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Roses are Red Violets are Blue I have limited patience... ...for lame cryptic Clues

An easy one Crossing the causeway into Cedar Point. Nothing will ever beat that drive across lake eerie and seeing the greatest skyline of any park in the world just standing there before me after 14 years of badly wanting to visit!!

Work on removing platform 15 looks to have started. The front of the train has been removed along with the fake light. towards the end of platform 15 the fake train setup as also been deconstructed. https://themeparkguide.co.uk/news-page/Thorpe-Park-2022-Closed-Season-Insight

...changes Turn and face the strange Ch-ch-changes Bowie, the ride. At last, a theming idea I can get behind.

Going back to the name, I hope we see a simple, crude name that milks the height. There's the likes of Fury 325 and Intimidator 305, for example, which have their height included in the name. This exists in part to take the UK height record, something which is very hard to envision being broken any time soon (after all, Big One's record will have stood for 30 years by the time this opens). Something along the lines of Rampage 236, Bolt 236 or whatever. Just a simple noun followed by the height to get it across. It's not something that lends itself to a heavily themed ride, but then, this isn't the type of ride that needs that. It's funny, because in the past, I've never liked the ideas of names like that. But I dunno, it just feels like it fits for this.

Kind of why I find topics like this funny. In one breathe you say Grand National, not rough, can't understand why anyone would see it as rough and then the next breath, Smiler is unridable. I think the complete opposite. Roughness is such a personal thing and I wouldn't personally say I couldn't understand why some would find a ride rough when quite clearly, some people do.

Hello my name is Benin and I actually like Goudrix. Beyond the Papillon de Triste, the reputation seems to be... strange? The last visit Zeus was running far worse than Goudrix was, which presumably explains why that's getting a revamp. It's also a very photogenic coaster. But I just feel its not only a ride that has garnered an unfair reputation but it's actually fun to ride as well. Icon is ok, just not Helix. I'll also mention EGF, because beyond the first drop (a common Intamin issue) its just meh. The restraints are also awful and Goliath at Walibi Holland is a much better ride.

The planning application did state that it would be repainted grey, so one would imagine that has to be done before they can get on with testing. I don't know the ins and outs, but I would imagine that since it is specified in the plans, they would have to get that painted sooner rather than later. The park was hit incredibly hard by Covid, running a reduced line up and with bare bones staff levels. It shouldn't be forgotten that they have the zoo side of their function too, which would have received very little support, and where all their money was focused on. I personally still think 2022 is optimistic for it to open the rate it's going. Simply put, no. Quantity does not mean quality, and the park's quality is pretty low. Looking at those 5 thrill rides... Kumali: Pretty good invert Mumbo Jumbo: Average Hero: Atrocious. Velocity: Fine family coaster 10 looper: Let's assume we can stick that in the 'pretty good' to 'great' category. Obviously this is a tainted viewpoint from an enthusiast, but even to a wider audience, that's going to be the general consensus. You can easily argue that Thorpe, Towers, Blackpool and Fantasy Island have stronger coaster line ups in terms of quality. Heck, come next year, you could possibly throw Chessington into that conversation too. Don't get me wrong, it's good to have a big and varied line up, and Flamingo have one of the widest in the UK I'd say, especially since there's something for everyone. But they're nowhere near the conversation of have the strongest UK line up

Pleasure Beach are doing a lot of good at the moment. There is a lot to look forward to this year; Valhalla 2.0. Yes, it's taking ages, but it needed doing - back in 2019 it was so poor, I commented at the time that it would be better off closed than open in that state. So, the fact they are finally doing something with it is very exciting. Grand National - I have seen photos over the last few days, and it seems to be getting the Big Dipper treatment (a complete re-track in places) which is excellent. Station is also getting work as we saw at the end of last year. Big One - every year for the last 3 years they have re-tracked significant amounts of it with brand new specially manufactured track, this can't be cheap to do and it's great to see it being looked after so well. Going back to last year, they did; Big Dipper - first drop re-track and work on the turnaround by Big Blue made a huge difference. River Caves & Alice – significant lighting and scenic presentation improvements. Steeplechase – brand new sign in the original style. Avalanche bears completely refurbished and full soundtrack restored. Mr Funshine back on the arches, a more vibrant brand image, 125 anniversary effort made across the park. The year before we had an upgrade to some Ghost Train scenes, etc. They are investing a lot into improving/sustaining what they have, much better than they were 4 years ago in my view. It's just unfortunate that the benefits of this year's investment & changes won't be felt by those paying £39 in February. As season pass-holders we can be patient, but it's a different outlook for 'once a year' guests. I think the biggest annoyance for me (as a season pass holder) this year is potentially having to wait until summer for Valhalla. It's adding another half a year on top of the two we have already waited - but if it's worth the wait in the end, then fair enough. To conclude though, I do feel that PB are making much better long-term decisions for their existing rides now than they were in 2018/19. And that's great.

