Trolley Dolly Goes South

[Liam T]

So, on Saturday 8th September I, finally, went to the Nation’s Thrill Capital, Thorpe Park!

Because I've been looking forward for so long and want to talk about a lot of things I'm going to do this trip report in five parts, so please bear with…
An early morning start...

After traveling across the country; after waiting so long to get finally to Thorpe Park, seeing the UK's fastest, tallest, and scariest rides took my breath away within seconds. From that point on I knew today was going to be amazing.

The entrance area to Thorpe is admittedly quite small and having to nearly jump over people in a squabble to get in wasn't pleasant. I can see how people say it’s very tight but of course, it wasn't built to handle such crowds. It didn't help that today was going to be very busy! But nevertheless, I got my ticket and jumped straight in! I met up with the group (who already spent an hour there before me) on the entrance bridge; I was just astonished at the height of some of the coasters there! But without having time to take it in we shot off to our first ride of the day.
First ride of the day - The new mighty B&M wing rider

The Swarm

The Swarm Island is the best area of Thorpe Park - it is themed from top to bottom and really feels like a disaster zone. Having the entrance to the area right under the drop/top of the lift hill was genius; it certainly put things into perspective for me, being that close up – it’s actually enormous! The queue for The Swarm was already 90 mins so we grabbed some fastrack and joined the queue…

The queue and station are both really well themed: the attention to detail was really something else! Having an open roof station was different and good one at that in my opinion (the excellent weather may have played a part in that though) and station loop music was great as well! Loading was quick and efficient I thought, though myself and Luke had to let someone go in front of us because we wouldn't have got on the same train as the rest of the group otherwise – typical theme park faffing about! But once in our seats we were ready to ride The Swarm!

The Ride

My first experience being abducted by The Swarm was on the right hand side, middle row, outside seat and it certainly had my heart rushing. Once dispatched, it was a speedy lift hill to the top (something you don't normally get at Towers) and once at the top then I started to panic!

The Swarm's drop is one of the best things ever: so bizarre and surprising being chucked upside down and thrown 127ft to the ground! Certainly had me screaming, the drop was SO good – one of the best drops I have ever experienced and certainly one to challenge Oblivion's drop in the intensity stakes.

Once under the plane we got chucked through the Zero-G and then down into my favourite part of The Swarm, the inclined loop! Once out of that I didn't really notice the water effects on either helicopter or fire engine side - unsure if they were even on! (the fire certainly was as it caught me off guard in the queue!) Through the corkscrew...

Then the scariest (I think) On & Offride part of the ride! The inline twist. While in the station the inline twist scared me, but being actually on it was even scarier. Hearing the roar of B&M then the screams of riders above your head whilst waiting in the station certainly sets your heart racing while onride being chucked upside down was just breathtaking. Then we hit the brakes! A nice lovely drop into the finally breaks and that was it.


Pro's -

• The Swarm Island is just amazing, so much detail you can't take it all in at once.
• That first drop.
• Though the vest was tight, the seats are really comfy.

Con's -

• Both the tower & jet engine swarm noise was turned off but I didn't mind greatly.
• Didn't notice the water sprays/wasn't turned on.
• Something that annoyed me was the fact we missed our onride photo because of the baggage/unloading, this certainly needs to be fixed as Merlin are missing out on people buying photos!

Overall Review:

The Swarm - it doesn't feel short to me, it lives up to expectations; that first drop is phenomenal – definitely one of the highlights of the ride and it left me speechless.

10/10

Part 2/5: Rumba Rapids, the lost shoe on Tidal Wave & the mighty Stealth.

[Liam T]

So after the thrilling ride on The Swarm we moved off the island and into Amity Cove.

First impressions of Amity Cove was the screech of Storm Surge and a massive splash from Tidal Wave, while watching a poor lady trying to catch her son's shoe that fell into the pool! Was rather amusing to see. What I didn't know at that time is that we were traveling towards the landmark ride at Thorpe Park!

Stealth

From wherever you are in the park, Stealth sticks out mighty and proud. This beast of a coaster certainly takes you aback standing under it. I haven't seen such a thing before! Stealth wasn't messing about, shooting riders from 0-80 mph before they have time to catch their breath: I wasn't looking forward to this at all!

