Magic Kingdom Back in the Day
I'm the small fry front & center holding the park map
Growing up as a child, I can distinctly remember our frequent trips to the Magic Kingdom. Back then, that was the only theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. I remember the days of the old Magic Kingdom Ticket Books with their “A” through “E” Tickets you had to use to get on each ride. I still have some of those old ticket books today.
The picture above was taken circa 1979, which puts me at around 4 years old. We were outside of The Crystal Palace. It was my favorite place to eat! The Crystal Palace was still a buffet, however it was not all-you-can-eat. It was set up “Piccadilly” style. Of course if you’re not from the South, you may not know what that means. It was similar to the setup in the LAND pavilion over in Epcot. You would grab a tray, and then walk down the line placing any food items you wanted to buy on your tray and then check out. I can remember getting a wrap every time I went. Funny what you do and don’t remember about your childhood…
On this particular trip, I finally met the height requirement to get on Space Mountain!!! I knew I was either in for a treat or a shock! We queued for the ride…(RANDOM FACT: you know the grey balls under the stairs right as you come into the building? They were there even back then. There have been so many stolen over the years that the supply is pretty low these days.) Anywho…we made our way through the winding darkness as I tried to keep my nerve. We made it all the way up to the loading station in the Space Port and prepared to get into our space rocket.
I have to preface the humor in this story and tell you about how the old rockets were set up. Currently the Space Mountain Train has two rockets. Each rocket has three individual single-file seats, each with its own locking safety bar. Back in the 70’s, there wasn’t such a heightened need for safety. (we ran with scissors, rode in the back of pick-up trucks, and licked the walls of houses with lead based paint) The rockets featured only two seats. Each of which was designed to hold two passengers, so that one passenger was sitting in the other passengers lap.
I elected to ride with my dad, because this was the obvious safest choice. We belted ourselves in and proceeded on down the track to the lift hill. I thought to myself…Did I just make the worst choice of my little life? We slowly inched our way to the top of the lift hill and I couldn’t see a thing. Seated, I was barely tall enough to see over the edge of the space rocket. I remember my dad laughing and then “WOOSH!!!!” we headed down the other side of the lift hill. Everything was a blur! People laughing and screaming at the same time. Was my father going to be decapitated? I couldn’t make out the track, but it seemed as if the twisted metal was only inches away from our precious skulls. Well, at least if he was (decapitated) I wouldn’t have to see the gruesomeness cause it was pitch black. Enough about him…am I going to fly out of this thing? I bounced back and forth in the rocket like a caged animal digging my fingernails into the flesh of my father’s thighs. Ahhhhh, the horror! And then just as quickly as it had began…it was over!
The next day my fingers felt like they had been permanently locked into the claw position and my father showed his battle scars as well. It was several years before I made it back onto my beloved Space Mountain!!!
Until Next Time,
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