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TS Staffordshire Sandwich: 24-26 August 2013
- Thread starter AstroDan
- Start date
WillG
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- Katun
As planned, I've taken today off - it's been a long week, I've already done Drayton once this year (that fab Spring bank holiday) and I can't miss the Belgian GP! I'll be back on Monday, and hope you all have a good one today 
Yesterday was a bit of a weird day for me, the usual meet magic seemed thin on the ground, and I couldn't put my finger on why. And even after 6 months + on the site now, I still felt a little overfaced after Smiler when 30 or so people I'd never met before made an appearance, which made me uncharacteristically quiet and shy for a while. I'm sure I'll get used to it once I know a few more names and faces, but even a few of the regulars seemed taken aback to start with - this was definitely the biggest meet I've been at. On the reverse side of course, it's great to see so many turning out in the name of TS - but I'm sort of hoping it's a bit more relaxed on Monday!
The usual suspects were on fine form however, and it was nice to catch up with John, Sam, Dan, Dave et. al after a month or so away - and you'll be pleased to know I managed to get my new annual pass with the minimum of hassle, even if I will be stuck with a mugshot that makes me look like a sex offender in his forties for the next year!! There were too many new faces for me to introduce myself to everyone, but I'm sure the couple whose toilet emergency I resolved after Thirteen appreciated me, while those I met outside Spinball, shared a hilarious final Riverbank Eye Spy (quack, quack, quack. Bzzzz.) with (whilst the eerie group singing made me wonder if I'd strayed into the opening credits of a dodgy Disney film) and then passed time with in the rapids queue seemed nice enough.
Other than the unexpected highlight that WAS Riverbank eye spy, other honorable mentions to Ben does not like nuts, finally being on a group photo, Sam's lethal looking jousting game on the lawn as well as his earlier outspoken views on female anatomy, a refreshingly long, leisurely lunch (with added Hex and pirates), Smiler being open and otherwise avoiding any unbearable queues thanks to how well Alton soaks up big crowds.
That said - yesterday was my first trip in a VERY long time when I've not managed to get on either Nemesis or Oblivion - that was probably down to me turning up a bit late, then not paying attention and not realising when the group was splitting. It was still disappointing, but we can make up for it on Monday And sorry I ran off early with a very brief goodbye, but I was tired after the earlier coffee had deserted me and felt like making an early break for home before Josh shared the qualifying result with me (although, based on the HEARTBREAK this Force India fan had watching it last night, I almost wish I'd let him!) - and I was still bruised from my first encounter with the 12th inversion!
So, mixed feelings - hope this isn't too negative as there was obviously no shortage of laughter and smiles along the way, and I'm already massively looking forward to Scarefest, as I gather are plenty of other members. And of course, faff is a necessary evil in a group that size, I'll be more patient next time - for some reason I was a bit cranky between RMT and Air, and I'm still not really sure why! Anyways, see you bright and early on Monday, and I demand Nemesis!!
Oh, and Sam? Where are my trousers?
Yesterday was a bit of a weird day for me, the usual meet magic seemed thin on the ground, and I couldn't put my finger on why. And even after 6 months + on the site now, I still felt a little overfaced after Smiler when 30 or so people I'd never met before made an appearance, which made me uncharacteristically quiet and shy for a while. I'm sure I'll get used to it once I know a few more names and faces, but even a few of the regulars seemed taken aback to start with - this was definitely the biggest meet I've been at. On the reverse side of course, it's great to see so many turning out in the name of TS - but I'm sort of hoping it's a bit more relaxed on Monday!
The usual suspects were on fine form however, and it was nice to catch up with John, Sam, Dan, Dave et. al after a month or so away - and you'll be pleased to know I managed to get my new annual pass with the minimum of hassle, even if I will be stuck with a mugshot that makes me look like a sex offender in his forties for the next year!! There were too many new faces for me to introduce myself to everyone, but I'm sure the couple whose toilet emergency I resolved after Thirteen appreciated me, while those I met outside Spinball, shared a hilarious final Riverbank Eye Spy (quack, quack, quack. Bzzzz.) with (whilst the eerie group singing made me wonder if I'd strayed into the opening credits of a dodgy Disney film) and then passed time with in the rapids queue seemed nice enough.
