pluk

I don't know if it is possible, but can I suggest somehow making it an automatic change to a persons profile that they move from 'gone away' to 'members' as soon as they log in? I don't know why, it just niggles me when people are 'gone away', yet making posts / logging in frequently.

I don't know if it is possible, but can I suggest somehow making it an automatic change to a persons profile that they move from 'gone away' to 'members' as soon as they log in? I don't know why, it just niggles me when people are 'gone away', yet making posts / logging in frequently.

Report by ITV's London Tonight Team on the park hitting 80.

Brilliant trip to Thorpe Park yesterday for Fright Nights. We arrived at the park at about 9:50, as me and my sister had to collect annual pass tickets from the advance ticket collection booths. A slow-moving 25 minute queue later and we were in, and the park was stil fairly quiet, I was also pleased to notice how all the major coasters started out on full capacity, not 1 train etc... oh and Inferno still has wheel covers missing, makes me wonder if it will ever get some of them back...We ended up staying until about 7:30, and no I didn't do any of the mazes, they're just not for me, unless I'm with friends who force me in haha Anyway, queues for rides weren't too bad all day, 40 mins was the max for Stealth and Inferno, Colossus had 70 mins at one point and Saw: The ride had 80 mins. Ended up buying a couple of fastracks for Saw, Colossus and Stealth front seats. Ride Count to follow...
Stealth-5, 1 front with fastrack (single rider queue all the other times, it was being managed very well, with me waiting no more than 10mins each time!) Detonator-5 (Mainly to look at the Swarm's site… but today I had a thing for Det, Looove it!) X:\NWO-1 (first ride of the day… and I got a train all to myself Lol) Colossus-1 Nemesis Inferno-3 (all back seat rides… it's actually pretty intense in the back!) Saw: The Ride-1 Flying Fish-1 (with 5 circuits!!!) Depth Charge-1 Loggers-1 Rumba Rapids-2 CCRailway-2 Rush-1 Slammer was in a sorry state, one of the motors doesn't have it's belt which turns the gearbox below. I'm not sure... but the cables weren't visible at the top either!? It had this outside it's exit anyway. As Matt said above, the ride teams really were despatching quickly, except for on Colossus that is, why do they have to recheck the restraints so many times!? Samurai was operating with a dance track playing on about a 5 second loop I do know the song, but can't think of it's name right now Lol. The park's atmosphere is so good at night, especially with all the lights on lift hills illuminating the rides, and the park lighting with the green/blue/red flood lights. All the major coasters had a really good rock/drum style music track playing, and I've found that it's actually the first half or so of this Stealth 2009 FN plaza music:http://content.maniahub.com/audio/Thorpe/Fright%20Nights%202009/FN09%20-%20Stealth%20Plaza.mp3
Upon leaving the park, The Swarm's advertising board and Tank were nicely illuminated. Unfortunately, Les Coogan was nowhere to be seen all day.Well done if you read to here, Luke.

Great trip to Thorpe Park today. See some photos at the bottom.The day started off very busy and the queue outside the park was insane and we arrived to the sign saying Slammer and Saw The Ride would be unavailable. Slammer of course was closed all day, it must be still awaiting a part as all was dead over at the ride. However Saw - The Ride opened around 11:30am.Once inside the park I was greeted to an exciting sight of a large support for The Swarm being put into place (couple of poor pictures in Swarm construction topic and facebook for those who can find it!!!!!Had a quick go on Depth Charge which had no queue (mainly because I wanted to see The Swarm sight. Then headed to Storm In A Tea Cup and had a tea cup that wouldn't turn much. Is it me or do these cups get stiffer every year? Next up was Rumba Rapids. Got soaked by the tunnel waterfall. Stealth was next which was advertised as 40 minutes but loading was extremely fast and trains were launched the fastest I have seen this year. We were on within 25 minutes.Next headed to our longest coaster wait of the day which was Nemesis Inferno at 45 minutes. (queue started just at the start of the cattlepen in the extension queue). Again must say dispatching was very quick with many trains dispatched before the other train reached the final brakes. Then had 12 slices of pizza at the Pizza Hut buffet.We decided we would head to Storm Surge but it was down and was for the next hour or so and had about 6 engineers at the top of the lift hill for about half hour, so decided to go on X:/No Way Out and within 5 minutes of queueing in the 15 minute or so queue they announced it would cease operation to clean up sick. Next headed to Vortex, which was very slow loading, a very short ride and had a member of staff who loved the sound of her own voice over the PA. Also worth noting that this has new queue line speakers which play the annoying lost city ambience (bird sounds). Then headed for Samurai and had a long 45 minute wait and was on one of the short and dull ride cycle (same every time). Next went for a beer as it was getting dark and noticed Vortex had a smoke machine this year which made it look awesome.Then headed for The Curse which I enjoyed more this year and it had a fair amount of actors in it. Next I wanted to try Experiment 10. We had our longest wait of the day of about an hour and ten minutes. This is such a cleverly done maze, actually has a plot to it and the way the maze operates is very different to the rest of the mazes. Well done Thorpe Park an excellent attraction. Seven was next and had a much shorter queue than previous years and like The Curse a fair amount of actors, although the smell in the second half of the maze is too much. Sadly did not go on Asylum as I was with a friend who had a bad experience in 2006 and refuses to go on.After that we went on Rush, Quantum, Saw - The Ride, Stealth (again) Nemesis Inferno (again), detonator, Storm Surge, X:/ No Way Out and Colossus all of which had 15 minute queues or less. I must add that the Dispatching on Colossus was very slow.This left 5 minutes to go so had a second go on Rush.I was not impressed with Audio this year as I personally found a lot of it more of a rock style than a Spooky style. Some of the tracks they used to play way back in around 2004 were much better. Also most of the flats were playing the Fright Nights music all day. From what I remembered the last three or four years most rides have had their usual themes during the day and changed in the evening, but only Stealth, Tidal Wave, Colossus, Nemesis Inferno and Saw seemed to play normal music during the day and then Fright Nights music from 4pm.Edit: Actually it wont let me add photos for some reason. Anyone know why as it lets me in the Swarm topic???...... ... But please click link to see them on my facebook profile. Sorry for poor quality I am hopeless with photos: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150406888230342.405186.701145341&type=1

