Martin Doyle
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Everything posted by Martin Doyle
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I kindly refer you to my more recent post on what exactly I was referring to. I am not talking about the con artists cheating the system, I am referring to the mentality of "we can't say no to giving them out because it's too offensive". Because it seems that everything is offensive these days and people are offended by literally anything and everything.
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Just to clarify my "snowflake society" comment as I do fear I may not have made myself clear. I am in no way shape or form trying to say that mental health/disorders should not be eligible for a RAP. No way would I say that especially as a guy who lives with ADHD. What I'm simply trying to voice is my agreement on what JoshC said in relation to how they have backed themself into a corner with how they have distributed it. I feel that people just rock up and the parks will literally give them the pass for fear of offending people and not wanting the backlash. That is what I meant in my comment. I am somebody who very much supports the steps society is taking to support mental health given how close to the heart I hold the issue. I am simply saying that it now feels that there is a huge amount of people faking doctors letters getting away with cheating the system purely because the park does not want to risk coming across as offensive. That in my honest opinion is down to this culture of "everything is offensive" and that's where I was coming from with my snowflake society comment. In regards to "not being able to wait in a long line", again I refer to my point regarding the massive cattle pen queue just to get the pass or indeed the sizeable queues the RAP queue gets during busier times at the parks for that matter. I do hope I've worded that OK and am in no way trying to call those genuinely disabled who need RAP snowflakes if that is what my previous comment has come across as.
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Snowflake society has won. Simple as that. The people cheating the system should be ashamed of themself. A signed letter from "Doctor Kelman" should do the trick.
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I'll say it until I'm blue in the face. Given my way, it would be if you DO NOT have a blue badge (Which now covers mental health), you get your backside into the main queue. I'm sorry but when I saw them queuing in a massive cattle pen just to get the damn thing last season, the only thing going through my mind was "No way on this earth can you not wait 10 minutes for rapids when you are standing in this" Scarefest was a joke. RAP queues for Wicker man going out to the plaza, Oblivion going right back into the arcade,Nemesis going up to the photo booth and smiler also going right down the stairs. The system is a complete and utter farce and the people I really feel for are those who GENUINELY need the damn thing who are forced to then wait in massive lines because of those who exaggerate (for want of a better term) a condition so they get one or indeed those taking doctors letters. Legalised queue jumping is what it is and everybody visiting the parks are made to suffer for it. Honestly I half expect them to give them to guests with paper cuts at this point..... Sort out exactly WHO needs it Sort out actually enforcing the time card SORT IT OUT!!
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My main takeaway reading this is that it looks like everyone and their dog will still be able to get one given how easy it is to fake a doctor's note these days.
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HYPERspring B&M hyper or RMC hyper-hybrid confirmed!! It's happening folks!!!
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WORLDS FIRST!! My Lord it should be a drinking game at this point. Neck your pint when you see that term used.
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Top 10 European coasters!! 1. Untamed 2. Taron 3. Wildfire 4. Helix 5. Shambhala 6. Expedition G force 7. Karnan 8. Black Mamba 9. Balder 10. Wodan I do regularly find myself swapping around Helix and Wildfire. Both to me have brilliant elements but at the same time have plenty of dead spots. So it's very much a draw between the two. If Wildfire did not have it's awful morning pacing issues, it would be above Helix hands down. Helix in fairness also needs warming up throughout the day but nowhere near to the extent of Wildfire. So very close between the two in my book and that's coming from a self confessed RMC fanboy!!
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And this to me is why I personally enjoy Helix and not Icon. Icon to me has the dull launches and in my opinion a poor layout. Whilst Helix also has poor launches in terms of forces and has several moments of it just meandering around, the moments such as the inverted top hat, the Norwegian loop and that final airtime hill make for an incredible coaster experience. It utilises a decent variation of elements to counter it's weaknesses and that's the word that inevitably is why I rank Helix highly. Variation. Though I can absolutely see why it's not some enthusiasts cup of tea.
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I agree with this. To me Liseberg is worth a visit because it has 1. One of Europe's best coasters in Helix. 2. The best flat ride on the planet in the form of Loke. 3. One of the finest wooden coasters in Balder. 4. In my opinion, the best dive coaster in valkyria 5. Two solid enough water rides 6. A very well themed horror maze in Hotel Gasten. 7. A brilliant classic coaster in Lisebergbanan Is it my favourite park?? Nope. It sits behind Cedar Point and Phantasia, but to me it's certainly one of the best parks in Europe. Good ride collection, good food options, nice atmosphere and pretty decent operations and staff.