Other than the unexpected highlight that WAS Riverbank eye spy, other honorable mentions to Ben does not like nuts, finally being on a group photo, Sam's lethal looking jousting game on the lawn as well as his earlier outspoken views on female anatomy, a refreshingly long, leisurely lunch (with added Hex and pirates), Smiler being open and otherwise avoiding any unbearable queues thanks to how well Alton soaks up big crowds.
That said - yesterday was my first trip in a VERY long time when I've not managed to get on either Nemesis or Oblivion - that was probably down to me turning up a bit late, then not paying attention and not realising when the group was splitting. It was still disappointing, but we can make up for it on Monday
And sorry I ran off early with a very brief goodbye, but I was tired after the earlier coffee had deserted me and felt like making an early break for home before Josh shared the qualifying result with me (although, based on the HEARTBREAK this Force India fan had watching it last night, I almost wish I'd let him!) - and I was still bruised from my first encounter with the 12th inversion!So, mixed feelings - hope this isn't too negative as there was obviously no shortage of laughter and smiles along the way, and I'm already massively looking forward to Scarefest, as I gather are plenty of other members. And of course, faff is a necessary evil in a group that size, I'll be more patient next time - for some reason I was a bit cranky between RMT and Air, and I'm still not really sure why! Anyways, see you bright and early on Monday, and I demand Nemesis!!
Oh, and Sam? Where are my trousers?
Danny
TS Contributor
- Favourite Ride
- Steel Vengeance
Yesterday felt quite different compared to previous meets, but remained enjoyable nonetheless.
Highlights
Lowlights
Muchas gracias to Big Al for the lifts, and to everyone for a lovely day. See y'all at Merlinpool
Highlights
- The weather throughout the day as opposed to what was promised on the forecasts.
- First two rides on Nemesis to begin the day.
- Dungheap trampoline chaos.
- Infact, the whole spectacle of TST in the Dungheap.
- The Sam vs Oli jousting show
- Dinner in the Courtyard along with the added waterfalls.
- Being applauded by the water cannon operators for deploying counter measures on the Rapids.
- Ben's "accident" on the Rapids.
- Greeting Balsdon for the first time.
- Smiler sosche.
- "That jolt you just felt was perfectly normal, please do not panic".
Lowlights
- Feeling knackered after a single day visit. I've not experienced this in a while.
- Incredibly early start and late finish as opposed to the normal times.
- Ian and Kieron nearly obliterating my body on the zipwire.
Muchas gracias to Big Al for the lifts, and to everyone for a lovely day. See y'all at Merlinpool
Jonathan
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- Helix <3
So yesterday was my first trip to Towers of the season. Semi-decent ride count, mainly thanks to whoring Nemmy a bit with Tom and Zac towards the end of the day.
Highlights
Lowlights
Thanks
I probably won't be at Merlinpool, so here's to Scarefest!
Highlights
- Seeing everyone again, and talking to a few people I hadn't really talked to much before
- Danny's rather, erm, interesting greeting to me upon opening the car door at Congleton Station (I'll let you guess what went on)
- The car journeys between Congleton & Towers
- Front row of Nemmy being my first ride of the year
- The Smiler not actually being that bad!
- Discussion of the love-child that Tom and I have (by which I mean Nemesis)
- Giving Danny a piggyback for part of the walk between Hex and the Courtyard
- Farmyard and Dungheap antics
- A rather interesting version of 'Time To Say Goodbye' when going through the Farm
- Myself, Tom and Zac splintering off towards the end of the day to get a couple of rides on Blivvy and a few on Nemmy
- Receiving a text from Sainsbury's to tell me that they wanted to interview me for a job I'd applied for, and then organising said interview
- Piggyback wars. Yeah, don't ask.
Lowlights
- The Cross-Valley Walk. I have no intention of doing that again in a hurry, thanks to DeRp deciding we should do that when going from Forbidden Valley to X-Sector. I think I'll get the Skyride next time and walk through Fountain Square and down past the Towers.
- My Coke from Mexican Cantina being ridiculously weak. It was basically just brown fizzy water!
Thanks
- Al for the lifts from Congleton
- Badger for very kindly letting me do the front row of The Smiler for my first go
- Everyone else for being great company
I probably won't be at Merlinpool, so here's to Scarefest!
ryanbowden
TS Member
I am outside splash now. Where is everyone?
Dave
TS Founding Member
Had a great two days on this meet, after The Smiler delays completely messing up this years meet calendar it was nice to be back to standard meets again.
