JoshC.

planenut backing out of riding Stealth? I didn't think such a thing was possible! If that doesn't demonstrate how painful riding Stealth is in the rain, then nothing will!

Yep, saying a Dive Machine wouldn't suit Thorpe is simply my opinion... Just because guests wouldn't necessarily complain about there being two similar rides on park, though, doesn't mean they should go for that option. Think of it from another perspective though. In a time where Merlin are focusing on having a key feature to sell a ride, what would a Dive Machine's key feature be? Saw has always had a focus on a drop, and you can't make people forget about that. So focusing on a 'Vertical drop' when there's a coaster with a 'beyond vertical drop' seems silly. You can't go for height, as there's no way they'll be able to build a coaster taller than Stealth. The only way is to come up with a theme which will sell itself, and with there already being a couple of IPs on-park, going for an IP would be a difficult choice in my opinion. I just can't see how Thorpe/Merlin could sell the idea of a Dive Machine to the public without it being undermined / undermining another Thorpe ride. (Just pointing out, I don't necessarily agree with the thought process here, but this is likely going to be what Thorpe/Merlin are thinking...) Another thing to remember is a lot of people visit / have visited both Thorpe and Alton. Even if they've just had one trip to either of the places, I reckon it's quite likely a guest who visits Thorpe will have visited / want to visit Towers. I just struggle to see how Thorpe could create a better Dive Machine than Oblivion, given Thorpe's restraints and how well Oblivion utilises the concept (going underground and general theme). I guess you could say 'Well that's exactly what they did with Nemesis and Inferno'. However, even though Inferno is good in it's own right, I just don't want to see Thorpe essentially copy Towers again - everyone wants a bit of originality! Simply my opinion here of course, but I just don't 'get' why anyone would want a Dive Machine at Thorpe.

The real reduction in the capacity* will be enthusiasts taking pictures of the seatbelts and showing how big they are! EDIT: *Meant throughput. Silly me,

It hasn't always been themed to Atlantis; when the park first opened, I believe it was rather generic and normal. The Atlantis theme is quite dated now. I think the Dome in general needs a good amount of attention; it's a focal point when you enter, and is used for events quite frequently. It deserves it really. Still, nice to them putting the branding out through-and-through; baby steps, ey?

Don't quite get why anyone would want a Dive Machine at Thorpe? In a park that has Saw and Stealth offering beyond-vertical and practically vertical drops respectively (and with one of Saw's main focuses being the drop), it just doesn't make sense. When you further consider the main key features of Dive Machines are their drop and they usually have short ride times, it makes little sense for one to go to Thorpe. The clincher would be the theming / landscaping of it. Since Thorpe cannot go underground, they're going to have a great deal of trouble making the drop special; they'd have to go for something akin to Krake and make a cool theming feature. But I doubt that'd be anywhere near as effective as Oblivion, which many members of the GP will no doubt draw comparisons to. tl;dr - Dive Machine wouldn't suit Thorpe.

I don't even think it's been pointed about about this sign change (only just managed to find a picture of the old sign). Okay, so it's only a sign, but I found it quite striking on my first visit this season. Amazing how much one sign can change things...

Banned for still being called Luke Ain't hypocrisy, even my middle name's Luke!

Banned for being called Luke!

The trims on the airtime hill only play a role if the train is going too fast; they're not like Th13teen's and operate all the time, for example. I didn't find Smiler's airtime hills that great to be honest. I can't remember if I got that much airtime, but the main reason I enjoyed them was the fact that they weren't an inversion and broke up the monotony of being rolled upside constantly...

When people say 'being forceless' is a bad thing, that all comes down to personal taste. Some people will prefer rides like Nemesis, which is just intense all the way through, some will prefer rides like Air which is very floaty and doesn't really inject much force on the riders. I don't have any personal preferences either way really; if it's a good ride, with an interesting layout and theme, then I'm happy!

Banned for having a problem with people having a problem with... You get the idea

It's hard to tell from a set of pictures, but I reckon that the soundtrack will fit in nicely with the ride and area. Granted, it's not an example of IMAscore's finest work, but it looks like it will work well with the area.

Not going to lie, when I here 'Derren Brown' and 'wood' in the same sentence, my first thoughts are this: Maybe with a Derren Brown theme, they could say it's the first roller coaster in the world to play with your mind and even call is a 'The world's first true Psychcoaster'!?!?!?!

They could easily chuck a "gimmick" on a Mack Mega Lite, be it some sort of inversion or thematic element. In fact, a Mack Mega Lite would be a great idea - the hardware is cheap, so they can spend millions, literally, on theming and the like. Go all out and create something different and exciting, then there's your killer image and tagline sorted. Gimmicks won't necessarily equate to "firsts".

Banned for being incorrect! (JG has none - you can see how many Awards members have by looking underneath their profile picture )

"Europe's first Wooden roller coaster with a *insert type of inversion here!!"

5 minute demo of Flug der Dämonen's soundtrack. Here's hoping that Merlin and IMAscore have developed a good working relationship and we see them collaborate as much as possible!

Banned for calling Inferno 'The King of Thorpe Park' in your signature. She's obviously a gal...

You are indeed! Funnily enough, I'm planning on writing a blog post about Detonator and it's history sometime next week (it's surprisingly richer than you may think!); keep an eye out for it...

Just to say, my problem isn't wholly about the car park issue (as I have no clue if they're doing their best with it due to very limited experience with it...). However, the compensation they give does annoy me slightly. You complain, so you get free Fastrack. It's the standard reaction from Guest Services. That's what I have a problem with. Sure, it's nice for those who get it, but Fastrack can have issues, and handing out free ones like sweets isn't going to help... Even if they gave you money off food or a cheaper ticket (if you don't have a MAP) or some occasions, it would be an improvement.

The point is, this is typical Merlin. You complain, they don't do anything more than give a 'standard apology', and bung Fastrack tickets at you to make everything feel better. And we all know how much of an issue Fastrack can be. I remember in 2012 when I complained about the ratio of Fastrack guests to ordinary guests being let into Experiment 10 (30 Fastrack guests to 0 normal queue at one point). Nothing was written down and they simply said 'it shouldn't be like that', and I had 10 Fastrack tickets offered to me...

Was looking forward to reading this report! Air Meeting looks really nice and the themed announcers is such a brilliant touch; would love to see a similar idea implemented as much as possible. Plus, themed uniforms are just lush. Alpina Blitz looks sexy as and I hope parks take note of this. Cheap, simple hardware and you create a beast of a ride. People say B&M are the Rolls Royce of the coaster world and that Intamin produce quality rides. But when you look at rides like this, Blue Fire and Helix, you get rides which looks great, can be cheap and ride excellently. Hopefully the next couple of years really puts Mack 'up there'. Also interesting about Rodolphe's sheer honesty about the park that you mention. Taking Merlin for example, I don't think if a group of 4 Americans, say, emailed asking for someone to talk to about their latest attraction, they'd get someone who's quite as open about the park and where there failings are. Always nice to hear there are people like that.. Seeing the installation of Alpina Blitz put Nigloland on my radar of places to visit instantaneously (then again, what park isn't on that list at the moment for me...). Shame it's so out of the way. Had a look on Google Maps and there just doesn't seem to be any easy way to get to it!

Following photos are from Coasterforce's Twitter... CF also tweeted that the queue line is "more extensive" than they thought, saying that lights, smoke and the maze are beautiful. Seats are also as comfortable as the Blue Fire ones it would appear. Already made up my mind now - DEFINITELY going here next year.