Drayton Manor Park

[ChristmasPud]

a lot of people now use 'dark ride' (always was a confusing term for describing what it was) to mean anything that's about a themed experience with effects and animation etc, including illusion rides like Hex and sometimes walkarounds.

Dark rides are becoming more and more hybrid-y too so there's not as much a boundary. But you wouldnt call a roller coaster or a boat ride with scenes a dark ride, might have a 'dark section' though

 

[jon81uk]

Dark rides are becoming more and more hybrid-y too so there's not as much a boundary. But you wouldnt call a roller coaster or a boat ride with scenes a dark ride, might have a 'dark section' though

I would always call a boat ride with show scenes a dark ride, Pirates of the Caribbean, Its a Small World, Toyland Tours, CharlieATCF, Bubbleworks, Gruffalo and the River Caves are all dark rides.

I do agree that there are rides that are hybrids but usually they feel like belonging to one group or the other, for example I would say Harry Potter and Gringotts is a dark ride using coaster technology, but the Mummy is a coaster with special effects.

But back more on topic, UK parks really should value animatronics, show scenes and similar a lot more.

 

[pluk]

Why do people get their knickers in such a twist when things can't be put into neat little boxes?

Have there been any decent new indoor attractions this century? No, not really, especially when rethemes are discounted. Does the UK with its crap climate desperately need them? Yes.

Drayton sucks.

 

[ChristmasPud]

I would always call a boat ride with show scenes a dark ride, Pirates of the Caribbean, Its a Small World, Toyland Tours, CharlieATCF, Bubbleworks, Gruffalo and the River Caves are all dark rides.

I meant like an outdoor boat ride that goes through a themed scene

Why do people get their knickers in such a twist when things can't be put into neat little boxes?

Yeah a dark ride can mean almost any kind of ride these days, where the appeal is the scenes not the actual ride itself.

Pirate Adventure needed a revamp, very sad what happened to it really. One of the biggest dark rides in a UK park sitting unused.

 

[jon81uk]

I meant like an outdoor boat ride that goes through a themed scene

Ah like Jungle Cruise or In the Night Garden boat adventure thing. Yeah good examples are great rides and they are basically the same as an indoor boat dark ride like Pirates.

Have there been any decent new indoor attractions this century? No, not really, especially when rethemes are discounted. Does the UK with its crap climate desperately need them? Yes.

I completly agree, but would rather see a new version of Pirates instead of another virtual reality mess.

 

[Dave]

Why do people get their knickers in such a twist when things can't be put into neat little boxes?

Have there been any decent new indoor attractions this century? No, not really, especially when rethemes are discounted. Does the UK with its crap climate desperately need them? Yes.

Drayton sucks.

Humans have a strong desire to categorise things, psychologists have theorised on the reasons for decades.....

 

[TPJames]

I think I read it was closed until further notice. Disappointingly, I am going on Monday and with this and Stormforce 10 down is quite a hole in their line up for thrillseekers.

I honestly think if it isnt opened this summer, it will be removed. Lots of rumours circulating about it and Apocolypse.

What were the queue times like today?

 

[DistortAMG]

More than headaches. As a previous poster mentioned, the concrete on the ride itself does indeed act as a ballast for Shockwave, which is one of the reasons for the rides interweaving nature. Shockwave's operation is actually reliant on not only the existence of Splash Canyon as a basic weight/balance, but also its operation. One of the many reasons Shockwave is experiencing troubles now more than before, is because of the lack of water being pumped through the Splash Canyon circuit, giving it the extra weight that it needs during the areas of the track with the highest physical stresses; namely the vertical loop and leftward turn in to the loop. (the footings alone are not enough essentially, and yes, much of the concrete rooted into the ground is shared by both rides as a foundation)

Im sorry but that is nonsense. That comes no where near to meeting building regulations, building regulations from 1994. You can't build a structure, that carrys people, where part of the integrity of said structure, relies on water, which in turn relies on electricity to pump said water. Not a chance.

