Drayton Manor Trip Report 19/03/16

[ben199]

Hello everyone! So today I had a spur of the moment trip to Drayton Manor and had a great time. I used to come here quite a lot as a kid but haven't visited since the day before G Force opened in 2005 (first ever spite!  ) so it was interesting to see both how the park has changed and what it's like visiting as an adult. I didn't take any pictures so I'll give a rundown and my views of everything I went on

 

Scorecard:

G Force x4

Shockwave x4

Apocalypse x3

Maelstrom x6

Ben 10 x2

Pandemonium x1

Air Race x1

 

Having been to AT last weekend for the John Lewis event I decided to give the opening day a miss and head to Drayton instead. This decision definitely paid off as the place was dead! Even though both the coasters were only on one train I was always straight on the next one and a lot of the rides were even going round half empty. Unfortunately all three dark rides (Pirates, Golden Nuggets and Haunting) were down for maintenance which coupled with the terribly bleak weather meant I didn't do any dark or water rides but I knew this in advance so didn't mind too much. From my memories as a ten year old Pirates Adventure was as good as POTC at Disney so maybe it was for the best I didn't ride it again and tarnish that    

 

G Force:

So after 11 years of waiting this was my moment! I headed here straight away knowing full well it would probably be rubbish but after longing so much to ride it on my last visit I had a glimmer of hope that it would actually be half decent. And to be honest it was. Now I'm not saying this is a great ride but it definitely doesn't deserve all the hate it gets. First off I actually really like the inverted lift hill, obviously I'm glad it hasn't caught on with other rides but as a one off it's a really unique way to start and to be honest I'd probably like the ride even less if it just had a regular first drop given how short the maximum height is. The feeling you get as you start sliding out of your seat when you're upside down only to be caught back by the train once you come down is great and the way the headrush from all the blood lasts right to the bottom of the drop makes the whole thing disorientating and even more intense but in a pleasant way as it clears as soon as you hit the camelback. As for the camelback itself I'm not a big fan of it, there's a glimmer of airtime in the front car as you crest the top of the hill but the rest of it is a complete non event wherever you sit. If they had made it a bit lower and allowed for a significant pop of airtime it would really have brought the averageness of the coaster up.

 

Onto the immelman next and this is where the ride starts falling apart for me as it's just so dull I can barely remember it. You go upside down, it was alright, you move onto the next element. Bland and forceless. The next bit is fun though, is it an immelman? Is it an overbank? I have no clue but it's a funky little element but still a bit forceless. Then after this you reach the grand finale of two 180 degree turns back into the station, is that really it?! If this first turn was a bit lower to the ground and heavily overbanked I think it could be quite an exciting finish but then you'd still have the pleasant little meander up to the brakes because the station is so damn high up. But yeah, in conclusion, the lift hill is actually good but the main layout needs some work. And the whole thing is so hideously rough, that's actually my main gripe with this ride. Have any of you guys ridden it in it's opening few years and can confirm if it's always been like this?

 

Apocalypse:

This is one stonking ride. I'm a sucker for a drop tower and this is the ultimate one really. Unfortunately the stand up floorless was closed today but having been on the one on Hurakan Condor last year I know that it's a wonderfully exposed sense of freefall followed by possibly the most painful set of brakes on a ride. At Drayton stand up was my favourite, I love how it tilts you forward at the start of the ascent so you get an amazing view the whole way up. Looking down at your whole body and all the empty space below is exhilarating and makes the build up to the drop much more exciting than with the sit down. In terms of the drop I loved the length but found Detonator to be slightly more forceful, especially at the beginning. Is this because Detonator pushes the gondala down somehow or does the track have less friction?

 

Shockwave:

I really enjoyed Shockwave but I feel that it's a great idea poorly executed. When I was little I used to love bombing down hills on my roller blades; something that combines standing up, a sense of vulnerability, high speeds and adrenaline. This should translate perfectly to a coaster experience, however Shockwave is not that coaster. It starts great, the first drop is a lot like Nemesis' in that it gradually builds and doesn't really have a main part. There's even a nice pop of airtime in the back once it hits the straight bit. The loop is even better, feeling the positive G's travel all the way through your body right to your feet is a unique experience. It's enough to make you tense your legs to ensure you stay upright but not enough to worry about them buckling. All this is brilliant as it's so unique to a stand up coaster but the Zero G and corkscrews that follow demonstrate the stand up being really poorly utilised.

 

If you've ever ridden Nemesis with your hands on your lap you'll know that it's a bit difficult to keep your upper body straight and tense the whole way round so you don't keep bashing yourself against the harness. On Shockwave as soon as you enter the elements that contain laterals (Zero G and corkscrews) you've not only got to keep your upper body in check but also your lower body so you don't get flung around too much. For me this just took too much concentration to enjoy the layout and flow of these elements (the constant rattle throughout doesn't help either). This is where I'll come back to the whole roller blading thing, it's in the moments where Shockwave is like roller blading down a hill (the drop, loop [to some extent], straight section and turn after the corkscrews) that it really comes alive and is a smooth, fun experience. The vulnerability you feel coasting along the track standing up at a high speed is exhilarating whereas the twistier sections I mentioned before just aren't as much fun and kill the flow.

 

This all sounded a lot more concise in my head but I think I got down what I mean! I had a great time riding Shockwave today, it's a really enjoyable coaster and the fact it's the only one of its kind in the UK makes it even more special

 

Air Race:

This wasn't quite what I was expecting. In my mind I imagined the ride would consist of Sky Force style quick snappy inversions but in reality it was a lot slower and floatier. It's a decent flat but once was enough for me

 

Maelstrom:

This ride is the holy grail of Drayton Manor. Absolute flat ride perfection. I adore airtime on rides and this possibly has the most of any ride in the country. Another thing I loved was how every seat gives an equally perfect ride unlike Vortex where it's 50/50 whether you'll get to the high point of the swing or not

 

Ben 10:

Before I visited I wasn't sure whether I wanted to ride this or not but upon seeing the size of it (it's huge in real life compared to pictures) and watching a train absolutely storm through the first turn I was excited to jump in the queue. The queue itself is possibly the best one in the country theming wise so I was surprised when it ended and led me to a station building that was uglier and barer than Fury's. The ride itself was great for a family coaster, I loved the laser/explosion sound effect when the train reversed. It's little things like that which really make a ride stand out. Great stuff 

 

Pandemonium:

Another ride that was much better than I thought it would be. Having no floors really made a difference when hanging upside down, you feel so free and exposed if you sit at the front and the whole thing is nicely intense without being too sickly. I think I preferred this to Air Race

 

Thanks for reading my rambles and have a lovely evening everyone 

 

 

 

 

[Coaster]

Great trip report, I can't understand why Drayton gets such a slating from enthusiasts - it may not have the best coaster lineup in the world but I found it a very nice park when I visited a few years ago.

[ben199]

I think the appeal of this park is it probably has the best mix of coasters, flats, water rides and dark rides in the country even though nothing is particularly outstanding other than the flats and possibly the water rides.

I can definitely see why enthusiasts slate the coasters but for a park I rarely visit I love how weird and unique they are

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