Coaster

But doesn't Thorpe's social media using the 0s suggest they are related?

But if all ride rules and restrictions (clearly displayed on the entrance boards) were followed, you couldn't injure yourself.

Sadly only a H&S nightmare due to guest actions, a shame we will never be able to experience such an amazing coaster again because of people who cannot behave themselves on coasters.

Yeah, sad thing is it was due to guest actions rather than any issue with the ride itself. Gutting for people like myself who had been enjoying it (safely) for years. I probably do bring it up too much, but it's been a favourite of mine since I first rode about 10 + years ago!

Insurance, actually.

The issue lies with poor communication regarding its closure, IMO. That said, I'm not sure which is worse - leaving it sat there rotting away (like Loggers, Slammer etc) or tearing it down without even giving it a second thought (as BPB did with the Mouse).

If this is the return of a maze of a similar style and quality to The Asylum, I'll be very excited. (Please can we have that queue music back as well?)

A shame, I was looking forward to it making a splashback soon following the rennovation work.

Oh, has it been taken down since I last visited then? Technically it is still a ride, at Thorpe Park if it is still standing.

No sense at all. Thorpe Park used to be such a fun, vibrant place where each area had its own unique atmosphere. From the dramatic scores for Colossus and Nemesis Inferno, you had the western Canada Creek Playlist, WWTP Radio (back when it played properly), and so many fun pieces of music which added so much to the park's atmosphere. Fast forward to 2018, and the park has no atmosphere at all. Every area has had its vibe washed out with the same corporate IMAScore tripe, stripping it back of all the fun and atmosphere that a theme park should have. Rumba's fun catchy theme? Nope, let's have some nondescript "Zufari" music that people will have forgotten by the time they leave the ride. Also, who remembers this gem? I remember it playing across the bridges out of the dome, around the beach area etc. Now just the same music as everywhere else in the park. They'd be better off with chart music than the current rubbish, at least that is varied!

NOOOOOOOOOO! You've got to be joking. Idiots. Can we just take a moment to appreciate how fabulous THE Nemesis Inferno theme is? Those chords, the bass, the melody... sheer brilliance.

Grand National is fine, the heavier trains are the issue - a shame it doesn't still run the old ones (which were same as Dipper's with one less row per carriage).

Icon is great but I still haven't forgiven them for the Wild Mouse situation! Makes me wonder, if they were to build another coaster would they use it as a smokescreen to demolish another classic?

The entrance situation at Thorpe has been farcical for a number of seasons now, so it's only right that they are being criticised for it. Tacky temporary fences, horrendous queues due to short-staff, smokers and mouldy buildings (though this has been improved slightly this year) really isn't the best first impression for a park. Amazes me that they haven't rectified this yet.