So the theme so far is Margaret Thatcher closing down a mine whilst the Doctor tries to stop the Slitheen destroying Big Ben and Shrek is looking on bemused whilst Donkey sings Bowies greatest hits.

Ding dong??......the witch is dead?? MAGGIE THATCHER THE RIDE!! Its a sequel to Baron 1898 where she shuts down the Barons mine!!

It's true that this and Colossus will be similar, in that they are coasters which will have 'standard' trains and a 'standard' lift hill (assuming, of course, there's no surprises like spinning cars or whatever) I wouldn't be surprised if this is being geared up mid-to-long term as a "like-for-like" Colossus replacement. When Old Town and the island behind Swarm are eventually taken up, you're not left with much room for expansion, so do have to consider removals and replacements, and Colossus would be the first choice in terms of major coasters. Project Exodus would be a similarly iconic coaster for the park, and similar in terms of maintenance. (If anything, probably easier to maintain, given the problems the park have had with Colossus' supports around the lake) At the same time, it's not hard to imagine Colossus staying for a good while yet. It is *the* coaster which put Thorpe 'on the map'. It's still pretty popular. And who knows, with a retrack, it may become smoother (and be a cheaper alternative than completely ripping it out and building something new). So yeah, it's very 50/50 - I genuinely would not be surprised either way if we see it here or not by the end of the decade.

The Brexiters will hate them building a ride themed to Europe.

Guy fawkes theme confirmed. OH MY GOD, THE SLITHEEN DESTROYED BIG BEN IN DOCTOR WHO. DOCTOR WHO CONFIRMED.

Part of it was down to the fact that's where the space was, and that's where investment was going. The Canada Creek Railway was introduced when they introduced the Canada Creek area (including Loggers Leap). It wasn't just a means of transportation, it was also an attraction in its own right, and looping round Canada Creek and giving that - albeit minimal - interaction with Loggers Leap helped too. The area by Rumba and what's now Inferno had other attractions, and didn't really have the space for a train station, train storage shed and a turnaround. It should be remember that the farm was just that - a farm! It had animals and restaurant. It wasn't noisy or disruptive in any way. If Thorpe Park didn't exist, no one would bat an eyelid at that area being used as a farm. It should also be remember that when Thorpe Park opened, it wasn't really a theme park. It was a leisure park, which slowly developed into a theme park, with rides added in at certain periods. A farm in that location made perfect sense in the context of what Thorpe Park originally was. At the same time, having it far away from everything else made sense. It was a place for animals and for quiet, away from some of the louder and busier leisure activities at the park. I don't think the plane exhibits were in any different parts of the park than what exists now. They were located in various parts of the park, including what is now The Jungle, where Vortex/Zodiac are, and parts of where Loggers Leap are. When Loggers Leap an Canada Creek were introduced, some parts of the lake were infilled to create the area. This might be the separate lake that was spoken about. It was separate. Treasure Island opened in 1983, so pre-dates CCR. Before CCR opened, one could take the waterbus to the Farm, or you could walk there. To walk there, you would go alongside the lake, from what is now roughly between Rumba Rapids and Inferno to the Farm. About a third of the way along was the station / entrance for Treasure Island. You can see a pathway in the video @Mattgwise posted. When CCR opened, you could still walk to the Farm, and I believe walking was the only way still to get to Treasure Island. Yes, the park own them. Treasure Island could function as a ride site, Thorpe Farm almost definitely not. Here's a very crude picture: Roughly speaking, everything within the yellow region is - in some loose definition - Thorpe's, or of Thorpe's responsible. Everywhere within the red region (up to the yellow line) is pretty much where the park are allowed to develop rides currently. That's not to say that the park couldn't develop outside that region, but it would require a lot of extra work and changes with the council. As you can see, Treasure Island lies within this region. Back when Treasure Island was an attraction, The Swarm island didn't exist, nor did the straight patch of land above it. In the mid 2000s, the park decided to build an engineering facility building (which is one of the buildings directly above where "The Swarm" is written, just under one my crude yellow lines). The new land helped create a service road to connect it towards the back of the park in an easy way. The Farm is outside of this development region. The park currently use it as storage and work space for some teams (such as Landscaping and Waste Management). At least one of the buildings there is listed too, so can't be demolished. There is some stuff that's also just kind of chucked there (if you've seen the Big Top documentary from Jack Silkstone, you'll see that the clown entrance feature has pretty much been dumped there). Again, it's not impossible for it to be used for something low key or quiet, but highly unlikely. The park certainly has gone through several transformations over the decades. Especially in enthusiast circles, there's more and more people who weren't born when Colossus opened, and that was truly the turning point for the park becoming a thrill park. So there's lots of people like yourself who will never know Thorpe as anything other than a thrill park, and it's really strange. If you're interested in learning more, there's a fair few sources out there, albeit less stuff pre-Tussauds Thorpe Park Mania: We have an okay selection of history / archive bits, albeit a bit more recent stuff... https://thorpeparkmania.co.uk/ Memories of Thorpe Park: Memories of Thorpe Park have a good range of stuff too... https://memoriesofthorpepark.co.uk/ / https://www.facebook.com/MoTP.uk/ Thorpe Park Nostalgia: If you're on Instagram, this is a great account to follow from someone who worked at the park and shares lots of stuff from the later 90s/early 00s... https://www.instagram.com/thorpeparknostalgia/ And obviously, feel free to ask on here too!

