Coaster

Thorpe's responses to comments/complaints on social media seem to have gone quiet which is strange, as they're usually very good at this.

Well, Thorpe have said that it is being 'redeveloped for next season', so if it isn't reopening then something new must be appearing on the site next year? Either that, or it'll be hidden behind a brand new fence for 2017.

Colossus (5) Derren Brown's Ghost Train (5) Depth Charge (5) Detonator (5) I'm a Celebrity (0) King Pig's Wild Hog Dodgems (4) Mr Monkey's Banana Ride (5) Nemesis Inferno (6) Quantum (5) Rocky Express (5) Rumba Rapids (5) Rush (6) Samurai (5) SAW - The Ride (5) Slammer (5) Stealth (6) Storm in a Teacup (5) The Swarm (6) Tidal Wave (5) Vortex (5) X (6) Zodiac (5) Nemesis Inferno + I'm a waste of money - (OUT!) RESET Colossus (5) Derren Brown's Ghost Train (5) Depth Charge (5) Detonator (5) King Pig's Wild Hog Dodgems (5) Mr Monkey's Banana Ride (5) Nemesis Inferno (5) Quantum (5) Rocky Express (5) Rumba Rapids (5) Rush (5) Samurai (5) SAW - The Ride (5) Slammer (5) Stealth (5) Storm in a Teacup (5) The Swarm (5) Tidal Wave (5) Vortex (5) X (5) Zodiac (5)

Which parks did you visit throughout the 2016 season, and how many times? If you are visiting more parks over the closed season then add them in as you visit. I'll start with: Blackpool Pleasure Beach - 28 Thorpe Park - 10 Alton Towers - 3 Chessington - 2 Oakwood - 1 Drayton Manor - 1 Adventure Island - 1 Lightwater Valley - 1 Flamingo Land - 1 Pleasurewood Hills - 1 Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach - 1 Joyland (yes I'm counting it!) - 1 TOTAL: 51 Overall a good year for me theme park wise, plenty of memorable days spent at Blackpool Pleasure Beach and I visited two new parks in the form of Adventure Island and Flamingo Land.

I really hate the way it has just been sat there for an entire season collecting dust, did it have a huge maintenance issue or could it have potentially been open this year and then closed after? Either way, it's nothing short of pathetic the way it has just been left to rot.

What is the latest with SW8? I find it somewhat concerning that nothing in the way of Flume removal (or groundwork) has started, is this due to happen over the winter?

Did the James and the Giant Peach coaster open? I remember the park saying it would open this year, so just wondering if that was the case.

Angry Birds 4D (3)Colossus (5)Derren Brown's Ghost Train (5)Depth Charge (5)Detonator: Bombs Away (5)I'm A Celebrity (5)King Pig's Wild Hog Dodgems (5)Mr. Monkey's Banana Ride (5)Nemesis Inferno (6)Quantum (5)Rocky Express (5)Rumba Rapids (5)Rush (5)Samurai (5)SAW - The Ride (5)Slammer (6)Stealth (5)Storm In A Teacup (5)The Swarm (5)Tidal Wave (5)Vortex (5)X (5)Zodiac (5) Slammer + Angry Birds -

Angry Birds 4D Experience (5) Colossus (5) DBGT (4) Depth Charge (4) Detonator: Bombs Away (5) Flying Fish (2) I'm A Celebrity (5) King Pig's Wild Hog Dodgems (5) Mr. Monkey's Banana Ride (5) Nemesis Inferno (7) Quantum (5) Rocky Express (5) Rumba Rapids (5) Rush (5) Samurai (5) SAW - The Ride (6) Slammer (5) Stealth (6) Storm In A Teacup (5) The Swarm (5) Tidal Wave (5) Vortex (5) X (5) Zodiac (5) Nemesis Inferno + Derren Brown's Ghost Train -

Inversions are very overrated and look scarier than they are in my opinion - I remember being so nervous before going on my first inverting coaster (Klondike at Hayling Island), but once I'd been over the loop I thought, "is that it?" At Thorpe, Nemesis Inferno would be a good first looper IMO.

Maybe it's just me, but I think it's crazy that a piece of music as good as this isn't used; https://youtu.be/TEAgfPFgKoQ In my opinion the entrance music should play at the park entrance and across the bridge; it would fit so well with the views of the rides you get as you walk in, much better than the chart music that plays there currently. I remember when it used to play around the entrance area, it gave Thorpe such a good atmosphere which is just not there anymore. I'm not against them playing chart music, and IMO it suits the dome well - but not the entrance area/bridge. Also, bring back the end of the day music on a permanent basis!

