The Dark Side of Disney - Leonard Kinsey [52]
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My off-limits escapades are small-time compared to the exploits of other daring souls I’ve met via the wonders of The Interwebs. McGeorge’s BBSs had transformed into “Al Gore’s Internet”, and suddenly like-minded souls started coming out with some crazy stories of WDW infiltrations that rivaled military operations. I’ve had the pleasure and honor of getting to know two of these brave characters, and both agreed not only to let me interview them, but to also allow a few of their adventure photos to be published.
INTERVIEW WITH SHANE PEREZ
First up is Shane Perez, a good-looking, well-spoken Miami native now residing in NYC. Shane received a certain amount of notoriety after exploring an abandoned rocket silo which still contained one of the most powerful rockets ever made! Thrilling video of him rappelling down the side of the underground silo (and nearly getting stuck) was featured prominently in the 2007 documentary Urban Explorers: Into the Darkness. This movie, by Melody Gilbert, focuses on men and women who, often at great risk to their safety, explore abandoned industrial sites, an activity known as “Urban Exploring”. The film examines their motivations for engaging in this high risk activity, and highlights the sense of wonder and beauty that these individuals feel from witnessing firsthand the crumbling and decaying architecture and technology of years past.
But Shane received even more attention beginning on Christmas Day, 2009 when he published a blog entry on his website, http://shaneperez.blogspot.com, featuring a detailed report of his trip to Discovery Island, Walt Disney World’s long-abandoned nature park. Discovery Island, located in the heart of Bay Lake, was left to rot years ago when the opening of Animal Kingdom effectively rendered the previously well-maintained zoo obsolete. Instead of bulldozing the property, Disney simply decided to leave it as-is and let nature take its course, turning it into an overgrown urban ruin that was an irresistible destination for Shane and his fellow Urban Explorers.
The gorgeous pictures from Shane’s evening on the island, along with his well-written travelogue immediately made it clear that he wasn’t a bragging punk kid trespasser, but was in fact an intelligent, talented individual whose admittedly outrageous story couldn’t be easily dismissed as hooliganism. The Orlando Sentinel eventually broke the story and soon it was being reported on by media outlets nationwide, making Shane’s previously underground celebrity status a thing of the past. Message boards at Disney fan sites buzzed with debate about whether Shane’s actions, although obviously illegal, were also immoral, or at the very least just really stupid. But Shane kept his cool, firing back non-inflammatory and well-reasoned responses to his detractors basically saying, “Hey, I’m not hurting anyone except maybe myself, and that’s none of your business.”
I caught up with Shane almost a year after his blog post was published, and he graciously agreed to answer my sometimes long-winded questions.
What’s your “day job”? Obviously Urban Exploring doesn’t pay cash dividends…. Or does it?
I do home theater installation and I also work as a freelance photographer for the NY Post.
Describe for me what you get out of Urban Exploring on an emotional, or for lack of a better word, “spiritual” level. In other words, what is it about UE that fills a need that isn’t fulfilled by normal everyday life?
I don’t really see it as an activity, it’s more of a way of looking at the world. It’s about satisfying curiosity about how things work and their history. It also encourages me to exercise my critical thinking skills and learn to take responsibility for my own actions. Normal everyday places are set up to be as safe and foolproof as possible. You can basically wander through life on autopilot and never have to worry about being hurt or killed, there’s always going to be a handrail or safety measure in place to protect you from yourself. That is not so in the places that I visit and I feel