Again, the queues was huge so we indulged in a little Fastrack and got into the queue. This meant I couldn't do front row but anyone who does front row on there first time must have MASSIVE balls! As I watch the train before mine race up 205ft my heart felt like it was wrestling my tongue for space in my mouth! The gates opened and I nervously sat down, pulled down the restraints (easier to pull down than Rita's!) and prepared myself but I didn't have time to think, before I knew it the red lights came on and...

GO GO GO!

My whole body must of been left in that station because I've NEVER felt such a rush like that before! Rita's launch is great but Stealth's is fantastic and.... just... something else. The amazing thing about Stealth is you don't even feel like you're going up 205ft until you creep over the top hat and suddenly release how high you are up! I was so shocked and screamed some things that really shouldn't be said around the christmas table, haha! But before I could even catch a breath we were plummeting down to the ground and shooting over the airtime hill into the breaks.

I was speechless. I was wondering if my body was still in tact! Stealth didn't just thrill me; Stealth left me shaking. I crawled out of my seat and tried to get my bag - my legs felt like jelly - and went to see my photo! Which funny enough was just the hands of the people in front...

Pro's

• The launch is amazing!
• The fact you don't release how high you are up until you are peeping over the top hat.
• Baggage holder, this was certainly great to see unlike the horrible bag cupboard Rita has.

Con's -

• Though the ride is short, I wouldn't say it affect my enjoyment. It's thrilling enough as it is without anything else needed in my opinion, as the sensation of such intense speed would wear off quickly if you just meandered about.
• No front seat option for Fastrack unlike Rita.

Overall Review:

Stealth - What a breathtaking, adrenaline rush of a ride! It proves the UK can do big rides and certainly one rollercoaster I won't forget in a hurry.

10/10

After leaving and seeing the other train go, I left Stealth rather shaken and travelled to a calmer ride...

Rumba Rapids

Having the Congo River Rapids down the road from me, I was looking forward to Thorpe's version of the rapids! Though it being more colourful and having great christmas lights in the tunnel, it was certainly no Congo River Rapids... But I did enjoy the music much more than the Alton ride.

Even though the ride is much shorter than Congo River Rapids, it did give me some good thrills and nice bits where I felt like getting out some tea for all my dollies.

Pro's -

• Great music
• Christmas lights!

Con's -

• Short and boring in places
• No wheel in the middle to spin the boat.

7/10

Part 3/5 - Bar 360, The Party Dome & Nemesis StomachAche...

[Confuzzled]

You have given both The Swarm and Stealth 10/10 have you got a over all favourite?

[Liam T]

After calming down, we all got rather hungry so we travelled to The Dome. A positive of this park is that although it’s big, it won't take you half a month to travel from one side to another (Unlike Towers).

Bar 360

To tell you the honest truth, I don't eat big meals in theme parks often and often it's because I'm not in a big group but it was my first time at Thorpe where I was accompanied by more than 2, so it was time for a Merlin meal!

Bar 360 was lovely inside; cosy and warming even if the repeats of P!nk's Greatest Hits was slightly annoying, once with menus it was time to order! I felt like a kid's meal would do me nicely so I queued up to order, and to my huge shock it was a 40 min wait for food! So I stumbled back to my seat with my Sprite and waited. The wait didn't feel that long and the food was actually really great! I couldn't compare it to many other Merlin meals but this one totally got my thumbs up (even if I couldn't even work the bloody vinegar bottle)…

Once I finished my meal, I thought I would explore The Dome a bit more before going off to our next ride. Unfortunately for me I ended up somewhere in the deepest, darkest crevice of Thorpe Hell at the bottom of The Dome where the smell of bleach, weed and other musty aromas nearly knocked me off my feet. I suspected toilets nearby.

After spending a further 10 mins trying to work out the brilliant and baffling contraptions masquerading as Thorpe's sinks, I walked back to the brighter, nicer part of The Dome and back to the group for our next ride. We went up to Ranger Country, but the Logger’s Leap queue was bulging out of the entrance and a rather appealing red rollercoaster (with a rather unappealing hour-long queue) caught my eye...

Nemesis Inferno

Nemesis Inferno sits comfortably on the Thorpe skyline, nestled toward the back of the park in between Colossus and Stealth. The smallest of the bigger coaster at Thorpe Park, Inferno won’t accept the assumption that that has anything to do with quality; the roar of that B&M invert echoes throughout the park (despite not being a patch on Nemesis’s mighty roar).

