Coaster

That isn't the point, people go on water rides regardless of the weather, especially Rumba which doesn't even get you wet these days (unless you are lucky enough for the one remaining water effect to actually work!)

From what we've seen so far it does look very well themed, I'm quite looking forward to experiencing it.

Vouchers for food\drink? Shopping vouchers?

The solution to everything Seriously though, it's a nice gesture but I just wish it was something other than Fast track.

I was going by photos posted to the TPM Facebook page which gave the impression that it was more than just one section of the shop.

I know it was a joke but I don't get all the hate for Blackpool. Sure, as a place to live in it's probably awful, and it's not exactly picturesque but the promenade and attractions make it a great place for tourists - where else can you find a theme park, water park, tower, circus, dungeons and a beach all in one place? I know that some of the people there (I.e. people asking for money for "beer") let it down, but then the same could be said about London and lots of other places across the country! I also think it's unfair to rate a park based on where it is. Anyway, back on topic...

The question is, why are they unreliable? Apart from Slammer, none of them are hugely complex or ride models that you can't find at other places, so are they unreliable by default or because they aren't looked after properly?

Oh right, that's not so bad then.

None of these attractions are still SBNO at the park, they have either been removed, replaced or refurbished, the only exception being maybe the Space Invader building although that serves as the pizza restaurant now. As for Steeplechase, that's only supposedly when it's not busy enough to need all three, or there's a problem with one (although I'm not defending it, all three lanes should be open all the time) and with PMBO would you rather be stranded part way round the course in freezing wind or have it closed? I'm not sure why BPB is being brought up anyway, this discussion is about Alton Towers closing Blade.

Don't see what the point being made here is - Swarm and Inferno's lifthill show you the view across Thorpe, PMBO's lifthill shows you the view across BPB, I don't see why it's being brought up. Personally I'd much rather climb PMBO's lifthill as it's taller and offers a much better view in my opinion.

I thought the whole shop has been changed to fit in with I'm a Celebrity? That's what I was moaning about, as I don't feel that it's a big enough attraction to justify taking over a shop aimed for a much bigger attraction.

I agree, the two should be kept separate, as what does I'm a Celebrity have to do with a volcano theme? Yet another well themed area destroyed!

Does anyone know what's wrong with Saw? I heard that the chain snapped, but not sure.

Fairy Tale Brook (5) Laser Raiders (1) Pirate Falls Treasure Quest (3) The Dragon (3) Pirate Falls + Laser Raiders -

But people pay for a service, it's not really good enough to have a perfectly operable ride SBNO, it's an essential part of the park's lineup and popular with families. Forbidden Valley is one of the park's best areas, but with a ride in clear view (or worse, hidden behind some tatty fence) closed it will lose some of it's "magic." Budget cuts which don't affect the paying guest are okay, but this isn't.

So do Merlin control the budgets? If so, it's a poor show that they aren't even giving them enough to operate all their rides. And people wonder why M£rlin get so much hate?

Submission should not have left the park, but to remove it without replacement is just poor. The same applies for Beastie, they removed that and then left the park for years without a proper children's coaster. There's also Corkscrew, removed because it wasn't as popular despite it still being a good ride (and one that could have been relocated easily), Black Hole (I understand that was because they didn't want to maintain it, but yet again this was an area with a SBNO attraction in it for years), and changing Toyland Tours to CATF in an attempt to make it more popular. Ripsaw and Enterprise still get long queues on busy days, and Duel only keeps the queue down because it has a high throughput.

What, Rumba as well? As far as I can see nothing's changed (and that may not be the case, it may have had work in areas you can't see), it just looks abandoned at the moment. And of course I wouldn't want that to be true, as I want to see them back open!

Why are the cuts necessary? They make more than enough profit to operate everything so I can't see how they can justify it. This is what I don't like about Towers, as soon as a ride fails to get 60 minute queues on a regular basis they either SBNO or remove them! Rides aren't going to stay hugely popular forever, but that doesn't mean that they aren't a fundamental part of the lineup. I can see them getting complaints about this, especially in the summer as there will now be one less ride in the area to cope with the crowds.

Why does that not surprise me? Come on, they have had these water rides for years now, they know exactly how they need to be maintained. You can't expect rides to work if you don't look after them properly!

So it's going to be SBNO? Not good...

That is just poor, there should be nothing closed on opening day, I can just about forgive Slammer being closed if it's still having extensive maintenance work done on it but everything else should be open. I see nothing's changed with Thorpe this year then

So going by social media channels, Slammer, Samurai, Tidal Wave and Rumba Rapids are still all closed, as well as 3 coasters! (Not my information, got this from Facebook and Twitter). Classic Thorpe at it's best!

^ More than just a few trees, but nothing stands out to me about that view - you can see those two coasters from a similar perspective on the monorail.

Looks nice. The elements seem to be on a smaller scale than a lot of B&M's, so it might actually be intense and certainly forceful. The only con (and it's quite a significant drawback IMO) is that it looks far too short to be an outstanding coaster. With that said, the theming looks amazing and it's really clever that they have incorporated the supports to fit in!