Tom Posted September 21, 2012 Report Share Posted September 21, 2012 His name is George Dobson and he lives in Garston... Ryan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 So, yesterday I hit Scarefest for the first time ever yesterday. I'd heard many great things about the event in the past few years, and really did jump at the opportunity to go. Being also my first visit of the year, this would be my first experience of the anticipated Nemesis Sub-Terra; needless to say, I was looking forward to the day. After a long coach journey from uni (two and a half hours somehow, even though it should have only taken one and a half!), we arrived at about half 11, and got in at about quarter to 12. I do love the Scarefest entrance! Clowns were greeting guests, and scaring a fair few guests too. I love this view, whatever the weather! The park was relatively quiet, and the weather was nice - things were looking good. According to the Scarefest app, Sub Terra's queue was 15-30 minutes, so we jumped at the opportunity. After a quick Skyride over there, we arrived and made our way over. The queue was relatively quick moving and interesting I thought; the TV loop was very good and very professional. We made our way in, and this is where I'll pretty much leave it there for the time being, as I'll post my full, spoiler-filled review in the correct topic. Just a couple of words though - I really did enjoy it, it left me with a smile on my face, and there were some bit that genuinely shocked me, though I was a little disappointed with the way the storyline ended; a little weak. On the whole, a good, solid attraction which suits Alton Towers perfectly - 7/10. Afterwards, we made our way towards the Dark Forest via Skyride, of course, though a random detour to Cloud Cuckoo Land for a certain costumed character was had... Pretty standard shot. Th13teen times were had as well, though we decided to use Single Rider as the queue was rather large following disturbances in the forest affecting Rita's operational status temporarily, though it was quickly resolved it seems. I absolutely love Th13teen, it is one of my favourite rides on park. In fact, had that first drop not been trimmed and it kept a large amount of pace during the ride, it might have even been my favourite ride! The indoor queue line is a work of art, and the station area sets such a brilliant tone - absolutely love it. The ride itself is enjoyable, but the first trim really does ruin it for me; I forget just how noticeable it is. In a couple more years once more trees have grown more and such, the outside section will certainly be impressive. The indoor section is so much fun as well; it's something which puts a smile on everyone's face. My favourite part of the ride is the end however - pretty much being launched into the station just makes me laugh for some reason.. Once Th13teen was done and dusted, it was coming close to 1 O'clock and Terror of the Towers was due to open, so we made our way over there and waited a short period of time.. I'm aware that TotT gets large queues, so seeing this short length (as the gates had yet opened) made me happy. I do like the queue line and the shots of the Towers you can get. Trying the panorama mode on my phone; pretty successful I think. The Sanctuary queue is to the left hand side. Like with Sub-Terra, I'll write reviews for the mazes in the appropriate topic, but a couple of non-spoiler words to follow. I like the back story to the maze, however, I just didn't feel like it followed through in the maze really, which was disappointing. The length was very good, and I don't think it felt drawn out, however, I wasn't as impressed with it as others seem to be; perhaps all the rave reviews lead me to expect too much, but I wasn't overly impressed with it.. - 6/10 We exited the maze into the X-Sector, and made our way to Oblivion. Again, another ride which many seem to like, and I seem to think is okay at best. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the ride, but it just never blows me away really. Lunch was had in the Fried Chicken Co. - really good place; fast service, tasty food and quite cheap as well. Thumbs up from me! Standard Oblivion shot. Standard Oblivion shot II. My usual nature shot. This duck tried so hard to eat this bread, and failed. We ended up going to Duel, but got lost / sidetracked by the beautiful shots round here: This tower-thing is pretty sweet. Panorama-view from by that tower. Because why not? Now then, this was my first time on Duel. I knew what the ride was, and I knew that it used to be a Haunted House ride, but I didn't quite know what to expect from the ride. I really did enjoy it though; the effects were amazing, the length was very good and the general setting I loved. Much better than Tomb Blaster, and a very good dark ride - would've loved to have ridden it before the laser guns were introduced. Nemesis and Air times were had afterwards, and my opinions remain pretty much the same. I also did Nemesis front row, which was an experience. However, as controversial as it may seem, I still prefer Swarm to Nemesis - Swarm just seems to have 'something' about it which is special, whereas Nemesis, whilst special, seems to lack that 'something'. The thing is, I can't really put my finger on what that 'something' actually is, but hey, I digress... A second go on Sub-Terra was