Definite highlights for me was seeing a few people trying The Smiler for the first time and the general fun that normally comes with meets. Though the evening drinks in Rugely debating history with WAY too many gins was great.
Was very impressed with Drayton on Sunday, the park was busy but operations where good (Haunting was batching multiple groups into the building which used to never happen). The park seemed really fresh mostly and much fun was had.
The big meets are a bit of an odd situation your first time, with 40+ people at the meet you can't hope to get around everyone and it even sometimes makes me feel awkward. Knowing a few people to start with is always good though and you generally find that you will slowly encounter more peeps.
Special thanks to Craig for lifts to Drayton
Definite highlights for me was seeing a few people trying The Smiler for the first time and the general fun that normally comes with meets. Though the evening drinks in Rugely debating history with WAY too many gins was great.
Was very impressed with Drayton on Sunday, the park was busy but operations where good (Haunting was batching multiple groups into the building which used to never happen). The park seemed really fresh mostly and much fun was had.
WillG said:
The big meets are a bit of an odd situation your first time, with 40+ people at the meet you can't hope to get around everyone and it even sometimes makes me feel awkward. Knowing a few people to start with is always good though and you generally find that you will slowly encounter more peeps.
Special thanks to Craig for lifts to Drayton
AstroDan
TS Team
- Favourite Ride
- Steel Vengeance, Cedar Point
Thank you to everyone who attended the meet this weekend, I had a lovely time, even though I was extremely tired for the most part due to having arrived back from the USA on Wednesday, hence my no-show at Alton Towers today (I spent the morning in bed).
Great to meet new people, but also nice to see some old faces who haven't been around for a while!
Had a hilarious time at the pub last night! Not to mention the great food.
Great to meet new people, but also nice to see some old faces who haven't been around for a while!
Had a hilarious time at the pub last night! Not to mention the great food.
ryanbowden
TS Member
Had a really good day today with the group.
Was very weird as many people there I didn't know who didn't know me as I have been to only few meets.
But as always when with the group have a great time and a good laugh. But thank you to everyone who made me feel welcome today. and hopefully soon will be able to come more soon. Working weekends is crap
But thank you again for such a great day
Was very weird as many people there I didn't know who didn't know me as I have been to only few meets.
But as always when with the group have a great time and a good laugh. But thank you to everyone who made me feel welcome today. and hopefully soon will be able to come more soon. Working weekends is crap
But thank you again for such a great day
AstroDan
TS Team
- Favourite Ride
- Steel Vengeance, Cedar Point
ryanbowden said:Had a really good day today with the group.
Was very weird as many people there I didn't know who didn't know me as I have been to only few meets.
But as always when with the group have a great time and a good laugh. But thank you to everyone who made me feel welcome today. and hopefully soon will be able to come more soon. Working weekends is crap
Sorry I missed you, Ryan! Nice to see you attending though!
WillG
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- Katun
Pretty much from start to finish, I had a much better day today, and I suspect it showed. The park seemed busier, and yet our ridecount was good and the day still somehow seemed relaxed for the most part - it was also a fair bit more sociable with some people I'd been disappointed not to see on Saturday making an appearance
After over a month away (and somehow failing to get a ride on Sat), I was thrilled to rekindle my love affair with Nemesis which was running like a dream all day, the only downside being that nothing else came close to it (though the several rides on Oblivion were good) - the final ride being that impressive that I refused to ride anything else in the Valley afterwards!
The handful of us that made the 9:30 meet made the most of an empty left hand side of the park for a few hours, and this meant the group slowly grew over time, rather than SUDDENLY becoming massive as it had done on Saturday - that made it a lot easier to talk to more new people I hadn't seen before, and suddenly the new faces were a lot less scary - I'm STILL crap at names, so I didn't learn many (Tom, Lewis, Vicky?, Georgie, Amy +1 and Sere....somethinglikethat - girlthatspentalotoftimeinthetoilet and her + 1), it was nice to meet you all
The queue line boards may have been exaggerating, but they suggested that everywhere but Smiler was the way forward; I wasn't complaining, that meant more Nemesis, Duel and an entertaining (if slightly intimate. And moist, and sloppy - as promised!) rapids ride, since the weather forecast had managed to be wrong again, and the day was surprisingly warm. There were also wasps - we learned that they like orange, and that I do not like them.
