Mer

Argh same! And I really must write my trip report from the meet last year. Better late than never!

Wow...what a mess! It's embarrassing that they even opened it in that state. The riders look confused as well!

I'm just happy that they've finally improved the speakers in the Vampire station!

Cant believe how much better the elephant looks there! Do you know when it was moved to the other side of the track and why? Just seems a bit pointless to move something like that Unless it was so it could get guests wet (it looks too far away to do that originally).

I will definitely be attending the meet and the meal I look forward to pointing out my destroyed childhood memories to you.

Lots going on with Hex of recent This is exciting to see! Can't wait to get back on it Love that they're working on the Duel entrance sign and crypt too, as well as the Smiler and Nemesis improvements of course

Yeah I agree! I noticed when I was watching that it was spinning more than the others - in fact in my off-ride video, you can see that the rider is just holding onto the restraint and not the wings, and you hear me say "They're not even holding the wings!" Hence why I chose that seat, as it seemed to spin more

Definitely interested! Need to get on Shambhala I'm a maybe for now!

Me and stuntman will be at Pizza Hut etc too

Sunday 4th September - Sunshine, Spinning & Midway Madness The sun was out today, no rain at all! In the morning, those of us who weren't doing Sandcastle waterpark returned to the Pleasure Beach with our rainy day tickets. George was living up to his forum name of SmilerGeorge First we did Avalanche (which we didn't have time for on the Saturday as it had a long queue all day), which was faster and more forceful than I remember! Then we re-rode Grand National, Big One and Skyforce - and this time, I managed to nail it! Tips for those who've yet to ride: you have to make sure you're rocking side to side fast enough (faster than in the queueline demonstration video), the first time you go upside down will probably be too slow to start the spinning momentum, so keep rocking until you do a full flip...then hold the wings in place and prepare for insanity! I couldn't believe how fast I was spinning, and I think the wind must have caught me a few times as I suddenly picked up speed at points! I felt a bit out of control at one point and a tiny bit scared (which rarely happens to me on rides!), even though I WAS in control I managed 71 spins on it, coming first place out of our ride Not surprised that I felt a bit odd/tingly for a good 10 minutes afterwards! And it was sunshine and blue skies, I got some good off-ride footage of it Look out for Marc, Alex and Liam on this one! Had a cheeky browse in the gift shop before catching the tram up to the Tower At the 2014 meet, it still had some scaffolding around it, so this was the first time I'd seen it looking nice and restored to its fully glory! Whilst some visited The Dungeons, the rest of us did the Tower Eye. This was more enjoyable than the previous meet, as the glass floor seemed clearer and less scratched It's a shame the stairs to the very top are closed off, and we also saw the new Bar 380 which looked rather small (but I guess they've only got so much room up there). The 4D experience was, of course, great entertainment Much better than the London Eye one! Bar 380: Just chillin' on the glass floor: Had lots of fun sitting on the floor! Great views... After some lunch, it was time for the magnificent Tower Ballroom! It is truly stunning to be in, and breathtaking when you walk in. Even if you're not into dancing or that sort of thing, you can't deny its beauty. It was good to also see the Wurlitzer come up from under the floor too (unfortunately I'd just stopped filming)! I was rather busy filming and eating lunch to dance this time, but Paige had a go and did well at learning to waltz with Peaj He returned to the floor later on (with a younger woman than last year, no old ladies this time!) to cha cha and then do the quickstep - one of my favourite dances to watch on Strictly Our final attraction of the day was the Circus. I really enjoyed this last time and found the audience involvement hilarious, so was looking forward to it. Sadly I felt underwhelmed this time, in terms of comedy anyway - the stunts/tricks were awesome. Although it was funny when Alex was one of the people chosen to participate at one point - I was hoping someone from our group would get picked! We did get a sense that some performers were new and/or that there was a lot of nervousness, as there were a few mistakes. The fire alarm was going off in the background at one point too, which I don't think helped! The fountains at the end were pretty though Before heading back down to the distant land of the south, we went to Coral Island for a bit (for those unaware, it's essentially a large arcade place with some little dark rides and theming). Did the ghost train thingy which wasn't bad! I think the staff member was a tad unimpressed by the swarm of adults coming on Some of the theming: So there you have it! Thanks y'all for reading, hopefully it's been entertaining! For all the photos from the meet: Blackpool Weekend 2016 And finally... My compilation video from the meet

