Harold & The Matterhorn Bobsleds

The Matterhorn Bobsleds are a Disneyland classic, though not an original opening day attraction. The Matterhorn was added in 1959, four years after Disneyland’s opening, as part of the first major expansion to the park. This expansion also consisted of the Disneyland Monorail, the Submarine Voyage, and expanded versions of both Autopia and the Motor Boat Cruise. The Matterhorn has played a significant role in Disneyland history and had incredibly advanced attraction technology for the time.

The Matterhorn was built where a pile of dirt from the castle moat once lay. This small hill was used as a picnic spot originally nicknamed Holiday Hill and then called Lookout Hill. Walt Disney had an idea for a toboggan run attraction to be built there called Snow Hill. However, after traveling to Switzerland to film the 1959 film Third Man on the Mountain, Walt became so impressed with the real Matterhorn that he wanted a replica to be built in his park. Story has it that Walt sent a postcard of the Matterhorn to imagineer Vic Greene with the simple message “Build this”.  So the 1/100 scale mountain was built and many potential names were proposed, my favourite being The Walterhorn, before settling on the Matterhorn Bobsleds.

The Matterhorn was the first tubular steel roller coaster which allowed for the tracks to be bent into sharper dips and turns and the Matterhorn was also one of the first roller coasters to use water as a braking system at the end of the ride, so that quick dip into an alpine pond actually has a purpose. The Matterhorn was also the first roller coaster to allow multiple cars on the track at the same time due to braking spots along the tracks. There are actually two tracks racing through the mountain, the Tomorrowland track and the Fantasyland track.

The Matterhorn was the first thrill ride of any kind to be built in Disneyland and the entire attraction ticketing system had to be redefined. Previously, attraction ticket booklets were sold with “A”, “B”, “C”, and “D” categories which coordinated with their thrill and popularity level. However, with the opening of the Matterhorn, a new “E” ticket had to be introduced because this attraction was too impressive and innovative to fit into one of the previous “A” – “D” categories. The Monorail and Submarine Voyage were also introduced as “E” ticket attractions and some previous “D” attractions were upgraded such as the Jungle Cruise.

The inside of the mountain was very hollow until the 1970s when major refurbishments were done on the attraction. The inside was filled up with caverns and “snow”, an abominable snowman named Harold was added, the individual bobsled cars were paired together, and the attraction itself changed locations. The Matterhorn is one of the only attractions in Disney Parks history to change lands as it was first considered to be part of Tomorrowland and then become a part of Fantasyland.

In 1994, a crystal-filled grotto was added inside the mountain along with a climbing equipment crate labeled Wells Expedition.  This is a tribute to Frank Wells, former C.O.O. and President of the Walt Disney Company, who tragically died in a helicopter crash in April of 1994. In 2015, updated special effects were added as well as a new Harold. The abominable snowman will chase the bobsleds from behind a sheet of ice and it is terrifying!  Some old Skyway buckets were also added as a tribute to Disneyland’s past gondola attraction and they look like Harold has partially destroyed them.

The Matterhorn Bobsleds have received a lot of love and attention from Disney over the years and will continue to be a classic attraction that will always have a direct tie to Walt Disney himself.