Benin

Urgh, Swarm would cause so much head rushing it would become extremely uncomfortable after a while... Raptor or Air for me, major rides, but not overtly intense to prevent excessive re-riding...

If they desperately wanted a front row queue then there's probs just about enough space to split the two sides queues... But that wasn't what I meant really, Raptor has no bag drop (or front row queue, but it does have single rider), but because they only batch 14 people per side each time, it alleviates any issue of empty sides (which is quite common on Swarm) and due to the position of the bag 'cupboard' being at the front of the platform (where you end up passing it before getting on AND getting off the ride)... Basically, Swarm's station, in comparison with Raptor's especially, is exceptionally poorly planned and as a result causes problems with both getting on and off the ride...

The only way it would work is if they basically did Raptor and send 14 people each side per train... It's the bag drop, it messes up any sensible loading procedure the park would otherwise have...

No Camelot, therefore, this poll is null and void...

I meant Monday... Police cars entering the park probably means that some stuff went down and the Police were needed as backup...

On busy days, Fastrack can make an EXTREME difference to the normal queueline... Like, making it longer by at least 30 minutes depending on what ride we're talking about (also the batcher makes a big difference depending on how preferential they are to the Fastrackers)... Saying that people who would be in the queues for closed rides would be spending money elsewhere is potentially true, but, do you really want shut rides causing this? Angry or annoyed guests are less likely to spend money just because they are having a bad day... Especially if they've paid a fair amount to enter in the first place... It's simple business really, happy guests tend to spend money, angry guests bugger off... Having 6/7 rides closed (as an example) will annoy guests and there could well be a knock-on effect, as a bad day will not make people want to go again (unless they are masochistic enthusiasts), and as they will talk to friends and family about having a bad day, those who may have been planning a trip may not bother... The other day Thorpe knew how bad it had messed up because it gave out complimentary tickets... But will everyone who got one bother to return? We don't know, but I doubt anyone who ended up having to queue 90 minutes for Saw, Colossus, Inferno, Stealth or Swarm had a good enough day... The park SHOULD have all rides open as much as they possibly can, with two trains minimum from the off unless there is something seriously wrong... The operation of putting a second train on later is quite frankly stupid and has been the whole time it's been in practice, it doesn't save money, and judging by the amount of people who left the Inferno queue, does just annoy people who will stew over it all...

Personally, a darker shade would suit the theme of X Sector better...

That 'problem' is no doubt linked to the absolutely god awful weather we had recently which would have made the area unworkable for safety reasons... DO NOT SPREAD RUMOURS THAT IT WILL NOT OPEN ON TIME! Quite frankly they are rubbish, as I have no doubts in my mind that the timeframe for construction will not only have been rejigged due to the lost time, but also would have initially given some leeway in case of such a situation... These companies know what they're doing... There is no reason to think it won't open with the new season unless they're still building the bloody thing in March 2013..

Should've kept it as a single rider queue... It's amazing how much better organised Raptor is... Simply because it doesn't have a bag drop or a front row queue (not that Thorpe or even the guests use it, like on my first visit this year where we ended up starting the queue for it, proper madness)

Only, neither of the times we used Fastrack there was a queue of Fastrackers waiting, it was literally 4 people going in... I think anyone with sense would prefer not queuing 90 minutes for Saw, and with the other option being having to ride it in some way shape or form, it had to be Fastrack... Swarm being down didn't help the queue either mind, so...