also had, and I enjoyed it just as much the second time as I did the first, proving to myself really that it wasn't a one hit wonder of a ride. After some general milling around and the such, as well as a quick go on the amazing Sonic Spinball, half 5 arrived and it was time for the Carnival of Screams and The Sanctuary. Again, spoilers elsewhere, just a couple of pictures and a sentence here: Love this entrance! <3 I really enjoyed Carnival, a really great attraction, and again, a very good length. There were a couple too many 'obvious scares' for my liking, and I'm unsure if that was the point, but on the whole, it was solid and did what it was meant to do. 7.5/10 Sanctuary 'waiting room'. Everyone Sanctuary patient gets a stamp it seems.. Sanctuary was my favourite maze of the day, and had a couple of real highlights for me. Like all of Alton's mazes, a very good length in my opinion and works very well. A bit like TotT, I found the story is set up very well at the beginning before the maze, but seems to disappear in the maze a fair bit, with just bits and bobs coming through. The ending also needs some work. 7.5/10 Zombies followed afterwards, and there's not a lot I can say about it really. The actors do a good job, the theming is good and everything works well. A good scare and works for all the family, which is exactly what Alton should aim for. The Towers lit up at dusk; very nice sight. That's pretty much it. A bit of shopping was done, but due to Barclays and their silly fraud rules I missed out on a couple of bits and restricted myself (grr, but life goes on..). I didn't noticed the green donuts which were mentioned on the AT Twitter page either, which was a shame, and missed out on night rides as well, but there'll be other times. All in all, I really enjoyed Scarefest, mainly because I enjoy Alton Towers. I noticed that apart from in Towers Street and the mazes, it didn't feel very Halloween-y, with no real changes to audio and not that much extra theming and the like. I guess being the Preview Weekend, the park has a chance to add more, make tweaks and the like, which I hope they do. Really enjoyed the day, and I hope that I can make it to another Scarefest event next season and for seasons to come. Liam T, pluk, Ryan and 2 others 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted November 1, 2012 Report Share Posted November 1, 2012 Went to Alton towers for 2 and a half days. (30th, 31st October and half of 1st November.) RIDECOUNT (Over 2 and a half days:) - Nemesis x12 - Th13teen x2 - Oblivion x3 - Air x1 - Sonic spinball x1 - Nemesis: Sub Terra x2 - Hex x3 - Duel x9 - Congo river rapids x1 - The flume x1 - Ripsaw x1 - Submission x1 - Enterprise x1 MAZE COUNT (Over 2 and a half days:) - Terror of the towers x2 - The Sanctuary x2 - Carnival of screams x2 (Sanctuary and Carnival of screams were at a discounted price the second day of going in them (1st November)) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted November 1, 2012 Report Share Posted November 1, 2012 RIDECOUNT (Over 2 and a half days:) - Nemesis x12 This is the best use of any time anywhere I can think of. Mark9 and MikeC 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted November 2, 2012 Report Share Posted November 2, 2012 This is the best use of any time anywhere I can think of.Yeah, we used the single riders queue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeC Posted February 20, 2013 Report Share Posted February 20, 2013 February Half Term PTR - 18/02After sorting out my pass at the Towers Street Box Office, it was straight over to Forbidden Valley to meet up with friends and ride the greatest. We did Nemesis three times (which was walk on all day) before heading over to Air. The queue for the front row was only five minutes at that time. I had a good look round the Air shop afterwards - loving the new Nemesis hoodies and other merch <3 We did Nemesis again before making our way over to Sonic Spinball. Sonic was quite busy all day, as was the Runaway Mine Train (45 minutes at times). Hex next! I cant comment on the new effects, but the experience was as good as ever. Interesting to note that the exit has been diverted. No doubt due to the Sanctuary set. It was over to FV for some lunch in Fresh Fish and Chips next. The queue was out the door at this time and there wasn't anywhere to sit unfortunately. It was back on Nemesis for another ride before doing Duel...twice. This area was pretty busy, although Duel was walk on, funnily enough. RMT next and then home. You can get some great shots from the full length queueline. Ride count: Nemesis x5 Air x1 Duel x2 RMT x1 Sonic Spinball x1 Hex x1 Thanks for reading pluk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBobJones Posted February 20, 2013 Report Share Posted February 20, 2013 You didn't ride the Squirrel Nutty ride? I did this week pluk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeC Posted February 21, 2013 Report Share Posted February 21, 2013 Lol, no. Funnily enough, I'm told that Squirrel Nutty saw queues of 60 minutes at on point during the week Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Posted February 21, 2013 Report Share Posted February 21, 2013 Squirrel has been beating most of the other rides for queuetimes this week. Brilliant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted February 21, 2013 Report