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The Smiler - General Discussion

George W said:
In my opinion the first half is really smooth and enjoyable and the second half it really picks up some speed and gets quite intense but I definitely came off with a big smile everytime, the smiler has definitely got me hooked again, can't wait to be back
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That's interesting you think the 2nd half is more intense. I personally find the first half really intense. The drop between the 2 dive loops feels very forceful to me
 
Ethan said:
That's interesting you think the 2nd half is more intense. I personally find the first half really intense. The drop between the 2 dive loops feels very forceful to me
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Could just be where I get more discombobulated on the second half so everything seems a bit more intense, entering the 2 final corkscrews always have me manically laughing at that point.
 
I think the second half is just slightly wilder - I didn’t think the rides jolts were too bad last year on the cobra roll (im yet to ride this season, first visit is 4 weeks tomorrow). I usually have my hands up all the way, except to brace for the cobra roll exit.
 
Visited the park today and I’m absolutely appalled with The Smiler.

I was one of the original staff who worked the ride along with the team and we had heap loads of enthusiasm and love towards to the ride. Even marketing came down to give us a brief before it opened on how we should “act” and that’s why in the early days you got all the craziness from the staff which added to the experience!

Seeing it today is was like seeing it in a corner shell of what it once was.

The projection room is too bright now and has been bodged together and cut some of the queline along with audio edited and removed.

Baggage is laughable, a sheet of black plastic to say it’s closed?

The railing in the middle of merge has ruined that whole area.

The station, the walls are appalling. How much mould?! Surley it would be better to paint and gloss the walls from this happening and also the station is very dirty! And feels generally unloved as it used to be! Also the audio seems bizarre on station, as in you can’t make our what’s being said especially PA announcements. I’ve also noticed the general lack of maintenance and care on station.

The exit corridor the paint is practically gone off the floor now so the optical illusion doesn't work.

It’s really painful and disheartening seeing it like this given I was one of few that helped launch the attraction in 2013, and like I said we as a team at the time had so much enthusiasm and love for the ride but that seems to have all disappeared now all together. Seems the staff are just a number now and aren’t that bothered about the whole experience.
 
Poisson said:
Not surprised it's falling apart, then entire ride was built down to a budget way below what it should be. Lessons were learnt at its expense.
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Very true. How the smiler only cost £2m more than Wicker man I'll never know. I'm just going to assume that half the cost was the theming
 
Interestingly, when it first opened so back in 2013 at the end of the season we were asked to compile a list of what we though would benefit the ride, so touch ups in the station, moving the PA box as this was stupidly put on the wall over the op panel. However, non of this came to fruition surprisingly.

It was only years later the PA got moved and I don’t know who did the touch up painting, but quite frankly they ruined it. It was a shoddy job.
 
Ethan said:
Bit weird that since it opened it hasn't got above 90 mins despite being on 3 trains
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If only we had a queuetime thread for such inaine rubbish.

Out of interest, was it ever discovered what caused the extended downtime at the end of last season into this?
 
If it was on one train it makes more sense to keep it closed. The complaints at the 4 hour queue would have been horrendous. Unlike say Wicker Man on one train, Smiler would need Vampire esque reserve and ride from a few years back to open on one
 
Smoothest ride I've had on the back row today. Not as smooth as the other rows off course but more comfortable than I anticipated it being
Edit: Funny I said it's not as smooth as the other rows because my front row ride was rougher than the back🤣
 
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rob666 said:
I actually know when it is going back on four trains, but I like playing the ...
"I've got a secret but I've been asked not to tell" game.
And I really am a senior member of the parks tech services team.

And the rumour I heard was that it is never going back to four trains.
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You're confused by a cashless BPB, let alone stripping down a ride train.
 
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