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Drayton Manor Park

The reaction on twitter seems to broadly match that we have seen on here. The interesting thing again is the reaction / interaction of DMP. The twitter feed seemingly has engaged with every positive comment and roundly ignored anything else.

The reaction shows that DMP is fondly regarded by a lot of folks but, and it may just be my impression, that they are becoming a little cloth-eared to any reactions / comments / suggestions that aren't gushingly positive.

Also today though there is a tease tweet about future plans. Suggestions that there may be a countdown to an announcement due tomorrow.
 
I’ll digress that I’m not personally keen on that at all; I much preferred the old one.

However, I’ll admit that it is somewhat more fun and wacky than the old one, and it is probably a bit more fitting for the park’s current direction, aiming at young families.

I’m not really their target demographic, so probably shouldn’t judge… and I guess the logo is neither here nor there if the actual park itself is providing a good experience!
 
Matt N said:
I’ll digress that I’m not personally keen on that at all; I much preferred the old one.

However, I’ll admit that it is somewhat more fun and wacky than the old one, and it is probably a bit more fitting for the park’s current direction, aiming at young families.

I’m not really their target demographic, so probably shouldn’t judge… and I guess the logo is neither here nor there if the actual park itself is providing a good experience!
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But they aren't just aiming at young families, they've said they are aiming at all families in that blog post, or at least that's how I read it.
 
I don’t know what drayton are on about. They stated they are moving to the family thrill market which is a brilliant move as it can offer things for all the family, young children can ride buffalo and flying dutchman, whilst adults can enjoy shockwave and maelstrom and then children aged 7-11 enjoy rides such as, wave swinger, the rapids and thor. However the new logo dosen’t appeal to the family thrill audience. It appeals to 3-6 year olds. Personally i would’ve used the old logo and just replaced shockwave with maybe loki or accelerator, would’ve been a much better fit imo
 
They usually will soft open on the 26th or 27th with the Grand opening on the 28th.
I think by the end of junior school ages most kids now would rather see there friends then go to a theme park with there parents.
Also seeing my daughter growing up she was roughly 5 when she was tall enough for every Thomas land ride.
She was 7 when she hit 1.2m, 8/9 when she hit 1.3m and she’s currently 1.36m and she be 10 in July so it could be the end of the season she hits the 1.4m or it the start of next season. So really she will only have Shockwave as something new to ride.
I think onto future projects I think you will see demolition plans submitted soon for the removal of Apocalypse.
 
Looking good. Seems like they are roughly on schedule, it was hinted to be about 6 weeks away, 3 or so weeks ago.

As for Apocolypse, I do not think they need to submit any plans to remove it. It is not listed. No permission should be needed from the local authority.
 
Just came across this great video of the Shockwave / Splash Canyon double project entering its later stages in the 90s, featuring Shockwave doing test runs (looks like brake/friction testing on some clips), and showing angles of Splash Canyon taken next to the newly built props and scenery. Also showing op cabin views. Weird to see the area as a big construction site, with the sounds of contractors working in the background
 
Apologies for the double post. I have just checked and this video must of been filmed about a year later than the title suggests. Probably January/February 1994 given how close Shockwave looks to opening (March that year)

After checking, I'm pretty sure Shockwaves footings were laid down in late '92 alongside the concrete for Splash Canyons trough, but there is no way the coaster was this far in progress in Spring 1993.

This is verified by a screenshot I have of the Splash Canyon opening event well in to 1993. As you can see, Splash Canyon and the wild west buildings were all in place, however the supports and track of Shockwave had not been put in place at this stage.
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Still a great video though!
 
JAperson said:
I don't think this is true at all. Going to a theme park as a family is a once in a year thing for most people, I never minded not going out for one day to visit a theme park, and I don't recall anyone I knew minding either.
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Back when I was growing up we always went to Drayton 1st over the 6 weeks school holidays to I was 16 then got the train to I passed my test at 19. But now the friends I went the park with at school and college have never taken there kids to a theme park. I can see there point as with parking, Tickets, food and sweets it’s roughly a £150 to £200 day out.

I think Shockwave went up at the end of the 1993 season as they wouldn’t have been allowed to run Splash Canyon while building a coaster.
 
Themeparksandy1981 said:
Back when I was growing up we always went to Drayton 1st over the 6 weeks school holidays to I was 16 then got the train to I passed my test at 19. But now the friends I went the park with at school and college have never taken there kids to a theme park. I can see there point as with parking, Tickets, food and sweets it’s roughly a £150 to £200 day out.

I think Shockwave went up at the end of the 1993 season as they wouldn’t have been allowed to run Splash Canyon while building a coaster.
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Theme parks have always been expensive days out. I went to Drayton Manor every year around 1991-1995 with my parents, Pirates and Splash Canyon were new. We only did Alton Towers once in that time by collecting vouchers at Safeway.
But what made Drayton more affordable was that they still used a wristband/ticket model, so we didn't need to buy a wristband for my Mum saving us around £10-15 I think.
 
Sauron97 said:
Just came across this great video of the Shockwave / Splash Canyon double project entering its later stages in the 90s, featuring Shockwave doing test runs (looks like brake/friction testing on some clips), and showing angles of Splash Canyon taken next to the newly built props and scenery. Also showing op cabin views. Weird to see the area as a big construction site, with the sounds of contractors working in the background
Click to expand...

Cool video, I do miss the yellow shockwave trains.
 
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