Also remeber concerete on average weights 2 to 3 times that of water. So from an engineering standpoint if it would get passed from the building inspector (it wouldnt) it makes no sense. Then one final point into why they are not linked, the type of concerete you use to lay a trough. Is very different to the type concerete you have to (not can) have to use for footers. A tough is basically just a thin base and sides. Nothing deep. Footers for a coaster have to go deep into the ground to anchor the tall ride, protect it from wind loads ect.

Shockwaves footers are close to, but are independent to the trough of Splash Canyon.

Removing Shockwave will have no impact on Splash Canyon. Like wise, they could remove Splash Canyon and leave Shockwave. If they wanted to keep Splash Canyon they dont have to remove the footers for Shockwave, if they were even the remotest bit linled. They can still keep them.

 

[ChristmasPud]

It might just be a chinese whisper the idea that it's actually dependent on Splash, but maybe there's a degree of truth? For example Im sure the weight of the water would have had to be accounted for in the civil engineering of Splash. This usually wouldnt be an issue having it empty, but so long without the weight of the water it might be experiencing some issue.

Disturbance from that might have in turn affected the few Shockwave footers that seem to penetrate the trough/lake base. But like you say it would be incredibly unlikely for Shockwave to be intentionally dependent on Splash.

But Im no engineer of course, just had some construction training and an interest, so if anyone knew more for certain it would be very interesting to learn. No real reason why removing one would remove the other though.

 

[DistortAMG]

Yeah yeah I totally agree the weight of the water would need to be accounted for.

It was the point someone else said of them using water as some sort of ballast. Despite concrete being 3 times as heavy as water. Total nonsense.

It is probably a Chinese whisper from somewhere. I certainly never heard anything of the sort from the days I worked at the park, and we did carry out quite a few technical tasks. I am sure we would have heard that. It makes a very interesting conversation though.

Here is a few photos to show the separation between the footers and the ride. Specifically in areas mentioned they were joined

Remember I said a few posts ago, Spalsh Canyon operated the whole of 1993 without Shockwave in place. Just the ground works were there. There is no reason why it can't run like that again. I mean some parts might be physically joining but if they were to cause an issue there is no reason why they couldn't just leave the bits in place causing that issue if they were to remove Shockwave.

Of the many silly desicions the management of Drayton Manor have made in recent years. Their biggest one was the removal of Pirate Adventure. A park targeting familys, had the largest and most unique family ride in the country. Yet it went.

A small part of me hopes they ripped the ride out to re build a new version. Very doubtful.

Drayton Manor must be kicking themselves now seeing Europa Parks spectacular new water boat ride, that is about to re open.

Do Drayton Manors management honestly think they can give guests the same satisfaction on a few themed Zamperla rides, compared to a lavishy themed dark ride.

 

[Sauron97]

Im sorry but that is nonsense. That comes no where near to meeting building regulations, building regulations from 1994. You can't build a structure, that carrys people, where part of the integrity of said structure, relies on water, which in turn relies on electricity to pump said water. Not a chance.
.

It is not nonsense, and I did not say the water was intended as a ballast for Shockwave. I said the concrete on the Splash Canyon troughs, which are in turn connected to the footings which the rides do share act as a ballast. A couple of screenshots taken from a VHS video from the 1990s when the double project was hitting completion is irrelevant as it does not allow you to see the connected concrete anchoring underneath.

On the point about the water flowing through and why it's an issue; you are misunderstanding what I am saying, as this is nothing to do with building regulations or the original construction. The poster above does point out one observation which is actually correct and verified to be true; elaborating my own point for me, which is the time period that Shockwave has undergone since May 2017 without water flowing through its circuit and indeed the effect this has on the footings which had previously been held down with a similar level of weight since 1994. This combined with aging steel (particularly around the points of the track that I previously specified which undergo the highest lateral/vertical stresses), and the overall need for stronger footings are part of the reasons why the lack of water being present and flowing through the Splash Canyon circuit is now a recognized issue for Shockwave. It was not an issue in the past, or part of any calculations made in the design phase of the coaster. It was only raised in the last couple of years, which is most likely why you have not heard of it. Perhaps it should of been clarified in the original point that I was talking about Shockwave's current operation, though I did separate the two points if you read it carefully.

