Thorpe Park: General Discussion

[dave___]

Not sure why some people think there's an entitlement to know from the park what has failed. It's none of our business. Does it actually make any difference what the component is?

There's a thing in engineering called the bathtub curve. Basically something is most likely to fail either when it's new or at the end of its life. This is probably just an example of that. No harm done as things are designed to fail in a safe way.

It doesn’t make a difference but there’s a common assumption nowadays where if there isn’t full open and honest people automatically assume something is being hidden or covered up. Only takes one person with a decent social media savvy to get out there with their theories and then the rumour mill is on overdrive.

It would be better if or was something obviously broken like at Carowinds then this Chinese whispers would never start but here we are.

 

[Alphe86]

Monks Walk pal.
They had no choice, with a lengthy public footpath going round the edge of the site.
It was all going to be seen, regardless of what Thorpe actually wanted.

Indeed but they didn’t have to have people inside giving BTS updates twice a week

 

[rob666]

Indeed but they didn’t have to have people inside giving BTS updates twice a week

But every last one of those videos would have happened regardless, behind the scenes, or over the wall.
We are in a glorious new era of individual broadcasters, in business, and making money, with fifty quid set ups.
Rainbow unicorns take on a whole new meaning, and idiots are being fed invisible rainbow unicorn glitter sharts in jars, at a tenner each, and screaming "Bargain".
I need another lie down.

 

[Tom]

They're happy to facilitate obsessive curiosity when they can make money from it, but in this case they cannot, so they will not. Maybe they should start an auction for a full technical report on the issue.

 

[Josh555]

They're happy to facilitate obsessive curiosity when they can make money from it, but in this case they cannot, so they will not. Maybe they should start an auction for a full technical report on the issue.

They’re still making money from it.

That ‘video update’ that was released yesterday was 50% them patting themselves on the back for the opening day and the other 50% them reading out the exact updates that had been released in writing the day before.

It’s done to drive engagement, Thorpe are blue ticked on Twitter so they’ll get engagement revenue from the interactions, it’s more advertising for the park etc etc. the Twitter video is currently on 85,000 interactions.

What annoys me about it isn’t the fact that they’ve not released specific details about what’s wrong with the ride which they’re more than entitled not to do, it’s not even really the nature of the update itself, it’s the bad faith ‘updates’ which don’t actually update anyone on anything and is quite clearly a thinly veiled attempt to obtain more social media interactions and the increased revenue and exposure that ultimately comes with that.

Infuriating but the way of the world these days I guess.

 

[GooseOnTheLoose]

They're happy to facilitate obsessive curiosity when they can make money from it, but in this case they cannot, so they will not. Maybe they should start an auction for a full technical report on the issue.

It's entirely possible that, given the bredth of the agreements they'll have with Mack, they're not allowed to talk about what the issue is. There'll be all sorts of confidentiality clauses, covering various aspects of the ride's operation and manufacturing, which will be in effect for some duration of time. It's also possible that the legal advisors are afraid that any statements, about this issue, could be seen as reputationally damaging toward the manufacturer, which there will be contractual clauses about.

 

[Tom]

They’re still making money from it.

That ‘video update’ that was released yesterday was 50% them patting themselves on the back for the opening day and the other 50% them reading out the exact updates that had been released in writing the day before.

It’s done to drive engagement, Thorpe are blue ticked on Twitter so they’ll get engagement revenue from the interactions, it’s more advertising for the park etc etc. the Twitter video is currently on 85,000 interactions.

What annoys me about it isn’t the fact that they’ve not released specific details about what’s wrong with the ride which they’re more than entitled not to do, it’s not even really the nature of the update itself, it’s the bad faith ‘updates’ which don’t actually update anyone on anything and is quite clearly a thinly veiled attempt to obtain more social media interactions and the increased revenue and exposure that ultimately comes with that.

Infuriating but the way of the world these days I guess.

I'm fairly confident they will have lost a great deal of revenue over the closed period. Whether or not this can be reclaimed across the rest of the season is another question.

 

[Josh555]

I'm fairly confident they will have lost a great deal of revenue over the closed period. Whether or not this can be reclaimed across the rest of the season is another question.

Of course.

I don’t mean that it’s a net positive as it obviously won’t be.

What I mean is that their Twitter ‘updates’ beyond the actual written statements aren’t actually being put out there to update anyone, it’s just another form of social media engagement baiting.

 

[Smiley]

It's entirely possible that, given the bredth of the agreements they'll have with Mack, they're not allowed to talk about what the issue is.

Absolutely! But what they should have said is: "We found a technical issue at the top of the lift hill as part of our daily inspection and maintenance. Over time this could have caused a train to stop on the lift hill, and potentially an evacuation of the train on the lift hill - an event our staff are trained to do safely and securely. In the interests of the comfort and enjoyment of our guests, blah blah, fearless, blah blah".

Nature abhors a vacuum - even of information. Something will fill the void.

 

[Numaticjoe]

What annoys me about it isn’t the fact that they’ve not released specific details about what’s wrong with the ride which they’re more than entitled not to do, it’s not even really the nature of the update itself, it’s the bad faith ‘updates’ which don’t actually update anyone on anything and is quite clearly a thinly veiled attempt to obtain more social media interactions and the increased revenue and exposure that ultimately comes with that.

Infuriating but the way of the world these days I guess.

They also probably don't want to go into detail on what happened as the media are likely gonna twist the story into something much worse than it is. They really should be telling everybody what's gone wrong as it would stop a large amount of rumors being spread about aswell. Giving the fact they have a high follower count, verified mark etc it wouldn't be hard for them to get the truth out.

 

[rob666]

The truth is already out.

 

[BBoyJD10]

The truth is already out.

go into details then ?

 

[rob666]

See the last couple of dozen pages on here.
Things go wrong.
Safety kicks in.
Things get fixed, checks are made, and things open again.
It happens, a lot.
Thoosies let off heavy vapours, demanding answers when they have already been given.
The truth is all out there.
And the world keeps turning.

 

[Matt N]

For what it’s worth, Saw The Ride has now had a planned closure for 3rd and 4th June added to the Thorpe Park ride availability page… could this be to facilitate access to the Hyperia site?

 

[Tom]

Says 3 & 4 May - was it there before? Guess it is a typo if not.

 

[Matt N]

Says 3 & 4 May - was it there before? Guess it is a typo if not.

That wasn’t there before; when I checked it in the earlier days of Hyperia being closed, the only planned closure listed was Amity Beach.

 

[Tom]

Seems logical for a crane lift then. Hopefully the weather plays ball.

 

[DistortAMG]

The world and it's people are unbelievable these days.

Expected entitlements to know what went wrong, not just on coasters but for lots of things in life, is a new low for humanity. Are we evolving or devolving?

 

[John_P]

I do think with all the national press attention the closure has gotten that once it has reopened the park should be more forthcoming with what made them close it. If only to instill confidence in the general public who may now be more hesitant to ride.

 

[DistortAMG]

I do think with all the national press attention the closure has gotten that once it has reopened the park should be more forthcoming with what made them close it. If only to instill confidence in the general public who may now be more hesitant to ride.

The ride will be rammed as soon as it reopens. Even the Smiler was packed when that re opened, that was after a very serious and life changing accident, which by the way, was also before the cause had been made public and was in the news and media way more than this.

So nope, I don't buy that argument. The public clearly will not be bothered and will ride this. I mean why would they be? Rides break all the time. Like, all the time. We, (the public) are used to it. But if we don't care after a major accident on a ride, then I fail to see that this will.

For many, many reasons the park should and will stay quiet. The public will be the very least of their concerns.