The Asylum is was my favourite overall scare attraction.

Grade 8 is a killer, but worth it in the end! What's the piece called?

And this is where I get frustrated with Thorpe/Merlin. They're happy to throw money at things like I'm a Celebrity, Storm Surge and Saw Alive, but when it comes to refurbishing a very popular ride that has served the park for years, they aren't willing to spend the money. Loggers Leap has been open for 26 years, I'd be amazed if I'm a Celebrity is still open in 5 years. In addition to this, if this is the case then why did they announce that it was closed "whilst it's being rennovated" before they knew for definite that this would be the case? This would be true, however Thorpe have also stated that Loggers is/was being "rennovated," and "redeveloped for next season."

If Loggers doesn't open next year then I'll be disappointed. Thorpe/Merlin (whoever is responsible for the FAQ's page) stated; This clearly states that the ride is/was being renovated during the 2016 season, which as far as I can tell, hasn't been the case. If this comes down to bad wording then that's unfortunate, but nevertheless it's a very misleading piece of information considering that, as far as we can see, the ride has effectively been left to rot behind a fence. Furthermore, they did actually say it would open next season; Now I am aware this is just the social media post, therefore it won't be completely accurate, however the point still stands that Thorpe have clearly stated that the ride is being "redeveloped for next season." If this is not the case, then it shouldn't be stated anywhere and more care should be taken rather than communicating potentially incorrect information to people. I find it the handling of the closure (if indeed, the ride does not reopen) insulting, if they'd given notice and announced a closure then it wouldn't be as bad, but clearly stating the ride is closed for "redevelopment" or "renovation" when neither has happened is just wrong.

Ah, that explains it! *crawls back under rock*

Unless I'm missing something, didn't Thorpe close for the season yesterday?

According to Thorpe Park's official post, Loggers Leap has been closed for 2016 "while it's being rennovated", so going by the official statement, the rennovation should have already started. I personally can't wait for Loggers to reopen in 2017 - bring it on!

If Rameses is removed then it'll probably be replaced with a HB leisure game. Either that or left to rot with a wooden fence in front of it.

^ Thanks, such a catchy piece of music!

Random question, but is The Big Top queue music online anywhere?

At least it nearly made it to the end of the season!

Vampire Beach 2016 writeup; I've attended Vampire Beach in 2014, 2015 and 2016; and this year's was the best event yet IMO. The atmosphere in the park was spot on, with a good mix of Halloween music, live acts and the park was busy. Ride capacity was good, with queues moving fast aside from a few rides, however the staff were working as fast as possible which was great to see. I feel that PMBO and Grand National both deserve a mention; dispatch times on The Big One were fantastic, and we queued from well below the steps on Grand National; I was expecting to wait 40+ minutes, but we were on within 20! The horror maze was better than last year, however I would love to see BPB introduce at least one indoor, high-calibre horror maze to the event next year. The use of green netting added to the effect of the maze, as did the actors positioned throughout. Lighting was also much better with coloured lights throughout the maze, but we did miss the strobes from last year! I feel that audio could have been used better, as there were sound effects but no music as such, and it didn't seem to be playing throughout the entire maze. The fireworks display was fantastic, The Big One made a spectacular backdrop and I really liked the fact that it was synced to Halloween music. It was a shame that the smoke gathered too much, but that's my only niggle with the display. With that said, the earlier closing of rides was a shame, and whilst I really enjoyed the fireworks, I think I'd rather the rides stayed open later; but that's just my personal opinion! There was a Werewolf which drove a vehicle around the park, and then stopped at points and stood up; it was really clever, and drew a large crowd every time it appeared. The live acts created a good atmosphere within the area however we didn't stop to specifically watch them, the area seemed very busy though which was great to see. There was 'Creepy Hollow' in the old Planet Rock building, however you wouldn't get me anywhere near it as I hate spiders/insects! Parkwide theming was much, much better than last year, with lots around the ticket centre, entrance area and extending around the whole park. There were loads of scarecrows which were very effective. General park shots; Live acts at FY4; The roaming Werewolf was fantastic; Parkwide theming; The Trauma Towers building looked amazing; The Big One makes a superb backdrop for the fireworks; Overall Vampire Beach 2016 was a fantastic event, it was great to see the park so busy and they coped with the crowds brilliantly. I really hope BPB expand on it year by year.

Ha, Thorpe Park customer satisfaction at its finest!

There are some posters up around the park advertising Construction 2018;