Radiator Springs Racers FULL RIDE, NIGHT & DAY - Picking Up the Pieces of Us

UPDATE: WE WERE DIRECTED BY YOUTUBE TO TAKE OUT THE ORIGINAL SOUND IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE VIDEO, BUT THE SOUND IS THERE FOR MOST OF THE SECOND RIDE. SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE. Disney California Adventure Land's Radiator Springs (Cars Land) was the icing on the cake to finish our Route 66 journey. The kids watched the Cars movie as reference material during our trip, as many of the imagineers' settings around Radiator Springs were perfectly personified from what we saw on the Route itself. Once inside Disney's Cars Land, we felt like we were walking into the movie itself, from the Cozy Cone Motel to Flo's V8 Cafe. But to experience what it would be like to be a race car, like Lightning McQueen, we had to ride the Radiator Springs Racers...three times, to make sure! But, what if you only had time to ride it once? Would you choose to experience head-to-head racing in broad daylight or to zoom through the picturesque desert landscape at night? This video aims to present the differences between riding in the morning and evening. This ride is great for most ages, as long as you're 40 inches tall, or taller. But, this ride may feel a little more "full throttle" for younger kids and those on the Spectrum (ASD). The "thrill ride" attraction warns of "small drops, periods of darkness and loudness." Our kids, who share a mixture of ASD and other cognitive delays, were very resilient on this ride - including a few fairly scary scenes (mentioned below). Once buckled into a race car that holds six, you are introduced to a quick jaunt around the 100-foot waterfall of Ornament Valley, all while immersed in Cars theme music via the speakers in your headrests. This part of the ride looks amazing with its mood lighting at night. NIGHT WINS. From there, you are whisked into a dark tunnel and immediately surprised by a scene straight out of the Cars movie, complete with a honking and brightly lit Mack the Truck, and railroad bells and lights. The Sheriff, who was hiding behind his speed trap, picks you from there and hands you over to Mater, who takes you tractor tippin.' Almost as soon as Mator says, "watch out for Frank," you come face-to-face with the very angry and protective harvester, who cases you into Radiator Springs itself. I'm not going to lie; these two nearly back-to-back surprises had our kids on the Spectrum fairly anxious. It's a good thing that you get to cruise through the town before you race The dark portion of the ride continues down the main drag of Radiator Springs, where you meet Sarge, Fillmore, Sally, and Lightning McQueen himself. Each gives you their own pep talk as you get ready to race. From there, your car randomly rolls into either Ramone's House of Body Art to get a paint job or Luigi's Casa Della Tires for some nice whitewalls. We got to know Luigi quite a bit, because each of our three rides stopped there. With your modifications in place, you roll into your garage to meet your pit boss, Doc Hudson. From there, you'll see your competition: another car, similar to yours, revving its engine and ready to go (the first time we rode, no other car was there to race us). Seeing that the dark portion of this ride is completely indoors, riding at day or night doesn't matter. On your mark, get set...go! The race is on, as you roar through turns and pop over bunny-hop hills, while either pursuing or in pursuit of your competition at speeds up to 40 mph. This portion of the ride is the largest, offering you a spectacular view of the Cadillac Ranch car bluffs. The winning car is also picked at random, but don't worry, Lightning and Mater remind us that we're all winners as the race ends. Again, this portion of the ride looks magnificent while illuminated at night, so NIGHT WINS AGAIN! The wait times for this ride went as far as three hours. Keep in mind, this was in May before California schools let out. There were instances that we were not able to use our FASTPASS due to the lines being too long, but we could use Disney's Disability Access Service. We would go to guest services and get a new time to come to front of the line, based on the actual wait time at the point of the request. Planning a trip to the Disneyland® Resort? A Resource for Guests with Cognitive Disabilities including Autism Spectrum Disorder: https://wdpromedia.disney.go.com/medi... #autism #pickingupthepiecesofus #vlog #OnTheSpectrum@Disneyland #disneyland #disneycaliforniaadventure #lightningmcqueen #radiatorsprings #radiatorspringsracers #california #autismonthemove #autismspectrum #ASD #autistic #atypical #highfunctioning #cognitivedelay #disability #vacation #roadtrip #camper Disney Music incidentally played in the theme park. All non-Disney music used under licensed permission of Storyblocks.