I was so glad Nemesis Inferno's queue line has plenty of shade in it – the lush trees and great views of Inferno peaking over and screaming past them was wonderful queue line entertainment (simply must commend peak-era Tussauds on their ability to interact coaster and queue line). And after playing with pants and sticky plant things, we finally got up the stairs to the top of the volcano…

I really like the theming on the front side of the station! And the inside of the station was great, I love the red lighting effects when dispatching (clearly inspired by previous work on Air) but I won’t knock it because it works well. Oh! And of course I LOVE Inferno's music - even more than Nemesis’s, so was pleasant to hear it blasting out in the station.

The Ride

After getting into our seats the floor dropped and we swooped out the station and into the volcano! This was great: a really, really lovely start to Inferno. It’s quite thrilling as well, to my surprise. But before we could enjoy the peaceful glide we slammed up into the lift hill (again, more speedy than Nemesis ). We crested the lift hill and dived down at 50mph into the loop. After being chucked mercilessly into a zero-g roll, we were shot down into the ground and into the most intense (and my favourite) part of the ride for me. But without having time to think about what happened in that insane, ground-hugging turn, my legs was flying into the sky (twice!) and were then nearly pulled off by the force in helices!

Once we hit the break run I screamed "That was better than Nemesis!" Okay, calm it, Alton fanboys. I wasn't sure if that was the adrenaline rush speaking or if Nemesis Inferno was indeed better than Nemesis… But even now I am undecided. Inferno was everything I wanted with my first rides on Nemesis: smoothness married with intensity. Nemesis has that build up and the never retreating energy, and despite trying to smash my brain out in the past, its one ride you cannot hate... Inferno has that sudden intensity than jerks you in your seat and gives you proper WOW moments if you’re not bracing yourself for them. Oh, and it’s lovely smoothness; everything more than a usual B&M, but dies out towards the end (save the last helix). I'm still unsure who the best is.

Pro's -

• That pre-lift
• Station Dispatch Lights
• Greenery around the ride was great and really helped the sensation of speed

Con's -

• Queue line kiosk is a pain!
• I didn't see any of Inferno's effect's working
• Inferno dies out a bit after the corkscrews (but redeems itself in the final helix)

Overall Review:

Nemesis Inferno - Smoothness and Intensity makes this B&M invert one hell of a beast, even if I am undecided whether or not I liked it more than Nemesis, I can be sure it is one of the best rollercoasters in Thorpe Park and indeed, the Uk

9/10

After walking into the shop I suddenly got a sharp pain in my stomach. I had the mother of all stomach aches and I wasn't sure if it was Inferno being so intense or Fanta killing me off but I crawled to my next ride feeling like I was going to give birth to a Devil child, ready to experience the ride that put Thorpe Park on the map...

Part 4/5 - Tidal Terror, The Ultimate Rush & The Power of 10.

[Liam T]

After crawling on my hands and knees away from Inferno, I was unsure what was going to be in store for me as we headed to the Lost City, until I heard the bone-shaking rattle of the Colossus lift hill and the train ploughing through its course, devouring up the inversions in its path. It was time experience The Power of 10…

Colossus

Colossus' area is beautiful: well-themed and great soundtrack (even if sped up) to boot. It almost reminded me of being at Alton Towers; a manic mix of track and supports and people billowing in and out of intricate pathways, standing under the cobra roll and feeling the whole ground shake when the train soared through it. Something I’ll never forget about my trip to Thorpe is the anticipation the sheer might of Colossus imbues in its onlookers. This is something I would value in any modern ride – aural presence.

After squatting in pain in the Colossus Fastrack queue, we finally got to the station which really was next to X:\ No Way Out! I could feel the pyramid shake and hear the dance music from the inside! Once in the Colossus station I saw those trains! First impressions were "look at the size of them restraints!"

So once in our gates I sat myself into a Colossus seat with Mer (still in pain) and after banging my knees multiply times, the beast of the restraint took one more blow for good measure. I rather reminded me of the legroom one should expect from a flight with RyanAir… But nevertheless, the train moved up onto the lift hill and… started to rattle, a lot of people said had said prior to my visit that Colossus would knock me senseless so I didn’t need to ominous voiceover to warn me to brace myself!