Lunch, was a little bit of a catastrophe, as Dave etc. will agree - I take some responsibility for picking Corner Coffee (my traditional first coffee there is always a highlight!), but had NO idea it was possible to get a panini so wrong - the so called bacon and hash brown was a travesty, and actively upset me for an hour or so. All three on the table failed to eat it, but at least that's a mistake we can all learn something from. I said I wouldn't go on about it. I lied
Happily, donuts were supplied by... oh, don't make me try and type your name again! I think some people went on Submission after lunch - I'm not really sure why. Happily, Dave had found a smiler seat lying around on the entrance turnstiles, and because I'm loud, shouty and persistent, he picked me to join him. I enjoyed the not queuing aspect of this; it was very warm and airless in Smiler's queue, and sadly, the ride did give me a bit of a headache. I usually quite like Smiler, but this time it took me a while to recover. And I wanted to get off 12 inversions in!
Whilst everyone else queued for Smiler, I explored Cloud Cuckoo Land (is it bad that I typed Cred Street then, and had to delete it!) with a few others to relax - it was busy, but Ice Age, whilst I'm not a fan, was a good excuse to sit down for a while.
By now, time and early ride close was against us; Thirteen's queue was long, but passed quickly as everyone seemed particularly talkative by this point, and I had the pleasure of sharing the front seat with Mr. Drake who continued his talent for teaching me new facts each time we meet! We were promised Rita's queue was 5-10 minutes; this was a lie. I refused to ride anyway on principle, and instead had a nice chat with... I'm again hoping your name's Vicky - another refugee from the poisonous atmosphere of 'my old site', and we complained about Rita for a while and discussed meet up experiences and liquorice cables. And I ended up feeling quite old - that was a running theme throughout the day! ('I remember watching this ride being built...' 'Will, I wasn't BORN when this ride opened!') etc. ('Kids... WHY?!')
All that was left was to run around the Valley like madmen! And NEMESIS STICKERS
I've probably forgotten some other obvious highlights (I enjoyed my shouting competition with the skyride audio, but I doubt anyone else did!) and indeed my heckling of both pestilential Pirate Pete and the impressively bad singer who followed him (seriously, who's idea was it to put Creep in the setlist!?) back at the hotel bar - I DO like sitting there for a while with everyone after a long day on park and dragging the goodbyes out a bit longer (though I hope there aren't some of us STILL sat at Uttoxeter station!), it made me leave quite happy, even if the traffic hadn't improved as much as I'd have liked!
So, aside from my lunch experience (still bitter!) and a slightly dead hour thanks to the Smiler's queue, I thoroughly enjoyed today - as I've said elsewhere, clearly my favourite theme park trip of this Summer, meaning I'm going to bed happy and really looking forward to seeing everyone at Scarefest in a few weeks - clearly my favourite time of the calendar
After over a month away (and somehow failing to get a ride on Sat), I was thrilled to rekindle my love affair with Nemesis which was running like a dream all day, the only downside being that nothing else came close to it (though the several rides on Oblivion were good) - the final ride being that impressive that I refused to ride anything else in the Valley afterwards!
The handful of us that made the 9:30 meet made the most of an empty left hand side of the park for a few hours, and this meant the group slowly grew over time, rather than SUDDENLY becoming massive as it had done on Saturday - that made it a lot easier to talk to more new people I hadn't seen before, and suddenly the new faces were a lot less scary - I'm STILL crap at names, so I didn't learn many (Tom, Lewis, Vicky?, Georgie, Amy +1 and Sere....somethinglikethat - girlthatspentalotoftimeinthetoilet and her + 1), it was nice to meet you all
The queue line boards may have been exaggerating, but they suggested that everywhere but Smiler was the way forward; I wasn't complaining, that meant more Nemesis, Duel and an entertaining (if slightly intimate. And moist, and sloppy - as promised!) rapids ride, since the weather forecast had managed to be wrong again, and the day was surprisingly warm. There were also wasps - we learned that they like orange, and that I do not like them.
