride expedition everest once but all this years i thought “hmm they sure have a lot of memorabilia for a character we only see the shadow of on the ride”

I think it would be pretty cool if scp 1529 was just chilling up there with the yeti

If it weren’t for the restrictions, preventing construction workers and technicians from working on park projects, and repairs at the pandemic would have been a perfect time to have worked on stuff like that like repairing the yeti

I’m glad I got to see it’s full effect in 2006 after it’s inception. Such an amazing ride. Miss those days of wonder

They cut the asteroid part out of the dinosaurs version of the ride. Not that lowered the intensity-by that much it was still pretty Dan scary.

Pretty pathetic that the Yeti was never properly repaired.

In 2007/08 was in 7th grade when my school took a field trip to animal kingdom and rode everest for the first time, thankfully it was still workong properly. I definitely remember it moving.

I would recommend riding this ride first, you never know when is going to be damage or out of service.

During the part of the ride where you see the yeti, my eyes are usually closed and I have my ears cupped soooo… didn’t even know the yeti was broken HAHA

I remember seeing that dragon in the sign and my hopes got So High

I remember when the ride opened and seeing the moving yeti!!! I was a kid and it sure was scary lol. Sucks it was too big and causing too many issues lol

I was lucky enough to see the Yeti in A mode, in 2001. I saw him again in B mode in 2012. I was really disappointed that he wasn’t working at that time, not realizing that he had been that way for years. I do hope they fix the problem some day, because Everest is my favorite ride in Animal Kingdom.

The documentary I saw on expedition everest had this imaginer talking about the ride It was designed so that everything was independent from each other The mountain has it's structure The yeti had it's structure The track has it's structure They all operate independent of each other He touted this design as a unique process that disney had never done before Unfortunately because it was so new know one was aware that it would be impossible to work as intended because of the mass of the overall structure The yeti was so heavy it required it's own foundation Something that was not taken into account during construction I doesn't work it is never going to work the entire structure needs to completely redone and all tied back into one unit

I don't know what it is but the concept of a giant yeti animatronic is terrifying to me maybe it's a bit of philasophobia or something I think the main thing is all that matted fur

I 1000% vividly remember that yeti moving when I was like 8 and I was born in 2002, maybe I just had a lucky day? He was definitely moving though. No strobe lights

i thought yall were exaggerating disco yeti until i learned its been broken for like SIXTEEN YEARS???

I love your content dude You deserve so many views

The Everest ride was ALOT of fun.

Personally, if it were up to me, I'd just scarp it, the remote possibility that the giant, multi-ton robot yeti could collapse onto guest would be enough for me to have it go bye bye ._. Also i get scared easily so i want the giant, scary, robot yeti to just... go away... *forever...*

I’ve never been to Disney world I could never afford it but it looks amazing, the Everest mountain is incredible looking

Meanwhile in Universal Studios Beijing they have a full body Indo rex that chases down your car in the Jurrasic Park ride 😂

I have a nickname for this yeti Florida Harold

I'd remove The Yeti and put him somewhere that provides a more stable base.

It's an amazing ride regardless

Idc if they have to shut down the ride for 1+ years but they need to fix it

In Feb 2007 it was moving in A mode. I was 16 and remember pretty vividly a

I rode Expedition Everest in May 2007 when I was 15, and he was in A mode at that time.

"And then they came along and fixed it, right?" >Zoom in on Joe Rohde's face

The footprint discovered by Josh Gates on during Destination Truth?? Now THAT'S an artifact. It's cool to recognize some of the things placed in here but of all things, that's a "real" footprint. "Real" as in it wasn't made for the museum or made for the park, but of course we're yet to understand if the Yeti is a real creature or not. It lays under this mysterious limbo/middleground of real and fake

Is it true the Yeti was nicknamed Stu by cast members?

Well now Joe is back so maybe we have a chance of it getting fixed. Maybe after Encanto and Indiana Jones are up and running ?

Wasnt there similiar issues with the yeti in the matterhorn at the Anaheim California park? I thought it was broken too...

Dinosaur was never an E ticket ride. Tickets were gone more than a decade before Dinosaur was added. As a matter of fact Tickets were long gone before Animal Kingdom opened.

I went in summer of 2007 (I was 6) and I definitely remember being upset at how lame the expedition Everest ride was, all the hype leading up to it and setting the mood only to get.... disco yeti, I think.... Honestly, I was 6 so my memory of it might not be the best, but I think I may remember flashing lights and generally a lot of effects and Yeti roaring, but I can't distinctly place the Yeti swiping at us! Crazy.

Awake the Yeti!!!!

i’ve been on everest twice and both times when you are going backwards on the track i have a painful ass experience feeling all the air in my lungs get sucked out and not in the fun roller coaster way. it’s a fun and quick ride but the mini asthma attack i have isn’t

Why is the original promotional video so scary

I sat in front most front row, and back most back row. And I didn't even see the yeti. And I was looking for it lol

The Original King Kong @ Universal Studios in Hollywood CA worked just fine until a discruntal ex employee set fire to it. It got replaced by a Digital King Kong. Couldn't Disney do the same?

So was the animatronic installed before the mountain was finished? In my opinion that was a bad move. There has to be something imagineering can do. Any ideas? I mean actually ideas.

It would be cool if they put a giant yeti on the top of the mountain

They should play hot stuff by Donna Summer when you see the Yeti

I'm so confused. I swear I saw the yeti move during my trip a few years ago (2019 I believe). Went on that ride three times that day, but the third time was the only time they turned A mode on. Scared the crap out of me. Is this possible, or am I misremembering? I could have missed a detail of the still yeti on my previous rides, or maybe I was sitting in just the right seat that gave it a unique effect? I am positive something was different about that time than the others, and I swear the yeti really did reach out at me when it didn't the other times.

I've always looked up to imagineers and the engineers that create these amazing machines. But it dawned on me that they're brilliance and innovation is kinda dumped all over because somebody in the imagineer-sphere didn't do their calculations and dropped the ball when it came to these effects and machinery functioning forever. Or AT THE LEAST figuring out a easy way to be able to fix something integral to the experience if it were to break. Examples EE Yeti, how the hell do you build this without calculating the stress of force it would have on it's structure if the thing has as much force as a jet and weighs tons? Thus making the finale and the sole subject this ride is based around a mannequin? IJA Chamber of Desity - Same thing, how did you not calculate the stress the mechanism would have on the roof and thus putting a great effect out of commission? IJA Ice Machine - What engineer slept through Gen Chem 1 and didn't remember that water rusts metal? Disneyland Fantasmic Dragon - Don't even get me started. What imagineers didn't do proper quality control and safety checks on that thing? We always look up to Imagineers as producing masterpieces but it kinda seems like they can't seem to produce masterpieces that last. If their mechanisms or the environments around them can't stand the test of time does that really make you a good engineer? And if they are aware they can't stand the test of time, what did they do to make it easy to rectify? Engineers should be the best problem solvers, but if they can't anticipate a problem before it happens and have a solution when it does happen, that seems like they dropped the ball in their line of work.