I always thought, from looking at the plans, the lift hill would be the last section up. It kind of cuts straight across the only island exit for all the heavy plant. I assumed they'd start with the station and work their way round anticlockwise so they have full access to whatever they're building and it looks like that is what's happening so far. The larger pieces of theming will probably have to go in at the same time as the relevant track pieces do for the same reason.Cladding/theming the station will not require the heavy plant so could be done later.Building on an island - challenging.

The seats have always been there and nothing has changed. A non story the press are tricked into running.Shows how a cheap bit of crappy PR can work though, a free mention in the US press for zero dollar.

It's big and sexy.This for Thorpe 2015

The seats have always been there and nothing has changed. A non story the press are tricked into running.Shows how a cheap bit of crappy PR can work though, a free mention in the US press for zero dollar.

The seats have always been there and nothing has changed. A non story the press are tricked into running.Shows how a cheap bit of crappy PR can work though, a free mention in the US press for zero dollar.

Went for the first time (that I remember, think I went years ago) last week. Overall quite impressed, but then I was very very drunk at the time. Musings:Was a lot longer than I expected, a good couple of hours, which with bogof vouchers I'd call good value.A rat ran across my hand at the till - nice touch!The actors throughout were quite spectacularly good, made it really atmospheric, involving and entertaining. They stayed 100% in character even while dealing with stupid wandering guests.The batching system didn't quite work out. We ended up being part of three groups in the end, you'd think they'd know exactly how many to batch together to fit in each section.Loved the boat ride, quite unexpected and fun.Vengeance was better than I expected, I agree with the pointless gun grumblings but can see why they've done it like that. It's obviously a tight fit time wise and if everyone was messing about comparing scores there'd be a big back up. But the disorienting spinning with the 3d works quite well, feels like it could do with a bit more theming around the room though to link between the screens.Extremis was brilliant, was expecting so much less from it as it looks quite small, but is very forceful and the loose fitting lap bar means some major out of seat time was had.Some of the scenes were seemed a bit pointless and didn't really go anywhere, but they were in the minority.It's all quite tongue in cheek and deliberately funny in many places (especially the court room), I know it's a family attraction but I think it could be a little bit out and out scary at times, maybe some more things to make you jump. Some of the models and props looked a little tired/amateurish, think it would be a fairly small spend to tart them up a bit.Both entrance and extremis photos were very well done, so we bought them both. Shame there was no email/digital copy option.Lots of stuff I can't remember, mainly due to the drinking. Overall we had a great time and I'll be going back sober to see if is actually that good.

