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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!

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