I don't know where all this flat ride snobbery came from but flats have as much of a place in theme parks as coasters or dark rides. In fact, I'd say they're essential to help soak up crowds and to provide a bit of variety in ride experience.
I find the argument that flats make theme parks look like travelling fairs totally bizarre. No one looks at Talocan and says "This place looks like a grubby fairground, I shan't be coming here again!"
Fairs and parks are very closely linked. They are part of the same industry. For over a century there have been rides that exist in both permanent amusement parks and at travelling fairs and this has never bothered anyone until now.
If there were no flats in theme parks, we would be missing out on a huge variety of rides. Can you imagine theme parks without classics like Ferris wheels, carousels, teacups, pirate ships and wave swingers? Not to mention the rich assortment of spin rides available.
I don't think anyone's saying that Alton should install a ride with a light package that can be seen from Mars, German techno blasting from its speakers and a medley of unlicensed characters staring at you from its backflash. It would obviously need to be themed appropriately.
I said *some* flats make theme parks look tacky, and I stick by that. Call it snobbery if you want, it's just my opinion. I certainly don't think a theme park should have no flats, I just said they should be themed well and not look like they've come from a fairground. Cos let's face it - for every Talocan, there's hundreds of unthemed flats that stick out like sore thumbs.
All I said in my original post was that I don't want Towers to have any old flat for the sake of it. It needs to look good and not like it's come from a funfare, as that can give the impression that it's not a permanant feature. I want more flats, just good ones. That's not snobbery to me, just wanting quality. Would it be snobbery if people said they wouldn't want to see a Zamperla flyer like Hero open as SW8? We expect high standards from coasters, so we should expect the same from flats.