Share Posted February 21, 2013 Clearly the best ride in the park. Rich and MikeC 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBobJones Posted February 22, 2013 Report Share Posted February 22, 2013 I loved it this week, did Ice Age too, I was disappointed Charlie wasn't open. But I had my family non thrill seeking hat on this week. Of course I couldn't not go on Nemesis a few times, well you can't resist when its walk on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 Went Towers yesterday, my patience paid off as the park was as close to empty as I'll possibly see it this season. My main thoughts below:- The work done on Duel and Hex is pretty awesome considering the limited budgets. Inanimate objects before in Duel, now make noises or scream and the work done in Hex such as the new projector, lighting effects, smoke effects and the addition of the witches curse in the ride scene really help sell the ride. I've come to the conclusion that you should only ever ride Hex with family groups as everyone just really gets into it. Adult groups just try and pick it apart but not the kids and parents. It's the closest thing we will ever get to Disney/Universal standard. Fantastic ride. Had several back row goes on Nemesis. The day I get bored of riding it, is the day I want to be euthanised. it's simply rollercoaster crack and is just sublime in everyway. Air was even riding well, maybe slower due to the cold weather but was lovely to ride. I have to give kudos to the Towers for both rides being on two trains all day even though the queue was walk on for both rides. Even Sonic Spinball and Squirrel Nutty had a five minute queue when we had our first goes on those. Went round the farm to chill out for a bit, had food at Woodcutters where they deliver your food so quickly, you are lucky if you have paid for your meal before it gets to your table. It's tasty food as well and affordably priced. Tried Ice Age 4D for the first time. Won't be doing that in much of a hurry again. Day was finished off with a coffee and muffin at the coffee place on Towers Street. SO in conclusion, had a great day at Towers. The right balance of rides are available to ride and yeah, it was just great to be back. MikeC, Sidders, Liam T and 2 others 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RideAddict Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 Inanimate objects before in Duel, now make noises or scream and the work done in Hex such as the new projector, lighting effects, smoke effects and the addition of the witches curse in the ride scene really help sell the ride. So they've fixed the animatronics that weren't working, correct? On Duel I didn't know there was many not functioning, however I had noticed last year the hooded figure with the illuminated eyes in the garden section had stopped moving from left to right slowly. Was this working again? I'm confused with the Hex projector you mention, is that the one in the Octagon room? And the addition of the witches curse in the ride scene, is that there or somewhere else? Had several back row goes on Nemesis. The day I get bored of riding it, is the day I want to be euthanised. it's simply rollercoaster crack and is just sublime in everyway. Air was even riding well, maybe slower due to the cold weather but was lovely to ride. I have to give kudos to the Towers for both rides being on two trains all day even though the queue was walk on for both rides. You enjoyed Nemesis then. Credit where it's due though, you wouldn't see Thorpe puttting their backs out on a quiet day like that with Colossus or Inferno. Went round the farm to chill out for a bit, had food at Woodcutters where they deliver your food so quickly, you are lucky if you have paid for your meal before it gets to your table. It's tasty food as well and affordably priced. I'm glad you've given this the green light, this is one place I've never eaten at, and this year I'm planning to try out the eateries I've never done (at all parks). Then again, the speedy service was probably due to the fact that it was dead in the park. Let's hope these standards are kept to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 The service in Woodcutters has ALWAYS been speedy, t'other year on a weekend trip the person who ordered in front of me had their food appear as I was returning straight after them... Hex projector is probably the first pre-show, and the chants are apparently at the end of the ride sequence... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 Yeah I saw the Woodcutters staff waiting for me to get to my table before bringing it over, it was great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiddlywinks Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 Its that time of year again, when the cold winter is almost over! Well, actually I was more looking forward to going to alton towers for 2 days, using my new merlin annual pass. I visited on the 16th February (feb half term opening day). I drove into the quiet car park. As I have a premium annual pass, car parking is free. I walked over to the plaza to here the magical and exciting music ringing in my ear. It was 10:00am, so the park had just opened. Due to previous experiances, I was aware that the queues were always short during february half term. As I entered the theme park, I ran to sonic spinball which had a 50 minute queue.I