Uber eats Staines has a new burger shop. Must be a sign.

"Exodus" - a mass departure of people Which confirms it "Brexit the ride" new for 2024!! Nigel Farage does the preshow and as the ride dispatches its him saying "you all laughed at me. Well I have to say you're not laughing now are you!!"

Treasure Island was halfway between Thorpe Farm and the park, virtually a little west of where the vacant island next to Swarm is. Thorpe Farm was nowhere near Canada Creek/Old Town. The railway was shortened to just a loop when the farm shut. See image below and watch the attached video. At 2:31 you can see the interchange for the Treasure Island Railway. Waterbuses used to also run from Model Village (next to where Sunken Garden is now over to the jetty you can see just east of my Thorpe Farm label.

One that came to mind after how both rides have been running this year. I'd say that Infusion is much more intense, fun and thrilling than Icon. It also looks cooler and delivers a much higher throughput based on both rides' performance this year. The only thing that holds it back from being better outright is inconsistency and the fact it's sometimes horribly rough. If it ran at its best, all the time, I'd genuinely consider it a "better" coaster than Icon.

Come on Thorpe. A double-down tribute to Loggers. Please 🙏

It's loggers, isn't it? 😄

I guess I haven't worked it particularly well. But here's the thing, I've had two rides on Grand National and they were not at all 'rough'. From my experience, I genuinely cannot see why people would call it rough, for example. Perhaps I was just lucky. Could say something similar for my first ride on Goudrix. It was great, if a little intense. But nowhere near as rough or uncomfortable as people described. So again, from my experience, I genuinely could not see where the hate comes from. That was until my second ride, where I had a complete opposite experience. I can only go off my experiences. Me saying "I don't get the hate" for a ride isn't to invalidate the experiences of others. Obviously people do hate it and have their reasons, and some ride it incredibly rough. Fair enough. But simply, my (limited) experience doesn't help me understand why people do hate it as much as they do.

Kumali just about sneaks into the good category probably based upon the fact its not the worst SLC in existence. Everything else is meh to awful. The park itself isn't particularly charming and the operations make Thorpe look like Europa. The new coaster should be good. If it ever opens. But it'll be on 1 train and run awfully. The zoo is good though. I'll give them that.

That's the key here. If the park is doing well, and better than expected even, with this new market and direction, they may as well continue with it. To me, it's a nail in the coffin of T'Ultimate, which is already something that's going to be costly to re-open, and against the park's current direction. Just wish the park would confirm it at this point. But obviously good to see any park performing well, especially at this time.

Coasters I like more than most: Kingda Ka Was a massive surprise to me and was my favourite ride at the park when I went there in 2016. It’s still currently at my number 2 spot, though my number 1 I haven’t ridden since 2014 and isn’t nearly as fresh in my memory so this is kinda my number 1 coaster in a way. It’s definitely the most impactful coaster I’ve ridden! The Big One Specifically in the 2nd and 3rd to back row (elsewhere I think it’s kinda ok). It just feels like it’s speeding like crazy around the course in those seats. And the long ride time with this speed is just amazing! I’ve said it before on this forum but in those seats, it’s my favourite coaster in the UK. Spinball Whizzer This ride just brings me so much joy! It takes its elements with some pretty good speed and is pretty intense, more intense than many “thrill” coasters I’ve ridden. it’s also got a nice upbeat theme which is nice for a change when every other major coaster has a darker theme. Weirdly I rank this fairly high up amongst the coasters at Towers, honestly I’d probably take it over Th13teen, Rita, Oblivion and Galactica. Coasters I like less than most: Nemesis Inferno This ride is kinda a hit or miss with me. Some days I’ll get a highly forceful old school B&M invert experience, other days it just feels a tad forceless and on those specific rides (which is probably about 50% of the time) it feels the weakest out of the 5 coasters to me. But I don’t hate the ride, far from it, I still try and ride it every time I go! I do love giving it the nickname Nemesis Inferior though 😆 Nemesis Yeah I know, another Nemesis on this list. Now I do think it is an amazing ride and I’ve enjoyed every ride I’ve had on it and unlike Nemesis Inferno, it’s always a hit. I just simply don’t quite like it as much as many other enthusiasts but I do appreciate and respect the ride massively. Kumba I found this ride fairly rough when I rode it in 2016, though the only 3 times I rode it were all in the back so that probably affects my opinion drastically. But even looking past that, it felt like any other B&M sit-down I’ve ridden. I thought Kraken was far superior in many ways.