Hello all! I've been meaning to get round to various trip reports and things for a looooong time - I still have a ton of videos from 2015 that need uploading! I just haven't found the time or been able to focus on it due to other things going on/various health issues over the past year. However, as I type this, my videos from the Europa meet last May are uploading to YouTube, so I'm getting there I'm not doing reports for every meet/visit last year, just ones that I've not done them for at all yet. And they will be more condensed than my old ones So...Blackpool 2016! Aah, Blackpool. Such a wonderfully tacky, northern place! I'm not gonna lie, I do love it for many reasons, one of which being the unique things the Pleasure Beach has to offer! Let's start with our first day of the meet: Saturday 3rd September - An Extremely Soggy Day At The Pleasure Beach People joke about the weather up north, but this was easily the worst weather I've ever experienced at a meet (and I think others could say the same too)! That 2013 Swarm photoshoot was pretty testing, but that was only a few hours...this was the whole day! Thankfully, Paige had her potentially-dangerous-hairdryer with her, so we used that in the evening to attempt to dry our selves and our clothes off! And no Great Fire of Blackpool happened (although we did have an electricity socket hanging out the wall in our room...but the hotel issues are a whole other story ) Brace yourselves for some TPM poncho sexiness... The good thing was, they gave everyone tickets to return the next day due to the rain! The bad news was, Valhalla was advertised as being closed all day...for now! So, what was our first ride of the day? Alice In Wonderland (Liam's first - and last - time riding a pussy)! A ride which I'd not been that fussed by before (probably because the first time I rode it was later on in the day after more exciting stuff, and just before Valhalla), and I enjoyed more this time. Gotta love that queueline music Wild Mouse: If you've ever wanted to experience possible near-death on a coaster, this is probably the nearest you'll get to it in the UK. I mean that in a highly positive way though - it is insanity! You really do have to hold on for dear life I could've happily gone on again at some point! Sadly no one else agreed (well except Peaj, I imagine )! In a stark contrast to Wild Mouse, our next ride was the River Caves! The last and only time I rode this was in 2008, so it was great to go on it again I couldn't remember much about the theming etc at all, and knew that it's one of the oldest rides there, so I was taken aback by how nice it looked! It is stunning Some people are reluctant to call the Pleasure Beach a theme park when comparing it to others in the UK, but their dark ride theming is bloody good! Then you look at the state Bubbleworks ended up in, and how Tomb Blaster has been ruined... Oh, and seeing a group of people actually get out the boat at the top of the small drop, where the sign clearly tells them NOT to was rather amusing! Uh oh...time for Infusion! "What sort of cheese was that?!" Cheese from hell, that's what. My poor little ears! I swear there is no escaping the ear-bashing on this thing, whether you put your head forwards or keep it back! More cheesy action now - Wallce and Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic! I do love this ride, it really feels like you're part of the scenes, and the comfy slipper cars were a nice change from Infusion and the wooden benches of the River Caves. Paige enjoyed herself too, especially during the part with the terrifying, giant were-rabbit Big One - managed to get the second row on this with Liam, so it was quite fun! His reactions summed up the ride perfectly: main drop, "Woooah!", followed by the failed airtime hill, "Oh..." Skyforce now, and for many of us, our first time on it. I didn't manage to spin, although I did get stuck upside down a few times! But as it was pretty certain that some of us would be returning the next day, I still had hope... Steeplechase and Revolution were next, and both good fun as usual. Steeplechase is still one of my favourite rides there Soggy Steeplechase selfie! Or as Liam called it, Staplecheese After some lunch and some time in the arcade, we decided there was no better time to ride the woodies, starting with Grand National! Whilst we were queueing for this, we saw Valhalla open, hurrah! I had the best ride ever on this - back row in the rain. It was absolutely brutal but SO GOOD! I was out of my seat on every drop and airtime hill! Love this sign too... Big Dipper front row with Mr Fish was fun, not as much as back row was at the last meet though - so little airtime! Blue Flyer - erm, meh. Nickelodeon Streak - again, felt a bit meh compared to last time as I wasn't at the back. Starting to think I'm addicted to airtime... Now, time for a proper Ghost Train This was awesome as always and far better than any other... Ice Blast was great fun as per, then we dashed over to Derby Racers and squeezed a ride in before the Valhalla queue shut. Aww, such a charming and grand ride! Aside from the uniqueness of this ride compared to a standard carousel, and the fast speed, I love the atmosphere it has, with the cheeriness of the organ music etc Me and Liam rode many horses that day! Our final ride of the day was of course Valhalla Wow! At the last meet (2014), we unfortunately experienced a breakdown which completely ruined the flow of it all, and the lights were left on during the second drop...but this time was perfect! After much initial faffing and flapping with our spare "leg poncho" that is Peaj had the right idea making a skirt out of his Dean was rather excited too...! There isn't much I can say about this ride, as it taps into so many senses and a written description could barely do it justice. But that second drop is ridiculous (the good kind!) - it looks short but you somehow keep going! How is that even possible?! Clever lighting I'm guessing! It's a shame that you get so drenched as it makes it less re-rideable for some people. Here we are emerging from the ride, probably not much wetter than we already were from the day's rain! (Credit to Dean for this photo) Later that evening, after we'd dried off and eaten at Wetherspoons, we did our usual walk along the promenade, going on the piers and seeing the Illuminations, which had been switched on on the Friday that we drove up Dodgems fun! The waltzers on the south pier are aptly-named Hell-Raiser! They spin you so fast! The only reason they stopped our ride was because the op thought Dean was ill/not OK as he'd ended up laying across the others (Although I think he did say afterwards he was glad it stopped when it did, and it was a bloody long ride anyway!) So that's all for now, but part 2 will be coming later. Will I manage to spin on Skyforce? Will Peaj pull any more old ladies in the ballroom? Will it finally stop raining?! Find out soon...

