James Allgood Posted February 22, 2015 Report Share Posted February 22, 2015 12 times on stealth.... Yeah the park is really really busy today Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted February 22, 2015 Report Share Posted February 22, 2015 With regards to the one train operation, I'd assume that they've only got one train ready for the half term event. Whilst having a half hour wait on one train is a pretty nasty experience, it very much seems that was an exceptional case. If Swarm and Stealth are averaging queues under 10 minutes for the majority of the half term event, you could argue that 2 trains really was not a necessity. Also, let's not forget that similar things happened at Alton Towers - Nemesis had a 30 minute queue last Saturday on one train operation. The (rare) problem isn't just exclusive to Thorpe. I would like to share my disappointment at depth charge yesterday, who's staff closed the gate at 3.57 (and that was the time on all of our phones), we had rushed to get there last thing and was told can't go on, ride op up top says queue is closed now - hardly fair when it's not supposed to shut til 4!! You see, with something like this, when we're literally talking the space of a couple of minutes, it's a bit difficult. Thorpe's clocks might be synchronised differently to your phones'. Or there could have been a small reason which made them feel it was best to just close a couple of minutes early. In theory, I'm usually against rides closing before the advertised closing time. But when you're speaking about closing 2-3 minutes early on a filler ride like Depth Charge, it does feel a bit more insignificant in fairness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldFarmerDean Posted February 22, 2015 Report Share Posted February 22, 2015 Just because it's a filler ride doesn't make it any less inportant for someones choice of ride especially cobsidering how many younger people were in the park. It looked like it had a 15-20 minute queue at the end, the longest in the park so they were clearly being cheeky and just trying to reduce how long they have to stay after 4. It hardly ruined my day, it's just annoying. BigBobJones 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattgwise Posted February 22, 2015 Report Share Posted February 22, 2015 I would like to share my disappointment at depth charge yesterday, who's staff closed the gate at 3.57 (and that was the time on all of our phones), we had rushed to get there last thing and was told can't go on, ride op up top says queue is closed now - hardly fair when it's not supposed to shut til 4!!Another reason it was great when the end of day music was played. All staff Park wide knew exactly when to close the queue lines off at the correct time. Cal 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Posted February 22, 2015 Report Share Posted February 22, 2015 It's most likely that staff would close the rides due to a phonetical from control rather than the end of day music playing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattgwise Posted February 22, 2015 Report Share Posted February 22, 2015 Of course, I didn't mean that was the only reason. Only mentioned it because when it used to start playing I would hear staff on many occasions say something, for example: "yay time to close the queue". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstroDan Posted February 22, 2015 Report Share Posted February 22, 2015 I don't generally think 1 train operation has been a major problem for Thorpe Park or Alton Towers this week apart from the odd hour here or there. Alton Towers, however, run the likes of Nemesis in main season pretty much never on 1 train - and we know Thorpe are far more likely to. However, overall - it hasn't been too bad. I still find both parks line-ups not padded out enough to really give you a day out at this time of year... OldFarmerDean and jon81uk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huzzellio Posted February 22, 2015 Report Share Posted February 22, 2015 That happened when I went last weekend, so I'm guessing it is part of the show!Haha, they almost had me convinced that it wasn't supposed to happen! Fair play to them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPJames Posted February 22, 2015 Report Share Posted February 22, 2015 In theory, I'm usually against rides closing before the advertised closing time. But when you're speaking about closing 2-3 minutes early on a filler ride like Depth Charge, it does feel a bit more insignificant in fairness. If last ride entry is at 4pm, the ride's queueline should be closed no earlier than 4pm. Closing a ride earlier than advertised, is quite frankly false advertising as a guest to the park should be allowed entry into the queuelines until the specified closing time and no earlier. Whilst a couple of minutes might not make the biggest difference, it can be the difference between getting on a ride you haven't been on yet or not. In this case, it can then be viewed as completely unfair to close the queueline early unless of a genuine technical fault. Seastorm today is a prime example of what should happen in terms of ride closing. From 2pm onwards, the Market square was completely abandoned with around 5-10people in the area. Seastorm was getting no more than 4-5people per ride yet they didn't close the queueline for the attraction until bang on 3pm. Yet it was operating for an hour with virtually no one on it in moderate rain. It's not exactly a massive problem if a ride