Once we left the lift hill and the anti-roll-back sounded no more, the first few seconds of the ride were in deadly silence of the anticipation of the drop; only the sound of the wind and the gentle hum of the wheels on the track were heard, split by the occasional squeal. From there we tumbled down down the drop and into the loop. Compared to Drayton Manor’s Shockwave's loop this wasn't as rough... I quite enjoyed it actually. Through the airtime (love this part!) and into the cobra roll which (I enjoyed more than I thought I would). Without time to breathe, a quick snap in the direction change threw us mercilessly into the corkscrews… again, really quite pleasant and not as uncomfortable as I was expecting. Oh but then…. Then came the worst experience of my life: the inlines.

I'm not a big fan of inversions that launch you out of your seat. Even Nemesis doesn't chuck you out of your seat, so I have never felt the feeling of being bashed and rattled around before! I felt like I was in a bloody washing machine! The inlines are fun, but maybe not for me, or my poor shoulders.

So having survived four of them, we glided past Rush as I readjusted my testicles and took the few seconds reprieve to massage my shoulders. I never wanted to feel that feeling again. Unfortunately for me I forgot there was one more hiding before the breaks, wasn't pleasant at all! The sensation of the proximity to the ground was impressive, but the thrill is somewhat detracted by the discomfort.

Pro's -

• Landscaping is beautiful. Ride and guest interaction is almost on Nemesis' level!
• Seeing the train dive under the shop and around the twisted walkways.
• 5 immensely enjoyable inversions in the powerful first half.

Con's -

• The inlines! *dislike*
• Feels a lot older than it is due to discomfort
• Poor presentation – needs a re-paint urgently.

Overall Review:

Colossus - It certainly wasn't as rough as I thought it was going to be, although I wouldn’t call it smooth. It’s shocking when you realise Air is the same age as Colossus, and it rides more smoothly than snowboarding a landscape of cotton wool on a butter knife. I would say it felt the same age - or maybe even older - than Nemesis... Shame really, but I believe that has nothing to do with Thorpe's upkeep, and the finger of blame is more aptly pointed at Intamin’s train and track quality.

7/10

Once we sat down for a rest, we was going to Saw but to our surprise, Saw had broken down (shocker) so we went and explored the park! All the queues were bulging out of their entrances so while we chose which ride we would suffer the perhaps unjust waiting time for, we went to stand in front of a 40ft wall of water to cool us down!

Tidal Wave’s queue was of course, huge. But I wanted to see how wet you get off the ride - big mistake! This is easily once of Tussauds’ finest achievements – the themeing is spectacular and the amount of water that gets you even when simply standing near the ride makes you wetter a whole ride on Alton’s Flume! You must get insanely wet on the ride! It was rather refreshing though!

Once soaking wet, we went to our next ride and one I had been looking forward too for a while...

Rush

Rush has long been the ride I most looked forward to riding since I found out about Thorpe Park. Simply put, it just looked so fun and exciting to ride! The queue wasn't that bad so we jumped in and got ready to Rush. The sound of Rush scared me a lot – those hydraulic tanks sounds like a bloody dinosaur! And there was originally meant to be FOUR of these?! Man, I was so looking forward to this.

When we got onto our coloured circles! (I was yellow) we sat in our seats. Immediate thought was how the restraint hardly felt like it was even holding me in! Without any warning the ride started to my great surprise. The first three swings were great – a beautiful thrill and a sensation like no other I’ve felt. The freedom the restraints offer you on these lower swings combined with feeling the force of the hydraulic thrust was one of the highlights of my day. But then it started getting higher...

Rush was much more powerful than I thought it would be - it really chucks you up higher than you think! I was so scared and shocked I totally wanted to get off the ride by the fourth swing! Too my unpleasant shock, Rush wasn't just thrilling, it was scary as hell! It caught me off guard and I was glad when it was over, but even happier knowing I’d done it.

I didn't enjoy it but I think that’s due to the fact I was just that shocked. I know if I ride it again I will enjoy it more

Pro's –

• Best flat ride I have ever ridden
• Stands proud in the Lost City, and has amazing presence amongst a group of substandard flats.
• Definitely has that fun factor in it

Con's -

• It shocked me how powerful it was, which lead me to spending a lot of the ride in complete fear!
• There is no warning when it’s going to start so you cannot brace yourself. Some might say this is a pro, though!

