Matt 236

A perspective of the ride around the Sky Force Area-coutesy Of Amanda Thompson OBE. The more photos I see of this ride, the more excited I’m becoming for Icon. This ride will have some excellent interaction points.

One strange occurrence which happened yesterday after the cuts were announced was Towers made a random post relating to ride’s concept art (see below). Unsurprisingly the post was the victim of much complaint as hundreds of fans expressed their disgust and hatred towards these new controversial decisions. But one has ask the question of this park status, was it poor social media planning or a potential tactical ploy in a way to express what management are doing is unacceptable and they need a greater budget to prosper? I also say this to all which strongly object Merlin’s decisions over the park’s budget cuts. 1/ Don’t take it out on front line park staff. They are usually hard working individuals who are not responsible for any of this and are too perhaps disappointed with what is happening. 2/ If you are strongly against these decisions to the point you are put off visiting, vote with your feet. Stop visiting. Why not support the other UK parks such as Blackpool,Paultons or Flamingo Land. Because complaining about something but still using there service makes no difference. We will have to see what happens.

A themed launch coaster (ala Taron or Helix) would suite the park to the ground. Whatever the 2020 is remains difficult to be said, however I did hear they want to minimise tree removal due to remaining in their position as a nature park (as well a theme park). With this in mind it could be anything really, but a dark ride seems more feessble perhaps especially given it’s close proximity to the Efteling hotel. Could they even consider a water attraction even? A Chiapas style flume (with an Efteling theme) would do wonders for the park.

I’m pretty sure Dark Forest was 10:30am last year along with Skyride 11am. Not too sure about Hex but I’m pretty sure Mutiny, Katanga and Forbidden Valley were previously unaffected by stsggered openings.

Right, so Alton Towers have updated their website with some updates to ERT and ride openings. You can see all information on the park’s website here. The good news is Wickerman will now be open for ERT. The bad news is Cloud Cuckoo Land, Hex, Duel, Runaway Mine Train, Sharkbait, Galleons and Dark Forest won’t open until 11am with skyride at 11:30am. Whats more Forbidden Valley won’t open until 12 and Congo is only classed as a seasonal attraction with a May to September opening. Edit- Benin just beat me to it.

I don’t think a Steel Mouse would be a good idea as many such fans would react negatively to the idea and descard it as an insulting replacement to the original. Unless an updated wooden mouse is possible, whatever replaces the area should be fresh and new. Whether that be a family coaster, a couple of flats or even a dark ride. Blackpool still have a great selection of classic attractions (interweaved with their newer hardware), but unfortunately nothing is sacred forever and they don’t have swathes of financial fat like other park operators.

That airtime hill sure looks amazing especially if Helix is anything to go by. Its great to see the UK finally gaining a Mack mega especially considering it’s Blackpool’s first coaster in almost 25 years. I too feel saddened by the loss of the Mouse. It was an original and classic attraction in it’s own right and crazy in the best of ways. Unfortunately it was a matter of time before it went though, especially with tightening safety standards and other complications. I feel like the park had their hands tied with the closure. It’s difficult to say what will replace the area and when.

As far as I’m concerned it’s now scheduled to open around June time. Should be an excellent addition to the park once it opens. All Liseberg needs now is a quality dark ride to complete it’s quality ride collection.

Glad they chose a name for their junior that’s about original as the whole park. They did need some more rides though,especially for kids.

This move is somewhat disappointing but somewhat not surprising really. Missed opportunity though with all the guests flocking to that area for Wicker.

Me when Merlin make a theme that isn’t dark, rundown and generally gloomy Yay Pizza extension though. One day the building cover half the park.

If you ignore the World’s First claims it actually looks a very decent roller coaster and the concept art shows great potential. Wicker Man if done correctly will be the perfect ride to fill in some of the gap currently at Towers and perhaps offer something of a unique experience for many of ages. Icon and Wicker are both completely different type rides but I remain excited for both in general.

Maybe I am due another trip

So it looks like the Mouse has now (finally) closed indefinitely Very sad to hear this. I get the impression the park aren’t fully to blame on it’s closure as I’ve heard stories on the difficulty insuring the ride due to safety measures. Apparently Dipper, Grand National and Flyer are listed (with the Ark building and Flying Machines) but the Mouse isn’t.

According to Loopings the park’s joint suspended coaster De Vleermuis will be closing this month. Capacity and reliability are the main reasons for the closure with the ride mentioned to be sold to a park outside Europe. Seems a bit of shame to spite these but from things I’ve heard I’m not overly surprised. Never got to experience this. Was it any good?

Two potentially exciting additions to the Dutch park’s sounds great. I wonder if Toverland will get something new agsin? I don’t have 2020 vision.

Double Post (technically) but Loopings report of a new expansion area within the Efteling where development for new attractions will be brought in. Interestingly it mentions of a road being rerouted and the first attraction scheduled to open in 2020. Some rumours suggest a launch coaster of some kind or a hyper (which seems out of character).

Congrats to Inferno for winning the 2017 ride game in a topic more divisive than Brexit! Swarm is a definite second place and both coasters are deserving of the top two.

Nemesis Inferno (7) The Swarm (3) Inferno+ Swarm- Least Tidal made Top 5.

2018 for me was set in stone once, but now it’s somewhst up in the air. Uk wise Blackpool is a must for Icon and if all goes to plan, may finally make it to Lightwater Valley and Flamingo where the Ark convenant Of UK creds reside. Merlin lot are a given and Drayton and Paultons are not impossible either. For Europe, Europa Park is my top priority as another trip feels overdue and Tomb is yet to experience the wonders here. Fingers crossed Eurosat is still top notch. Rest of the trips are more of a free-for-all currently. May return to Liseberg for it’s new coaster, Toverland isn’t impossible and I can never rule out Disneyland Paris. Will see what happens. Was hoping Orlando would happen this year, however that looks highly unlikely now. However Cedar Point is a strong possibility later in the year.

Depth Charge (4) Nemesis Inferno (5) Stealth (5) The Swarm (5) Tidal Wave (5) X (6) X+ Depth Charge-

Depth Charge (6) Nemesis Inferno (5) Rocky Express (3) Stealth (4) The Swarm (5) Tidal Wave (6) X (6) Tidal Wave+ Rocky-

Depth Charge (2)Detonator: Bombs Away (0)Nemesis Inferno( 9)Rocky Express (5)Stealth (5)The Swarm (5)Tidal Wave (7)X (7) Detonator Out! Reset Depth Charge (5)Nemesis Inferno( 5)Rocky Express (5)Stealth (5)The Swarm (5)Tidal Wave (5)X (5)

Depth Charge (2)Detonator: Bombs Away (3)Nemesis Inferno (8)Rocky Express (5)Stealth (5)The Swarm (5)Tidal Wave (6)X (7) Tidal Wave+ Detonator- Someone obviously wants a repeat of 2015

Depth Charge (4)Detonator: Bombs Away (3)Nemesis Inferno (7)Rocky Express (5)Stealth (5)The Swarm (5)Tidal Wave (6)X (6) Tidal Wave+ Detonator-