June 10, 201213 yr comment_137949 It really is a shame re: Slammer. As much as the shoulder restraint I find quite painful, the ride is actually remarkably thrilling and exciting!
June 10, 201213 yr comment_137950 I am glad I got to ride it for the first time the other week then. Like most people have said, it is a good ride and visually impressive, but if it goes, so be it. Though knowing the way Thorpe work I doubt it will be replaced until years to come. It would be better if for 2013, they removed Slammer, replaced it with another cool flat whilst also doing the new SWARM ride. Sadly knowing Thorpe's reputation, I doubt they would add more than one ride per year.
June 10, 201213 yr comment_137951 Thorpe have added more than one ride a year before (in 2001 they added three, technically) - although those were the (Tussauds primarily) days of mass development for the park; nearly every year since 2000 has seen major/moderate developments. Whilst I think Merlin may slow down this growth process now that Thorpe is a fully established park with an impressive ride line-up to contend with even large American park, I still wouldn't put it past them if the opportunity came. But the biggest apparent issue I foresee with adding more than one ride a year, if that, is where to put the rides.
June 10, 201213 yr comment_137952 It would be a shame if Slammer actually left the park seeing as it is so unique, but as some others have said, it wouldn't bother me *too* much. It's fun but I never go on it on every visit like other flats such as Rush and Detty, it just seems to get forgotten about, or if mentioned usually gets a "I'm not in the mood for it/it gives me a headache" response Plus it rarely if ever gets a big queue and all this downtime costs the park money. How much I don't know, but it seems to break so much and pulls so little crowds that removing it may be the best option IMO. They should have removed it last year and spent the money on keeping CCR
June 10, 201213 yr comment_137953 Thorpe have added more than one ride a year before (in 2001 they added three, technically) - although those were the (Tussauds primarily) days of mass development for the park; nearly every year since 2000 has seen major/moderate developments. Whilst I think Merlin may slow down this growth process now that Thorpe is a fully established park with an impressive ride line-up to contend with even large American park, I still wouldn't put it past them if the opportunity came. But the biggest apparent issue I foresee with adding more than one ride a year, if that, is where to put the rides.Sorry I did not make my point clear. I meant to say that under the influence of Merlin, they seem pretty keen on only adding one ride per year which to be honest makes sense business wise. It gives them more to introduce in the future instead of throwing loads of rides in at once, so their investment is more spread out. It also gives them the chance to promote one ride very effectively without having to worry about giving two or three new rides equal coverage which can get difficult. My point was take out Slammer if you must, but please don't just let it stand their SBNO for another 8 years. We have lost Saw Alive, MSFS, CCR, Time Voyagers and I am sure there are sadly many more losses to come.
June 11, 201213 yr comment_137954 I hope it doesn't go, its a good ride and I always go on it a few times when I go. I prefer it to Detonator and Rush.
June 11, 201213 yr comment_137958 By the sounds of things, a lot of people do complain about how uncomfortable the shoulder restraints are. I would suggest to Thorpe that if Slammer is going to be remaining (and operating) at the park in the foreseeable future, that they include something in the boarding/loading announcements which asks riders to pull the shoulder harness so it rests lightly on your shoulders, and pull the lap bar snugly across your hips (almost like an airline safety video but if that is what it takes, so be it). The number of guests I've seen which have realised they have yanked them down too far is unreal and seems to be a big contributer to the pain factor of the ride.
June 11, 201213 yr comment_137960 Yes, it's a huge pain for staff too having to faff about with the key releasing the bars because they've crushed themselves And people complain about the slow loading procedure As for the announcement, the pre-recorded one simply tells guests to pull the restraints down, but if there's a decent op they will announce over the PA to pull the restraints down lightly. Of course, as anyone else here who has worked at theme parks knows, guests apparently lose their hearing and/or common sense when they visit
June 12, 201213 yr comment_137983 to be fair you cant really blame people that go on this to want to pull the bars down as far as possible
June 12, 201213 yr comment_137984 I guess...but the ride can actually run with just the lap bars, it's only those that need to be pulled down tightly The shoulder restraints are there to re-ensure guests and for comfort (as long as they're not pulled down too far of course ).
June 12, 201213 yr comment_137998 The announcements actually tell you to pull down the shoulder harness to rest on your shoulders.
June 14, 201213 yr comment_138064 The announcements actually tell you to pull down the shoulder harness to rest on your shoulders.Clearly people's definition of rest differs. Maybe even signs on the safety boards or separate signs just before the boarding gates which elaborate and say that the shoulder restraints are for comfort and do not require excessive force as pulling them too far down will cause discomfort and could delay loading.
June 14, 201213 yr comment_138066 New message on TP.com SLAMMER will be unavailable until further notice...apologies for any inconvenience caused.
June 14, 201213 yr comment_138068 New message on TP.com SLAMMER will be unavailable foreverrrrr...apologies for any inconvenience caused. Fixed
June 14, 201213 yr comment_138070 Clearly people's definition of rest differs. Maybe even signs on the safety boards or separate signs just before the boarding gates which elaborate and say that the shoulder restraints are for comfort and do not require excessive force as pulling them too far down will cause discomfort and could delay loading.Yes but whatever they do the general public will always pull then down as far as possible because they feel safer even though it doesn't really make a difference.
June 14, 201213 yr comment_138091 Gutted...I love the Slammer and that message is far too ominous. If this IS the end then my hats go off to Thorpe for investing the time and effort that they did during its whole unreliable lifetime, but enough is enough. I hope they write a strongly worded letter to S&S! Haha
June 14, 201213 yr comment_138093 I'm presuming they'll get some compensation from S&S for how much it has cost to keep going. At least try probably would want some. Time to say goodbye I think.
June 14, 201213 yr comment_138102 Guys, I don't think it actually is the end of Slammer. Even if it is leaving it'll be fixed up and operate until the end of the season at least.
June 15, 201213 yr comment_138108 I have no concrete evidence for this but I am thinking that if the message has changed from "back soon" to "until further notice" they could be waiting on a visit from S&S to work together on some kind of long term solution for it; or just be working on it to keep it going for the long term as opposed to doing patch work fixes in the interim. It really is one of the more formidable rides at the park and I have never heard anyone not turn the corner in Canada Creek and go "oh my" or words to that effect.
June 15, 201213 yr comment_138122 Guys, I don't think it actually is the end of Slammer. Even if it is leaving it'll be fixed up and operate until the end of the season at least. Whilst of course being the nice thing, I don't think that in any case a ride will re-open if it's too costly to even keep running for a month. If the maintenance cost is too high they will make the unfortunate decision to close it completely.
August 13, 201213 yr comment_139895 Importance maintenance? Effects messing with ride technology again? The Swarm's had quite a bit of downtime this year already; do you think the newer technology systems are another reason? I don't remember Gardaland's staff having the same issues but, then again, we just might not hear about that over here.
August 13, 201213 yr comment_139910 Seems more than just a little hiccup. Its on the TP website scroller now.
August 13, 201213 yr comment_139911 Swarm was down till about 4... The park was awful for reliability today, so much so they gave away complimentary return tickets/fastrack to everyone... Rumba Rapids was down all day, Fish down till 3, and I think Saw and Stealth had their usual on/off things... A typical day at Thorpe then...
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