So we all know that EnergyLandia like to expand and we all knew that they were getting the Sweet Valley area for 2022. They only go and surprise everyone even further revealing in their 2022 brochure the following two new additions. 1. A 16 slide tower for the waterpark (looks to be 8 slides duplicated symmetrically) 2. A huge new big wheel of 54m in height. Let's not forget that they plan to build huge hotels and a full indoor waterpark complex in the next few years too. Crazy! Link to brochure. Only the polish version has been updated... https://energylandia.pl/cennik/grupy-i-firmy/

Promisingly, Lightwater Valley was singled out by Brighton Pier Group as having performed “ahead of expectations” in 2021: https://riderater.co.uk/9522/lightwater-valley-ahead-of-expectations/ No specific figures were given, but the group singled out Lightwater Valley as a star performer in their recent results reveal, where the group also revealed that their total sales were expected to be £22.7million, which is up by 177% on the same period in 2020 and even up 31% compared to pre-COVID levels in 2019. Promising stuff, no? While it may not be the future that some desire, I do think Lightwater could have a promising future ahead of it within the next few years as they forge their new path of appealing to the under-10s!

Now here's something out of no where: Legoland have shared a glimpse into the future, stating their intent to apply for plans for an adventure golf course, with a "new roller coaster investment" on the horizon too: https://www.windsorobserver.co.uk/news/19849032.legoland-windsor-plans-build-new-adventure-golf-course/ They're citing the potential threat of London Resort a reason for these investments: An adventure golf course will certainly add to the park and resort in a worthwhile way. I honestly think that more and more resort parks should have adventure gold courses - compared to most theme park attractions, even a good quality one is only a comparatively small investment. They are low cost in maintenance, cheap to operate in terms of staffing and you can justifiably upcharge for it. Plus, I think a Lego-themed mini golf just sounds like a great idea. The "new coaster investment" is interesting. I've heard rumblings of a B&M going to Windsor. Personally, I think that's just rumours coming from people seeing the Legolands in China and putting 2 and 2 together to get 5. And I would have laughed the idea out the window a year ago. But with Chessington getting a B&M, and obviously multiple B&Ms in the Chinese Legoland parks looking likely, it's not the craziest suggestion right now. Legoland Windsor has many planning obstacles, and they're low on usable space. Even with the focus on the younger market, they do need another family coaster imo. Their recent dark ride additions have been very 'for all the family' orientated, so having a new coaster catering for that market isn't out of the question. But yeah, will be very interesting to see what they do. I do wonder if there have been an internal shift in philosophy about the likelihood of London Resort, given it's been quoted as a need for investment multiple times. Again, my opinion would be that they're still not worried about it, and still pretty sceptical that it will ever open, but there's certainly no harm in them playing off it to push through new investments. Out of all the UK Merlin parks, Legoland has seen some of the most consistent and well thought-out additions over the last 7-10 years really, so this isn't anything new. But it's good it continue under the changes at the top of Merlin (even if it's not a surprise!).

Coaster I like more than most Grand National. Yes its rough and shaky as anything.....but what did people expect from a roller coaster well over 80 years old!!?? I find it good solid fun whenever I go to pleasure beach and its just an absolute classic. Big one. Sticking to the Pleasure beach, Big one may be a bumpy as heck coaster with little to no airtime but it has one of the best first drops I have experienced and is also just fun. A night ride on it is also legendary Coasters I like less than most Wodan. Now I do like Wodan, but I just feel it pales compared to other GCI coasters. Its airtime is not as good as that on Mystic Timbers and it also doesnt feel as rapid or as out of control as Troy. So whilst I like the ride, it just leaves me feeling short changed compared to the two I have just mentioned. Icon. Now this ride is GOOD for the Uk market. I however just find it to be 10 percent decent elements and 90 percent slowly plodding around doing nothing. I can absolutely see why some adore this ride given its smoothness and interactions with the rides around it. I just want something more out of control,eventful and intense. This delivers none of that.

Surely can’t just rely on events the next few years until Exodus… can they??

Couldnt agree more with the park guests!! On all visits I have had its been full to the rafters with undesirables queue jumping and just acting like idiots around the park. They actually make Thorpes very own clientele of undesirables look like saints and thats saying all one needs to know!!