I went yesterday avec Nicky and 2 non AP holders... The worst part of the day, was the reliability (or lack thereof)... Firstly I remember why I dislike Thorpe's entrance atm, it's so cramped and you can't actually access the entrance toilets (eh?) currently as they are blocked off for some reason... Probably because of the queueline for on the gate guests... After the cluster of people over the bridge, we were greeted to the following rides being down: - Swarm - Flying Fish - Zodiac - Rumba Rapids In addition to Saw Alive (wasn't that meant to be open in Summer?) and of course, Slammer... We might have expected that of course, but would the average guest? Maybe... But, after such a good reliability so far this year, why has it suddenly all gone to pot? I mean, Fish and Swarm opened yes, but Rumba and Zodiac didn't... It doesn't look good and it isn't a great start for people's days... So Stealth first, yay two trains and minimal queue, onto Inferno at the top of the volcano, apparent technical difficulties which naturally, were "we've just added the second train because we've suddenly realised a queue has appeared"... Again, I don't get this reasoning, you're expecting a busy day, put two trains on from the off, as there were VERY annoyed people (added with the closed Swarm) leaving the queue, and it wasn't even 10 yet... Everywhere else in the world can do this, so Thorpe, pull your finger out your ear and just put the trains on from the off, if there aren't that many people in, it means they can whore the rides then, making them happy... If Towers can put two trains on Nemesis when there's barely anyone in the park, so can you... Next up was Det, which failed to drop us numerous times, which was amusing as the constant PSSSST of the pneumatics as the operator desperately hit the button to drop us... It eventually worked and Det is still the best drop tower in the UK... We then headed to Rush, which was running both swings and a decent cycle... Still a very good ride and it actually has a throughput We meandered over to Saw, realised the queue was burdenous, and went on Samurai (for the first time in AGES) which was also running a decent cycle, however lacks something with the cut down trees (Thorpe helping the environment well) and the ridiculous failing at parking atm... Still, it was good, especially after not riding it in soooo long... We then decided to get a Saw Fastrack, cos sod queuing 90 minutes for it, and realised how useful (especially at Thorpe) entrance ticket sellers are, as walking to the Dome or Inferno would be silly just to come back... After parting with the money, we went on and it was nice to see all but the body fountain working inside... It still hurt my shoulders though, I'm just too built these days, stupid gym going whilst at uni... Wasn't as rough as it can be, but it's just not as good as other Eurofighters in the UK, let alone elsewhere... When then had a good lunch as Glass House/Bar 360/The Pub, which could do with an actual drinks menu somewhere rather than having to spot the tap labels... A decent burger and splurting ketchup everywhere marked this lunch... Needs some platters though a la Woodcutters... Then we headed over to Loggers Leap, which hasn't changed at all it seems in years, before we rode Rocky Express, which is quite frankly amazing... But here lies an issue with Thorpe, there are barely any rides suitable for after food consmption... Unless they expect guests to digest in queues (which I wouldn't be surprised)... A lack of seating areas outside or some rides which aren't spinning/swinging/coastery would make a BIG difference... Instead, we went on the Banana Boat and it's AWFUL pre-recorded messages... I mean, what the hell? Either way, another decent cycle on it, bless it... We hit up the arcade at this point, which had epic 4 player air hockey (seriously, why aren't there more of these?) and I won loads of tickets on the "drop the ball" machine, 270 in total... Like a boss... After some faff, we elected to queue for the now open Flying Fish, before a loud roar welcomed the testing of Swarm, leading us to abandon the queue and walk to the DREADED WHITE TENT, where numerous staff members were holding everyone out of the island (instead of cleaning it, lazy gits)... Eventually it opened and we were walked onto the island and through the queue... Hit the left side of the train this time, and Swarm is still the best ride on the park, just insanely fun and re-rideable, with a decent level of intensity... It doesn't need the effects working, but if they were it would be improved much much more and be at a higher level... As such I think as an overall package Raptor is still the superior ride, even if Swarm's layout is better... Unsurprisingly, we wanted to ride again, but also, the entire park dived into the queue, leaving us with the idea of buying MORE fastrack (the hell kind of enthusiasts are me and Nicky?) and we rode on the right side... I have no preferred side, as they are both as good as each other... And then, we did Storm Surge... 45 minutes made it the longest queue of the day... Seriously? God it's stupid, the draining of the boats involving picking them up and tipping them over, the literal dumping of the ride, just everything about it annoys me, and compared to riding Oxygenarium only 2 months ago, it's absolutely terrible... Then someone elected to use a water cannon on my face... Whilst sat waiting to go in the station... I just... No Thorpe... Just... No... After more faff, we went back to Inferno again... People who say it is forceless are officially, idiotic... Of course in comparison to Towers' Nemesis, it doesn't hold much of a candle, but really, it's still a really, really solid ride and deserves more love... It's Thorpe's Air if you will, randomly loathed for no actual reason... Then we did Stealth again, as Swarm's opening dragged everyone in the park there, the queue was practically at the bottom of the stairs... It was randomly rattly, but it provided a BRILLIANT view of the Swarm fireball as we entered the station... THE HEAT And that was it, we headed home (via Doughnuts) and collected our complimentary Fastrack (and our friends free tickets) due to quite awful ride reliability throughout the day... As quite regularly 6/7 rides were down at once, with Fish opening around 3, and Swarm an hour later... That really isn't good enough during the high summer season, and whilst I can understand Slammer, the average guest would not, and the random all day closure of Zodiac and Rumba Rapids? Bleh... Needless to say, if it wasn't for Fastrack saving us from a burdenous Saw queue (I did NOT want to queue for Colossus and it's 100 minutes), we probably would've had an awful day, and it made me realise why guests are eager to purchase it, because on a busy day, it can make all the difference between it being crap, and good... Ride Count Stealth - 2 Inferno - 2 Det Rush Samurai Saw Loggers Leap Rocky Express Banana Boat Arcade Swarm - 2 Storm Surge

Done and done...

Towers can get 2 trains on Nemesis for 9am... And Rita when it was open, and I would assume they can get 3 on Thirteen for 9... Why can they do it for 30 minutes beforehand and not Thorpe?

One train operation first thing is stupid though, cos then you end up spending 10-15 minutes adding the second train on and testing it... I disapprove of Thorpe's constant doing of this, as it wastes time and causes many disgruntled guests as it's considered a 'breakdown' by them... Why not just have two trains from the off (especially in summer when the park will NEED them) and have to 'endure' no queue in the morning...

^Staff don't give reasons because firstly, most of the time they don't know simply because they don't. Indeed, since the hosts don't see the console, they actually won't know. Not giving reasons also prevents guests spreading rumours (especially considering social media nowadays) and hence keeps uninteresting news stable and not overexaggerated... Simple stuff really and it happens across the world... Imagine telling guests that a restraint was broken? What a bad idea that would be...

