Blackpool Pleasure Beach: General Discussion

[Matt N]

On a different subject, am I the only one who’s ever greyed out on the Big One? It’s always had a reputation for forcelessness, but the first drop actually made me grey out to a similar extent to Nemesis’ helix last time I rode.

Has anyone else ever found this?

 

[Mikw]

I would hardly call stealth a good coaster. Sure it’s thrilling but it’s way too short to be classed as a top coaster.

Smiler is one of the worst coasters I’ve ever been on, let alone in the UK. The only thing it has going for it is a long ride time, but that’s filled with head-banging and rattling the whole time. In my opinion one of the worst gerst infinity coasters designed and poor choice of restraints with OSTRS compared to kärnans lapbars. It’s a gimmick and that’s the best I can call it- all merlin wanted was the inversion record.

Nemesis- it’s smooth, it’s long, it’s well-paced, but I was extremely underwhelmed. Perhaps because of all the hype from uk enthusiasts, but I found it somewhat “boring”. Inferno, black mamba and Osiris all top it for me.

I haven’t done the ultimate so I can’t comment.

So yeah, in my opinion, icon is easily the UKs best coaster. Long ride time, double launch, smooth, no rattling or jerking, plenty of airtime and hang time and just an all round good fun coaster coupled with a good soundtrack. Not to mention it probably has the best operations out of any UK coaster as well which is a massive factor for me.

I haven’t ridden wickerman as I have no interest in going to merlin parks anymore really, but in my opinion icon is the best uk coaster and nothing comes close, but it’s certainly not world beating.

I've never banged my head on The Smiler. Have done on Nemisis lots of time though. Might be because i'm quite tall?

 

[Matt N]

I've never banged my head on The Smiler. Have done on Nemisis lots of time though. Might be because i'm quite tall?

That could be it. On another Gerstlauer coaster, Saw at Thorpe Park, my dad, at 6’6”/6’7”, said he found it pretty smooth, while I, at only 5’9”, banged my head a lot and came off with a thumping headache!

 

[Mikw]

That could be it. On another Gerstlauer coaster, Saw at Thorpe Park, my dad, at 6’6”/6’7”, said he found it pretty smooth, while I, at only 5’9”, banged my head a lot and came off with a thumping headache!

I've often wondered about that. My head is well above the OTS restraints and i lean well forward anyway. That also helps on Nemesis but the restraints on that are much bulkier.

Returning to the Icon question, i do love it, and rode it 9 times in one day when i visited in it's opening year, it's rerideable.

However, i have also managed The Smiler 8 times in a day and - whisper it quietly - i prefer the Smiler.

Not by much, but overall i do.

It just seems like it - apart from the vertical lift hill - never lets up, and love the second airtime hill.

 

[Pleasure Beach Valhalla]

I've never banged my head on The Smiler. Have done on Nemisis lots of time though. Might be because i'm quite tall?

I'm tall and I banged my shoulders on The Smiler not too bad though and I didn't get it with Nemesis tbh. Infusion however, that's a completely different story!

 

[Dave]

On a different subject, am I the only one who’s ever greyed out on the Big One? It’s always had a reputation for forcelessness, but the first drop actually made me grey out to a similar extent to Nemesis’ helix last time I rode.

Has anyone else ever found this?

That’s not greying out, it’s the world going monochrome due to boredom....

 

[Dipper_Dave]

@shakey @rob666 Hope you are really jealous, I rode the Space Invader on Sunday! At Brean, Somerset en route to Cornwall. No way was I going that close on the M5 and not riding it. Now called Astro Storm. In a glorified tin shed, doesn’t look as good as it did in the Blackpool mountain. Queue under cover of station roof a bit like W&G. Improvement on original sweaty claustrophobic one. Whole shed reeks though!

Not sure I can remember the trim brakes, they killed the ride somewhat but otherwise it felt pretty much as I remembered. I’d forgotten how small it was though. The lift hill is puny. I think I only realised a few years back that it still existed, when it closed at Blackpool I didn’t expect I would ever ride it again, so it was great to go back on it.

I rode the Space Invader

 

[Boothy]

@shakey @rob666 Hope you are really jealous, I rode the Space Invader on Sunday! At Brean, Somerset en route to Cornwall. No way was I going that close on the M5 and not riding it. Now called Astro Storm. In a glorified tin shed, doesn’t look as good as it did in the Blackpool mountain. Queue under cover of station roof a bit like W&G. Improvement on original sweaty claustrophobic one. Whole shed reeks though!