Sorry for the huge delay in posting reports. So many reasons why, I wish I could list them all but I'd look like a right sap. I gave up with doing a summary, though if you'd like to check out the blog, you're more than welcome to at http://cheekysheepski.wordpress.com/ :)No matter how much I re-write and analyse my thoughts when writing this review, I cannot really express what I want to say. I am truly out of my depth and at a complete crossroads in my own thoughts about the whole idea of a theme park. The truth is, Epcot is not a theme park, at least in the traditional sense. Sometimes this works in its favour, sometimes it leaves me in a complete contradiction to even my own thoughts. With that said, Epcot is a great park, literally in two halves. My favourite is the World Showcase. It would be so easy for me to sit here and review rides and attractions, but that is not what I feel is right for this park. As with every park, Epcot is home to some great experiences… and some not so great. One of the most special moments of the entire trip, in fact, was our Lunch in Mexico. After spending the morning trying out what Future World had to offer, we began our trip around the world in Mexico, with a very tasty lunch indeed. The pure magic inside the temple that represents this country is not something that can be captured on camera to do it justice. A beautiful, night-time backdrop; an erupting volcano, shooting stars and gorgeous atmosphere litter this romantic surrounding. This is where we received some of the best customer service at any of the parks. It's all theatre. Everything about how we were spoken to, how we received our food and how we were treated was all theatrical, which is no wonder how they managed to get so much money from us. They know their menu, they know their guests and they take advantage of this. This is one of the most orgasmic drinks I've ever had in my entire life. Margaritas- Mexico stylee! Served up in what can only be described as a fish bowl. We were pretty drunk by the time we emerged back into daylight. As the holiday continued, there were several points where I'd ask myself, "would this work in England?". It is very common amongst theme park enthusiasts and many Florida veterans alike, to criticise the UK for their efforts in the theme park business. Many criticisms I agree with, yet there are many which I'd like to challenge, especially after my own personal experience with British people in the States. On this occasion, with the Mexico pavilion, yet, it'd work. In fact we have many themed restaurants here in the UK, and to see this coupled with live entertainment, retail, and the whole theatricality, I could honestly see being a huge hit here in the UK. Sadly though, there are many things, due to cultural differences that would not work, as much as we'd like them to. Half-cut, we emerge back into the wet afternoon that we were treated to at Epcot. World Showcase is indeed awesome, but sadly, we were not given the weather to appreciate it as much as we would have liked. I touched on it earlier, but World Showcase truly is a romantic paradise in itself. It's so hard to describe in words, I wish I could take you with me virtually, in my mind to make you see what I'm seeing. The detail that goes into each country is phenomenal, even down to the staff; each country has staff that are of the same nationality. It's all a show. You could really spend a lot of time experiencing each country. Some have small rides, some have shows and all of them have dining and retail opportunities. Whilst that may sound boring, it is the detailed … argh… I dunno… I'll let the pictures do some of the talking… This is a couple's park. Bring them here on your honeymoon, take them for a romantic meal. Sit and chat and do the "in love" stuff in any of the countries around the gorgeous World Showcase. There are plenty of areas to explore away from the "mainstream" guest parts. Some absolute real hidden gems here. *Gushes* *Romantic music comes to a halt* Except if you have weather like this… A few final points then! I enjoyed Future World, even if some of the attractions were sub- standard, though it was just out-done by a certain other half of the park that I've been gushing about. Mission Space, I found a let-down. I found the story a bit weak which is where Disney are supposed to excel, I was disappointed. My guilty pleasure (and also favourite attraction) was Living With the Land- boat ride. I just found it so interesting and a great mix of dark ride and then out into the greenhouses. Brilliant. Universe of Energy and Captain EO? Burn them both. Shocking. Though I liked the Dinosaur dark ride bit in UOE and appreciated the technology behind it. Was nice to sit down for 45 minutes I suppose. Finally, don't go to China with a shirt, looking like this, or you'll discover you've been beaten to your desired look: Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed!

Provides several more pics that I see havent been posted anywhere yet

Unfortunately the idiotic views of the BNP and their ilk have tarnished whole swaths of political points of view with the brush of racism, extremism and Nazism.
It seems to me it's not possible to have any meaningful opinion or debate about immigration (among many other things) without being labelled racist by someone somewhere. Politicians know this so keep quite about and do not act on things which need to be disused and fixed. What does this do? Leaves people with concerns about those things with no one to turn to other than the BNP, so they grow in popularity even though they are a bunch of ridiculous racist halfwits.

Because that's how the Nazis are unfortunately Jack.If you see colour as being a blockade to the country moving forward, then what right do you have to live in this country? (I ask this in general, not aimed at you Jack )We are a country of tolerance, we are a naturally successful country however had it not been for Raj down the street, or Tyrone for his work then this country wouldn't be as great as it currently is.The only genuine issue I have is with people coming to this country and illegitimately staying here, and not chipping there services into the country.If you come here, work hard, earn a decent wage and pay your taxes, I have NOTHING, absolutely NOTHING against you. Because it's a lot more than Dale Farm has to offer us.That is all.

Lets just make some small changes here.....!!......

Strangeness over, we headed back to John and photographed Raptor lots more, as well as riding it 5 more times...To say this ride is photogenic is an understatement, so damn beautiful to look at and watch... After the 5th time (8 times each on both B&Ms, score), we decided that it was time to say farewell to the park and head back to the hotel for one final night... Overall, Gardaland needs more high quality coasters in there, as without Raptor it really lacks a really good ride to take over the role of star attraction... Maybe Merlin have good plans for the park, but out of the 3 we visited, it certainly felt like the weakest ride line up...Still, Raptor is definitely worth it... Just a question now to see if Swarm/X-Flight/Wild Eagle are to be as good...