Lunch, was a little bit of a catastrophe, as Dave etc. will agree - I take some responsibility for picking Corner Coffee (my traditional first coffee there is always a highlight!), but had NO idea it was possible to get a panini so wrong - the so called bacon and hash brown was a travesty, and actively upset me for an hour or so. All three on the table failed to eat it, but at least that's a mistake we can all learn something from. I said I wouldn't go on about it. I lied
Happily, donuts were supplied by... oh, don't make me try and type your name again! I think some people went on Submission after lunch - I'm not really sure why. Happily, Dave had found a smiler seat lying around on the entrance turnstiles, and because I'm loud, shouty and persistent, he picked me to join him. I enjoyed the not queuing aspect of this; it was very warm and airless in Smiler's queue, and sadly, the ride did give me a bit of a headache. I usually quite like Smiler, but this time it took me a while to recover. And I wanted to get off 12 inversions in!
Whilst everyone else queued for Smiler, I explored Cloud Cuckoo Land (is it bad that I typed Cred Street then, and had to delete it!) with a few others to relax - it was busy, but Ice Age, whilst I'm not a fan, was a good excuse to sit down for a while.
By now, time and early ride close was against us; Thirteen's queue was long, but passed quickly as everyone seemed particularly talkative by this point, and I had the pleasure of sharing the front seat with Mr. Drake who continued his talent for teaching me new facts each time we meet! We were promised Rita's queue was 5-10 minutes; this was a lie. I refused to ride anyway on principle, and instead had a nice chat with... I'm again hoping your name's Vicky - another refugee from the poisonous atmosphere of 'my old site', and we complained about Rita for a while and discussed meet up experiences and liquorice cables. And I ended up feeling quite old - that was a running theme throughout the day! ('I remember watching this ride being built...' 'Will, I wasn't BORN when this ride opened!') etc. ('Kids... WHY?!')
All that was left was to run around the Valley like madmen! And NEMESIS STICKERS
I've probably forgotten some other obvious highlights (I enjoyed my shouting competition with the skyride audio, but I doubt anyone else did!) and indeed my heckling of both pestilential Pirate Pete and the impressively bad singer who followed him (seriously, who's idea was it to put Creep in the setlist!?) back at the hotel bar - I DO like sitting there for a while with everyone after a long day on park and dragging the goodbyes out a bit longer (though I hope there aren't some of us STILL sat at Uttoxeter station!), it made me leave quite happy, even if the traffic hadn't improved as much as I'd have liked!
So, aside from my lunch experience (still bitter!) and a slightly dead hour thanks to the Smiler's queue, I thoroughly enjoyed today - as I've said elsewhere, clearly my favourite theme park trip of this Summer, meaning I'm going to bed happy and really looking forward to seeing everyone at Scarefest in a few weeks - clearly my favourite time of the calendar
Amy
TS Contributor
This was my first meet, of any kind. I took my hubby Ste along, and he had to literally drag me up to AstroDan (who we renamed AstroDad) on Saturday morning as I was terrified. I have to say, we had the BEST weekend I am crap at making new friends, crap at talking to people, but we really felt comfortable and had a great time this weekend. Special thanks go to Sam, Badger, Craig and Dan for really making sure we were always included, but loads of other people contributed to this feeling too!
Will - the girlthatspentalotoftimeinthetoilet was Serena plus me most of the time! And I enjoyed your shouting match with the Skyride audio too. It was lovely to meet you along with everyone else! I'll never remember everyone's names!
I've never had a weekend quite like this one. I tend to dash around the park like a madwoman, doing as many rides as possible, but I managed to put that to one side this weekend and just enjoy socialising.
Saturday was fantastic. It was scary to start with, but Dan and Sam waxing lyrical about Europa Park in The Smiler queue definitely kept us entertained! We're now pretty determined to go on the Most Wanted Junket. I really love The Smiler so that was a great way to start the weekend. The whole day was hilarious, from piggy-back wars, playing in the Dung Heap to Sam regaling us with tales of his conquests in the Rapids queue Saturday evening we headed back to our hotel and just passed out!
Sunday was quieter, and we arrived late after getting stuck in a ridiculous traffic jam. Neither of us are huge fans of Drayton and we went fairly recently so didn't do a lot of rides. We both found Shockwave so painful. We headed back to the hotel early, and then had a fantastic meal with everyone on Saturday evening. Lots of laughs and excellent food.
Today was also fantastic. We thought we were really late but most people turned up at pretty much the same time. Highlights of today included the wettest Rapids ride I've ever had (my clothes were still damp when we arrived home at 9.30pm), heckling the ride op on Th13teen, singalongs, something hilarious happening in front of Ripsaw when it broke down just as we were about to join the queue (not sure what was going on but it was funny!), and Sam holding up the entire The Smiler queue just to make sure Ste and I were in the group. Oh, and singing Happy Birthday to somebody in The Smiler station!
