MikeC

Really like the new music played in Lost City - its a tonne better than the shorter Colossus track which was playing around the area previously. Hopefully we will see more of the audio fixed too, the music used to play in the Zodiac / Vortex queue lines with announcements but don't think that's worked for a few years now.

I Like the idea of this, But the railway is a right state, the disused part that used to lead to the farm anyway... Although this would be awesome, I'd rather see the railway used for some kind of interactive ride experience similar to Tulley's haunted hayride.

I can't find a reliable source, but apparently there have already been complaints about the noise?

Booked another two day trip to PA this morning. Going in October - can't wait to get back on Shambhala

http://thorpepark.com/photos/

I went to Thorpe yesterday on my first visit of the season, and I actually really enjoyed X. The lights was good, the music was great and the fact that the cars just pass through the break sections makes for a far better ride now! Was just wondering does anyone actually know the list of songs used in there? some of them were really good!

This is going to sound very random, but does anyone have the ambient audio that is played around the the Experiment 10 (or arena) area during fright nights? would be good to have for a project I am working on.... In my opinion, after visiting the awesome parks in America over easter, having rides play theme music is really a much better choice than chart music, however given the crash pad being where it is, having the upbeat, well known chart music would probably add to the whole experience of staying there....

Look at my leg, look at it

I'm currently working on a new park/project, but it's far from finished yet. Here's a little teaser anyway - a B&M invert:

I've just bought John Wardley's autobiography from Amazon. Looking forward to having a good read

I wonder if there's any point in having a landline these days. I must receive at least five marketing calls a day, despite having my number on the TPS database. Grrr!

Peaj, you're going about this all the wrong way my friend. A healthy diet will never leave you feeling washed out or hungry. Fill up on veg, fruit, lean meat and fish, and healthy fats (peanut butter, avocados, nuts, oily fish and olive oil). Your body needs calories to actually burn fat. Give it too little, and you'll end up slowing your metabolism down and storing fat. That's definitely not what you want.

Me on Shambhala <3

Absolutely incredible! Those poor construction workers must get sick of people poking cameras at them all day as well Great update, thanks for sharing.

The game shows the ride entrance to be under one of the Marmaliser legs. I guess it's safe to assume that this is where people will enter the ride area,

Hehe, Hurakan Condor is very high, but do try and do it at least once. It's honestly not as bad as it looks once you're on the ride

Could you possibly make September instead? The park's usually very quiet at that time.

There's also the local "Wakes Week" around this time, so expect swarms of people from nearby towns to descend on the park. I visited during July the other year and only managed three rides all day. I wouldn't bother TBH.

*warning, this is long* After a brief delay at East Midlands airport, I finally arrived at Hotel Portaventura after 11.00pm at night. Tired and very hungry, we grabbed a drink at the on-site café before heading to bed. I wolfed down a quick breakfast the next day before eagerly heading out into the park. Straight away you’re greeted by the gorgeous lake, with a lovely view of the B&Ms sitting proudly on the skyline. I just knew at this point that I’d fall in love with the place. So, the first ride of the day was Furious Baco. I’d already heard how terrible this was, so wasn’t exactly disappointed by the awful ride experience (the launch is incredible, I’ll say that). The thing that really struck me was the vile cattlepen queue system – it seems to go on forever. The heat was uncomfortable in the queueing area as well. 5/10 My plan was to do the park slowly and take everything in. Unfortunately, excitement got the better of me, and I found myself running up to Shambhala to see what all the fuss is about. One word – wow! You actually have to see this beauty up close to appreciate its size and grandeur. This was my first hypercoaster, and I’ll admit to being a tad nervous due to the height. Gorgeous themeing <3 Yay for the splashdown *Ride experience* Shambhala rides as good as it looks. The first drop is akin to being on Oblivion, yet without the intensity. You float to the tunnel at the bottom, and what follows is endless airtime. I'm happy to crown Shambhala as my favourite coaster. It just didn't disappoint at all. 10/10. Dragon Khan next! I found this to be incredible, too, although maybe a little too intense after the brake run. The zero g is one of the most powerful elements I’ve ever encountered, and is easily up there with the Nemesis helix. The ride just doesn't let up. 10/10 China was by far my favourite area of the park. The attention to detail in all areas is incredible. It’s very surreal with the traditional Chinese music and Far Eastern style architecture. I stopped for a bit of lunch next before having a look at Hurakan Condor. Now I love drop towers more than anything, but found myself really put intimidated by the height at first. It took some courage to get myself on this thing, surprisingly. Hurakan Condor ticks the right boxes in every other department, but the actual drop is forceless. Certainly nowhere near as intense as the drop on Apocalypse. Still, not a bad ride at all! 8/10. It was down to the Far West area next, and my first ride on Stampida. Only the blue side was operational for some reason. This is easily the worst coaster I’ve ever been on. I found Stampida to be so rough, that I had a terrible headache for much of the day afterwards. I’m told that the red side is marginally smoother, so I won’t write the whole ride off just yet. For now though…4/10 Silver River Log Flume next! There’s not much to say about this, except that it’s a flume and does what it does superbly. The three drops are fun and there’s no pointless meandering. The interaction with El Diablo was great. 9/10 Next up was Polynesia and Tutaki Splash. This was my second favourite area of the park. The themeing and lush foliage transport you to another world – it’s unreal. Tutuki queueline Tutaki Splash was great fun. The temperature was just over 20 degrees, so it was perfect for a good soaking. It was over to Bora Bora for a coffee and then up to China for another session on Khan and Shambhala. *General thoughts and comments* The themeing is absolutely incredible. I’ve often been blasé about it in the past, but this trip really opened my eyes. Themeing MAKES a park. The staff were really lovely. The ride hosts regularly engaged in conversation with people in the queuelines. Everyone was helpful and appeared to enjoy their individual roles. That’s what I love to see in a theme park. Total ride count: Shambhala x10 Dragon Khan x3 Silver River Log Flume x1 Stampida x 1 Hurakan Condor x 4 Furious Baco x1 Tutuki Splash x1 Merchandise bought: Shambhala T Shirt Shambhala ORP. Thanks for reading!

If you've gained weight but don't see any noticeable changes, then it's more than likely you've packed on some muscle. That's good, as more muscle = increased calorie requirements/faster metabolism..

I don't have any problems with Rita whatsoever. In fact, it's my second favourite coaster at Alton Towers. I love everything about the ride: the launch, the hill (which offers amazing airtime), the tight curves... It's such a shame that the hideous cattlepen queue and location let the side down. I haven't been on Blue Fire, but Mack launch coasters are regarded as the Rolls-Royce of the coaster world. You're in for a treat!

Polar X-plorer at Legoland Billund (*EDIT* Zierer) and Verbolten at Busch Gardens Williamsburg (Zierer). This is common enthusiast knowledge TBH.