Coaster

Maybe you shouldn't have assumed that I only meant one train. I really don't see what the issue is. I wrote a short post highlighting the rides that were closed today, and that the other coasters were on one train. If I had rambled on about CCR, Saw Alive, and whatever else is sat collecting dust, as well as the fact that the whole of Canada Creek looks like a ghost town, maybe I would see the issue. But a simple "this, this, this and this were closed today" post with an opinion expressed on the overall operations (which closed rides are a part of) is hardly "spam."

The purpose of my post was, as the topic title suggests, to list the rides that were closed today and give a brief overview of the operations. The fact that some rides are closed for the year/until the summer is irrelevant, they were closed today, therefore they were listed. The use of the term shambles was referring to a combination of different factors - rides closed and one train operation on the rest. However, I kept the post as short and to the point as possible, there was plenty more that I could have mentioned but decided to just list the basics. I'm not going to respond to individual comments with this as simply, I think that some of the responses are petty and there are better uses of my time. However, the bold section of this particular post is wrong - I saw Colossus go round empty three times whilst in the queue for Rush, not once.

Just listing what was closed today. Forgot to mention, Saw was testing in the morning (but didn't open as mentioned above).

So? Still four rides that are closed.

Saw, Slammer, Samurai and Loggers Leap closed today. Rush and Rumba Rapids opened late, Colossus was going round empty at one point and lots of people were coming out of X when walking past - so maybe a breakdown. Bit of a shambles to be honest, and all other coasters were on one train (apart from X on two) which made queues longer than they should have been.

Thanks Sorry, got another question, is there a way of getting pictures to embed from Flickr again? (Tried posting some in this topic but it just showed the links, which don't work)

Photo update from today; Ride info board (confirms live actors ) General exterior & queueline shots; A few updates to the shop since my last visit; Not sure what was going on with this, but I think it will be the photo collection point. Finally, this has appeared in the dome; One final point to note is that the soundtrack wasn't playing in the area or shop today.

Is something wrong with the reply function in the General Discussion section of the forum?

Tower? Sandcastle? Piers?

Of course they're covered in the T&C's, but that's irrelevant to whether it's acceptable or not IMO - just means they are covered legally.

Interesting debate about opening days. Personally, I'm not fussed about being the first on the Ghost Train, but I'm looking at this delayed opening from the perspective of a lot of people who have booked accommodation, tickets to the park and planned a visit. It's just not acceptable. There's also not much point in going on the specific opening day at Thorpe as there isn't usually anything special like an opening ceremony. I was planning to go on opening day, but again it's not the end of the world for me personally - will probably get on it at some point this year.

Latest rumour on Screamscape: http://www.screamscape.com/html/blackpool_pleasure_beach.htm

I don't, but the fact is that there was a ride vehicle sat outside the building, which could suggest that it hadn't been tested. That doesn't confirm that it wasn't ready, or that there aren't other vehicles, but it's the only thing visible from outside the building so I can only use guesswork based on that.

Maybe that is the case, but when I visited a few weeks back it was nowhere near ready (e.g. The ride vehicle was outside the building). Maybe they should have simply advertised "Opening in May" until they could come up with a certain date (basically what they're doing now)?

That was in response to having 6+ rides closed for the year, a completely different situation which is not comparable to the opening of a new attraction. No, I made two suggestions. The first suggestion was that they could release a very late opening date, giving them a longer window between the ride's predicted "ready" date and the opening date. Doing this, they could soft-open IF it was ready before the advertised date. The second suggestion was that they could hold back on releasing a date until they could be certain that the date would be accurate.

Nonsense. Thorpe have let a lot of people down here and they (myself included) are right to be annoyed. The main issue is that the opening date was released too early which is what has caused the backlash on their social media pages as well as them having to give out refunds and a damage to the park's reputation. Holding fire on releasing the date would have prevented this.

I agree that it shouldn't have ever been closed - I can't comment on what it was like as I never went in it However, given the fact that it has been sat idol for years now, it would probably require significant work to get it reopen as the Ark (would it pass H&S regulations these days?) I like the idea of a heritage museum at BPB and, as much as I would like to see the Ark reopen as it was, if it won't happen then I would rather they used the interior for a museum rather than nothing.

It is good of them to be offering refunds, but to look at it on a wider scale, people who have booked hotels/accommodation near (but not owned by) Thorpe are still losing out due to this Issuing refunds is good, but it doesn't cover the fact that Thorpe have let a lot of people down, and it could have all been avoided by not advertising a date so far in advance. This would have prevented the disappointment as well as meaning that Thorpe wouldn't be in a situation now where they are having to give out refunds. Of course I would rather the attraction opened finished. But Thorpe shouldn't have advertised an opening date so far in advance - especially given all the supposed new technology being used, they should have foreseen that there may be possible delays and therefore not announced an opening date until they were sure it would be ready. I would prefer it to open finished, but they shouldn't have advertised a date so far in advance - this would have prevented the disappointment as well as preventing Thorpe from having to give out refunds. Regarding Thirteen, that's a fair point that it opened on time, but it was plagued with downtime throughout its first season, as was The Smiler.

Oh well that's alright then, as long as it was open for an hour! Thirteen also opened unfinished I believe, as there were originally plans for more effects/props in the crypt. Then you have The Smiler (delayed at least twice) as a more recent example as well as Zufari (unfinished and still is), and last year at Thorpe The Big Top (not a big investment but another example of something planned poorly and opening unfinished).

Saw failed to open on its opening day. Thirteen was not ready for the winners preview day. The Swarm did open on time which was good. No idea on the others.

So not advertising an opening date until they are certain it will be ready on time would prevent disappointment caused by unforseen circumstances. Either that, or advertise a date very far in advance and then soft open the attraction if it is ready before they expect it to be. Considering that it is still being constructed (and the ride vehicle was sat outside the building until a few days ago), I would suggest that they had a pretty good idea it would be delayed.

Not only is it a major disappointment for the ride to be delayed, it is completely unacceptable to be announcing this with less than two weeks notice. Surely they must have had some idea that it would be delayed before today? Yet they were telling people 6th May on their social media channels despite the fact that the attraction clearly wasn't (and still isn't) finished! It's a shame that every major attraction Merlin attempt nowadays is met with delays/opening unfinished, all this bad publicity and a damage in the park's reputation could be avoided simply by not advertising a specific date so far in advance! Typical combination of poor planning and poor (incorrect) communication from Merlin & Thorpe.

Noah's Ark has been SBNO for years, I'd rather they used it for something rather than just leaving it there doing nothing.

But why would it still say 6th May everywhere on the website?

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