Overall Review:

Rush - By all means a fun ride but for me, is scared me a little bit too much. Hopefully the future will up Rush's rating for me.

6/10

Now recovering from Rush, Luke had to go, so we said our goodbyes to the fine young Mr. Ayers and went onto our next ride... Flying Fish!

Part 5/5 - Trolley dolly chants, "Saw" goodbyes & a little message

[Fred]

I like seeing peoples first visits to a new park - OMGWTFBBQ that park is amazing/cant do no wrong/10 out of 10 for coasters/best thing about it is its size.

We need to get Liam on park often, then see how his reports change

[Liam T]

Now one man down and awaiting the arrival of Michael “Mikey” Thomas (more commonly known as Sheepie on here) we travelled to our next ride, the Flying Fish!

My first ride on the Flying Fish was great! I really enjoyed it and the sound of The Swarm above us was fantastic even if the stench of weed kept offending my delicate nasal passages all around that area (not sure why ).

Mer wanted a drink after Fish times so we went over onto The Swarm Island and caught up with the rest of the group! While we waited for Mer to refresh herself I sat down and soaked in the atmosphere for the first time during the day. During these reflective minutes, I realised that The Swarm Island really is something else. Looking out to the rest of the park in action and reminding me just how good The Swarm was made it a pretty big moment of my day. But once reformed as a group we met up with the lovely Mr. Mikey Thomas and… went on Flying Fish again! Woo!

While waiting to be dispersed into our gates, the ride operator was clearly not having the best time today and working in this heat, with that amount of people must have been stressful. But it was then I realised that, all across the park, staff attitude was something that was a clearly different from the majority Towers staff. At Thorpe, they're a lot more laid back and "Yeah, just go wherever you want". This isn't to say the staff are poor at all because compared to Drayton Manor’s they at least have a better communication skills than an amoeba. So yeah, big difference from the staff at Alton Towers.

Flying Fish

Flying Fish being the same make as the Runaway Mine Train was clearly going to be fun and a pause from the bigger thrills. Now, of course, it has nothing on the standard of Runaway Mine Train, with an awkward game of one-person Twister just to get into your seat and with pretty much no theming, but that didn't affect my ride. Despite being 16 it was actually very fun – great for meets and just having a laugh with others on! And the bit before the photo point was surprising thrilling, though it was a bit rough towards the end.

To my surprise Mer got the operator to give me a shout out over the PA And a group of kids at the back waiting to board the next train must have heard it as when I went round then shouted "TROLLEY DOLLY": was a lovely highlight to my trip and will be remembered!

Pro's -

• Jolly good fun!
• Trolley dolly chants
• The bit before the photo point

Con's -

• Smelt like a weed farm
• Rough towards the end

6/10

After we got off The Flying Fish, time was getting short and we noticed Saw had just re-opened, so we made our way to Saw Island.

Going past Saw Alive was super creepy. It’s just this empty abandoned boat covered in seagulls! It didn't look good for the park having a closed attraction which was really a waste of money. If Saw Alive got turned into walk through attraction without as many actors like London Dungeons it could work, but at the moment it’s no pleasant sight...

Now onto Saw Island we noticed the queue was very big. With time short and with the queue getting bigger it was time to choose if I would ride it or not... I really wanted to try Saw, I would feel a little bit empty if I didn't get to ride all five big rollercoasters so we had no choice but to get Fastrack from the Dome (AGAIN)… to add more disappointment, Fastrack had sold out (though many would be celebrating the fact they had a limit on Fastrack) but luckily my life saver Marc had a solution so with time getting ever shorter and Mer feeling more ill by the minute, we rushed back to Saw Island and jumped in the queue.

Saw: The Ride

Because Saw is at the far end of the park you don't really notice how high it is until you’re on its little island. The warehouse itself was pretty well themed I thought but before I could take much of it in, Mikey dragged me over to the drop zone to show me Saw's little "problem": its roughness.

I did notice the pain etched on the riders’ faces as they made careered under the blades and into the Immelman, but I promised myself this wouldn't put me off. Being the last ride of the day at Thorpe Park, I wanted it to end on a high.