closes early, however it shouldn't happen as the ride is clearly advertised to close at a later time. I appreciate rides are subject to status, however if there isn't a technical fault or something along those lines, there is no valid reason for the ride to close early and it quite frankly unfair on park visitors. BigBobJones and OldFarmerDean 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitchada04 Posted February 22, 2015 Report Share Posted February 22, 2015 Maybe all the rides closed at that time and that the parks time is just different to all of your phones by a few minutes? I'm pretty sure control or something would radio around announcing ride close and that's when the staff go to close the gates. Sometimes they'll let you up if your phone doesn't quite make it 4 but I don't think they do it without being told to by higher up and I think the whole park gets that order as such. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPJames Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 I made a montage of the event, however unfortunately didn't have time to capture any footage of any of the science stalls or Brainiac Live! Filming was not permitted as such during Brainiac Live anyway! So this is just a small montage of the limited rides on offer during February Half Term I hope to get some more footage and photos on Annual Pass preview weekend and/or I'm a Celebrity opening weekend! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerfuffle Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 Filming was not permitted as such during Brainiac Live anyway! Eh? When I filmed the show I'm pretty sure I had my camera out right in front of a member of staff for a sec...and I managed to capture the full 45 minutes! Not so sure on that one... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 Eh? When I filmed the show I'm pretty sure I had my camera out right in front of a member of staff for a sec...and I managed to capture the full 45 minutes! Not so sure on that one... It said on the boards outside that mobile phones must be switched off and I THINK no filming allowed, they weren't enforcing it as far as I'm aware though. pognoi 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPJames Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 I saw loads of people taking photos while the show was going on and certainly loads of people had their phones out. The rule was certainly there as upon entry we were told no filming or flash photography was permitted, however the rule didn't appear to have been enforced once inside the marquee. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flipper Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 It won't let me multi quote -.- A few points which I'd like to question, starting with ride availability at Towers. Lol. I'm not going to say they haven't offered a lot, because they have; however I went last Wednesday, and it was pretty bad to see the reliability of rides. Spinball on four cars, running one empty and constantly having issues coming into the station with lining up - questionable that it's running as poorly as that considering it's had three months of maintenance time. Likewise, Nemesis only having one train built up at all and having issues at that; and AIR, well, I don't think the trains have actually been worked on as when you look at the wear on the wheels they're nearly done for, and haven't changed a bit since Fireworks - so is it actually maintenance making these rides easier to open, or is it a case of they've pretty much not done a lot with them to have them open, in comparison to Thorpe who seem to have actually worked on their rides to ensure that what's ran, is ready to go for the start of the year. I also disagree that this ride and that ride can and cant run temperatures, blah blah. Why isn't Rita open? If Stealth can open, surely Rita can, so I don't agree with the views I've read on Towers forums that it's not possible for Rita to be open in time due to maintenance; because lets be serious, Towers had crap maintenance on the cable, it snapped, and now they're scared. I also argue on Smiler and SAW. If Rage at Adventure Island can open for the full season, as can Troublesome Trucks (DMP) and Cobra (Paultons) then surely SAW and Smiler haven't got a temperature issue in opening based on ride type, but merely a design flaw in the form of they'll stall because they both have 'crawling' elements in the form of the overbank and the knot. Pricing? I still stand by what I said, £5 for Fright Nights, £5 for Half Term, is still a fair compromise considering Towers charge upwards of £12 last year to Annual Pass holders for one trip though each maze, in comparison to Thorpe's offering of five mazes on unlimited trips (queue permitting) and also a 45 minute show at Half Term and side line additions, so how anybody can pick fault at Thorpe's charges or at very least compare them to Towers' is beyond me, because when it comes to VFM whilst I do think the charge is a bit of a pain for Standard MAP, its still overall better than what Towers offer; and like people have said if people don't want to pay, they'll wait. I'm premium and I only went to Towers because someone else wanted to, and I couldn't be arsed with Thorpe's line up considering Stealth and SWARM aren't rides I run for, free or not. I'd also like to highlight how much Alton Towers charged in their hotels over half term. As an Annual Pass holder my DISCOUNTED quote came in at £145 for ATH and £160 for Splash. Full whack