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Towers Loving Care

PeteB said:
Don't forget, it took them over 8 years to replace The Black Hole after that was suddenly SBNO'd. This was during a time when the park was doing reasonably well.

So given the current state of affairs, how long will it take them to replace/refurbish the amount of rides being closed now? Submission site has sat empty for 2 years despite the initial success of The Smiler.
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To be fair the black hole was closed due to safety and fire evacuation rules changing meaning it couldn't be evacuated within the EU guidelines, thats why it shut so suddenly. I agree though it should have been replaced quicker.

A similar example could be Charlie, if it is true that the agreed license period has run out then they knew if will happen and they need to have this replaced for 2017. If it lies empty for more than one year then it is mindless cost cutting.
 
Leah said:
was about to write a post on how it would be pointless to add this on hex, but then realised that merlin are all about pointless gimmicks that they can call a world first.
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Well Drayton Manor added leg tickers to their Madhouse (The Haunting), that was a pointless gimmick!
 
jon81uk said:
To be fair the black hole was closed due to safety and fire evacuation rules changing meaning it couldn't be evacuated within the EU guidelines, thats why it shut so suddenly. I agree though it should have been replaced quicker.
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I thought that was only because they were too cheap to fix it and bring it up to standard?
 
OK, given where discussion's gone, debated between here/general topic for this. Decided here.

Basically, this TLC stuff, is basically marketing something that SHOULD be done regardless, as something special. It's not. It's a fancy posh way of saying "maintenance". This is Merlin ALL over. I am fed up of this damn company and the rubbish they throw at Towers, and their lame intolerable marketing of what is basically - some paint.

"Hey, look at us, once one of the world's greatest and most innovative parks, and now we want a big pat on the back and round of applause for painting some track".

REALLY?

No. REALLY?

In the meantime, rides are being shut and SNBO'd all over the damn park?!

I couldn't give a monkeys right now Towers/Varney if you were painting the rapids in gold leaf, or got Alan Titchmarsh in to trim the foliage around Nemesis, or even your own crockery.

This is just embarrassing for a park of this stature!

So, you had a bad year last year due to something pretty dire happening, guess your wondrous Merlin Management teams didn't have a contingency plan in place for such things occurring, that didn't involve decimating the line up?

So what do you do? In the face of such bad publicity - which it was, and heavy hitting on your bottom line, which is the only damn thing Merlin seem to give a crap about anymore.

Do you

A) Shut a ton of rides, keep your price high... OR

B) Do everything you damn well can, to get everything open, sparkling, customer service tip top, market the life out of everything that isn't perceived as "dangerous" (which is a lot), and go balls out to REVIVE your FLAGSHIP group park, ride the storm out, and keep your standards absolutely tip top?!

Clearly, when you are Merlin, you do A.

They aren't some tin pot tiny family park for whom such an event would have devastating effects on the whole business, there is NO WAY they would struggle to absorb a dodgy year or two whilst pushing standards through the damn roof to counter it.

They just can't see the firestorm that's going to come when people are paying a fortune to get in to find so many of the family style rides CLOSED after the incident was on a THRILL ride.

I despair with this bunch of utter buffoons.

TLC?

Typical Lousy Crap
 
Even though there will be TLC programs ongoing around the park, these ride closures are obviously to do with cuts.

Sub-Terra operates just fine (they just messed up the restraints), Driving School operates fine, Hex has a few problems but they're all easy fixes that can be made over closed season (aside from the parking problem), Charlie again can have effects fixed over closed season (obviously there's a problem with the IP run out).

I don't care so much about the rides (apart from Hex), but it's saddening that the park will be 6 attractions/rides down on the previous season. I can't see it going down well at all with guests/potential guests.
 
Do you think the towers will reduce the park entry? Or do something more drastic? I'm thinking pay per ride. Bonkers I know but it would be a gimik for which Merlin are in love with.
 
SuperMuscleMan said:
Do you think the towers will reduce the park entry? Or do something more drastic? I'm thinking pay per ride. Bonkers I know but it would be a gimik for which Merlin are in love with.
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No I don't think they will do either of those things. PPR would be worse, and reduced entry would mean they can't put their 2 for 1 vouchers on every single food packet in the UK.

Expect to see Galactica Flakes soon.
 
TheMan said:
Basically, this TLC stuff, is basically marketing something that SHOULD be done regardless, as something special. It's not. It's a fancy posh way of saying "maintenance". This is Merlin ALL over. I am fed up of this damn company and the rubbish they throw at Towers, and their lame intolerable marketing of what is basically - some paint.
Click to expand...

To be fair, they aren't marketing TLC at the moment. Google Towers Loving Care and the only thing you find is Towers Street (and Towers Times) talking about it, plus the official Twitter account which hasn't actually posted anything.

So while I agree they should have taken better care of the park and repainted things more often and cleaned the mould off everything every year, I don't think they are marketing improvements as anything special.

Of course once we get to March and the park is open it might be different, but at the moment the only people paying any attention is this forum.
 
Surely the uproar will be about the price. Regardless of if they operate 241's all season, is the park worth going to this year with nothing new, and less rides and attractions than the previous year? That's how the general public will see it, and that's how I see it
 
Sku said:
I am now terrified they are adding VR to Hex.
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Why? Dark rides are boring, its all about cheap gimmicks that break within a year now ;)

Seriously though, I wouldn't put it past them. They are already implementing VR into one dark ride (DBGT)
 
TheMan said:
OK, given where discussion's gone, debated between here/general topic for this. Decided here.

