Land of the Rising Mickey
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Test Track was Disney's most problem plagued attraction until... the Edsel that is (or, perhaps, was) Disneyland's Rocket Rods.  Its problems, such as bent axles, cracked frames, overheating motors, excessive tire wear, a malfunctioning restraint system, mysterious power failures, and bizarrely behaving control system (just to name a few), are so numerous and varied that it's gone into a months long overhaul, perhaps never to return.

Although its problems aren't as deeply rooted as those of Rocket Rods (which was an attempt to create a complex new ride system on a tight budget), the system in use at Hunny Hunt is, in its own way, more involved than any of the attractions I just mentioned.

I originally reported that Hunny Hunt's vehicles are plotted and controlled by a variation of the Global Positioning System (GPS).  I WAS WRONG.  I received the original information from sources here in Japan who should have been in a position to know.  When I combined that information with my extensive research in the area GPS based automated vehicle control systems, and then with other published reports stating the attraction's use of GPS, I felt confident that Hunny Hunt is using a form of it.  IT IS NOT.

Highly accurate multiple vehicle automated control systems which use combinations of GPS, lasers, and ground based radio transmitters are currently in use as a means for controlling construction machinery, such as bulldozers, and they're also used to direct farm equipment (I can tell you all about them, now:).   But, Hunny Hunt is not using a system similar to them.  I'm sure.  Why am I so sure?  All I can say is that my original article prompted a response from someone... someone who's had an effect on the theme park industry that is virtually unparalleled.  This person just plain knows, and their correction was an honor.

So how do they do it?  It would still be easier for me to acquire the launch codes for America's nuclear missile arsenal than come up with the particulars of this tightly held trade secret.  I do know that it uses a radio link between the vehicles and their computer control system, used in tandem with an external vehicle sensing system of some type.  Many of it's earlier problems were the result of software shortcomings (the topnotch programmers were occupied in solving Test Track's problems) and the sensitivity of the system's sensors to a certain environmental conditions.  Those problems are now acceptably under control.

But Hunny Hunt still has to deal with Japan's deeply held love of portable telephones, called keitai (portable) in Japanese.  Although banned from all attractions at TDL, some guest choose to ignore that rule.  Their love of keitai is sometimes greater than their respect for the rules.  Now that's saying something!  Numerous downtimes have been caused when the radio signals created by these phones interferes with the attraction's control system.

Whatever the specifics regarding its control system, the complexity and innovation that has gone into Hunny Hunt is unprecedented for a theme park attraction.  Is it really any surprise that it's getting off to a rough start? 

But, to CMs at TDL, there is nothing normal about Hunny Hunt's constant downtimes.  The attractions at their park run like clockwork.   As I've commented on in a previous columns, the level of maintenance at TDL is outstanding.  With the exception of Hunny Hunt, in all my visits to TDL I've seen one attraction, (the complex in its own right) Splash Mountain, break down once.  It was an afternoon and the attraction was back up twenty minutes later.  But maintenance is only part of it.

Until Hunny Hunt, TDL has enjoyed the benefit of receiving second and third generation ride systems.  Its attractions were designed and built after the hard lessons had been learned at either Disneyland or the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World.  That's not to say that they just put TDL's attractions together, plugged  them in, and "ta da!".  But the folks at TDL have never had to deal with the nightmare of a completely new system.  Now it's their turn... and many of them are having a tough time with it.

There are a number of rumors floating around among the park's CMs regarding Hunny Hunt.  The most common one that I've heard (and I stress - THIS IS A RUMOR) is that Oriental Land Co. (OLC) is so tired of the breakdowns and they want to replace the attraction's American made control system with one that's built in Japan.  But I would be very surprised if there is any truth to this rumor.  I believe it's mainly the result of the frustration CMs go through when they open a completely new attraction, compounded by the inexperience of TDL's CMs with the situation.   But that inexperience is about to become a thing of the past.  Here comes DisneySea.