Park I like less then most - Port Aventura. The most mediocre collection of rides in a park. The worst park guests I have ever encountered. Just a horrible place to visit, only Shambhala and Dragon Khan make it worth visiting. And even thats a push. Park I like more then most - Toverland. Not spoken about enough. An excellent theme park that continually renovates and improves. Such a gorgeous place to visit.

Park I like more than most - Walibi Holland. Yeah it aint the best park in the world but when you visit during the halloween season its a great visit and it helps that Untamed is one of my top coasters. Park I like less than most - Europa Park. Again, I DO like this park. However I am far from being one of the many that think this park is the holy grail of theme parks. I find their coasters to be relatively middle of the road in that they are good without being spectacular and the fact their dark rides are disney knock offs doesnt really sit well with me.

Oh God, please tell me its not being called Big Ben. 😅

The first coaster themed to Ru Paul's Drag Race UK?

Or like a dark gothic horror theme, with the area called the Dark Kingdom, and call the new coaster as Knightmare

Disney won't build anything like Velocicoaster. The most thrilling coasters they've built are Space Mountain at DLP and Rock n Roller Coaster. They've never been interested in the out and out thrill market even when IoA first opened with Hulk and Duelling Dragons in Florida. Whilst California has Knotts and Magic Mountain nearby. The newer coasters look firmly in the family thrill category (if Tron rides like the other Booster Bikes thrill would be a stretch anyway), which is Disney's demographic. Never been afraid to have a number of "bigger" attractions. The likes of Tower of Terror or Test Track for example are great examples of the type of ride Disney go for.

Maybe. I don't think it would take Velocicoaster to cause a significant shift though. All of the Disney investment points at interactive family rides and I think thats how it will continue. It would take a severe drop in attendance that is unrelated to covid-19 restrictions that may force Disney to alter slightly. Right now though, no.

Some new concept art has emerged of a very Joris En De Draak looking dueling woodie.

There's also a handy bit of info here: https://memoriesofthorpepark.co.uk/treasureisland.html I'll follow this post up with more later, but again, Memories of Thorpe Park can give a nice bit of info about Thorpe Farm and CCR: https://memoriesofthorpepark.co.uk/thorpefarm.html https://memoriesofthorpepark.co.uk/ccr.html

Sorry to double post, but unsurprisingly, the opening has now been officially pushed back to 2025: I think they’ve got a far better chance of meeting 2025 than 2024, personally; 2 years seemed like a phenomenally short amount of time to build a new park from the ground up, whereas 3 years seems perhaps more achievable, in my opinion. On a side note, it would appear they’ve altered the concept art a fair bit; the British and French flags from the huge dome buildings are gone, for a start! Could this be the altered concept coming out of the SSSI designation?

Obvious one here, Nemesis. Everyone knows why. Big coaster that is a waste.. mmm. Leviathan at Canadas Wonderland. Behemoth in the same park is a much better ride are is basically the same, just longer and with far more air time. I'll throw in Top Thrill Dragster as well. Waiting for the thing is a nightmare because of the risk of roll back. You go on it and sure, it is thrilling. but I want more than just twelve seconds of actual thrill, it severely under-delivers.

Wild Mouse was easily the best "thrill per footprint" coaster out there imo. In terms of still existing coasters, I'd probably go with Revolution. In terms of big coasters that waste their size, I'd say Oblivion, because it has a good first drop and then that's... it. 😂

Welcome to TPM @CineramaMax!

Hellooo I'm Max! Long time lurker but was once a member as a teenager as 'Coaster XTREME', so it's good to be back with a slightly more mature username xD. I'm a filmmaker/film geek and long time coaster/theme park enthusiast. I've been going to Thorpe Park since I was very young and I run some of the biggest theme park groups on Facebook..

I'm surprised this hasn't been mentioned yet, but Coaster Chall recently posted a very interesting video about what Drayton could be receiving in 2022, as well as what could be coming in 2023: If you don't want to watch, Chall's inside source is suggesting that: Drayton Manor's 2022 addition will be a Viking-themed area on the triangular plot of land near to where Vertigo and Buffalo are located named Viking Village. The addition is set to be fully revealed in March 2022, with an opening apparently set for 1st April. The rides installed will be a Zamperla Disk'O Coaster, a Zamperla Nebulaz and a pony ride-style attraction (think George's Dinosaur Adventure at Paultons) themed to Viking battle horses. As well as this, Vertigo will apparently be kept, rethemed into the area and included in park admission, and Buffalo is also being rethemed to the Loki Serpent Snake. Away from Viking Village, markings are already being taken for a new roller coaster, and Looping Group are currently scouring for different manufacturers to build it. However, the ride is said to have 800m of track, forwards and backwards sections, and a swing launch somewhere within the ride. In terms of a location, the combined location of Apocalypse, Pandemonium and Test Track is apparently being eyed up for this coaster, and it's rumoured to be a 2023 addition, functioning as a phase 2 expansion to Viking Village. Isn't this all very exciting? Take this with a pinch of salt, of course, but Chall's inside source within Drayton Manor has been incredibly reliable so far, correctly predicting nearly all of what happened with Adventure Cove in 2021. So for that reason, I'd say that what Chall is saying has a high chance of being true, personally!