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That's just the thing though. Chessington is a family park and knows it's a family park. Their investments have suited that market (As such they haven't necessarily needed a coaster specifically) and they have their direction. Thorpe Park however made a name for itself as the "thrill seekers" park. What appeals to that market? Coasters and thrill rides. However, the issue currently I feel with Thorpes recent investments is the park very much seems to be having an identity crisis as to is it a thrill park or is it a family park. The prime example being going from X:no way out into X and then to Walking dead. I just think the powers that be need to sit down and actually decide who/what is Thorpe Parks market and go with it. If they want to be a family park then I agree that they don't necessarily need a new coaster if that's the specific market they are going for. However if they want to roll with the park being a thrill park, then a new coaster is what would make perfect sense as the "next big thing"
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I absolutely agree. It won't fix the more major issues at the park. A new coaster at Thorpe is just the tip of the iceberg. 1. SBNO rides just left there. 2. General cleanliness. 3. The direction as to where the park is heading in terms of what sort of park they actually want to be as right now, they feel like a park with an identity crisis. 4. Upkeep on current rides 5. The running of the park in terms of the stupid wind policy,queue management and how every one and their dog can get RAP. Amongst other things, are all more pressing issues in my opinion. However I do feel a new coaster would be a step in the right direction in regards to bringing back the excitement and interest in the place.
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Now I know this is said to death to the point even I am tired of it, but this is where I think an RMC would do wonders for Thorpe. The enthusiasts would absolutely descend on Thorpe and the traction the park would get in the European enthusiast community could very well be big. When I was at Walibi, I encountered many enthusiasts who had travelled from all over the continent to ride Untamed. Hell some even came from America to ride it. Wildfire at Kolmarden was the same story. Enthusiasts from all over have made that trip to the middle of nowhere in Sweden just to ride it. So Thorpe to me would be wise to cash in on the overwhelming popularity RMC has gained in recent times. They may have to act on that soon however before the popularity and hype surrounding RMC dwindles and they miss the boat. I know the enthusiast community is a drop in the ocean compared to the general public, however the general public just want good rides as well which an RMC would almost certainly deliver. Would an RMC boost the gate massively in regards to the GP?? Only time would tell. That's the calculated risk you have to take in buisness sometimes. A good ride will almost always capture the public's imagination. I could sit here and talk about why an RMC makes sense to Thorpe because they usually are amazing rides until the cows come home, but I find it more crucial at this stage that it's pointed out why it makes sense buisness wise.
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Which does pose the question, WHY? Why don't they want to spend money at the park??
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That would 100 percent confirm to me that Thorpe is indeed bottom of the food chain when it comes to the companies priorities. I maintain that if they don't want to give Thorpe the money it needs to get itself back on track, just sell the damn place. I know that's not happening any time soon but when even the general public are waking up and smelling the coffee as well as the so called "entitled" enthusiasts, it's game over. I don't think asking for the SBNO rides to finally get removed and space developed is too much to ask. It's hardly asking them to build an expedition everest level of detail attraction. In terms of a new coaster, Alton Towers has now been given 2 (3 if you include the Galactica overlay) major coasters since Thorpe last had one. So I agree, a new coaster at Thorpe is really not too much to ask either. Unless the future of the park is indeed just cheap short term tat and IP driven summer events.
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https://www.slashfilm.com/disney-ticket-prices/ Now I understand that sometimes to get the premium product you have to pay the premium prices, but holy heck!!
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Must say, this looks a pretty good coaster and can't wait to ride it in may. This and Mystic Timbers will make for one heck of a double act. One thing that makes Cedar Fair my favourite park operator is the fact they give their customers/fans what they want!! The Cedar Park fans wanted an RMC for so long - they get Steel Vengeance. Kings Island fans for years have wanted a Giga - they are given Orion. They may not be perfect as no company is, but I've got to credit Cedar Fair with some of their investments across their parks in recent times.
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They are getting.......
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NOT an RMC or B&M hyper
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God I love this ride!! The strong airtime of this damn thing is quite visible in my shirts antics!!
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Clearly they want the return of the mighty Bouncezilla to be a surprise!!
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I could be mistaken, but I am also guessing that how you use fastrack isn't restricted to one per haunt?? So in theory you could just stand in the regular lines for those that usually get short queues like Cellar, Creepy Cottage and the Circus of horror without wasting a fastrack and then potentially use two on the likes of penitentiary and hayride which are usually full to the rafters. If that's the case then that's not too bad a deal I think. EDIT: just watched the announcement video and that is exactly how you can use fastrack
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As great as the event is, I very much feel last year was where they did expand too much. As you say, unless you went on a quiet evening then if you didn't have at least a fastrack package then you probably more likely than not would not have got a sniff at getting all of the haunts done. This also inevitably means missing out on the general atmosphere of the place outside the haunts as you find yourself rushing to the point of not being able to enjoy it fully. To me, 8 haunts max is plenty especially given the sheer length of most of them. Although maybe it's all a big incentive to get people to go back for a second visit during the Halloween season.
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VIP to exceed £100 on all dates and the other takeaway is it looks like all tickets will entitle the holder to unlimited goes through each made. Doing away with the whole "1 go through each" Part of me feels that having every ticket entitled to unlimited goes could very well lead to a disaster for the event in terms of queue management especially if the fastrack/VIP line is long for any reason.
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Wonder if the beautiful smell of weed you get across Thorpe park will be featured in the long run!! 😮