Thank you so much to everyone. We had a fantastic weekend ;D
I am crap at making new friends, crap at talking to people, but we really felt comfortable and had a great time this weekend. Special thanks go to Sam, Badger, Craig and Dan for really making sure we were always included, but loads of other people contributed to this feeling too! Will - the girlthatspentalotoftimeinthetoilet was Serena
plus me most of the time! And I enjoyed your shouting match with the Skyride audio too. It was lovely to meet you along with everyone else! I'll never remember everyone's names! I've never had a weekend quite like this one. I tend to dash around the park like a madwoman, doing as many rides as possible, but I managed to put that to one side this weekend and just enjoy socialising.
Saturday was fantastic. It was scary to start with, but Dan and Sam waxing lyrical about Europa Park in The Smiler queue definitely kept us entertained! We're now pretty determined to go on the Most Wanted Junket. I really love The Smiler so that was a great way to start the weekend. The whole day was hilarious, from piggy-back wars, playing in the Dung Heap to Sam regaling us with tales of his conquests in the Rapids queue
Saturday evening we headed back to our hotel and just passed out! Sunday was quieter, and we arrived late after getting stuck in a ridiculous traffic jam. Neither of us are huge fans of Drayton and we went fairly recently so didn't do a lot of rides. We both found Shockwave so painful. We headed back to the hotel early, and then had a fantastic meal with everyone on Saturday evening. Lots of laughs and excellent food.
Today was also fantastic. We thought we were really late but most people turned up at pretty much the same time. Highlights of today included the wettest Rapids ride I've ever had (my clothes were still damp when we arrived home at 9.30pm), heckling the ride op on Th13teen, singalongs, something hilarious happening in front of Ripsaw when it broke down just as we were about to join the queue (not sure what was going on but it was funny!), and Sam holding up the entire The Smiler queue just to make sure Ste and I were in the group. Oh, and singing Happy Birthday to somebody in The Smiler station!
Thank you so much to everyone. We had a fantastic weekend ;D
Blizzard
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- Gotta be Oblivion tbh!
Hey guys,
I didn't formally attend this meet but was on park the same day! Unfortunately never really bumped into you guys, but then we were too busy going from ride to ride without fastrack. Though I did see someone in the Smiler queue towards the end of the day wearing a Cedar Point shirt, only an enthusiast would wear that! I had a great time myself, managed to get on flume, rmt, duel, air, nemmy, skyride, rita, hex, blivy & The Smiler. Which considering I had no fastracks I thought was pretty good going. Hope you guys had a great time too! Might attend a future meet sometime if I'm available! ;D
On a side note though, around 15mins after exiting the smiler around 7:10 a train had stuck on top the vertical lift, I knew the standard procedure was to slowly lower the train down, & that it has happened before. However around half way down the lift as it was lowering, it suddenly jolted & freefalled around 8ft or so. I'm sure that isn't supposed to happen & I really hope towers look into the fault, as many other guests I overheard saying "i'm never going on that again" which yes is a stupid thing to say, but then you're loosing custom. If anyone could shed any light on this that'd be great.
Anyway, it was my last visit after 2 years of not visiting the park. Fastrack wasn't being oversold, marketing wasn't in you're face, and had I had more time to stop & take it all in, I would say it is still very much a magical place!!!
I didn't formally attend this meet but was on park the same day! Unfortunately never really bumped into you guys, but then we were too busy going from ride to ride without fastrack. Though I did see someone in the Smiler queue towards the end of the day wearing a Cedar Point shirt, only an enthusiast would wear that! I had a great time myself, managed to get on flume, rmt, duel, air, nemmy, skyride, rita, hex, blivy & The Smiler. Which considering I had no fastracks I thought was pretty good going.
Hope you guys had a great time too! Might attend a future meet sometime if I'm available! ;DOn a side note though, around 15mins after exiting the smiler around 7:10 a train had stuck on top the vertical lift, I knew the standard procedure was to slowly lower the train down, & that it has happened before. However around half way down the lift as it was lowering, it suddenly jolted & freefalled around 8ft or so. I'm sure that isn't supposed to happen & I really hope towers look into the fault, as many other guests I overheard saying "i'm never going on that again" which yes is a stupid thing to say, but then you're loosing custom. If anyone could shed any light on this that'd be great.
