Mark9

Magic Kingdom (it's better themed on the outside Charmander or Squirtle?

In my own experience as an ex ride operator, single riders can be the most un safety conscious of the lot. On rides like Inferno, Colossus and Fury where the Single rider queue was up the exit, they had an almost cavalier attitude to the rides day to day running. I should know, I was one of the Inferno single rider crew and some of the peoples attitudes towards the ride staff was disgusting. Openly rude, telling the staff how to do their jobs and telling off normal members of the public who decided to join the SRQ. That being said, it shouldn't have been removed from Stealth where it was actually part of the batching design. It all went wrong for rides like Samurai and Vortex where fastrack became more wide spread as I believed it worked well on the flat rides.

The amount of times Fury did that to me...

I've tried to like it, I admire its originality and ambition but... It's awful. Just looks like what its made out of, trash.

Nice piece of satire there Josh =)

Just for a heads up, Europa Park would consider Blue Fire and Wodan as family roller coasters.

What will you do if it isn't worth it?

Just to a point, a ride platformer would never have access to a phone or iPad to change the queue line in the first place. The ride operator would have access to this and in-between dispatching trains and checking cameras, would have the time to update the queue when necessary. Safety is paramount but queue times are one of the biggest complaints at a theme park so getting them as accurate as possible is important to parks guests..

It's okay Holly, there's only two more matches and then it will all be over for another year..

There are so many ways to solve this fastrack problem. Low numbers of tickets, higher pricing. People will still buy the tickets and queues won't get so ridiculous for either side. It's the way a lot of American parks apply the system and works a lot better then this gamble that the UK parks have become.

Rattlesnake looks on enviously..

