The Smiler - General Discussion

I don't see how you can judge a ride when ypu havebt been on it before. Why are you so sceptical to ride it? You can't say you don't want to wait when you haven't even been on it

 

Ah yeah I fully get the shear size of it and how daunting it could be. I guess it's just me - When I first saw it I thought "wow that's an incredible feat of engineering" and it made me want to get on it more. I love to see how things work so watching The Smiler go round, the lift hill mechanisms, the brake fins going up and down etc, just fascinates me. Even Rita - watching the fins, launch then seeing the catch car coming back along the track (if you're in the front seat quick enough to see it!) So I guess I have little or no fear of these things because of my fascination with and knowledge of how they all work. And in some ways I hate myself for it because I can't always get immersed in rides as much as perhaps I should!

Get to the park early - I meant at the turnstiles by 9, they're letting people in early to avoid crowds at the moment. Head straight over to the Smiler and queue until it opens. That way you may be queuing for 45-60 mins but at least by the time you've been on it it should be only just gone 10am

 

With that mentality rides will always just be machines to you and not an immersive experience

 

fear and anxiety isn’t rational. It doesn’t think about whether you’ve been on it before or anything.

 

I know, don't get me wrong, I love the physical experience of coasters and always will, but like the tension for Oblivion (and the Smiler to some degree) just passes me by! I remember being absolutely blown away by Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey in Universal when I rode it, but I do remember thinking while on it "how the f**k have they done this?" which brought me out of the immersiveness of it and it's that way of thinking that I hate myself for!

 

I wish I cared more about the technical side of rides tbf. I just think of them as rides and not machines so I don't have the same problem. Although I do find myself often questioning how they managed to build the smiler, but I think everyone does so!

 

Thanks for that but we've decided to head to Dark Forest first as one of our group has never been to Towers before, so they can do Rita quickly as that's the only coaster I definitely won't do. I'll ask at the entrance what the RAP wait time is when we get to Smiler anyway.

 

I can't believe The Smiler turns 8 today! Feels like it was only yesterday it opened!

 

8 years on... and it's still getting 2 hour queues ugh

 

Are you forgetting that a) it's still really popular and b) it's very close to the park entrance?

 

You’d think it had been there 18 years judging by the state of it.

 

Time flies when you get older. You think the time gone quick now? It goes even quicker the older you get

 

Was thinking will it get a repaint but probably not

 

I can't be the only person on here who now prefers the back to the front. Yes the front is certainly smoother but blime me the back on the smiler has got that extra thrill factor to it. I actually didn't realise how tame the front row seems compared to the back

 

I’ve never really found the front much different to the back thrill-wise, personally. The main difference I notice is that the back tends to be rougher. As such, Smiler’s a front row coaster for me; the front is also great for views of the track, in my opinion, and I actually think the air hills seem a little stronger up front, as you’re really pushed up into them, and you seem to feel the airtime for longer!

With the train only being 4 rows long, I wouldn’t think it would make quite as much of a difference as it does on a ride with a longer train, like Wicker Man or Thirteen for instance. I’ve never personally noticed much of a difference, but if you do, then fair enough! You’re certainly the first I’ve ever heard say that back is their favourite row on The Smiler…

 

I've been on the back row more times than any other because of my cousin's RAP at Scarefest, I don't really prefer any one row to another, but then again I think all rows ride the same to me! (personally anyway I can't tell the difference)

 

I'm not surprised about that it is a weird opinion. I don't know I just personally find the front a bit tame as in the past year I've been on the front so much. When I got on the back for the first time in quite a while last week, I was very surprised by the difference in force. The speed felt like another level. It does throw you around a lot but I love that with a coaster, that feeling of absolutely no control. It's probably just the fact I haven't been on the back in so long so I noticed more of a difference than other people

 

Don't know if it was maybe train number but the back row seemed very smooth when I visited on Thursday. Force wise, it didn't feel too different to the front, although there was definitely a stronger pull off both lift hills.

 

Out of interest, has the intermittent strobe in Smiler’s indoor queue line always been there? I rode the ride in its opening year and couldn’t remember it being there, but I’m unsure whether I’m just forgetting that bit of it.

I’ll admit I’m not a fan of that strobe; it makes me wince every time!

 

No, it wasnt there from the very beginning. Cant remember when it was added ie whether it was later in the 2013 seasons or after. I do remember there being some discussion around it, people felt it ruined the projection mapping (when it worked/works).


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