Basically, this TLC stuff, is basically marketing something that SHOULD be done regardless, as something special. It's not. It's a fancy posh way of saying "maintenance". This is Merlin ALL over. I am fed up of this damn company and the rubbish they throw at Towers, and their lame intolerable marketing of what is basically - some paint.

"Hey, look at us, once one of the world's greatest and most innovative parks, and now we want a big pat on the back and round of applause for painting some track".

REALLY?

No. REALLY?

In the meantime, rides are being shut and SNBO'd all over the damn park?!

I couldn't give a monkeys right now Towers/Varney if you were painting the rapids in gold leaf, or got Alan Titchmarsh in to trim the foliage around Nemesis, or even your own crockery.

This is just embarrassing for a park of this stature!

So, you had a bad year last year due to something pretty dire happening, guess your wondrous Merlin Management teams didn't have a contingency plan in place for such things occurring, that didn't involve decimating the line up?

So what do you do? In the face of such bad publicity - which it was, and heavy hitting on your bottom line, which is the only damn thing Merlin seem to give a crap about anymore.

Do you

A) Shut a ton of rides, keep your price high... OR

B) Do everything you damn well can, to get everything open, sparkling, customer service tip top, market the life out of everything that isn't perceived as "dangerous" (which is a lot), and go balls out to REVIVE your FLAGSHIP group park, ride the storm out, and keep your standards absolutely tip top?!

Clearly, when you are Merlin, you do A.

They aren't some tin pot tiny family park for whom such an event would have devastating effects on the whole business, there is NO WAY they would struggle to absorb a dodgy year or two whilst pushing standards through the damn roof to counter it.

They just can't see the firestorm that's going to come when people are paying a fortune to get in to find so many of the family style rides CLOSED after the incident was on a THRILL ride.

I despair with this bunch of utter buffoons.

TLC?

Typical Lousy Crap
Click to expand...

I agree that TLC is something that should be done at every theme park every closed season regardless. But it is something we know that Merlin are typically bad at and Towers don't do it, so the fact they are is positive. And the only thing they are really doing that is different to other theme parks is giving it a name. Many parks around the world post photos over the closed season showing the work that they are doing - EP did this last week. It's exactly the same thing just without a fancy name.

Cedar Point is clearly one of the best theme parks in the world for pure thrills and they are very highly regarded. They've made quite a big deal over the re-painting of a couple of their coasters this closed season, more so than Towers have so far with Nemesis.

The main reason for coming up with the whole TLC brand will be revealed in the next blog post. It's going to be a way to hide and make up for the fact that so many rides are going to be closed this year. You can see it now - "ride x will be closed during 2016, but don't worry, it's undergoing a fantastical makeover to make it even more magical for you in 2017".

I don't mind a big deal being made of closed season maintenance, it's good to see and Towers should be posting more than they have. I do mind the closing of rides for what is a lazy reason.

:)
 
Rob said:
I agree that TLC is something that should be done at every theme park every closed season regardless. But it is something we know that Merlin are typically bad at and Towers don't do it, so the fact they are is positive. And the only thing they are really doing that is different to other theme parks is giving it a name. Many parks around the world post photos over the closed season showing the work that they are doing - EP did this last week. It's exactly the same thing just without a fancy name.

Cedar Point is clearly one of the best theme parks in the world for pure thrills and they are very highly regarded. They've made quite a big deal over the re-painting of a couple of their coasters this closed season, more so than Towers have so far with Nemesis.

The main reason for coming up with the whole TLC brand will be revealed in the next blog post. It's going to be a way to hide and make up for the fact that so many rides are going to be closed this year. You can see it now - "ride x will be closed during 2016, but don't worry, it's undergoing a fantastical makeover to make it even more magical for you in 2017".

I don't mind a big deal being made of closed season maintenance, it's good to see and Towers should be posting more than they have. I do mind the closing of rides for what is a lazy reason.

:)
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Lets face it though the closed rides only serve one purpose, to save money. Making money is not a bad thing, its just Merlin don't want to give the value with it.
 
SuperMuscleMan said:
Lets face it though the closed rides only serve one purpose, to save money. Making money is not a bad thing, its just Merlin don't want to give the value with it.
Click to expand...

Oh I totally agree. I am sure that any maintenance work that they do plan on carrying out on closed rides could be done over a closed season.

:)
 
TheMan said:
No I don't think they will do either of those things. PPR would be worse, and reduced entry would mean they can't put their 2 for 1 vouchers on every single food packet in the UK.

Expect to see Galactica Flakes soon.
Click to expand...

:laughing:

I can see the marketing for them now. They will taste so awful that they are vomit inducing, a worlds first ride experience that you can take home!
 
Only me finding the irony Towers said in December, nearly 3 months ago, they were doing TLC and they haven't even been bothered to update the blog?
We've done more than in this topic than Towers have.
 
I know it's confusing (thanks to @TheMan), but it'd be great if everyone could check that this is the non-Tavern TLC topic before they post in here please. ;)
 
It could be that they visit the forums and thought that TLC is mentioned a lot and needed so trying to please us geek fan base?
 
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