Skyscraper
TS Member
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That's because Spookslot is closing permanently for a new attraction I think. Duel on the other hand is just being refurbished, and the ride system is staying.
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[2023] The Curse at Alton Manor
Trooper Looper
TS Member
People keep on calling it a refurb here when also saying that all of the OG HH and Duel theming is going to be ripped out with new props and scenery. By that definition, why did Spookslot even have a closing day event? A lot of the props and scenery will be carried to Danse Macbare, the only difference will be a new theatre, new scenes, and a new facade. It's getting just as much change as people here are saying about Duel though obviously in difference aspects.The reason many here don't see a problem with Duels sudden unannounced closure because they don't really like Duel as a whole, and that's why they have little to no opinion of it closing outside of "finally!" If people here did, surely they'd argue that at the very least Alton Towers Social Medias could've done a quick post about Duels last operating day to make it clear for The GP.
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QTXAdsy
TS Member
Just wondering, other than Duel, are there any other rides that Towers look back on with some embarrassment or shame? I'd suspect that Charlie has a bit of that though honestly, I suspect the hate is more from the enthusiasts over the fact it replaced a beloved ride like TT. Maybe Dungeons is another speaking of which or even Sub Terra.
Trooper Looper
TS Member
Rita... Submission...
Back onto Duel though. I would've agreed with everyone about it having a major change, IF the Park announced its closure to allow Guests to experience this variation of the ride for one last time, but they haven't. My bet is that this refurb is on the same level of change for when The HH was being converted to Duel, though maybe a tad more.
QTXAdsy
TS Member
Ah, ofc. IIRC, Rita was pretty much just a rushed addition to make up for lost time after all the tedious and failed planning around the Cross Valley Coaster. Funnily enough, Towers could have stooped even lower during that time if Rita was instead a clone Vekoma LSM in its place in which if some of you know the history of Thorpe, we nearly got that instead of Nemesis Inferno though honestly, I'd rather have a bog standard Vekoma LSM in Rita's place than what we got, hell, would've had a better throughput at least.
Submission, yeah...something Towers would forget sooner than later.
Regarding Duel, I know that technically speaking Towers have begun their PR start to the ride with the signs around the ride, but I wonder if we might see more build up towards the end of the season regarding hype? I have a feeling we might see something around for Scarefest.
Jb85
TS Member
Submission was ace
Shame? It's a business, not an emotional entity.
Matt.GC
TS Member
Look at the post again. There's 2 reasons why it belongs in the grammatical/typo thread.There are 32 I think, although the HH originally opened with 34.
Edit: Just saw this...
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Danscott22
TS Member
I’d argue there’s 2 clear reasons and one part of a sentence that could’ve been worded better. Do they not check that their socials team can respond properly either?
Word due is missing, they are apologising for any convenience caused, and “the ride has been closed” really annoys me. I know it technically makes sense, but it’s annoying me
Word due is missing, they are apologising for any convenience caused, and “the ride has been closed” really annoys me. I know it technically makes sense, but it’s annoying me
Jb85
TS Member
Its a damn site better then what we have currently .....
Danscott22
TS Member
Spinjam rides better than Submission to be fair, quite a lot better, despite it being a fairground ride.
Arguably...no, still crap.
Benzin
TS Member
Spookslot was far more historically significant to Efteling as well, hence why there were some attempts by the locals to prevent the park from even closing the original in the first place.
The people who feel the same about Duel aren't as numerous. Think the general reaction when the rumours kicked off were more "FINALLY".
QTXAdsy
TS Member
I did voice concerns if we get a Valhalla debacle here though IIRC, wasn't the problems were, other than covid, were building proper evacuation platforms that proved to be troublesome than anticipated?
I doubt we'll have the same problem for Duel, however I'm more concerned about the possible fragility of the props which I'm unsure how much maintenance they've had over the years or if they are pretty much about to fall apart which ultimately make the restoration a lot more ambitious than previously thought. Then there is the ride system itself which who knows what changes we'll see here, honestly even if we are led to believe that Towers have done a full check up on the ride to see what is needed to be done, as we've seen with Valhalla though, you'll always get a suprise when you look into it further and there very might well be something they discover that throws things off track.
Trooper Looper
TS Member
Well from photos of what I've seen of the rides Construction, the props seems to be pretty robust when carried by multiple men outside without a coat of paint, and given the fact that they've been indoor for 30 years now, I think they're probably in great shape with only their mechanics (swinging mechanical arm) having aged. The props and scenery are in really good condition, but not the mechanisms behind them outside of quite a few exceptions such as the Screaming Heads, The poltergeist room, The Grand Hall, The Undertaker, And the Column ghost.
I can see the ride system being updated in terms of reliability and new hardware.
Craig
TS Administrator
Just because theming is indoors doesn't mean it's not susceptible to degrading over time. You simply can't make a judgment on how something is 30 years later by comparing how something was handled when it was brand new. Those parts have been moved, bashed around and trodden on to service mechanics and gain access to other things around them. They've had holes drilled in to fit LEDs, patching jobs following damage and just general repetitive movement for 3 decades. That's before you even get into the temperature changes in the building throughout the year which will no doubt make them even more fragile.
Even just from looking at any of the moving parts on the ride, I don't think a single one could be referred to as being in "great shape" at the moment...
James
TS Founding Member
This is one of the screaming heads refurbished in 2018 (source). Clearly, it wasn't in a 'great shape', so it's safe to assume most/all theming not touched since the Duel refurb or even The Haunted House opening will be in a similar or even worse condition than the above.
Towers have certainly got their work cut out, I'm looking forward to seeing what they come up with.
Jb85
TS Member
This is one of the screaming heads refurbished in 2018 (source). Clearly, it wasn't in a 'great shape', so it's safe to assume most/all theming not touched since the Duel refurb or even The Haunted House opening will be in a similar or even worse condition than the above.
Towers have certainly got their work cut out, I'm looking forward to seeing what they come up with.
If this indeed the state of what they are having to work with, I can't see the £4m going very far.