Not sure I can remember the trim brakes, they killed the ride somewhat but otherwise it felt pretty much as I remembered. I’d forgotten how small it was though. The lift hill is puny. I think I only realised a few years back that it still existed, when it closed at Blackpool I didn’t expect I would ever ride it again, so it was great to go back on it.

I rode the Space Invader

PBE did a POV on it on their channel - I was shocked to find out it wasnt scrapped when it left Blackpool!

 

[pluk]

On a different subject, am I the only one who’s ever greyed out on the Big One? It’s always had a reputation for forcelessness, but the first drop actually made me grey out to a similar extent to Nemesis’ helix last time I rode.

Has anyone else ever found this?

In a word, no. And you didn't grey out in the sense that it is talked about on coasters either.

Greying out is just a lack of oxygen to the brain, when it's caused in a coaster it's primarily due to the forces placed upon your body preventing sufficient blood getting to the brain. For that to happen to a healthy person you need significant g force for a sustained period. The Big One doesn't even provide significant g force (less than 4g?) and the little it does is incredibly brief. On the actual drop where you describe it happening there is practically no positive g force.

If you felt like you were going to faint something other than ride forces were the cause.

 

[Matt N]

In a word, no. And you didn't grey out in the sense that it is talked about on coasters either.

Greying out is just a lack of oxygen to the brain, when it's caused in a coaster it's primarily due to the forces placed upon your body preventing sufficient blood getting to the brain. For that to happen to a healthy person you need significant g force for a sustained period. The Big One doesn't even provide significant g force (less than 4g?) and the little it does is incredibly brief. On the actual drop where you describe it happening there is practically no positive g force.

If you felt like you were going to faint something other than ride forces were the cause.

I don’t know if I did grey out, then; I definitely didn’t feel like I was going to faint, and I didn’t feel any adverse effects on my body besides my vision briefly going. All that happened is that my vision went for a little bit (I was experiencing the sensation often described as “seeing stars”), similar to how it sometimes does on Nemesis’ helix and Swarm’s helicopter turn, and to a lesser extent at the loop and final helix on Nemesis Inferno. Revolution’s vertical loop also made me see stars, and it made my head hurt a little when getting off, but I don’t know whether that would qualify as a grey out.

Oddly, it only happened on one ride I had towards the front; I rode in the back car later in the day, and it didn’t happen! Very odd!

If that’s the case about greying out, then the only times I’d say I’ve ever greyed out are Manta at SeaWorld Orlando (in the pretzel loop) and Olympia Looping (I can’t pinpoint where, as I didn’t actually seem to lose my vision, but I felt incredibly nauseous getting off, presumably due to the ride’s high g-forces; billed as 5.2G at some points). Both of those felt quite unpleasant and made me feel pretty odd when getting off.

I don’t personally find greying out a very pleasant sensation, so for that reason, I don’t particularly rate incredibly intense coasters; I actually find that too much positive g-force can take away from a ride, personally, and rides with more tolerable levels of positive g-force that are more rerideable are far more up my street. So with regards to Blackpool, it’s Icon all the way for me; immensely rerideable, and so much fun from start to finish!

 

[shakey]

I love Grand National, because it's ancient and rides like you'd expect it to. No excuses with Big One, it's a bland layout and has aged terribly.

Grand National rides like nobody would expect it to! It is horrendously rough to the point where you are happy to get off the thing and still walk.

Rode the big one today and I have to admit i got bashed about a bit, but I didn't feel like I was going to break my back or neck on it, like I do with nash.

For all its faults, big one is my number one coaster in the UK (since the rodent departed). I just love the speed and scale of it.



Sent from my ELS-NX9 using Tapatalk

 

[rob666]

The maze reopened yesterday afternoon.
Now free the Dodgems 10.

 

[Dave]

Grand National rides like nobody would expect it to! It is horrendously rough to the point where you are happy to get off the thing and still walk.

Rode the big one today and I have to admit i got bashed about a bit, but I didn't feel like I was going to break my back or neck on it, like I do with nash.

For all its faults, big one is my number one coaster in the UK (since the rodent departed). I just love the speed and scale of it.



Sent from my ELS-NX9 using Tapatalk

I think the Big One is a very pretty rollercoaster, looks good from multiple angles. It just doesn’t do anything, it has none of the expected forces you want in a hyper coaster (even from that era).

