Benin

Oh, turns out I don't have to wait till Christmas to kick things off... So that's ZombiU and Mario sorted then

Mum has picked it up, it will be waiting for me at home (not that I can actually play it yet as it's TECHNICALLY a Christmas present)... Probably update it (1GB Patch ftw) and transfer the Wii stuff over though... ZombiU <3

Giggity Storm at Etnaland...

Like most relationships then Ohhh, that sounds like a house my mate looked at for third year, one of these fancy new cheap jobbies... Though in the end getting a proper house for 3 people for a max of £30 odd a week was nicer

16 people in a house? Jesus how big are the houses in [insert name of place Josh goes to uni]? Yeah, you hear these stories about how awful people are at uni, I was very fortunate (although the lead up to the second year was only saved due to a coursemate looking for someone to live in Stoke, yay friends!), I think it's best to do it in smaller groups though to avoid situations like this... Smack him, and his 5 week long relationship...

Maintenance, on MY Intamin?

It's believed to be this new version, with a cable lift hill and different shaped drop (there's an image of it SOMEWHERE, but god knows)... EDIT - Aha, found it!

Been meaning to post about this news for AGES..... Italy (and Rome) are getting ANOTHER new park, Cinecitta World, a movie themed park... Due to open next year It's expected to have a Colossus clone (though likely to be the upgraded version), an indoor Intamin Drop Coaster, Intamin Drop Tower, Mack Supersplash, two dark rides and a whole load more! Exciting times, maybe another jaunt is in order? Track for the Colossus ride is there already...

I have a job in Central London now, it's serious time across the board

You go straight to the barriers, in some (if not all) cases via a dedicated Annual Pass queue...

Rather be mocked for being optimistic in the face of people who don't seem to understand that construction companies do make allowances for potential problems with time frames than for being a bloody miserable bugger and press the panic button way too early... We saw how quickly Fuji-Q's went up (2/3 weeks no?)... Let's panic in Feb if it's not been built yet eh? A month for building, a month for testing (whilst all the other odd jobs like paving, electricals, etc happen)... Groundwork takes the longest, and considering the weather, it's not a shock that it might well be behind schedule (which is just people guessing really, no enthusiast will be 100% privy to such data), but until I have hard evidence to support that it will not open on opening day, then I will be optimistic in my belief that the construction engineers will get it done... Indeed, I'm sure if Towers get really worried, they'll tell the workers to increase productivity... I don't think that enthusiasts proclaiming it will not be built on time (whether it be serious or a 'laugh') is tantamount to a fun place... Especially when I doubt they might not have much knowledge about construction project techniques... Tl;dr - Pessimistic enthusiasts should have a reason, like a crap plonked down ride being built so some stop gap cheap hotel in order to garner some extra income with minimal outlay... Jesus it's DIC all over again!

Maybe some enthusiasts should go to the Winchester, have a nice pint, and wait for all this to blow over (and be constructed and done by people who KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING)

"GET TO THE CHOPPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" - Arnold (Predator) "You are tearing me apart Lisa!" - Tommy Wiseau (The Room Movie)

Surely the main point here is why the roof became so rotten that it HAS to be removed, rather than anything else? The UK maintenance standards are absolutely pathetic, there's very little desire to keep up the appearance, here in lies the issue more, why don't our parks renovate these things more? Do they not care? Do they think the guests do not care? Do they not realise how little difference a nicely painted and well maintained park make to a guest? Those are more important things to talk about instead of why it might be 'beneficial' for Loggers to lose it's roof...

And nothing of value was lost...

Who needs atmosphere and themeing anyways! That Disney place don't understand guest needs and wants at all... Thorpe are TRULY done with the kids... All the way from SHOUTING THEIR MARKETING to not bothering to maintain stuff... Seriously, this is like, the PERFECT chance to improve on something that adds to the ride... Too small and smelly? Well that's what maintenance and renovation is all about... Add to the experience of the ride... Otherwise Thorpe are essentially just going to become Six Flags/Cedar Fair UK... This is not a good thing...

Speculation based on the previous examples of Merlin's amazing upkeep of rides/areas/parks... So it's not completely unfounded... And at a park which removed trees behind Samurai for SOME reason...

Probs more that the Oblivion (and B&M restraints) work on a ratchet basis, it's probably more noticeable whether or not the bar will rise due to being between 'clicks' on Oblivion purely due to the vertical motion and gravity being a heartless mistress to falling objects... I remember my uni lecturer telling me something similar, so I reckon it's just something that happens on it regularly because of people being on the lower limit of the restraint system, and it just naturally moving up to the upper limit due to gravity...

Isn't there some whole rumour that the wheels were changed shortly after our respective trips Mr Mark? At least Dan didn't use the TPR defence of stating it wasn't well themed...

Merlin based optimism with ride renovations <3

So it's just gonna be completely outdoors now I guess? Is a completely new roof out of the question?

Mack <3 Even the station looks like Blue Fire <3

Oh... *DISCLAIMER - Not Thorpe's one, though I can't imagine it'll look ANY better*

Different rides, different construction... Gerstlauer's are reknown for essentially being LEGO when the track is put together, Takibashi was built in something silly like two weeks total... Besides, Saw died due to operation issues, rather than anything related to construction... On the other hand though, Thirteen ended up being rushed at the end of the day, so who knows... Either way, it's too difficult for anyone outside the construction to state how far behind (if at all) schedule they are, and with a comparison to Saw, it's harsh, as Saw didn't end up being flooded for a good week...

What COULD be an interesting exit is doing something like Fluch, and having a mini-maze as it were... No actors, just, a maze... Maybe even a mirror maze to make it seem that the place cannot be escaped, and that you'll be a patient forever... Put in some lighting and other effects and boom, weird yet an exit which would stick in the mind...