Small coaster I'd have said Wild Mouse at BPB prior to it getting knocked down, that thing used to chuck you about left, right, up and down and covered a very small area. Certainly my favourite coaster in the UK when it was about. Now I'd probably go with Backlot Stunt Coaster at King's Island. I was expecting a naff kids coaster as it looked small and didn't take up huge amount of space , but what happened was I massively greyed out more than any other intense coaster I'd ever down literally after the naff launch and into the helixes. You want intense helixes then this thing will tick all the boxes. I Coasters that are disappointing for their size? Would have to go with diamondback. The thing looked incredible and was expecting it to be on par with Shambhala but instead was probably the most disapointing large coaster I'd ever been on. Or Mystic Timbers. Again was expecting something great having been on Wodan and Wickerman which I both enjoyed. But nope just lacked any umph. Though seems I'm in a minority with that.

@JoshC. I knew this thread had your name written all over it, and you didn’t disappoint! I love all these theme park Easter eggs - keep them coming people 😂

I don't think I've ever posted my top 10 coasters on here, so here's my list with a little explanation as to why each ride is where it is, as well as each ride's score out of 10 for how much I enjoy it relative to the other coasters I've done. Before starting, I should probably clarify that I don't rate coasters purely based on intensity; fun factor and rerideability are the two most important factors for me. My very favourite coasters are all rides that are thrilling enough to give you a kick out of riding them, but not so intense that they put you off reriding or do things to your body, and they're also all reasonably smooth and comfortable to a point; I'm not personally a fan of overly rough rides. I've also noticed that I personally like airtime coasters the most, or rides with at least a certain degree of negative g's or "out of your seat" action of some description (so hangtime might also count). Matt N's Top 10 Coasters as of December 2021 (Coaster Count: 79) Mako - SeaWorld Orlando: My first and last rides on this coaster were in August 2016, but the 3 rides I had on Mako stick out to me as 3 of my favourite coaster rides ever even 5 years on; my first ride in particular gave me a hit of pure joy no coaster has since! As for why this coaster sticks out compared to the rest; where do I begin? As soon as you board the train, the restraints are some of the most gorgeously comfortable coaster restraints I've ever sat in, and when the ride itself kicks into motion, there's so much amazing stuff going on; the sustained airtime is phenomenal throughout, with the first drop, first big hill and speed hill sticking out as 3 particularly biblical airtime moments (I know floater is often considered weak airtime nowadays, but 13 year old me remembers it feeling like I was being catapulted into space, and floating in the air for what felt like forever!), and even away from airtime, the sense of speed is amazing, and the ride is so blissfully smooth, negotiating each element with what feels like flawless precision! And on the whole, while it may not be an intense g-machine, Mako is a coaster where I felt a strong urge to run back round and give it another go each time I did it, more so than any other coaster I've been on; I think the balance between thrill and fun factor/rerideability is just perfect! Prior to riding this, I was a little lost as to why enthusiasts revered airtime so much, but Mako was the coaster that converted me, and made me understand that love for airtime that most enthusiasts have! I'll admit that I'm unsure if this should still be number 1 what with how long it's been (with some of the amazing coasters below like Icon, Wicker Man et al, I worry that this wouldn't stand up if I were to ride it today), but I've decided to keep it here for now on the basis of the memories. What do you guys think? 10/10 Icon - Blackpool Pleasure Beach: Controversially, I do really love Icon! I’ve ridden it 4 times on 2 separate visits to Blackpool in 2018 & 2019, and it’s really struck a chord with me, hitting all the right notes each time! It’s fast, it’s thrilling enough to give you a kick but not too intense to be fun, it’s smooth, it’s rerideable, it has some amazing ejector airtime, the trains are lovely, the rapid transitions are great, and on the whole, I see little not to like about Icon from my personal perspective! Sure, the launches aren’t the punchiest (although I don’t personally think they’re as feeble as they’re often made out to be), and the ride as a whole isn’t exactly an intense, pedal-to-the-metal g-machine, but I just find it tremendously, tremendously fun, and it puts a smile on my face and gives me an urge to reride every time! And surely coming off a coaster smiling and wanting to go round again is the most important indicator of enjoyment, is it not? 10/10 Wicker Man - Alton Towers: I’m not usually a hardcore wooden coaster fan like a lot of enthusiasts, but I’d have to say that Wicker Man is most definitely a ride I make an exception for; I find it tremendously fun, fairly smooth and comfortable in wooden coaster terms, and very