They sacrificed the ride experience to keep the height across the front for visuals. Shame really.

 

[shakey]

I think the Big One is a very pretty rollercoaster, looks good from multiple angles. It just doesn’t do anything, it has none of the expected forces you want in a hyper coaster (even from that era).

They sacrificed the ride experience to keep the height across the front for visuals. Shame really.

There is no doubt that the layout could and should have been much better.

But if you are measuring a ride purely on how successful its been for a park, then the big one has to be at the top of the pile in the UK.

Still one of the main reasons people visit pleasure beach and still one of the most iconic and popular rides in the UK.





Sent from my ELS-NX9 using Tapatalk

 

[kurtis.99]

Still hoping Amanda let’s it get the Morgan treatment find away to reinstall the original drop that’s not going to pull the trains apart


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Matt N]

As much as I’m not a huge fan of the ride, I admit that it is by and large still the fan favourite at Blackpool among most visitors. And while I don’t think it has my favourite coaster layout on earth by a long shot, I do think that the layout is perhaps worthy of more credit than it sometimes gets, especially in terms of what it was actually designed to do.

I admit that there are definitely quite a few notable sections where it ambles around somewhat, doing very little, but there are also other sections where I feel an absolutely phenomenal sense of speed replicated by few other coasters I’ve been on. The first drop, while I admit I found it a touch too rough in the back, provides a real rush, especially towards the front of the train; while there’s no airtime over this drop, the sensation of speed and wind in your face is quite something!

While I also admit that I have never felt airtime of any description on the Big One, I don’t really think it was ever designed with airtime in mind. It was very much designed to focus on that sense of speed and the general size of the coaster, and I think it does this really quite well, personally! To be honest, I think I’d enjoy it a lot more if it wasn’t quite so rough, as it does have many redeeming features from a layout perspective, in my opinion.

When Geoffrey Thompson was interviewed about the Big One while it was being constructed, he spoke about Magnum XL-200, and he didn’t mention the ride’s airtime as one of the main reasons he liked it; he said that it was “just enormous” and had a “spectacular first drop”. To me, that suggests that he didn’t really aim for the Big One to provide airtime.

 

[venny]

The maze reopened yesterday afternoon.
Now free the Dodgems 10.

Dodgems have reopened as well Rob. Good excuse to celebrate with a pint.

 

[rob666]

Cheers venny, damn, missed it by a day.
T shirts out dippy, drink driving is back with a vengance!
And the kids are back at school in ten days...
Party.

 

[Matt N]

While I’m in the Blackpool Pleasure Beach thread, I thought it might be interesting to ask all of your opinions on the park’s classic wooden rollercoasters and general heritage. Do you think that the park should value preservation or evolution in the long term?

I’ve noticed that Blackpool’s heritage has become a very contentious topic as of late, with some believing that the park’s old rides should be removed or have major work done to them (RMCing the woodies is mentioned an awful lot in any discussion about Blackpool Pleasure Beach), while others believe that they shouldn’t be touched, and every element of them should be kept as it is now.

My personal belief is that the park should aim to strike a balance between the two, and I think there are numerous ways they could do this.

Now I love a modern coaster, but I would not personally like it at all if the Pleasure Beach’s wooden coasters were removed in favour of a modern coaster or RMC’d. They give the park a very unique charm, in my opinion, and while they may not necessarily have the ambitious layouts and elements of modern rides, they are extremely novel, and make Pleasure Beach what it is.

However, I do feel that with a bit of tweaking, the rides could appeal to a far wider audience than they currently do. I’m not suggesting that the rides get turned into RMC IBox coasters or even have major changes to their layouts by any means, but I think there are ways that the park could refurbish or tweak the rides to appeal to a wider audience; please the preservationists and maintain the classic charm of the rides, but also make them more palatable for modern tastes, that are perhaps more accustomed to smoother wooden coasters. There are quite a few foreign examples that prove that this can be done.

For example, the Coney Island Cyclone was recently retracked by GCI. Built in 1927, it’s arguably one of the world’s most iconic coasters. But since this overhaul, a far wider demographic seems to enjoy and rate the ride; the charm of the ride has been retained to a good enough degree to please fans of older coasters, while the ride has also become smooth and comfortable enough for fans of modern coasters to enjoy. Before, I’d heard many people say it was far too rough, but now, those voices have been muted, and the appeal of the ride is arguably far more unanimous. I feel like similar treatment could do wonders for Big Dipper and/or Grand National for relatively little cost.