The queue line area is pretty cool and themed well and inside going up to the station was also themed very well. I compared this to Th13teen where most of the ride’s inside theming came from dark, flickering lights! Merlin love to share their ideas

The Station itself wasn't as good as I thought it was going to be, the leaking light from the outside didn't give me the feel of "Jigsaw's Lair" but at least the bagging option had swift service and was generally great! We climbed into our cars’ second row, I was very eager to know how these felt for next year... Not too bad I thought! Restraints felt pretty good on me, I thought, before we left the station...

With everyone around me fearing for their precious spines and necks, the car moved onto what would normally be a pre-show but turned into three minutes of watching a vacant-looking Billy puppet acting like a goldfish... I thought for a moment, about how the motorised mouthpiece that moves when this delightful but deranged little puppet speaks resembles a scrotum, and then as payback he threw the train down the first drop! It felt AMAZING! If something like this features on SW7 next year, I will be pleased... It’s so forceful! He then flew onto some brake run with what looked like bats shooting air at you... all very confusing to this poor Northerner as we then sailed down further into the darkness before a glimmer of light appeared. We then got chucked into ANOTHER seat lifting inversion like Colossus’ inlines… Did not enjoy that… or the dead body above/below me.

After that I really started to get nervous now, everyone around me was almost praying to live... I was really looking forward to hearing the "GAME OVER" TV but instead got an asthmatic wheeze, a grumble, a mumble, a whir, and a fizz and then the damn thing cut off! Nevertheless I prepared myself to go up the 100ft lift... I did NOT enjoy it one bit. This is one part of Saw I wish SW7 didn’t have! I really didn't care how high up we were, and maybe because I was in the second row and didn’t feel like we were going up a lift hill at all, but I just wanted to be over the drop... A momentary peak and a glimpse of Colossus, before the horizon shot upwards and we got chucked towards the blades… which actually appeared as more of a blur…

The drop was good, but you did notice the jolt. Going through the course felt like I was riding a jack-hammer on wheels - it wasn't rough but it certainly didn't feel like a rollercoaster only three years old should have felt like. After going through the airtime hill and through the turn onto the break (actually very forceful I thought) and onto the MCBR was nice, but then launching into that dive loop and being hurled onto the breaks I thought to myself "If SW7 turn into this, Alton will have a huge problem". Does anyone feel as if Saw could give so much more after that dive loop?

Pro's -

• Queueline/Interior theme is good
• Saw's island is pretty well themed as well
• I enjoyed the ride even if I felt like road works equipment

Con's -

• Station was okay, could be better
• Restraints did hurt my shoulder towards the end
• Effects that should be working, not working at all!

Overall review -

Saw is good but not great, for a rollercoaster that only been built since 2009, it shouldn't feel like that at all. If SW7 gets the same restraints or trains, I question Merlin’s management for constantly repeating mistakes and ignoring (can I say, ‘professional?’) opinions. I was the only one from my row who overall enjoyed the ride and whilst it wasn't bad, it just felt older than it was and having no working effects was very disappointing.

8.5/10

Now having ridden all Thorpe's rollercoasters (plus Rush) it was time to say goodbye to Thorpe Park. As I walked back into the Dome depths (Or hell as I'd rather call it) hearing end of the day music (Most TPMers were groaning at the sound of it )! I couldn't believe something I having been planning for almost half a year was finally over.

While waiting for my (rather eventful) trip home, I felt happy now I finally got to go to Nation's Thrill Capital. But I felt even happier having met some great people I have been waiting for ages to meet!

[Liam T]

Thank you messages:

These are just a little thanks you for everyone who was supporting me and helping me get to Thorpe Park and also, for making the most out of my day and experience.

A big thank you for everyone who joined me on the day:

Mer - A big thank you to Mer for not only being an amazing part of our group on the day and giving me yummy Fruit Pastilles but also for creating many memorable moments (Flying Fish PA shout-out! ), Thanks also for supporting me and pressuring me to get to Thorpe Park asap! And also a final thank you for letting me use your very good photos throughout my trip reports.

Luke_A - Thank you Luke for also pushing me to get to Thorpe Park and reassuring me on rides, helping me brace myself and generally giving me a loads of good tips to enjoy my day: certainly put my mind to rest! Cannot wait to do Towers Scarefest with you to finish off this fantastic season.