decided to give this a miss, as I was here for 2 days, and could ride it tomorrow. We then walked over to Forbidden Valley to ride the king of the coaster 'nemesis'. It was a 15 minute queue, even though it was coming out of the main ride entrance. I realised they only had the short queue open. After my intense ride on nemesis, I went for a ride on air. There was only one station avaliable out of the two, but they was running 2 cars. The queue board said 'Air is a bubbly mins'. I was not aware of the queue time, so took a chance. The queue ended up being 40 minutes, which I was okay to wait for. The only thing which was an off put, was that someone had been sick on the floor below the block breaks. Unfortunatly, where you lay down, this means riders faces was facing the stench, as well as the gruesome sight of the sick. Unfortunatly, the person riding in that seat was me. I had the prevent myself from breathing in someone elses sick for over 5 minutes, due to the car in the station was not raising into the flying position. It was then time for duel. A 0 minute queue. Now, believe me I'm no expert on duel of getting the best scores, but this time, I was overlly impressed. I had a score of 26,800. (Share your scores in the comments below). There were a few minor changes to duel, which have taken place over the closed season. We then headed over to Runaway Mine Train on a 40 minute queue. Unfortunatly, I was forced to wait in a queue with my younger brother ... Benefit was that we got front seats and the ride operator didnt stop the train in time at the station, and we got 3 goes, instead of 2!! I then attempted to peek at the smiler construction, however they have kept it well hidden away, and it was imoossible to get anywhere near X Sector due to security and fences. I then headed to Hex, which was another 0 minute queue. The quality of the video was so much better, due to them,changing the projector, and also in the main vault there is no more loud bangs. I headed to the hotels, and they have decorated the main stage area in the Splash Landings Hotel into a moshi monster theme. On the 17th February, I went to the resort again. I'll just tell you the queue times: Air- 30 mins all day (4 breakdowns) Nemesis- 0 mins all day Sonic Spinball- 20-40 minutes (3 people on a car) Squirrell Nutty- 60 minutes Runaway Mine Train- 45 minutes- 60 minutes (front 2 seats not avaliable) Ice Age- 20 minutes Frog Hopper- 15 Minutes Gallopers Carousel- 10 minutes Driving School- 15 Minutes Blade- 5 minutes Hex- 0-10 minutes Heave Ho- 10 minutes Duel- 5-15 minutes I noticed that restaurants were much busier than the rides. People were waiting up to 60 minutes for meals. It is a great time to go to Alton Towers for february half term, to ride nemesis over and over again! It isnt too busy. Ride Ratings: Air- 6/10- Not what I would call a thrill ride, lots of breakdowns Nemesis- 9/10- Had a short queue, and is highly intense. Not many negatives, apart from the water which is usually red (representing blood) was clear, which ruins the whole atmosphere. Sonic Spinball- 6/10- Once I'm on this ride, I absoloutly LOVE it! However, it has slow throughput meaning queue is very long. TIP- Dont run to sonic straight away, as everyone does this, because it is the biggest ride they can see from the entrance. Go to the Dark Forest (in main season) or Forbidden Valley first. Runaway Mine Train-4/10- Great ride to go onto with the family, however queues are generally long. TIP- If you have young children, go to this ride first. These were the main rides open! I'm next going to legoland (23rd March 2013) and Chessington (24th March 2013), and I will write another trip review. If you can think of any improvements or any comments about my trip review, I will take all comments on board, and attempt to do them for the next review. Thank You for taking your time to read! pluk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstroDan Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 Went Towers yesterday, my patience paid off as the park was as close to empty as I'll possibly see it this season. My main thoughts below:- The work done on Duel and Hex is pretty awesome considering the limited budgets. Inanimate objects before in Duel, now make noises or scream and the work done in Hex such as the new projector, lighting effects, smoke effects and the addition of the witches curse in the ride scene really help sell the ride. I've come to the conclusion that you should only ever ride Hex with family groups as everyone just really gets into it. Adult groups just try and pick it apart but not the kids and parents. It's the closest thing we will ever get to Disney/Universal standard. Fantastic ride. Had several back row goes on Nemesis. The day I get bored of riding it, is the day I want to be euthanised. it's simply rollercoaster crack and is just sublime in everyway. Air was even riding well, maybe slower due to the cold weather but was lovely to ride. I have to give kudos to the Towers for both rides being on two trains all day even though the queue was walk on for both rides. Even Sonic Spinball and Squirrel Nutty had a five minute queue when we had our first goes on those. Went round the farm to chill out for a bit, had food at Woodcutters where they deliver your food so quickly, you are lucky if you have paid for your meal before it gets to