Benin

Cba to make my own topic, so I'll just mooch off Mark's (since I went on the same day, just with a coaster group (THE HORROR))... I too haven't been to Blackpool in YEARS (the year Infusion opened), so was interested to see what was new and how bad the fountain situation actually is... My day started with lots of faff and early, as whilst the park might open at 10, EVERYTHING is staggered opening... This is rather weird, but regardless the entrance area is pretty nice now, although Noah's Ark is completely out of place, the open air plaza leading towards Nash or Valhalla is miles better than the Dodgems of old... Wild Mouse was first, and is simply the best ride at the park... Recently I saw an enthusiast question why this "Small wooden coaster in the UK" was placed reasonably high on the Golden Tickets list, and riding it again makes me believe it's not only the heritage behind the ride, but the fact that it is easily the most terrifying coaster in the UK, because no other coaster makes you feel like you will go all Final Destination... It's incredible really, the drops and airtime are all there, with those turns making Rattlesnake look like a B&M... Plus you have to duck below the lifthill in the most literal sense... Brilliant little thing, and well deserves the love... Big Dipper next, and after recent discussions asking should it remain in the park, I feel obliged to say, "yes, it does have a right to remain there", because it really is a fun ride... Sure it's rough, but EVERY SINGLE RIDE at Blackpool is rough in some respect, similarly to Mark, I've done much worse rides for roughness... Dipper is just a simple ride that looks great and is possibly one of the most recognisable landmarks in the UK... River Caves was to be the dark ride of choice next, another classic ride which has definitely seen better days... The theming ideas whilst grand are just unkept and look awful... The cave scene is currently under redevelopment due to Wallace and Gromit, but regardless, it could do with a tart up, with perhaps some full on animatronics to bring it into the 21st century without removing the old ride feel... Some meandering led us to Grand National... Last time I rode it with the new trains, I hated it, and the operations haven't improved much since then... Why oh why did Kumbak decide to follow Vekoma's method of revamping rides? Urgh... However, the actual ride portion was back to the old standard and is easily one of the best coasters in the UK when running well... If only it still had the old operation standards People went on Valhalla next, which I avoided, then lunch/dry-off time was called... Eventually (After searching the entire park) we ended up at Coasters (moved from it's old location by South Entrance, the one issue with having single entrance now is that it has killed the promenade in front of the park), and some food later, it was back into the rides... Onto the Big One, bless it, it's so badly designed and laid out isn't it? That helix is awful, the slow long drawn out hills... However it is the iconic ride of the UK and that first drop is still a complete surprise... The new trains make it look sooooo much better, and overall it is a good ride really... It can be seen as boring (like I have done) but really, it's decent enough... Then Steeplechase... I love it, it's sooooooo H&S evil (like many of Blackpool's rides) and just brilliant at life... Amazing how simple a thing of making a ride duelling can make all the difference... It's a really entertaining ride and a classic... I would be sad to see it go but considering the footprint of the thing it would depend on Blackpool's opinion of it in the end... We ventured into the Maze next, which was a bit rubbish in the end... So we celebrated by going on Avalanche, with the most annoying theme music in the world... It's actually good again, the constant build up of speed is a real asset to the Bobsleigh coasters, making the point of them actually exist... New coloured Rev was next... Coar it looks amazing in grey... Really, really does... The loudness of the speakers in the queue however, as much as I like Ride of the Valkyries, was not amusing... As was the sheer windchill on the platform... However, it is great fun, proving that even the most simplest launch rides can be as good as their modern, more complex counterparts... Airtime, G-Forces, it does exactly what it says on the tin... Nick Land looks really good for the record... It is garish yes, but actually, that suits Blackpool's tackiness down to a tee... Orange Coaster looks awful though... And it lost it tunnel The new loading/off-loading is stupid as well mind... Oh wells... It's not too bad in the end as a ride... Definitely always a hit with the younger audience... After Orange some people went on Infusion (lord knows why) whilst the rest headed towards more dark ride randomness, this time in the shape of the delightful Alice in Wonderland... This ride was built in the 60s and you can see it... It's actually fab, like amazingly so... It's that old school terrifying which makes the old dark rides so unique in comparison to things like Charlie and Tomb Blaster... I really enjoyed it because it was so off the wall... With one of the biggest dark ride innuendos in the country, putting Hocus Pocus Hall to shame... I heartily recommend that people go on it... Darkness had fallen, and we were planning on going on Impossible, but the man was being very meh towards a group of 30+ heading in, so the sensible ones of us went for some last ditch night time Grand National... Oh my... It was storming around the track in such glorious fashion... The two double dip drops were brilliant, and the sheer pace and running of the thing was unbelievable... Shows the difference between old and new designs, few modern woodies can create the out of control experience Nash and the rest of them do, not even rides like Zeus or Megaphobia come close... Overall, it was a good day in the end, the redevelopment of the park is actually a lot more beneficial than enthusiasts give credit for... Whilst Trauma Towers and Bling's spots remain unused, I'm sure they will soon enough... And I LOVE the Fountain Police <3<3

It's been dying for ages though really... Kinda inevitable... Needs a good proper work up or replacing with a newer model...