I also notice many talk about how the trains, fitted in 2006 (I think?), allegedly ruin Grand National, and make it a shadow of its former self. Well, new rolling stock can be fitted to these heritage rides without necessarily taking away from the old feel. Sticking with GCI, I know that they manufactured custom trains especially for Roller Coaster at Lagoon, a similar style of wooden coaster to the rides at Blackpool, a few years back, and they apparently really improve the ride experience without necessarily wrecking the charm. I’m also assuming that this change would be relatively low cost.

So my point is; I don’t think modernisation necessarily has to remove the charm of these older wooden coasters, and I think striking a balance between heritage and evolution, instead of leaning too heavily towards one or the other, would be both very easy to pull off and also great for the park in the long run. While I do think the park’s wooden coasters would really benefit from a bit of work being done to them, I also think that Pleasure Beach’s heritage is one of its most special and positive attributes, and should ideally be kept intact where possible.

But what are your thoughts?
P.S. Apologies for long post!

 

[Thameslink Rail]

While I’m in the Blackpool Pleasure Beach thread, I thought it might be interesting to ask all of your opinions on the park’s classic wooden rollercoasters and general heritage. Do you think that the park should value preservation or evolution in the long term?

I’ve noticed that Blackpool’s heritage has become a very contentious topic as of late, with some believing that the park’s old rides should be removed or have major work done to them (RMCing the woodies is mentioned an awful lot in any discussion about Blackpool Pleasure Beach), while others believe that they shouldn’t be touched, and every element of them should be kept as it is now.

My personal belief is that the park should aim to strike a balance between the two, and I think there are numerous ways they could do this.

Now I love a modern coaster, but I would not personally like it at all if the Pleasure Beach’s wooden coasters were removed in favour of a modern coaster or RMC’d. They give the park a very unique charm, in my opinion, and while they may not necessarily have the ambitious layouts and elements of modern rides, they are extremely novel, and make Pleasure Beach what it is.

However, I do feel that with a bit of tweaking, the rides could appeal to a far wider audience than they currently do. I’m not suggesting that the rides get turned into RMC IBox coasters or even have major changes to their layouts by any means, but I think there are ways that the park could refurbish or tweak the rides to appeal to a wider audience; please the preservationists and maintain the classic charm of the rides, but also make them more palatable for modern tastes, that are perhaps more accustomed to smoother wooden coasters. There are quite a few foreign examples that prove that this can be done.

For example, the Coney Island Cyclone was recently retracked by GCI. Built in 1927, it’s arguably one of the world’s most iconic coasters. But since this overhaul, a far wider demographic seems to enjoy and rate the ride; the charm of the ride has been retained to a good enough degree to please fans of older coasters, while the ride has also become smooth and comfortable enough for fans of modern coasters to enjoy. Before, I’d heard many people say it was far too rough, but now, those voices have been muted, and the appeal of the ride is arguably far more unanimous. I feel like similar treatment could do wonders for Big Dipper and/or Grand National for relatively little cost.

I also notice many talk about how the trains, fitted in 2006 (I think?), allegedly ruin Grand National, and make it a shadow of its former self. Well, new rolling stock can be fitted to these heritage rides without necessarily taking away from the old feel. Sticking with GCI, I know that they manufactured custom trains especially for Roller Coaster at Lagoon, a similar style of wooden coaster to the rides at Blackpool, a few years back, and they apparently really improve the ride experience without necessarily wrecking the charm. I’m also assuming that this change would be relatively low cost.

So my point is; I don’t think modernisation necessarily has to remove the charm of these older wooden coasters, and I think striking a balance between heritage and evolution, instead of leaning too heavily towards one or the other, would be both very easy to pull off and also great for the park in the long run. While I do think the park’s wooden coasters would really benefit from a bit of work being done to them, I also think that Pleasure Beach’s heritage is one of its most special and positive attributes, and should ideally be kept intact where possible.

But what are your thoughts?
P.S. Apologies for long post!

Regardless of what people want, by law the Big Dipper, Grand National and Flying Machines must stay as they are as they are listed buildings. I doubt that they could get permission to any form of GCI/RMC conversion on the woodies. I wouldn't be surprised if the river caves and ghost train are listed soon.
The changes to the grand national in the mid 00s were before the ride was listed