rerideable! The ride is really, really fast, it has some smooth yet exceedingly fun transitions, many surprising pops of ejector airtime, and as I’ve said with the rides above, it strikes the perfect balance between thrill and fun factor, in my opinion! And on the back row in particular, this coaster is a real hoot, with some excellent airtime moments, although I think every row is fun on Wicker Man, personally! Overall, I think Wicker Man is a hugely fun ride; even if it isn't the most intense coaster, it always puts a huge smile on my face! 10/10 Mine Blower - Fun Spot Kissimmee: I know that 2 wooden coasters in my top 5 might possibly contradict my earlier statement about not being a hardcore wooden coaster fan, but Mine Blower is the other ride that I’d say I make an exception for! I should preface what I say about Mine Blower by saying that I only had one ride on it, in the front row, with a practically empty train. However, in spite of this; Mine Blower did impress me, and I think there’s a lot to like about it! The ride is fast-paced from start to finish, and I absolutely love that bouncing, darting sequence of airtime moments the ride incorporates! I also love the ride’s sole inversion; that zero-g roll provides a really excellent moment of sustained hangtime! I know it’s in stark contrast to the more abrupt, erratic sensations in the rest of the layout, but I really like how the start of the ride contrasts with the rest of it! I was slightly worried about Mine Blower’s roughness prior to riding, as I have a low roughness tolerance and I’d heard numerous reports about Mine Blower’s roughness, but on the front row, I’d personally say I didn’t find it overly rough; no more so than something like Wicker Man, anyway. One slight caveat I admittedly have is that I don’t like the trains as much as the GCI trains; the restraints are a bit tight, and I think the GCI rolling stock generally feels a bit more comfortable, in my opinion. Overall, however; even though I’d say Wicker Man just edges it for me in terms of woodies (the trains are far more comfortable, and I also really like the smooth twisty bits on Wicker), I was very impressed by Mine Blower, and I’d say it’s a more than worthy candidate for a favourite woodie! 9/10 Oblivion - Alton Towers: Perhaps oddly given the one-note nature of it, Oblivion is a coaster I've really grown to love with time! This could admittedly be a tentative opinion until I get back on SheiKra, but to be honest, I actually think I like Oblivion more nowadays; I love how concise it is, and although it doesn't do a lot, I think Oblivion does everything it has in its arsenal extremely well! The sense of speed on the drop is phenomenal; my dad always says to me whenever we ride it together that Oblivion feels like the fastest coaster he's ever done, and I can certainly see why he thinks that, as it really feels like you're flying at warpspeed through that tunnel! The airtime is also great, in my opinion; the drop itself provides an excellent moment of strong sustained airtime, and the hill into the brakes also provides a surprising bonus pop! The ride is also really smooth and comfortable, in my opinion; for a coaster of 23 years old, I think it's aged phenomenally, and I think that as OTSRs go, B&M's traditional ones are about as unobtrusive and comfortable as they come! Overall, while it might be short, I think Oblivion is certainly sweet! 9/10 Montu - Busch Gardens Tampa: My memories of Busch Gardens Tampa are getting hazier with time, as it’s close to 5 years since my first and only visit, but I do remember very much liking Montu! I remember it being relatively smooth, as B&Ms mostly are, but also packing a real punch! It was a long ride, but one that kept its momentum throughout, and it had many awesome inversions and moments of positive force! The one ride I had certainly sticks out as my favourite ride I’ve had on a B&M invert, and I remember really liking it at the time, but I’m unsure whether I’d rank it quite as highly now, as my tastes have changed slightly towards rides with more negative g’s and a wider variety of forces on offer as opposed to rides with little aside from positive g’s. Still, Montu is a fab invert, in my opinion! 9/10 SheiKra - Busch Gardens Tampa: As I alluded to in my musings about Oblivion above, this is probably a tentative ranking until I get a reride on SheiKra, but in spite of me now saying I rank Oblivion a bit higher, I did still really like SheiKra, from memory! The ride is massive, which adds a certain element of fear to it, and I remember the drops and big, swoopy elements being really nice! I really do need a reride, though; based on my recent experience with Oblivion, it might well end up pushing SheiKra up a few spots… 9/10 Nemesis Inferno - Thorpe Park: This coaster has really grown on me in recent years, and perhaps controversially, I'd now say it is my favourite of Britain's two Nemesises (Nemesi? I don't really know what the plural of Nemesis is...) by a marginal amount (as for how marginal; Nemesis is the coaster directly below!)