was around the £200 mark a night, and have been since early January without any theme park or waterpark tickets included - which IMO is just extortionate considering the event. But I guess it's all a matter of opinion. Oh and finally. Please, FFS, Chessington DO invest. Wild Asia (2010), Azteca Sealife and park refresh (2011), Madagascar (2012), Zufari (2013), Azteca Hotel (2014), Penguins (2015) - you have to remember the Green Belt issue! They have real difficulty getting planning permission for things, and have to keep so much green space hence they do the best they can with the Explorer Gate car park by keeping it grass. Just because they're not building gimmicky roller coasters like Alton Towers, or some kind of new attraction yearly like Thorpe, doesn't mean it isn't investing! Diva fit, over. Kerfuffle, RubyRed95, Adam P and 3 others 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Project LC Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 Saw has a minimum operation temperature of 5 degrees. This is because any lower and there is a high chance of stalling. The smiler will also have a high minimum operating temperature because it's prone to stalling. Rita is closed because of its location and the fact it is a lot of work to get it ready. Stealth is ready as it has rolling mantanice, Rita does not have this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 Oh and finally. Please, FFS, Chessington DO invest. Wild Asia (2010), Azteca Sealife and park refresh (2011), Madagascar (2012), Zufari (2013), Azteca Hotel (2014), Penguins (2015) At least three of their major rides are in a state that it'd be generous even to describe as dilapidated (falls, bubbles and tomb) and many others not looking great. Their response of moving some penguins, a hotel which doesn't affect a park visitor, a cheap show, a sealife section retheme (really?!) and a stunningly badly designed safari which should win awards for the amount of wasted opportunity they managed to cram in doesn't really cut it. I don't think anyone is saying there is no investment but it is far too little far too late to make up for the damage that has been inflicted over a decade or so, and the direction they throw the money they do spend is somewhere between bizarre and moronic if the desired result is a park some rids which are actually good and not depressing. I hope that is the look they start to go for at some point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 There is a LOT to quote here: A few points which I'd like to question, starting with ride availability at Towers. Lol. I'm not going to say they haven't offered a lot, because they have; however I went last Wednesday, and it was pretty bad to see the reliability of rides. Spinball on four cars, running one empty and constantly having issues coming into the station with lining up - questionable that it's running as poorly as that considering it's had three months of maintenance time. Likewise, Nemesis only having one train built up at all and having issues at that; and AIR, well, I don't think the trains have actually been worked on as when you look at the wear on the wheels they're nearly done for, and haven't changed a bit since Fireworks - so is it actually maintenance making these rides easier to open, or is it a case of they've pretty much not done a lot with them to have them open, in comparison to Thorpe who seem to have actually worked on their rides to ensure that what's ran, is ready to go for the start of the year. Spinball being unreliable? That's a shocker for the ages... Cannot speak for anything else mind as didn't visit either event, nor read any reports because I'm simply not interested... Could be that Towers' maintenance limits are however different to Thorpe's in regards to the minimum Air's wheels can go down to for example... But to be fair to Towers, Thorpe's coasters were also on one train, so there's minimal difference between the two... It could also be that Towers have done the bare minimum stuff to get them open for Feb and will do some more serious work between now and opening, as they do open slightly later than Thorpe and have no MAP day to boot, so are probably more willing to do that... I also disagree that this ride and that ride can and cant run temperatures, blah blah. Why isn't Rita open? If Stealth can open, surely Rita can, so I don't agree with the views I've read on Towers forums that it's not possible for Rita to be open in time due to maintenance; because lets be serious, Towers had crap maintenance on the cable, it snapped, and now they're scared. I also argue on Smiler and SAW. If Rage at Adventure Island can open for the full season, as can Troublesome Trucks (DMP) and Cobra (Paultons) then surely SAW and Smiler haven't got a temperature issue in opening based on ride type, but merely a design flaw in the form of they'll stall because they both have 'crawling' elements in the form of the overbank and the knot. As mentioned elsewhere, all rides will have their own individual operating temperature, which will of course vary a LOT dependent on location, ride type, etc... Bearing in mind that Towers tends to be colder than Thorpe at this time of year, and the way in which Rita works, it's unsurprising that they don't try and use hydraulic systems at this time of year... The cable doesn't have anything to do with it, especially since it happened over a year ago... Why are we comparing two kiddie coasters to Saw and Smiler as well? You're better than that Flipper... Besides, as