Alarm set for 4am. Check Pin badges and Oswald hat ready. Check Coffee. Check It was time to take on the ultimate theme park challenge, 24 hours in two of the busiest theme parks in the world. Even on paper it doesn’t sound easy. Luckily there was things on our side. We knew Pirates of the Caribbean and ‘it’s a small world’ would have reopened so extra capacity at Disneyland. We knew kids wouldn't be able to take on this challenge and we knew many wouldn’t attempt such a feat so the first few hours were cruical. So with that in mind, we arrived via driving through the middle of Los Angeles at Disneyland at around 5:45. A giant Olaf snowman had been sculpted on the entrance way and to open the parks was none other then Josh Gadd, of Frozen fame. He spoke about living near Disney World (BOO!) and how he takes his kids to the Disney parks like a right of passage. With that the parks were opened. Oh hey Olaf! Fireworks get the parks opened! Here we go! We had decided early on to get into California Adventure first and grab a Radiator Springs fastpass. Our thinking was to get the busiest rides out the way first so we could relax on the longer rides later in the day. We grabbed ourself an information leaflet for the day and bad news. Radiator Springs, Tower and California Screamin’ wouldn’t be opening till eight. That left us two hours to find something to do. We tried Toy Story Midway Mania but that wasn’t ready yet, so Little Mermaid was chosen. We then had a go on Soarin’ which opened at 6:30, and then onto Mickey’s Fun Wheel. Wow. This is a ferris wheel which offers stationary pods and ones that swing violently. We naturally chose swinging and what a ride. Seriously more intense then it looks and only the second ride I’ve done that offers sick bags in the pods. It was now around 7:30 and we decided to head towards Flo’s via Radiator Springs to see if fast pass was available. SUCCESS! It was. Whilst Chris went to get the coffees, I grabbed our fastpasses which was for 9:30am. We relaxed for a bit, after all, there was plenty of time left. 8 o clock was finally upon us and we went for a ride on the Tower (grabbing a fast pass too) which was as spell bounding as ever, a ride on Heimlichs chew chew train, Tower then took a gamble. We decided to queue for RC Racers, after all fast pass hadn’t started and this was the only reasonable time to try it. If you know the queueline, we were just under the bridge near the entrance. From there it took us exactly 18 minutes to get onto the ride. Faster then using fast pass the week before. So there you go people, the detrimental effects of any fast pass system right in front of your eyes. We decided therefore to do it again. And it took us 15 minutes this time. People have queued six hours for this thing and here we were essentially casually strolling on without a care in the world. Astounded by this turn of luck, our fast pass turn was quickly upon us. And then it broke down. We had to wait an hour for it to come back to life, so I decided to have a lie down instead of getting depressed about things. Finally free we descended on California Screamin’, grabbing a fast pass and queuing for Toy Story Mania. It took about 25 minutes to get on and we got exactly the same score somehow. With five minutes remaining till our fastpass, we rode King Tritons Carousel and then rode Screamin’, good as ever. It was now around 11:30 and basically time to jump ships and visit Disneyland. It only seemed natural that our first stop should be Pirates of the Caribbean but naturally we grabbed an Indianna Jones fast pass. Now Pirates. This is a classic ride and no mistake. It makes the Florida and Paris versions look like mere imitations in my opinion.This version evokes such an incredible atmosphere, there is just something about being transported away to that period of time, to not be able to see the roof of the shed sticking out in the pirate boat attack scene or for the journey to be more leisurely paced then its brothers. Captain Jack isn’t necessary but he doesn't detract from this enriching, engaging experience. It’s popularity here is incredible. Hundreds of people joining the queue every minute, each one eagerly anticipating Walt’s last ride he was involved in before he died. I loved it. It’s my favourite ride at Disneyland. Alas, it was time to move on, we ended up in Fantasyworld for a little ride on its a small world. This one takes on the Paris look of having an outside loading area but unlike Paris, this one is a series of show rooms and not just one big warehouse. And here the props are far much larger and interesting then I’ve seen previously. My favourite hula girls also appeared here with speedy hips so that made me happy. Time for a ride on the other side of Matterhorn, the Tomorrowland side. Felt quite similar to the other one although Chris found this side rougher. We still had a while until Indianna Jones so we entered Tomorrowland and rode on Buzz Lightyear’s Spin thing. I officially hate all three versions of this ride so far. Dull, Dull, Dull. At least this one didn’t have fastpass. Before heading to Indianna we grabbed a fast pass for Star Tours, went and had some chicken on Main Street then rode Indianna Jones Temple where some more effects seemed to be working this time. That was good. With luck our Star Tours fast pass time was upon us but before we headed over that way we grabbed a Thunder Mountain night time ride fast pass and knowing the parade was on, waited near the Storybook Canal Boats. Somehow this had alluded us on our trips, it business and random closing times meaning we never got a look in. This time we somehow started the queue for it, meaning we’d be the first on when it reopened. Totally different world to Paris where there it’s walk on all the time. I like the cast members talking to us though, nice feature. Rode Star Tours then headed down to potentially queue for Splash. I wasn’t keen, 65 minutes for a ride that I don’t really like wasn’t worth it so we queued five minutes for Winnie the Pooh instead. By now it was around six o clock and to slow the pace down a bit we headed to Fantasyland to get rides on Pinocchio and Snow White. With twelve hours left of the day we still felt okay to carry on but it is hard going to keep the energy levels high. Fastpass Top trumps. I think I win. We decided not to bother with Space Mountain either and decided to get some snacks to give us an energy boost. It was soon time for Fantasmic and the fireworks. We didn’t move once Fantasmic ended, instead choosing to watch the fireworks from a distance. Works just as well. Our plan was to try and get on Pirates before the second Fantasmic started but unfortunately got caught in the one way system. So instead we had a go on Jungle Cruise which was walk on. The cast member this time was a bit of a mumbler so didn’t catch much of her jokes. We got off and Fantasmic was about to start. We darted into Pirates queue and luckily wouldn't be exciting as Fantasmic finishes (would be disaster). Pirates <3 After our ride we went and saw the Tiki room show which I am a big fan off. This was a chance to rest our feet, necessary after nearly 18 hours of Disney parks. After Tiki, it was Thunder Mountain time where the fast pass queue and stand by queue had become one big sprawl of people; it wasn’t pretty but we made it. And what a ride in the dark it is. So much fun especially as its barely lit up at all. Wonderful stuff. We had no more fast pass energy left and somehow we ended up in Tomorrowland. Space Mountain seemed to be dead so we decided to ride Autopia. I hate this ride too, it seems like such an unnecessary waste of space especially in a park as small and compact as this. Unfortunately we also had to sit in the car for ages as one had stopped somewhere around the circuit. BROKEN! We were evacuated from the ride and decided to call it a day at Disneyland. California Adventure was calling with a 3am showing of World of Colour. There’s nothing like standing in the cold at 3am in the morning and being sprayed with water for thirty minutes. With Screamin’ and Radiator Springs Racers closing at 4 we raced (pun not intended) over to get a go but both had closed already and with Tower the only major ride still running after 4 (but with a tasty 120 minute queue) we decided to call it a day. We’d made it to 22 hours and I especially knew I had driving to do in the morning. TOWER! I love you but 120 minutes is just to long at 4 in the morning. So what can I say about the day. It is a hard hard day of theme parking and takes the patience of a saint. It says something that the night-time shows finish and you still have essentially a day at Alton Towers left before the parks close. I whole-heartedly recommend it though as the parks have a special atmosphere like no other. Getting on Pirates was the icing on the cake. And with that, thats the theme park side of the holiday done and dusted. Whilst I would love to have done some of the other parks in the area, that can be done another time around. For now though, we had done some of the most famous theme parks in America and I have to say I was so impressed with the rides on the west coast. The B&M's and Intamins in Florida are kind of hit and miss but over in California, each one was ridable and enjoyable. Special mention goes to the two floor less coasters of Medusa and Scream. They were great. I'd like to thank anyone thats read all my trip reports. You guys rule