Maxy - A huge thank you to you Maxy for also encouraging me and being a fantastic member of our group! Your laughs made some of the more tedious queuelines easily more bearable, but you didn’t bring any Wotsits, fool! *bro fist*

Tinie - Thank you Tinie for giving me the ability to get into the park! Without you I’d never have even crossed the gate! Thank you for keeping me entertain by laughing at me it was an awfully busy day so huge thank yous for that and for just being awesome… oh, and having witness me suffer on Stealth… I hope I gave you something to laugh at…

Sheepie - Thank you, fine sir, for being lovely (as always!) and supporting me throughout the planning stages with all the ticket cuffuffle and the train issues and generally your own uncertainty about being able to come! So glad you made it in the end! I would've gone into a mental breakdown if it wasn't for you because me trying to organise a tea party could’ve brought the fall of Rome, I swear…

And of course a huge thank you too...

Marc – even though it was really busy I had no fear of not being able to not get on the rides I wanted thanks to you and your ‘connections'. You really made the trip for me and I can’t bear to think the day may have turned out were you not there with your dashing charms and devilishly good looks to wing us a few queue jumps…

Fred – this trip wouldn't of even happened if you didn't give me the opportunity to go all the way down South and back (woops, perhaps too much innuendo?)! I hope I wasn't too much trouble (angel face) So a huge thank you for being my appointed transport manager for the day

Sidders – Thank you for aiding me with these trip reports and making sure they are up to TPM standard! All the support, ride tips, Park do’s and don’ts, and kind words you have given me all the way from planning right up to this, my last Thorpe Park trip report - I certainly see why you was voted TPM's Best Mod 2011!

And don’t think there’s not enough thanks for everyone else! To anyone with kind words, advice, planning tips and just being kind in general, massive thanks for all your support in getting me to Thorpe Park and for all the encouraging messages on here and on Facebook.

But lastly, thank you to the Mania Hub as a website, community and an invaluable tool - this post just shows how, when a community comes together, they can make a wee little northern boy's dreams come true... but it doesn't end here, folks! 2013 already sounds bigger and better... Thorpe Park was really just the start of my enthusiast life…

A huge thumbs up to Thorpe Park

Woo! You’ve reached the end of my post! Congratulations and thank you for taking the time to read these trip reports!

Our Liam

[Mer]

Awwww Liam! I've really enjoyed reading this trip report and I'm glad you finally made it down and had such a great time!

It really was an awesome day, apart from the busy-ness, the weather was great, Liam managed most of the rides and what a lovely group of people! Liam, you're adorable! It's a real shame some others who were looking to go couldn't make it, but we did as promised and shouted out Sidders' name from the top of Inferno, and I brought a Curly Wurly with me to represent Ben

It was lovely to finally meet the trolley dolly himself, after months of planning this trip and a few set backs. Liam Tolson DOES exist in real life and DID make it to Thorpe! It was quite amusing when waiting on the bridge for him - it seemed to take him forever to get across the car park and at one point I thought I saw him, but knew something wasn't quite right...turned out it wasn't him but a manlier, scarier, bearded version! It was also great seeing (well, mostly hearing!) Liam's reactions to the park and the rides; to start with, there was the look on his face and the famous "Oh my gawwd!" as we stepped out the Dome and he took in the view, along with "I'm actually here!" Bless!

Then as we were heading over to Swarm he was rather shocked to see a plane flying so near! Whilst I'm mentioning Swarm - love the new theming additions but was a shame that the helicopter blades wern't turning, the fire engine water I don't recall seeing and we didn't see the fire, it's a shame it doesn't go off more regularly. We did hear it however from the queue and smelt the gas. Also I think the ORPs may have had an issue, I don't think it was the bagroom, as after we came off, we got our stuff back moreorless straight away. And I'm not sure I even saw the camera flash, real shame!

The other highlights from the day:

The woman losing her young son's shoe in the Tidal Wave pool! Watching it bob around hopelessly and her trying to fish it out!

Liam's reaction on Stealth, especialy at the top (sounded like FERKINGERRRRRRLL!")

The Stealth ORPs consisting of my hand covering Liam's face...and then Luke's hand covering my face! Sorry Liam! I didn't think my little arms and hands would get in your way!

Liam wanting to get out some tea on Rumba and his reaction in the tunnel: "Ooh that's pretty, Christmas lights!" oh and at the end: "Oh, is that it?"

Colossus! I had the privelage of sitting next to Liam on this and his reaction at the start to how cramped it is, along with in the brake run "My hands!!" was just epic. Oh and during the inlines, "I don't like it, no more!"