! The reasons I like this coaster marginally more than Nemesis are that it's smoother, more consistent in terms of keeping up the pace throughout the layout, and also that it doesn't have any sustained greyout moments like Nemesis' helix (perhaps controversially, I'm not a greyout fan; I often think too much intensity can take away from a ride, personally). And in terms of Inferno as a standalone coaster on its own merits; I think it's a great one, personally! The ride is nice and fast throughout, thrilling without being overly intense, fairly smooth (I only got a slight bit of headbanging on my last ride), and on the whole, it's a coaster I like a lot! It's not quite up there as one of my very favourites as I don't rate coasters focused solely on positives as highly as I used to, but Inferno's still a hoot, for my money! 9/10 Nemesis - Alton Towers: As much as Inferno may just have pipped it among British inverts, I still think there's a hell of a lot to like about the original Nemesis! Firstly, I admire its raw brilliance as a structure and a feat of engineering; it still blows my mind how John Wardley packed so much into that pit! I also have a long relationship with Nemesis, and it’s my most ridden coaster of all time, with me having had 24 rides in total since 2013, so I do have a lot of love for it, in that regard! And when we go to the layout itself; as much as Nemesis isn't quite as smooth and consistently paced as Inferno, in my opinion, there's still a lot to like, in my opinion, and I think there's some great elements in there, personally! However, I'm controversially not a fan of Nemesis' much revered helix; as much as I think the pacing and design of it are excellent, I don't personally enjoy the sustained grey out moment it always gives me. Overall, I still think Nemesis is a fantastic inverted coaster that I always really enjoy; even if I don’t rank it quite as highly as others, that’s simply because as I said about other rides above, I don’t personally rate coasters focusing exclusively on positive g’s quite as highly as I used to. 9/10 The Swarm - Thorpe Park: This might surprise you based on its current placement, but prior to riding Mako in 2016, Swarm was actually my favourite coaster. And I won't deny, there's still a lot that I love about it; the sense of speed is phenomenal (you really do feel like you're flying!), the winged seating does add something, and I think the ride has some phenomenal moments (the first drop is absolutely amazing, and the negative g forces in that last inversion are just blissful, in my opinion!)! However, I've been going off it a little as of late, and I can think of numerous reasons why it doesn't rank as highly as it used to for me. For starters, I'm growing less keen on the restraints; I didn't used to mind them, but they seem a lot tighter nowadays, and they also seem to come down on you further during the ride. Also, while I wouldn't call Swarm rough by any stretch, it does seem to be getting a touch rougher and losing that silky smoothness I always loved about it; the outer back ride I had in September seemed fairly juddery to the point where it did take away from the ride a bit for me, and while the inner seats were much smoother and more enjoyable, even those inner rides seemed to have a slight grind/rattle that the ride never used to have. Finally, the helicopter helix has started inducing a somewhat unpleasant sustained greyout that I haven't been particularly enjoying (I love the rest of Swarm, but as with any sustained greyout, I just sort of grin and bear this moment and wait for it to be over), which takes away from it slightly for me. Sorry if I sound very picky there, and I could well have had hit Swarm on a bad day in September (noone else seems to pick up on many of the things I mentioned there; am I going mad?), but I just felt I should explain why the ride isn't higher given that it was my favourite coaster for 2 years pre-Mako. For now, Swarm's highs are great enough and its lows are inconsequential enough to narrowly keep it in the top 10, but Inferno has superseded it as my favourite Thorpe coaster now, which I never thought would happen a few years ago, and with me hoping to visit Europa next year, time will tell if Swarm stays in the top 10. 9/10 So, that's my top 10 coasters! I apologise if any of that is controversial, and if you want to question me on any of that, ask away! P.S. Here's the rest of my list in case you're wondering where a certain ride is that's missing: https://captaincoaster.com/en/tops/192

Thank you everyone who’s responded! Some really interesting points. I agree with the point raised a couple of times here that visiting Thorpe specifically + half term was only ever going to exasperate it, and it’s true that it is Thorpe where I get the feeling of being “too old” the most. It’s not so much an issue elsewhere, especially abroad weirdly. Josh, that is utterly terrifying that a 15 year old joining the forum today would be younger than Stealth 😳 I too remember being on forums and at the park around that age watching the construction of Stealth. It doesn’t feel that long ago does it! I’ll be honest I still see Saw as “pretty new” 😂 👨🏼‍🦳 I REMEMBER WHEN IT WAS ALL FIELDS 😂 To be honest I agree with you all - I too don’t think you can be too old to visit and enjoy theme parks, and I have no plans to stop! This forum alone is evidence that there’s a keen following among a slightly older audience. Just interested to hear if others ever felt the same occasionally.