That might well explain the Swarm's TVs being taken over by adverts... Dunno what to think of it...

I think I see the problem here... Also, it doesn't count when you edit your friends' dictionaries as it clearly doesn't happen on every iPhone (I've checked)...

Doubt it, B&M paint is FAR superior to Intamin's one...

You have it set to full capitals on autocorrect?

That's usually because Thorpe's guests won't have been on as many rides as those at Towers... Of course though, depends on what the actual gate figures were at the parks on that day... And how much Fastrack was being oversold, which tends not to happen at Towers every single day... Literally the only reason parks ever extend their opening hours from the base time is to ensure guests don't complain that they didn't have enough time to ride things they wanted because it was too busy anyways... Either that or if you've had a reallllly crap day for maintenance you give everyone free tickets to return, which is kind of the basic piece of PR you'd expect from a park... Like how Towers dealt with the storm day earlier in the year...

Thorpe... Always one step forward, two steps back...

The only difference is that Thorpe are using social media to drum up attention... You know, cos no other park in the world does this these days...

Actually, it might make things more realistic, as the news report is meant to be like Sky after all...

It's another maze... Themed to something scary... What do I win?

Well, it kinda does make sense... New things allow you something to push to a high degree to both new and returning guests... Problem is, there's a lot of other factors that do affect guest numbers, such a prices, atmosphere, how good a day out feels, etc... Indeed, even with Swarm this year, numbers haven't particularly risen, but that might be a result of crap weather, Olympics, or people just not wanting to fork out for a relatively depressing queue filled day... New rides/attractions are good to have though...

Hmmm I dunno, Heide Park sinking their Paddleboat Steamer for Krake was pretty damn awesome...

Just... What? From the mobile video I was gonna call on it being faked... Then an official video appeared... There are no words...

What I love about Nemesis is how at 9am it provides an extremely intense experience, even when it was rather cold... Then it warms up and gets even better... She's getting rattly, but she's still smoother than rides 15 years younger... Nemmie <3

Lol wut? Selling Fastrack in large quantities on a midweek day in September after schools are back? Not even having the dedicated Fastrack queues open? Thorpe really, really, really need to be kicked up the arse about this... Cos that is stupidity...

Knotts isn't small (Cedar Fair owned) and nearby residents don't really affect the American parks like they do for us, especially since most of the parks are plonked in residential areas. And I liked Silver Bullet I'd like a B&M though, Intamin might be shakey considering the problems they've had. I'd half expect another Dinosaurs Alive thong though, cos Cedar Fair are crap at life...

And nothing of value was lost...

Might not have been announced by the time of press... Then again, I've not received this magazine since the first one... Bit crap really...

I think it's undecided right now, but West Ham FC want to move into the Olympic Stadium, but they'll never fill it... Need to basically use it in a similar fashion to Wembley really, with concerts, other events and athletics happening throughout the year... The Aquatics is meant to become more for local usage if I recall as well... Sure they'll find sommat to do with the permanent structures...

Edited for accuracy

Depends on what phobias they would put in, sure there's a couple which if done well could scare non-phobics as well as phobics...

Actually went to Olympic Park yesterday... Wow... The park is amazing to be in, and the atmosphere better than many other sporting events... The Swimming in the morning was alright, hard to get excited over heats, but watching a British guy break a World Record (saw 4 broken in the pool) is brilliant, especially considering that these guys in the Paras have a lot more to do... Then the Athletics in the evening... THAT T44 FINAL <3<3<3 Amazing scenes with that... The silence before 10 seconds of 80'000 people yelling Peacock over that line... Nothing I have experienced in football (be it play-off final 10 minutes of pure noise or the madness at Old Trafford last year) has come close to that... It must be amazing for them to know that near enough everyone in the stadium is cheering them on... 9 World Records were broken last night as well... Brilliant... Although I think my favourite moment was one of the British lads reaction to getting a Bronze, he was absolutely delighted and started pegging it around the stadium in absolute glee... The Tunisian guy crying during his gold medal ceremony was also brilliant to see, as was the crowd singing along to the French national anthem... The crowd was spectacular, indeed, the fact that during both Olympics we have been cheering everyone, even in races without British athletes, there was a great amount of noise... For all involved... It's a shame I didn't get a chance to go to the Olympics, but the Paralympics were just as good if not more amazing and inspirational... It's too late for me to become Olympic level athlete, but I'm sure this event will have inspired many a younger child into doing something with their lives... So glad I was able to go to the Stadium and see 3 British gold medals, nothing comes close to it...

They don't really need to do anything desperately until 2015, when they're planning (I hope) to connect it between Swarm and whatever the next island is gonna be called... Sunken Gardens is a bit weird really... It's so small nowadays and I half expect it to be completely gone in a few years... Just cos that's how Thorpe rolls with greenery...

More people might be more likely to hang around till close (I.e. 9pm, as opposed to the old 10pm, just so people know what I mean) if they're getting a train home as well mind, as most people might well have had to leave early for a specific train (similar to people going to Towers' via public transport and having to leave at 7/8 to get home)... So it might well not be as quiet in that last hour of operation this year... Would imagine more are willing to stay till 9 than 10, especially if they've been there since opening...