Getting drenched from Tidal Wave. First we stood on the bridge, and it was here where I was reminded what a great ride this is and how much I love the interaction. Standing there, watching the boat plummet down the drop and then seeing that huge wave flying towards you, and waiting... This was a great laugh but we wanted more wetness so we hovered by the soak zone before going to the infamous exit path...we were well and truely soaked after that!

The shoutout on Flying Fish! I did ask the Rush op but he forgot, but it turned out Fish was a great idea; as Liam mentioned, some kids in the batching area shouted out "Trolley Dolly"! as we went through the station!

And just the general awesomeness of the group, as Liam mentioned in greater detail. Was lovely to meet Liam and see everyone else again! It was also nice having a meal and some laughs afterward with Marc, Tinie and Sheepie, real shame not everyone else from the day could be there! Awesome pina colada times were had in Frankie & Benny's! Then me and Sheepie had a rather entertaining train ride back to Clapham due to a group of drunk people climbing into the luggage racks and planking between each side!

As Liam mentioned, I did feel ill towards the end. I sometimes have this thing happen at theme parks (and it doesan't happen at other times so it's not a health issue or anything) where after eating, I get a huge, bloated stomach (looks like I'm a few months pregnant!) and it hurts my back as it bloats so much (even worse if I have a heavy bag, which I did on this occassion), along with a sickey feeling, which is only made better/eases off by sitting down. Apologies in advance for what I'm about to say but quite often it's relieved by burping and/or going to the toilet. Y'all know what I mean! LOL! But on this occassion, I didn't need to go and I wasn't needing to burp...and then I wanted a drink. I was so close to buying water and it really would have been the most sensible option but a silly voice in my head told me to buy Fanta as the fizziness might help me burp/relieve the sicky feeling. Wrong, I think it was this that made it worse than usual; not long after drinking some of the Fanta I got that feeling inside my mouth like I was going to be sick and there was this tightness/stinging rising up, I was sort of struggling to breath! I was actually nearly sick at one point! I don't think it's good to eat a lot at theme parks to be honest, unless you sit down and let your food digest properly - which is pretty hard to do at Thorpe, especially now CCR has gone (and we'd already done Rumba) - walking around, rides, and even standing in queues can't be good if you've eaten a lot! And I was very full after my piri piri ciabatta and chips at Bar 360! So from now on I think I'll have to eat less in one go; bit of a pain as it means I'd probably have to buy food twice if I was hungry agaub later and possibly spend more money than just buying one meal but hey, if it means I avoid this then I can't really complain.

However, after sitting in a comfy chair in the Dome at the end whilst waiting for Peter and his friends, I did *eventually, after it coming and going* feel back to normal, and like I said, managed Frankie & Benny's later!

Anyway, back to the positive notes! I will leave you with a photo of happy, contented Liam in the Inferno test seat, followed by a link to rest of the album on Photobucket (Facebook really lowers the quality!) Oh and the ones of Inferno were taken on Marc, but on my camera.

http://s100.photobuc...lly Goes South/

Thank you for such an enjoyable day, I needed it!

[MarkC]

You have given both The Swarm and Stealth 10/10 have you got a over all favourite?

[Liam T]

You have given both The Swarm and Stealth 10/10 have you got a over all favourite?

My overall favourite between the two was The Swarm.

Reason being though Stealth had a great thrill and nothing I have experienced before, The Swarm had what I would call "an complete package" ride, theme, music & more... Not only was the ride fantastic, but everything pre/post ride was amazing aswell

[Liam T]

It's been a whole year since I was at Thorpe Park! Thank you all for that amazing day, alot of changed in a year but this day still remains one of the best in my life so far, I'm excited to announce the next time I'll be down there is to experience the new Fright Nights!

See you all there for 'Trolley Dolly goes Fright Nights!' also a little shout out for all those going to Alton Towers in 3 weeks time! Cannot wait to meet new faces & catch up with old ones!

Lots of love

Trolley Dolly xx

[alexander]

Loved reading this report Liam :') but nah Inferno ain't got nothing on Nemesis - but I'm sure Jack will say otherwise!

[J.S217]

Oh Inferno

[EC!]

You better come to fright nights so that we can sing happy birthday even though its not your birthday on rocky express like some of us did with Han haha