Great work Thorpe. For the kicking the park got for this, at least the problem of one Train operation has been quickly resolved.

Who says you'll have to wait an hour now? If the queue really is an hour for Swarm, register for RNR, go queue for Stealth then come back and walk onto Swarm. Seems pretty straight forward to me. Oh I agree. The only problem in the past with throughput is that the higher the throughput the more fastrack you are able to sell meaning more people are getting on a ride but the stand by queue doesn't necessarily benefit from the added capacity.

Thorpe actually listen to feedback, not make it compulsary and people still feel they are making bad decisions. It is a trial remember, the idea is to see if it has the potential to work and at least Thorpe are taking on feedback and adapting it for the weekend.

I agree to an extent however there's a few factors involved here.. - Most of PortAventuras rides don't open till 12 anyway. You'd be lucky to get Baco, Shambhala and Dragon Khan open before 12. - Thorpe have had long hours in the summer before and traditionally, it gets very quiet around 6 meaning that the people who get affected by the queues aren't sticking around. - Thorpe are continuing with summer nights at weekends this season. Hopefully this will mean an end to early closures for the majority of the year. - The Spanish are very much people who get up later and do things later. Evening meals are more eight o clock then six for example hence why PA has later opening hours. - I've never known a time where all five of Thorpes coasters have two hour queues. The only time I can really see it ever happening is Fright Nights, and even then two hours is a stretch.

Everyones making it sound like this train is sentient and moves by itself..

Yeah Chessiglngton only added a brand new ride, they were so lazy, silly Chessington.

