Soarin' Over Californian Grand Opening
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Soarin' Over California
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On February 7, 2001 Disney officially dedicated Soarin'
Over California with a ceremony emceed by Paul Pressler. Also on hand where Jeana Yeager
and Richard Rutan who piloted the Voyager aircraft non-stop around the world.
Videos Introduction RealVideo: Introduction with biplane flyover. 2 minutes, 31 seconds. Aviator: Yeah, there she goes! Female Mechanic: Isnt that something, a Jenny! Aviator:: Just like the first plane Charles Lindbergh bought. Male Mechanic: Every time I see one of those old birds fly its
like a window to another time. You know, when I helped a pilot into the cockpit he just
sat there for a minute. I thought he was having second thoughts about flying there. When
he finally spoke he said he searched a long time for a plane like that. Female Mechanic: Isnt it something how the thought of soaring
through the clouds in one of those vintage planes can transform a grown man into a
dreamer. Aviator: A grown man, a grown woman or a child. If it werent for
the dreams of pilots like Amelia Earhart, James Herman Banning, Charles Lindbergh or T.
Claude Ryan we might not have found our wings and discovered that the sky is no longer the
limit, but home. Female Mechanic: You know, I think I hear him circling back around.
Come on guys, lets go watch him land. Male Mechanic: Woo Hoo! Aviator: To us, its a bit of history but back then a sight like
that Jenny was just another day at the airfield. You know, they all eventually came here
to California where wide open spaces and good thermal winds provided near perfect
conditions for flying. It was once said that mans mind and spirit grew within the
space in which they are allowed to operate. Well the California skies provided that space.
Flying fostered fantasies of childhood and stirred our capacity to dream and those dreams
took us higher, faster and further than anyone ever though possible. You know, Amelia
Earhart once said, You havent seen a tree until you see its shadow from the
sky. And she was right. I hope you all get to view your world from that same
perspective. Announcer: Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome the chairman of the
Walt Disney Resorts, Mr. Paul Pressler.
There are three videos available that together show the entire ceremony. All videos are in
RealVideo format. All videos are available in low bandwidth (modem) and high bandwidth
(DSL, cable, LAN) formats. The low bandwidth videos are 192 X 144. The high bandwidth
videos are 320 X 240. The videos are also linked at the appropriate places within the
article. A free version of the RealVideo player is available at www.real.com.
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Following is a transcript of the ceremony. The ceremony began with a biplane
doing aerobatics overhead and three actors dressed as aviators and mechanics coming out to
watch.
A biplane flyover
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(l-r): Aviator, Female Mechanic, Male Mechanic
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