mentioned, those two are much more liable to stall, hell Saw tends to stall when someone sneezes in the wrong direction, and Smiler tends to just stall for giggles... To turn it around, why was Nemesis open and not Inferno? It's the same situation, but strangely missed in your argument... Especially as you pretty much state that Thorpe's maintenance for this event has been better... Perhaps because they only focused on opening two big coasters and Fish? Pricing? I still stand by what I said, £5 for Fright Nights, £5 for Half Term, is still a fair compromise considering Towers charge upwards of £12 last year to Annual Pass holders for one trip though each maze, in comparison to Thorpe's offering of five mazes on unlimited trips (queue permitting) and also a 45 minute show at Half Term and side line additions, so how anybody can pick fault at Thorpe's charges or at very least compare them to Towers' is beyond me, because when it comes to VFM whilst I do think the charge is a bit of a pain for Standard MAP, its still overall better than what Towers offer; and like people have said if people don't want to pay, they'll wait. I'm premium and I only went to Towers because someone else wanted to, and I couldn't be arsed with Thorpe's line up considering Stealth and SWARM aren't rides I run for, free or not. Towers did have Mr Bloom and Mr Tumble/Justin at their event, which isn't part of the regular season at all, so why didn't they charge for entry? It's pretty much the same situation as Brainiac coming in, external events and what-not... Both Halloween events are crap, although generally the better mazes tend to be seen to be at Towers overall, though probably because they have fewer mazes to plonk all their actors in... This will be a continual argument forever methinks... At least until people go abroad and do some of the European events... I'd also like to highlight how much Alton Towers charged in their hotels over half term. As an Annual Pass holder my DISCOUNTED quote came in at £145 for ATH and £160 for Splash. Full whack was around the £200 mark a night, and have been since early January without any theme park or waterpark tickets included - which IMO is just extortionate considering the event. This isn't surprising, Towers have always charged stupidly high amounts for their hotels... It's pretty ridiculous at the best of times... Oh and finally. Please, FFS, Chessington DO invest. Wild Asia (2010), Azteca Sealife and park refresh (2011), Madagascar (2012), Zufari (2013), Azteca Hotel (2014), Penguins (2015) - you have to remember the Green Belt issue! They have real difficulty getting planning permission for things, and have to keep so much green space hence they do the best they can with the Explorer Gate car park by keeping it grass. Just because they're not building gimmicky roller coasters like Alton Towers, or some kind of new attraction yearly like Thorpe, doesn't mean it isn't investing Pluk's pretty much covered this one tbh... The investment at Chessie is disgracefully minimal, especially budget wise... Let's not forget as well that Zufari even had it's budget slashed late on due to Smiler's issues... And whilst it is good that the zoo is getting attention, should it be fully at the expense of a park? Remember, Scorpion Express only got a retheme because it was falling apart in the first place, and we're STILL waiting for the promise Falls retheme... At least they TRIED to give Legoland a new ride for this year... Perhaps if it looked like they TRIED to add an actual new major ride to the park side of things, or actually showing off that more than one or two parts of the park have been improved (let's be honest, Market Square and a Translyvania repaint are the only real park-side improvements since Wild Asia)... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flipper Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 With regards to what I posted it was in response to everything I've pretty much missed throughout the topic. With regards to the ride offering argument I fully agree that there is obvious comparisons; and I do agree on the Inferno topic when Nemesis is running. Benin I know you're not thick but when AIR has wheels that are obviously cracking, shredding and running to less than an inch now, I think anyone who knew the tiniest bit on ride wheels would question it. I do fully agree with the comparable on the Cbeebies meet and greets; however my point still remains the overall cost, when it comes to Value for Money I do feel Thorpe has the better upperhand on that one, considering the price of Half Term at Towers being more anyway; and I certainly don't think they could charge £5 to everybody for something that isn't intended for everybody, I mean seriously who here actually went to see these characters? Whereas in comparison, Thorpe offered the four or so mini-shows and their major show. And no, this shouldn't have come with a cost; as at the end of the day plenty of European parks offer shows at no additional fee (Music Generation at PortAv still being one of my personal favourites along with Saloon De La Roxy). My point regarding the Gerstlauer comparisons was a simple one, it puzzles me how, even ignoring Cobra and T-Trucks, Rage can operate in any given temperature and Smiler and SAW can't, and it does make me question is it a design flaw to a degree, which I think Benin you know deep down as, like you said, they stall for the ships and giggles And with regards to CWOA, I'm not defending them, and again, I'm not