On the Chinese whisper point; I get that some of it sounds unusual. But both physics and engineering, especially in projects like these are often so. In terms of where I have obtained this information from, it would be wrong of me to say 'look at me I got information from xyz, look how knowledgeable I am', I've been wrong about many things and of course its great for us to learn stuff from each other. But on this issue (without saying where it comes from) my opinion is that the information is very reliable, and I am pretty sure it is one of the reasons why Shockwave's continued existence is being called in to question. Some may be aware that Shockwave received a new chain for its lift hill fairly recently, and a lot of information about the ride overall has emerged from then. The condition of the track itself is another very important factor obviously.

If Shockwave was removed, they'd just get rid of the track and supports. Splash Canyon, and all of the concrete footings that exist everywhere would not be physically removed as they do not have the time, money or effort to do this.

 

[jon81uk]

Of the many silly desicions the management of Drayton Manor have made in recent years. Their biggest one was the removal of Pirate Adventure. A park targeting familys, had the largest and most unique family ride in the country. Yet it went.

A small part of me hopes they ripped the ride out to re build a new version. Very doubtful.

This is very much my feelings on the park. Getting rid of Shockwave would cut down on the thrill ride count and make it a lot less appealing to people looking for coasters, but given the majority of the other rides are family rides, removing pirates made no sense at all. Renovating it to a new theme would have been ok (but given how long Excaliber stayed around it may have been a bad move) but they could have just refurbished and maybe added some up to date lighting etc, Pirtates is still a generally popular theme.

 

[Themepark-newbie]

I am afraid that I am 99% convinced that Shockwave is going end of the season.

It would be a very pleasant surprise if it hangs on... but I have my doubts.

 

[DistortAMG]

It is not nonsense, and I did not say the water was intended as a ballast for Shockwave. I said the concrete on the Splash Canyon troughs, which are in turn connected to the footings which the rides do share act as a ballast. A couple of screenshots taken from a VHS video from the 1990s when the double project was hitting completion is irrelevant as it does not allow you to see the connected concrete anchoring underneath.

On the point about the water flowing through and why it's an issue; you are misunderstanding what I am saying, as this is nothing to do with building regulations or the original construction. The poster above does point out one observation which is actually correct and verified to be true; elaborating my own point for me, which is the time period that Shockwave has undergone since May 2017 without water flowing through its circuit and indeed the effect this has on the footings which had previously been held down with a similar level of weight since 1994. This combined with aging steel (particularly around the points of the track that I previously specified which undergo the highest lateral/vertical stresses), and the overall need for stronger footings are part of the reasons why the lack of water being present and flowing through the Splash Canyon circuit is now a recognized issue for Shockwave. It was not an issue in the past, or part of any calculations made in the design phase of the coaster. It was only raised in the last couple of years, which is most likely why you have not heard of it. Perhaps it should of been clarified in the original point that I was talking about Shockwave's current operation, though I did separate the two points if you read it carefully.

On the Chinese whisper point; I get that some of it sounds unusual. But both physics and engineering, especially in projects like these are often so. In terms of where I have obtained this information from, it would be wrong of me to say 'look at me I got information from xyz, look how knowledgeable I am', I've been wrong about many things and of course its great for us to learn stuff from each other. But on this issue (without saying where it comes from) my opinion is that the information is very reliable, and I am pretty sure it is one of the reasons why Shockwave's continued existence is being called in to question. Some may be aware that Shockwave received a new chain for its lift hill fairly recently, and a lot of information about the ride overall has emerged from then. The condition of the track itself is another very important factor obviously.