your table. It's tasty food as well and affordably priced. Tried Ice Age 4D for the first time. Won't be doing that in much of a hurry again. Day was finished off with a coffee and muffin at the coffee place on Towers Street. SO in conclusion, had a great day at Towers. The right balance of rides are available to ride and yeah, it was just great to be back. I shouted Hey at you,and you both looked utterly baffled. Just near Katanga. :D Park was dead compared to the rest of half term! Also - re: Hex - the ride is amazing just now. The vault audio is superb, the addition of new smoke machines is also great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liam T Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 I also waved at you AstroDan but you also looked confused and baffled! Fantastic days I've had at Alton Towers, both Sunday's were lovely, 24th was so dead! So strange having re-rides on Nemesis! Was awfully cold on the 24th though. First time I've ate in Woodcutters aswell! Great service with lovely food and a really nice atmosphere inside, only downside is I wish the inside was a tiny bit bigger but will definitely be eating there again! Sonic is more violent that what I remember from last season but that might just be the weather! Once its warmed it I'm sure it will be okay. Seeing The Smiler track was strange aswell, doesn't block the view of Oblivion as much as people thought it would, was strange being on park and not hearing the loud thundering boom of Oblivion but I've heard it will be back booming on the 16th! The Moshi Monsters scared me abit.. strange looking things but I think Alton was onto a winner! Really worked for the park, I'd be surprised if this wasn't the busiest and biggest February half term ever! Nemesis was being as lush as usual, so damn forceful than what I remember, I actually can't ride it without screaming! Back row just pulled my face off, amazing. Air was a little bit rattly but I put that down to the weather, and I felt comfortable in them restraints! Normally I hate Air's restraints and puts me off the ride but it didn't feel so bad this time and walk on pretty much all Sunday 24th! Hex looks so much better, the new projector and other fixed effects really do have an affect on the ride, same again with all the rides at Alton that was open, putting 110% into them when they really didn't have too. I also got to explore the hotels for the first time in half term and they're so GOOD. I adore the hotels so much, the atmosphere in them is beyond perfection, so cosy and didn't wanna leave Splash, it was lovely sitting in the warmth watching the massive bucket of water splash down on the poor victims under it, could sit in there all day, I need to stay there ASAP! So yeah, thank you everyone who came, was my taxi, made jokes about the poor lady serving on the hot dog counter & more, lovely seeing everyone, meeting new faces and catching up with old faces! Bring on the 16th March! Going to be E P I C! Here's my favorite photo taken from the 17th: Luke_A, MikeC and pluk 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 I shouted Hey at you,and you both looked utterly baffled. Just near Katanga. :D Park was dead compared to the rest of half term! Also - re: Hex - the ride is amazing just now. The vault audio is superb, the addition of new smoke machines is also great! Ha sorry, I did sort of mumble good morning quietly, but I was caught out and went into sky mode. Had a feeling I knew who you were. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Posted February 28, 2013 Report Share Posted February 28, 2013 Looking forward to riding Hex.. nothing but good things have been said about it. They had Boss in to redo the entire audio system and bring it up to date, which have had certain aspects become much clearer (the witches curse has always been in the vault, just been muffled/quiet). Apparently they had a little bit more to do before march, so hopefully it'll pay off further. Want to go on park purely to ride that thing. Sheepie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheepie Posted February 28, 2013 Report Share Posted February 28, 2013 One of my fave rides in the park. All the things I've heard about it have really excited me. I'm planning to take my auntie and uncle to Towers this year who have never experienced the ride- really want them to be impressed by it. Sounds weird but it feels like a ride that kind of "sums me up". There are all these multi-million pound dark rides worldwide but here in England is humble ol' Hex and for me it's right up there as one of the best dark rides. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted February 28, 2013 Report Share Posted February 28, 2013 Remember taking my uni mates on it (one of whom hadn't done a ride before at all before that day) and they were both pretty amazed by the whole thing... Seeing someone look so confused and grip onto the lapbar in fear was amazing <3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RideAddict Posted February 28, 2013 Report Share Posted February 28, 2013 Also - re: Hex - the ride is amazing just now. The vault audio is superb, the addition of new smoke machines is also great! The vault is the main ride, correct? So they have improved the audio. Hmm, I thought it was OK already but meh. I understand the first video you watch is now clearer thanks to a projector upgrade? Only in recent years have I thought it was getting bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 Alton Towers - 17th March Headed to the towers with Benin, Nicky and Dan9 yesterday for trip to the UK's best loved theme park. One thing that made itself clear from the off is that the park is as quiet as the grave. This become more apparent through the day as rides such as Thirteen went down to one train (and even then the queue was only 5 minutes) and Oblivion was only using two of its four ride cars. Every trip I've made to Towers has usually started with a trip to Forbidden Valley for rides on Air and Nemesis. This time, because Dan had never visited Intamin land and we thought the park might be busy, we decided to start the park in a different direction. So off to Thirteen we went where the ride was on two trains. Dan may tell you his own feelings on it in a seperate trip report. I came off slightly bored. Last year I enjoyed my go but I wasn't feeling the love this time around. Later on in the day we returned for a second go and whilst slightly better, it wasn't great, just average. Next ride was Rita with its ridiculous scaffolding. Ride was okay, warned Dan about the launch into a corner and there was a good amount of ejector air time during the ride actually. Don't remember it being that forceful in the past. Again, we returned later in the day where the staff were struggling to fill the two trains with people. A very rare sight. Next rides were Charlie which is looking okay and Hex which is looking stunning. A real kudos to the Towers for their work here, it really shows how far they can stretch a budget in the right places. Off to X-Sector next with the Smiler where pictures really don't do the size of the project justice. It is a huge project and with so much track still left to install from near the car park, its hard to think it will be up and running in May. Oblivion looks absolutely fantastic, in fact the whole of X Sector is looking shiny and new. The trains loook all done up, the black of the track returns Oblivion to its dark and sinister look and its great to see the ride cars with bright orange restraints like back to when it first opened. Marvellous job Towers. I took Dan on a journey on Submission. It wasn't running both sides (dun,dun,dun) but really didn't need to. After some Smiler admiration we had a go on Spinball (10 minute queue), had a go on Squirrel Nutty (no queue) and went on a life changing ride on Riverbank Eye Spy where we witnessed a mallard raping his female friend. Not a great look. With two hours in the park completed and not a view of Nemesis and Air even had, it was time for lunch. We went to the Burger Kitchen in Cloud Cuckoo Land and whilst the food wasn't gourmet quality, it was as I expected it to be, fast food. The sit down out of the cold was nice to have had. We next ventured onto the skyride skyride skyride and off to Forbidden Valley. I'm liking the Smiler adverts, if only for their comic value. Nemesis Sub-Terra. Wow. The last time I'd been on it, back in March 2012, it was a hated attraction which I had really enjoyed. The changes they've made to it have allowed the ride to become a truly immersive experience and one which everyone on the ride genuinely fears. The effects, the videos, the lighting, the story is of such a high quality. In terms of dark rides in the UK, IMO it is only narrowly behind Hex. The only thing that lets it down is the end corridor with the actors needing gas masks. I don't think much of halloween mazes as it is so for me it feels tacked on and in terms of the actual story, is completely unnecessary and confused. The ride for me is enough. Nemesis and Air followed, their usual reliable selfs. Is it me or is Air running very well this year. It felt really smooth, forceful and graceful throughout, something I've never felt that often on it. It was on two trains but they had the third craft ready in the second station in case they needed. Definitly not today where at about 4 o clock, one train was going round with only two people on it. How often can you say you've seen that happen on a Sunday in open season? Nemesis was running as well as ever and we even managed to walk straight onto the front row at 4:20. So good. To complete our first cycle of the park we travelled onto Duel, Runaway Mine Train and Congo River Rapids. They were all their reliable selfs. We decided to have a look around Towers Street shop where the merchandise for the six major rollercoasters on park is really evident. Whilst Smiler has the majority of attention and according to staff is selling almost too well (struggling with demand is what I heard), the other rides are well served. Little resin replicas of Rita trains, Oblivion logo paper-weights, pin badges, ride trophies for Nemesis and Smiler, special edition shot glasses, some actually tasteful ride hoodies and shirts theres a very large selection to buy and I was very tempted. I settled for the Smiler bear which smells like strawberries. And so completes a perfect visit to the Towers. I'll probably never see the place as quiet as that again. pluk, Benin, Dan9 and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted March 18, 2013 Report Share Posted March 18, 2013 DAT DUCK RAPE! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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