trying to hype up a bit of paint and some new fish. But I think AstroDan made a very unfair point a few pages back saying they don't invest anything at all, because 'people will just come anyway' when this really isn't the case in any of the attractions Merlin operate, let alone the parks; they're constantly investing into each attraction and actually when you look statistically, something is added to EVERY attraction worldwide in the company. Be it the latest roller coaster or a new show, something goes in everywhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 I haven't seen the Air wheels so cannot comment (unfortunately people don't seem to post such images) on the current state of them, I can only guess and assume... But I highly doubt that Towers would let them go beyond a specific working limit... Without knowing what said limit is, it's impossible to say whether it is right or wrong... Show-wise, I highly doubt people on TPM (or any goon-site) would go to Towers to meet Mr Bloom or Justin, because we're not the target market... But did people here go to Thorpe purely because of Brainiac being there? Or because Thorpe was open? Towers also had more rides open for half term didn't it? Not sure what the price difference was for an actual on-the-day ticket though so best thing to work out VFM would be to divide the cost per ride... Which Towers will probably win based solely upon CBeebies Land, which for them, is fine because they advertise the event for that end of the scale anyway, whereas the older age ranges/goons go for Nemesis... Does anyone know Rage's min temperature? Perhaps it's because of the layouts being different providing the issue here, especially as Rage is a stock model (Duinrell and at least 1 in America exist)... Perhaps Rage's stock/clone lifestyle is the big reason for this? Or Gerstlauer/Merlin made a mess of the designing process... Most of the time though these rides would only stall if no-one's actually riding it, so perhaps it's more of a fear that it'll happen at Thorpe/Towers and cause hassle, whereas AI aren't too worried about it... For Chessie I think the issue is the quality of investment since Wild Asia, as well as the basic minimum investment (Zufari was around half of Smiler and Swarm's budget, give or take post Smiler problems)... Why don't Chessie get £10m to spend on, well ANYTHING is probably the question best asked, even if it wasn't for a cred... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordanluke2009 Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 ^ Minimum Temperature for Rage is about 3° and also dependant on the wind. Hell Saw and The Smiler are nowhere near the sea and Adventure Island get Rage open mostly all the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Fish Posted February 25, 2015 Report Share Posted February 25, 2015 for anyone interested I have made a copy of the feb half term map here is pdf format Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Posted March 1, 2015 Report Share Posted March 1, 2015 Yeah, because of high winds, 25 MPH + compared with 8 in Chertsey (plus Thorpe's rides are barely effected by wind). Anyways, not sure why you are using that as a counter argument for Thorpe as I'd still be moaning if I had to wait in a queue for PMBO on a one train service! I love not being on this forum for ages. This has been proven wrong by Big One running one train service throughout their weekends so far. Also Flipper, don't talk nonsense. All Air crafts have been completely stripped down and rebuilt, like all coaster trains have to. As you'd know. The wheels have a set limit, as you'd know. If the wheels had issues, the ride wouldn't run as it'd cause difficulties in moving, as you'd know. Fanboyism without any facts or valid reasoning is really tedious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted March 1, 2015 Report Share Posted March 1, 2015 I love not being on this forum for ages. This has been proven wrong by Big One running one train service throughout their weekends so far. Actually, the first two weekends it was running two trains, I can guarantee this 100% for the second weekend as I was there both days, and I heard from reliable sources that it was on the first weekend on the Saturday as well (not sure about the Sunday). The reason for it running one train on the other weekends is that the wind is too high, and they only have two out of the three trains built up and in the station (and only one of them is fast enough for windy days ATM). I'm not defending it, just explaining that it's down to more than just laziness. EDIT: It was also on two yesterday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted March 1, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2015 Actually, the first two weekends it was running two trains, I can guarantee this 100% for the second weekend as I was there both days, and I heard from reliable sources that it was on the first weekend on the Saturday as well (not sure about the Sunday). The reason for it running one train on the other weekends is that the wind is too high, and they only have two out of the three trains built up and in the station (and only one of them is fast enough for windy days ATM). I'm not defending it, just explaining that it's down to more than just laziness. But your assuming Merlin coasters were ran one one train due to "laziness" when really you've no idea why they were? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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