I watch plenty of TV, although I have an awareness of the name I have no idea who this lot are. Having just read a little about them I'm glad I don't know them.Why do people look up to and aspire to be like 'celebs' who are famous for the sake of fame and have no discernible talent? Beyond me.

The third park we visited was Wicksteed Park in Kettering. It's a very unique park and a great laid back place to visit. It has a large lake and a wonderful lakeside railway that has had over ten million passengers, since it opened back in 1921.After paying a car park fee, you don't have to pay for anything more, unless you want to. For the rides, you can purchase tokens or wrist bands.It was quite busy when we arrived.The queue for the tokens and wristbands was very long.Wicksteed is home to Europe's first double Pirate Ship.We met up with my mum and dad The kids loved the bumper cars.Ben on the jets.Tea Cup fun with Lydia.We all had fun on the Astro Slide.A rather uncomfortable Pinfari.A really colourful Ladybird Coaster.My mum and dad brought a picnic for us all We all had fun on the tiny log flume. The queue for the very unique water chute. Charles Wicksteed designed and built this in 1926.The fantastic lakeside train.The very unique Nautic Jets. They looked lots of fun.Pretty gardens.I wanted a ride on the train before we went home.We had a great visit to Wicksteed Park. I have many fond childhood memories of the park and it was a very nostalgic day for me. It's such a laid back place and you just can't beat, lazing around with a picnic, inbetween the rides. Chris.

This is amazing news!!!!

An amazing amount of info you've got on there, gonna take me while to work my way through it all!Already bought back some fantastic memories, had forgotten how the funky old space station zero trains looked, great to see them again. Can't believe how short a period it was there under that guise - seemed to be there forever when I was a kid.Hope the site is the success it deserves to be. Well done!!!

Yum. Girl on the left of Feb :D However there are some dogs... like the girl on the right of feb.

Went to Thorpe on Wednesday 31st August to celebrate my 19th birthday, and had a great day!A group of 9 of us went, and the day started off well as we were able to skip the ticket queue and enter through the Annual Pass entrance. My sister works at Warwick Castle and therefore has a Merlin Magic Pass, meaning that up to 20 of her family and friends can get into any of the Merlin attractions for free! We arrived at 9.50am (the park was open from 9.30am- 8.00pm) and when we got in the park was quiet as many people were queuing for tickets!Went straight to Stealth as it was closed when my friends and I went before. Got on in 2 minutes which was fantastic! From there we went on Nemesis Inferno (and we were able to drag my sister on as she had never been on an inverting roller coaster before!) and waited for 5 minutes...my sister hated it and didn't go on many of the other 'big' attractions during the day- but as we all got in for free it didn't really matter! She was also a very reliable "bag holder"!After a great ride on Nemesis (and a hilarious photo!) we all went on Storm Surge (queued for 20 minutes...) before heading towards Colossus- which had the longest queue of the day, 70 minutes! It was worth it, though, and we all had a great laugh! After this we went on lots of the other attractions, and the longest queue that we experienced from here was 60 minutes for SAW- The Ride. We assumed that Loggers Leap was closed all day as the water trough was completely empty and no logs were leaving the station. This was a shame as it meant that the queues for Rumba Rapids, Storm Surge and Tidal Wave became quite long at some points, but luckily this didn't affect us!My highlights of the day included Stealth (twice- once at the very beginning, once at 8pm when the sun was setting- very pretty!), SAW- The Ride (especially when the foam/ water spurted into my friend's face, causing them to scream in pain like a baby as we span over the body) and Colossus, of course!When we went to Thorpe at the end of March 2010, SAW Alive was really scary. This time we obviously went in during the actor's lunch break. It was a disappointment! There were only 4 actors inside, and none of them stayed in character. One of them even joined in with our singing of 'why do birds suddenly appear...' as we walked round. None of the actors were scary, and they just seemed to stand there and shout 'BOO' a couple of times.That was the only major disappointment of the day (although we witnessed queue jumping on Colossus, SAW- The Ride and Rush...we told the ride attendants when we got on the rides but the jumpers had obviously already gone...)Anyway, it was a great day and we all really enjoyed our free day out!Ride count:Stealth x 2Colossus x 2SAW- The Ride x 1Nemesis Inferno x 1Tidal Wave x 1Storm Surge x 1Rumba Rapids x 2Rush x 1Flying Fish x 1Depth Charge x 1X:\ No Way Out x 2SAW Alive x 1Storm in a Teacup x 2Zodiac x 1Quantum x 1Coddy92

ReRide.net is back, after a long battle to reset various login details.

I love The Saturdays. And what?