If Shockwave was removed, they'd just get rid of the track and supports. Splash Canyon, and all of the concrete footings that exist everywhere would not be physically removed as they do not have the time, money or effort to do this.

The supports for Shockwave and Splash Canyon are not linked in a structural manor. They act independently structurally wise. This is my own personal opinion. Based on not only from what I can see. But working at the park, working with maintenance at the park and working with external contractors who have done work at the park over many years.

 

[ChristmasPud]

Do we think cutting maintenance costs is the reason for Shockwave's rumoured closure? Costs of parts and repairs etc. That would suggest the park is really in a bad way if they cant afford to keep their current big rides, and having to scale right back to a small regional park.. Maybe they can do it, but I hope it doesnt end up like American Adventure where the whole thing just fizzles out once they removed their big rides

 

[Pleasure Beach Valhalla]

Shockwave will go this decade and nothing will replace it or Splash Canyon!

 

[Matt N]

I think the thing to remember about Drayton Manor is that thrill seekers aren’t really their target audience anymore. As much as we enthusiasts enjoy thrill rides like Shockwave and Apocalypse, they’re out of reach for the vast majority of the park’s target demographic. The park is targeting itself towards families with younger children now, and with stellar family additions in recent years like Thomas Land and the various expansions to that area, as well as things like Accelerator in the main park, they are really ticking all the boxes for the young family market.

As much as the thrill rides were popular in their day, I don’t think they’re really as suitable for Drayton Manor’s clientele today as they once were, so with the immense financial difficulties the park has experienced within the last few years, removing thrill rides seems like a far more sound move to me than removing rides more suitable for their current target market. Then, if the park eventually recovers a little, maybe they could replace Shockwave with something more suitable for the family market; maybe something like Storm Chaser at Paultons Park would be nice?

Since the Splash Canyon incident in May 2017, the park seems to have been stuck in somewhat of a rut both financially and in terms of guest figures, and with them not having a huge corporate conglomerate like Merlin to save them, they have not bounced back anywhere near as quickly as somewhere like Alton Towers did after the Smiler crash, for example, as they are in a far weaker financial position than Alton Towers. Due to this, the park is having to make some very hard choices in order to keep itself afloat, and to me, keeping the product as intact as possible for Drayton’s young family market and removing rides that aren’t really suitable for their target demographic seems like a much better choice than removing rides that appeal directly to their target market of young families. This way, they can still provide a great experience with lots to do for young families, while also ensuring the financial longevity of the park. Both the average guest and the park’s accountants are happy, so it’s a win-win situation!

I’m thinking that whatever the park seemingly has going on with Mellors may bring good things, however; Mellors seem to have done a fantastic job with Fantasy Island in the 4 years they’ve owned it!

 

[Thameslink Rail]

I'm not sure leaving the thrill sector completely is a good idea because yes family rides are cheaper but there is far more competition in the family market. Drayton Manor knows that whatever it does it will be in Alton Towers' shadow but in the family market there is also West Midlands Safari Park, Gulliver's Kingdom and Twinlakes within 40 miles.

 

[jon81uk]

If Shockwave had to go, replacing it with a slightly less thrilling coaster with a 1.2m height restriction would be the best compromise really, so they can still offer low thrill to older kids. But removing Splash Canyon would be a great shame.

 

[Matt N]

I'm not sure leaving the thrill sector completely is a good idea because yes family rides are cheaper but there is far more competition in the family market. Drayton Manor knows that whatever it does it will be in Alton Towers' shadow but in the family market there is also West Midlands Safari Park, Gulliver's Kingdom and Twinlakes within 40 miles.

But the thing worth noting is; none of these parks have a lucrative IP like Thomas on their side. I’d also personally argue that Drayton has worked up a very, very strong family lineup already with years of investment into rides for families, even when they still heavily invested into thrill rides.