The fire is bloody good (when it catches, otherwise it gives the entire area an evil gassy smell)... It surprises a LOT of people in the area and even scares children... The ambulance is also well received, now hopefully they can fix the water jets... A big problem with Swarm however is the bag drop... First of all, there seems to be only one staff member in these things atm on most of the rides, which is the first problem... Then the whole thing in general is an overall faff and really needs improving... For example, people queuing for the bag drop means no one queuing for the ride in the station, as many guests seem to favour the left side (for some reason), leaving the right side empty... This is something the batcher needs to look at trying to improve... Then the collection is an absolute horrid mess... Seriously so, due to a lack of staff, and reasonably good throughput on this thing, it just results in a queue of people waiting for their bags AFTER the ride... And this queue often stretches back to the right side of the station because those exiting there aren't clear on why there is a queue suddenly appearing, therefore causing more faff and blocking the entire exit paths on both sides... I think really, they should've just had the more traditional bag drops in the station platform, indeed, if the staff slightly slowed down the loading process (which already is a bit of a cluster, as a mass of people are trying to move around), and placed boxes in the spaces between rows, there would be a minimal result to the throughput, as people in the bays could drop their bags in whilst waiting, and then you wait a bit longer to open the gates to let unloading guests to quickly collect stuff (which with shoes happens anyway right now), it would remove the bag drop issue on both ends of the scale... Some people never get to see their picture off the ride because of this fact, therefore it's actually potentially losing Thorpe money, so a consideration into the system needs to be improved (whether it be boxes, or more staff, as it's the only ride it has excessive problems on)...

Actually yesterday I've realised in a way that Fastrack isn't the most evil thing ever invented, even if it costs money... Imagine if you've never been on Saw and really want to go on it, you have a choice of queuing in that god awful queue for 90 minutes, or parting with some cash for a 5/10 minute queue... For people who rarely ever visit the park, it's a great thing, maybe the costs are a bit meh, but the idea is good... Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd people selling at the entrances ALSO makes perfect sense at Thorpe (maybe not say Sub Terra or some other rides at Towers, but that's for me to investigate further), for Saw (and later Swarm) we realised that if you wanted to get on these rides using Fastrack, you'd have to walk all the way over to Inferno's shop or the Dome, which is quite frankly effort... Having people at the entrances actually improves the system for those willing to use it as it means more sellers (just as long as they just stand there quietly not yelling about fastrack and let the guests come to them, upselling is where personally I'd draw the line there)... It's bad that the reliability has returned to the ages of 2005-2009 odd, but fortunately the only ride that was really really worrying me was Swarm, and it did have an inevitable effect on the other queues, then it opened and everything else lost their queue (5 minutes for Inferno and Stealth in the last hour for example, Swarm was nearly completely full)... Hope they can get their act together but at least Swarm had two trains and seemed to be behaving...

Forgot to mention Zodiac was also down for the entire day... There were times today when 7 rides were all shut for whatever reason... So yeah, only real option was to do sommat for the guests... Hell they even waived parking barriers tonight...

Swarm was down till about 4... The park was awful for reliability today, so much so they gave away complimentary return tickets/fastrack to everyone... Rumba Rapids was down all day, Fish down till 3, and I think Saw and Stealth had their usual on/off things... A typical day at Thorpe then...

#borisrave

And had enthusiasts trying to link EVERY SINGLE THING in the poster to a potential story/name/theme of the ride... With amusing consequences... Happier days...

Thirteen wasn't revealed until MUCH later in 2009, if I recall not even during Scarefest had it been officially revealed, or maybe it had but it hadn't been in September... Can't base ride reveals on past ones because each one has it's own unique marketing timeline based upon a lot of different variables that the park themselves decide... They'll also probably keep everything quiet about the inenvitable world's first until the day before it opens and lets a boring group of enthusiasts look down a newsreporter's cleavage ride it and show off the big 'secret', making all the secrecy beforehand completely pointless...

Soooooo who wants a new Wingrider? Cedar Point do! Will Thorpe be moaning at Cedar Fair for 'stealing their loop' again? This does look excessively fab though, the Zero-Gs over the turnstiles are a brilliant concept really... Yay for Cedar Point getting a good B&M!

^I think it might not help that with Thorpe's "uniform", a group of Thorpe workers milling about doing nothing isn't the same as at Towers or Chessie... You would hate if Sub Terra was closed as well as Air mind... Although with the Phalanx outfits it does look awesome...

This really, then the next photo was a really dodgy one that didn't really show anything... I think it doesn't help that quite often, as most of us will already be following Thorpe themselves, we are essentially getting two of the same post within a minute... It's pointless really when the posts lack any form of interaction to the people following TPM and all I see is a direct copy from Thorpe... Advertise yes, but try and make it less of a copy and paste job, giving TPM a more identity, rather than something that seems to be another arm of Thorpe's PR system... tl;dr, Up the quality of the posts and pictures...