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Thorpe Park: General Discussion

Not ideal that they're going to close the queue early, was hoping to get a ride in after work tomorrow. I can see why they're doing it though as it's not fair on the ride team.
 
GooseOnTheLoose said:
Heads up though, they're not operating the single rider queue until further notice.
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Where did Thorpe Park say this? I know Alice said that the front row queue isn't open yet, but from what I gather, single rider will be open; you just queue with the main queue up until the ride entrance and split off down the single rider queue when you reach the permanent entrance.
 
I do hope that's just a rumour rather than truth - I'll likely be doing a solo trip on Friday and having to use the main queue in its entirety would feel a bit silly if there's a dedicated lane for it that they just aren't using...

EDIT: Confirmed as a false alarm
 
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Matt N said:
Where did Thorpe Park say this? I know Alice said that the front row queue isn't open yet, but from what I gather, single rider will be open; you just queue with the main queue up until the ride entrance and split off down the single rider queue when you reach the permanent entrance.
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Sorry Matt, you're completely right and I misremembered / confused the front row queue with single rider. Will edit my original post to reflect this.
 
A reminder that on the opening day that, contrary to the YouTube video, they ended up allowing single riders to use the fast-track/RAP queue at the lost city split point by Zodiac.
This was much, much faster than the main queue by about 3 hours.
 
Smiley said:
Well they've "rolled out" the same lovely girl (see above). Not sure why the lovely boy Jack Silkstone didn't do it... As a marketing specialist, I know plenty of things:
- the script is awful
- the person delivering said script has been chosen for marketing purposes
- the whole response has been a PR disaster

If you had wanted a proper marketing response, there would be video every day of the lift hill/work. Customers today want transparency, and TP failed on an Xperia level. They were gifted an amazing opportunity to educate about the complexities (and safety) of a roller coaster. And failed. Now £150k
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Are you always this cheery?
 
golgactic said:
A reminder that on the opening day that, contrary to the YouTube video, they ended up allowing single riders to use the fast-track/RAP queue at the lost city split point by Zodiac.
This was much, much faster than the main queue by about 3 hours.
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They did this early on but then started putting single riders into the main queue. Was fun while it lasted!
Bowser said:
The YouTube video also warns of queue jumping three times, was this a problem when it opened?
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I queued four times and didn't notice any queue jumping. I think they're just trying to minimise the risk of people hopping over the fences to use the toilets, get drinks etc.
 
@Smiley In terms of transparency marketing... it's also worth remembering it's not just Thorpe Parks decision. Mack are unlikely to want to have something that was quite possibly a miscalculation on their part, broadcast in minute detail across media outlets. Additionally, there are likely to be endless variables that came into play regarding progress, commissioning and relaunch etc. Video updates work well during scheduled and planned construction/development. I think on the whole, TP did reasonably well given the circumstances. Really feel for the team to be honest.

Bowser said:
The YouTube video also warns of queue jumping three times, was this a problem when it opened?
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I was just typing a response to this and saw @RicketyCricket had beat me to it! Was only going to say that I'd only heard positives like the queues were really well managed on opening day, no jumping, so it's likely just an additional measure to reduce issues on the day/manage expectations!
 
Shaggy_Dog_ said:
If the ride had opened today then it could have led to a surge of guests for it that the park might not have been prepared for. I think it’s better for the park to announce that it will open tomorrow and put in place the measures that they need to manage guests and crowd levels, as well as staffing levels so that the day can go ahead in a smooth and well run way.
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Exactly my point.

I could imagine the headlines if it reopened today.

Tallest faster coaster in the uk causes Thorpe Park to go into meltdown with inadequate staff on site to handle the guests.

The criticism would then have been off the charts.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Smiley said:
Well they've "rolled out" the same lovely girl (see above). Not sure why the lovely boy Jack Silkstone didn't do it... As a marketing specialist, I know plenty of things:
- the script is awful
- the person delivering said script has been chosen for marketing purposes
- the whole response has been a PR disaster

If you had wanted a proper marketing response, there would be video every day of the lift hill/work. Customers today want transparency, and TP failed on an Xperia level. They were gifted an amazing opportunity to educate about the complexities (and safety) of a roller coaster. And failed. Now £150k
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I couldn't agree with this less if I'm honest mate.

The only people calling out for all the gory details are nosy curious enthusiasts. Aside from a handful of histrionic people on twitter, the response from the public to the rides closure has been largely nonplussed. From a marketing point of view, the videos Thorpe (and Alton for that matter) have been putting out this season is just the right level of transparency for a theme park, and refreshing in that sense. The person presenting the videos has been chosen for the very straightforward reason that they are good on camera.

On top of this, the extra media coverage this has received has only served to get the headline 'UK's tallest and fastest' out there even more. I can guarantee that the interest in the ride is higher now than it was on opening day. Aside from some errors on the day it closed, Thorpe have handled this just fine. Great news that its back open, hopefully tomorrow goes smoothly.
 
RIPCorky said:
Bit of a sad day when you realise theme parks have to release a video where by they have to tell people how to queue for a queue, remember to use the toilet and don't run or push/knock over other people. Maybe I'm old fashioned but it appears to be common sense to me....
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in all fairness the queueing system is kinda confusing especially for those who are unaware of it prior to going. Also, most normal queues don't allow guests toilet breaks so most would assume they'd just have to hold it. One of the main rules for businesses and advertising is to not assume that people will know what you're talking about, you have to show them.
 
Not sure I follow the logic of arriving 4.5 hours early for a queue.

Can’t imagine you’d be queuing that long if you arrived at opening or later and it’s not like you are first to ride. Maybe she needs to get to work after.
 
Bowser said:
Not sure I follow the logic of arriving 4.5 hours early for a queue.

Can’t imagine you’d be queuing that long if you arrived at opening or later and it’s not like you are first to ride. Maybe she needs to get to work after.
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4 and a half hours early for a queue is utterly ridiculous. One and a half hours early for a queue on the other hand is far more reasonable...

Don't judge me.
 
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