Jump to content

Vortex


Lewie900

Recommended Posts

  • 2 weeks later...

The floor had to be changed from screw driven to hydraulic because the screw drives were driven by 4 individual electric motors, if one of them motors were to fail for whatever reason, then the other 3 would still carry on and potentially buckle the floor, could have been dangerous. Whereas with the hydraulic floor there is one central motor which pulls all 4 cylinders down in unison, more reliable. I'm sure the screw driven one was much faster than the current one!

Also, Thorpe could have Vortex programmed to start rotating as the floor lowers, then have the swings starting immediately as it is fully lowered, many other Afterburners & Freak Out's do this, would improve capacity that little bit more.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Guys I think vortex could be a great ride(it could be it isn't at the moment :P) here's my suggestions of what they need to do:

Ok so firstly the swinging part of vortex is good but I would go on rush for the swinging because it is better, the thing which makes an afterburner good is that it spins while you are swinging, but frankly vortex's spinning is rubbish. You don't get a variation of heights you either end up at the top or bottom- simple as that. What they need to do Is make the spinning faster so people get dizzy and so people get a variation of heights, that would make it a great ride!

Next, I would love vortex to have some cool lights just like showtime has. With lights all over it would be a great night ride just like samurai is. The lights would make it so cool as from my experience with showtime!

Finally, I think vortex should install onride photos, a camera could be placed hanging down on each of the 8 arms(connecting the seats to the centre) when vortex was at its highest point in cycle, it would take a photo capturing people's reactions. I think this would be a great improvement on vortex! What do you think?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yea that's totally true, even if they didn't put the lights on though they should at least up the spinning and put on ride cameras.

When I went to thorpe they got rid of most of the ride themes and played chart music- yes it was entertaining in the queue but it ruined the atmosphere and theme so why not add lights if they are taking the funfair approach?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I see what you mean but adding the chart music is really just an angle which Thorpe have explored in order to make queue lines less of a dull experience for the GP. The park so still want to differentiate themselves from just being a static funfair and I feel putting bulb lights all over the show like funfair rides would be a step too far. Maybe adding smaller programmable LED's somewhere on the main arms or back of the seats would look rather good?

Improvements for Vortex I would like to see are:

  1. Start spinning as soon as possible during floor lowering: enable a slight increase in capacity with being able to squeeze more rides in per hour.
  2. Increase the spin speed: The spin speed seems to vary a lot, sometimes it is slow sometimes it is faster; are they deliberately not running it faster in order to reduce wear and tear?
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Personally, I don't see the point in having an on ride camera on Vortex.

In general, flat rides aren't particularly suited to having them and sometimes look very displeasing to the eye (I think that in particular would be a problem for Vortex). Also, I just don't think there'd be enough demand for it. Detonator had ORPs installed in 2011, and during most of my visits last season, I didn't even see it open - probably due to lack of demand. Out of all the rides on park, I just don't think Vortex is a ride people would want to have a photo of themselves to take home.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Unlikely that it would ever get any integrated lighting, as this would mean more would have to be changed than it would be worth. (You find that most KMG rides with integrated lighting systems have about 1/2 of the control panel for lighting control and only a small portion for actual ride functions.)

I think the only time we'd see any variation from what Vortex is now would be if they ever decided to have the ride retro-fitted with the new Lap-Bar seating arrangements, only 1 Afterburner has ever been fitted with them to this day so I'm unsure of the cost... They look great though! Some images below from KMG and Theme Park Review; these lap bars are so tiny, I think they would greatly improve the experience!

199385_355369317884832_1782337426_n.jpg

310519_355369477884816_1821037782_n.jpg

57961_355369357884828_1576775460_n.jpg

wildwood_016.jpg

wildwood_013.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It really would be cool if the cost of doing this retrofit was reasonably low compared to buying a whole new flat. If it is relatively low then all we can hope is that is considered during a lower investment year.

Realistically though, when has Thorpe ever done anything so radical to their rides? Unless then change could be advertised as and enough could be generated, I can't see it happening.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It would be a cool idea but I hate the feeling of I'm about to fall out. I went on a maimi called 'big wave' and it had lap bars which didn't go down very far at all and the whole time I thought I was gonna fall out, I wanted it to stop but it kept going on and on and I was clinging on for dear life.

It depends how far down they go really, rush's lap bars are fine because they can secure you in tightly and you don't feel like you are gonna fall out. To be honest, when I ride slammer for the first time next season(it's always been broken :( ) I will probably hate it because I have been told you feel like you will fall out, however maybe on vortex is could be different!

The spinning definately does need to be improved, I will not ride vortex more than once in a long period of time if it doesn't get spinning faster. It just gets boring, I mean the swing speed is fast but in order to make it a good afterburner it needs to have good spin.

The question is, are thorpe park not running vortex to it's full potential just like samurai?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...