Definitely attending this now as I will have some form of park entry even if I don't have a MAP And as if I would've missed it anyway

Tasted great to me when I went last August! And I'm quite a fussy eater! I don't mind that Harvester isn't an option, I've never been that impressed by the food or the menu choices Also I love how much food clearly means to us Beware of the hangry members!

Agree about Nandos - mine tasted awful when we went at the London meet! Wherever we eat, I'm definitely up for some Creaming afterwards

Yeah hopefully, if I can scrape the money together to renew my pass

Well I haven't been for about six years I think, and I'm sure I can actually see a new hole in one of my molars It really doesn't help the way that dentists are run though; if they were the same as GP surgeries aka didn't cost a fortune, or if those entitled to NHS treatment didn't have to phone around finding out which ones accept NHS patients (and being made to feel like a burden!) then far more people would actually go regularly - I know I would!

Sorry for the double post, but it's just a question unrelated to my last post - is there a group chat for this meet? If not/if it's not needed then that's fine, just wondered

Stuntman is now coming too Same as me - bowling and meal (we will just watch the ice skating).

Absinthe and Wodan? Now that would be interesting

Oh poo! Guess I'm not doing Airhop then I will be attending the rest of the meet though. Skating is a maybe, but definitely bowling and the meal!

Welcome back. Would you care for a monkey nut?

RIP George Michael http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-38432862

I watched Saving Mr Banks last night on TV (well, Friday night) - loved it! A delightful and emotional film, very interesting story, beautiful music, great acting...and I loved the uplifting moments and the way the story progressed

Peaj receiving his leaving gifts, Secret Santa (at 1:45) and the meet organiser announcement (at 14:55): Gotta love Matt Creek's reaction to his vodka and also to the Clone-A-Willy

DAMN! How could I have forgotten that?! That definitely beats my vote of Rush! I guess I was mindlessly thinking of Merlin flat rides...