Knotts Berry Farm This was my first Cedar Fair park. Unlike Six Flags which reputation has always been low, Cedar Fair either has raging fanboys defending Cedar Point to the hilt or negativity thrown for its zealous attitudes towards over the top safety procedures. Upon arrival at the park, a sign notified us that Ghostrider, the wooden roller coaster would be closed for the entirety of the day. Bummer. With heavy hearts we awaited at the park entrance where the park is opened with the national anthem and everyone looks to the flag, hand on heart. I can just imagine everyone doing that at Thorpe to ‘God Save the Queen’ I thought to myself. Our first ride was Silver Bullet, the B&M coaster that is more red, yellow and green then Silver. Back in 2004 when I was a fledgling enthusiast, Silver Bullet was the only B&M being constructed and I followed this rides construction avidly. And I remember its opening in December 2004 well as it was met with a mixed reception. It is a reputation it has never really shaken off either unlike Inferno which is now seen as a good little coaster (read my blog for more details ). Our first ride was on the back row, an obvious place to start. Unlike the other parks on the trip, this ride was on one train and it was quite clear that the second train wouldn’t be on today as bits of it were strewn all over the maintenance area. Also from the entrance, it was apparent that many school trips were in attendance, meaning kids galore. So anyway, Silver Bullet. Well that first drop is something special. There are some that like to kick you up the bum like Katun, there are some that lull you into a false sense of security like Nemesis. Here, Bullet is quite happy to casually travel merrily down its first drop and into a forceless vertical loop. It then takes on an over banked turn which isn’t too bad (reminds me of Tatsu) and then into a waste of time cobra roll. Honestly, it has no forces at all. Even an element which lacks on sit downs was great on Scream but here it just sucks. The zero g is also slightly lax, as is the following turn around and corkscrew. The final jump and last corkscrew are pretty good, as is the finale helix which is full of force. The ride as a whole reminds me of Silver Star, eager to please but does nothing truly spectacular. We rode twice more (row 2 and row 1) and the ride did get better but from an intensity stand point it does nothing to challenge the Batmans or even Inferno’s of this world. It looks the part with its striking colour scheme but that really is about it. Fortunately we queued only about 15 minutes max for it. Xcelerator was our next ride, the first of the accelerator Intamin coasters. It’s interesting to see the difference between the first one and the later ones like Stealth and Rita. For example, Xcelerator’s launch is much louder as is the sound of the catch car returning to the station. It also if I dare say it seems slightly crude. The lapbars here are welcome, the difficulties in getting into the train are not. There is no room to move to get across the car, especially if you are in the back of the train. With us strapped in (including unnecessary seat belts) we prepared for launch. The launch is very sudden with no real warning it is about to happen and it caught Chris by surprise. It feels quite jerky in a nice way with a proper punch as you go. It is nowhere as fast as Stealth is but I enjoyed the launch here more. The rest of the ride that follows is pretty boring, kind of like Rita but with no roughness which was a plus. For this reason I can see why Thorpe decided not to clone Xcelerator (although that doesn’t excuse the lack of effort put into Stealth). For this reason, Xcelerator was my favourite ride at Knotts. I can see why the accelerator took off (excuse the pun) as despite the faults, it is a good ride. Our next stop was the new ride for 2013, the mack wild mouse called Coaster rider. It was boring and dull and reminded me of why I wasn’t upset to see Jungle coaster leave Legoland. Then it was the second Boomerang of the trip, this time a rather unpleasant and nasty one which I didn't enjoy. Pony Express was next and whilst not too bad, wasn’t long enough and ended up waiting in the break run for ages as the other train loaded. Knotts is small, very small and it wasn’t long before we were back at the entrance again having done a half circle through the middle of the park. Sierra Sidewinder wasn’t available (a train was stuck on the lift) so we headed through Camp Snoopy and onto Montezoomas revenge. I really really liked this. It was the right amount of intensity, speed and airtime for a ride of its type. Next up was Jaguar which was like a really long Zierer thing that went off in all directions almost like its designers just wanted a lengthy ride in the park. It wasn’t bad and was running two trains (Yay). Back round we came to Sierra Sidewinder, a Mack spinning coaster that has a poor reputation in coaster circles. Both Chris and I really liked it. When we got it spinning it went mad and the good pace of the layout meant we were left wanting more. We did another round of the park taking in the KMG afterburner, the S&S shot tower and finally an odd show in the Majestic Manor. The classic log flume looked really busy but we queued it anyway and it turned out to be a ten minute queue. Good ride and takes you on a really long adventure. Animatronics are in abundance and it is a really nice, classic ride. We didn’t bother with the Screaming Swing, $5 is a bit much for something I do for free at Thorpe. In some ways this is very much a Thorpe from 2006. A B&M inverter, an Intamin accelerator, a KMG afterburner, a S&S Screaming Swing feature and there was a lot of ride downtime or rides only running one train and very few staff around. It strikes an uncanny resemblance to our UK park. It was an enjoyable place to be although it wasn’t as enjoyable as Magic Mountain or Discovery Kingdom. We decided to call it a day an hour before closing as we’d done everything we wanted and the park had too many excitable, over the top school children dashing around in every direction.

Baring in mind we didn't do things like Seaworld San Diego, Universal Studios or Californias Great America I couldn't give you a guaranteed taste of what they are all like. But if I was to recommend it would be 1) Magic Mountain as it just so many roller coasters and the majority are very good quality (Tatsu is definitely fighting in my overall top ten coasters!) and it negates Discovery Kingdom (Scream - Medusa, Apocalypse - Roar, Full Throttle - Superman Ultimate Flight). The second choice would be both the Disney parks. Knotts is basically Thorpe Park with less quality roller coasters. Silver Bullet just isn't as good as Nemesis Inferno and whilst Xcelerator is better IMO then Stealth, I couldn't recommend a trip on that alone.

Merlin have nothing to do with the maintenance regimes on Stealth.

It just shows you that if you invest in your park, people will come.

Apparently not. Still, I live in hope that the engineers are getting through the 'in bits' train as fast (and as safely) as possible. If they can work miracles with Slammer, Stealth should be a piece of cake.

I'd want to know why that five month long closed season isn't ample time to do all three trains and why we're approaching the second busiest time of year and they only have one train available 'for the forseeable future'