A cryptic wheel cover and demolition of a bridge, followed by markings on the ground. A pIt of concrete footers. Then a coaster. Even after watching the project for well over two years, it feels surreal standing next to the twisted metal track of Icon and seeing the trains swish around what was previously a lake. Visible from many locations within the park, Icon makes its presence known simply by being there. It may not be tall, but in terms of land covered it’s HUGE. First impressions heading up the ramp seeing the Immelman looming up ahead are impressive, but the approach from the ride entrance side is the money shot. It’s such an impressive sight with the huge entrance structure, glorious soundtrack playing and the smart gold trains whizzing around you and other rides at the park. The queue line is fantastically landscaped with amazing vantage points to watch the ride, and whilst relatively short manages to catch various sections of the ride’s amazing soundtrack. It really is sublime standing there, hearing the launch audio, and seeing a train full of excited riders slowly exit the station before the train is hurled through swirling mist and into the tunnel. Yes, they have finished the fence now! Decorated in style, the ride features various elements of theming such as a garden with named posts of those involved in the project, a small water feature, mist effects and a nice entrance area/viewing platform. Given that Pleasure Beach is an amusement park at heart, I have to give them credit for putting so much effort into the overall experience of Icon, it has really paid off and creates a unique atmosphere around the ride. Entering the station, the soundtrack hits you like a ton of bricks and does a great job of building the hype - alongside the class decoration, lighting and mirrors, it’s one of the best atmospheres I’ve ever felt inside a coaster station. But… is it any good to ride? The excitement builds as you dispatch from the station, with the launch audio gradually getting louder before launching you towards the mist-filled tunnel with “IIIIIIIIIICON” ringing in your ears. Flying through the misty tunnel, an almost dream-like moment of obscured vision is followed by entering the top hat element completely disorientated, before cresting the hill and being treated to one of the best airtime moments I have ever known on a coaster. On the back, you crest the hill slowly before being thrown out of your seat on the way down, whilst there is some ejector as you crest on the front. Diving through the garden for the first time, you enter the inclined loop before swerving to the left, right, then diving underneath Steeplechase and Big Dipper. Whilst I didn’t feel the near-misses on-ride as much as I expected, it’s an engineering masterpiece to fit the track there and the S-turns provide some fun forces before you are taken back over Steeplechase into what I found to be one of the best elements of the ride. The heart-line roll offers a completely different sensation to the beginning of the ride, creating a stark contrast. From fast-paced ground hugging turns, you are taken into some ridiculously comfortable hang-time – the amazing Mack restraints are really used to their potential here, allowing you to hang freely (but comfortably) for a second before “catching” you and throwing you into two small and sudden moments of airtime. Leading you back through the tunnel of mist, I found the two small airtime hills followed by the second launch to be a highlight of the ride. With the station and surroundings a blur as you fly past them, you enter the Immelman. It’s quite something seeing The Big One essentially turn-over, and the element is a lot of fun at the front – at the back, it’s quite simply one of the most insane moments on any coaster. You’re taken from ascending what feels like the start of a loop to hang-time, then ridiculous “sideways-airtime” as you come down the drop, before being thrown into a steeply banked Stengel dive and then into the turn. This is one of the perfectly executed moments of Icon. Coming out of the over-bank and into the airtime hill, you are thrown yet again out of your seat before twisting onto your side into a tight helix. I found the force to be decent here, with a good view of the theming if you’re sat on the left-hand side of the train. Forcing you out of your seat yet again, you twist over to the right to take a majestic dive over the ride’s entrance area before entering yet another unique element. Wonky-airtime. Yep, Icon has it. You’re taken into an off-banked airtime hill, giving the impression that you’re going to be thrown into the totem poles (a fantastic throwback to the park’s past for those who remember, btw!) before meandering into the high-five element and slithering back into the brake run. The high-five element felt quite weak to me; it’s very clever and a true engineering feat, but it didn’t have the impact or sensation I thought it would as a ride experience… although with the Icon exit music becoming audible as the train hits the brake run, I soon forgot about that! After my initial rides on Icon I was unsure but having let the coaster properly warm up, it has become a firm favourite. To me, it’s the definition of a perfect coaster; it’s long, has a number of unique elements, isn’t inversion focused (yet still has two perfectly placed and impactful inversions in the layout) and the airtime is second-to-none. Every element serves a purpose, and the ride is taken so comfortably yet isn’t afraid to throw you around. The decoration is excellent, and the soundtrack is pure bliss; easily some of the best audio I have ever heard at a theme park, The Notable Stranger has done an excellent job. My concerns going forward are the maintenance of audio systems, and effects; the train lighting and mist has already proved unreliable, and the ride has only just been open a week. Pleasure Beach are historically not the best with keeping audio systems in check, but I hope Icon changes this trend. Thanks for reading, a few more photos below Icon is incredible, and offers something that the UK has been missing for some time. Pure quality.

They could have put that money to much better use though, new attractions which only last a season or two before they close/start having cutbacks are failed investments IMO, why not invest in improving guest satisfaction, infrastructure, then put more effort into a huge new ride when the time is right? I'm not suggesting they shouldn't invest, I'm saying that I feel they are investing in marketing-led areas rather than focusing on guest satisfaction.

Suppose I should do another one of these, having ridden two new significant coasters since last time. An all-time top 10; 1. Valhalla 2. The Big One 3. Wild Mouse 4. Grand National 5. Megafobia 6. Icon 7. Big Dipper 8. Wicker Man 9. Nemesis 10. The Smiler

Nevertheless, the budget for these "short-term" attractions could be saved and put towards something more worthwhile. When you add up the budgets for IAC, converting X into The Walking Dead, the operating budget for Living Nightmare Extreme, I feel this could have gone towards something much more beneficial for the long-term future of the park - reopening the log flume (a popular family ride) should be quite high up on the priority list, in my opinion.

Is it just me who doesn't see the appeal of this outside of Fright Nights? Like, they've got rides sat there SBNO and areas that need sorting, yet they're spending out their operational budget on this, devaluing their Fright Nights product in the process? How long has the queue been for Living Nightmare Extreme this week, out of interest?

Post it notes - really?! ?

Filming on the rides is generally not allowed at Thorpe.

They've definitely done something to it, whether that is a change in wheels etc I'm not sure, though now it's running all day every day (and with guests) I think the running speed may well increase over the first few months. The airtime today was amazing in the back row, rivalled at PB only by National, Dipper and the last drop on Wild Mouse if you were riding on your own. In other news, the top balcony of the FY4 catering outlets was open today making for some rather depressing views... The same view last year;

Icon is absolutely flying round today, just needed a few days to bed in.

Oh my. Terribly sad news from Europa Park, I believe nobody was injured but just hope what I've heard in relation to this is correct. Very sad, I hope Europa are able to recover from this quickly.

I visited Carters a few years ago, and as someone who appreciated vintage rides I was in my element! They have a fantastic ghost train, the interior was done by Richard Cadell (who also designed and built Terror Castle at Brean) and is so well done. Highly recommend.