Anyway, it was my last visit after 2 years of not visiting the park. Fastrack wasn't being oversold, marketing wasn't in you're face, and had I had more time to stop & take it all in, I would say it is still very much a magical place!!!
BigDave
TS Member
So after nearly not going after finding buses useless, I'm so glad I managed to get dad to take me (only 6miles so no big deal really). Everyone was happy and I even managed to talk to some new faces and some people I haven't seen for ages.
The day REALLY didn't start off well at all. Got £50 out of the ATM on towers street and headed off to corner coffee. Ordered my drink and handed over the money (Not all £50. They are expensive, but not that bad). I was then told by the lady there was a problem and a supervisor came out and told me that they couldn't serve coffee for another half an hour. I'm sorry, but aren't you a COFFEE shop?!
Anyway, luckily I had time to kill waiting for the others to arrive so I said I would be back later to collect my coffee. So I headed over to Towers Family Restaurant to get a breakfast bap. On the way I found a #Smileseat ticket. Absolute WIN I thought and things were looking up. The bap was ok and was asked if I wanted a drink with it. The urge to rage at the woman behind the counter was immense, but I thought it was unfair to have a go at something that wasn't her fault. I also had the idea of returning water back to the waterwheel and maybe a fountain. It really needs something to jazz the place up a bit.
I returned to get my coffee and waited in the queue. I got to the front, only for the girl who served me the first time to try and charge me. I was like hell no! So anyway the supervisor came out and sorted it. Was not a happy chappy!
Took a walk over to the valley, knowing full well that most people would still be at the hotels. Sent a txt or two to Badger just to make sure. After meeting up with them we headed to Nemesis. Getting a nice early ride on Nemesis made things a bit better, if only for a short period of time! She was on fire and was thrashing around and made up for my bad experiences earlier. Got off Nemesis and the dirty beast decided to help herself to £40 out of my pocket. I thought I had it all zipped up. Clearly not! Well there goes the happy mood again!
We heard that Chris and Nat were at Duel so we headed over. Duel was a bit.. well... meh! Most of the effects seemed to work, but it needs touching up so badly and those vents really do ruin the effect. After Duel we headed back to the entrance as some others said they were on their way. I decided to give corner coffee another go and actually got a decent drink with no queue. The others turned up and we headed back to Nemesis, via skyride.
Lets just say I didn't make the same mistake again! All zipped up we braved the beast and she was still flying around. Nemesis still comes out on top as my favorite ride on park. We were going to do Air, but it had a huge queue and then we headed to Ripsaw to find it was closed. So we then headed back to Duel to see James. It was still meh, but made somewhat better by the extra company we had got.
A quick walk to rapids and we managed to board fairly quickly given the weather. I was expecting a much bigger queue. The ride was on form and we did get a good soaking. Sorry to the guy (Ian I think?) who I nearly sat on whilst avoiding KFC megawave!
So after rapids it was lunch and oh boy were we in for a treat. For some unknown reason we followed Will to Corner Coffee (Why I have no idea). We got a panini and a drink. To say that Wills panini didn't look great would be the understatement of the year. My dog has barfed up stuff that looks more edible! Fortunately I had a different flavour to Will and nommed half of mine. I then came over all guilty and gave Will my other half and tried a bit of Wills panini. It was god awful. A mixture of onion that clearly wasn't onion, a lump of bacon fat and some strange white liquid that resembled a certain male bodily fluid. It really was that bad!
Soooo... after that farce, we headed over to Oblivion and it had hardly any queue which was good. What can you say about oblivion. It's just a drop into a dark hole! Saying that, I still think the mists needs to be changed to dry ice fog or even oil based fog. The mist effect doesnt work too good and just gets you wet as you go through the tunnel.
The Smiler next and it seemed as though the deafening roar has gone, but one train still stands out as being much louder. Using my #Smileseats pass, me and Will (he just happened to be standing next to me) got on almost straight away. We also got the front which was awesome. Ok, it was a tad rough, but it wasn't that bad and I came off smiling :twirly:. The others went on Submission and then The Smiler.
Whilst they were doing that, we headed over the Cloud Cuckoo Land and went in Ice Age. It was the only remotely cool place on park and by this point we had all had enough of the heat. Some of our group went on Gallopers before heading back down the The Smiler to see if the others had come off yet. We didn't wait too long before they came off and we went back on Oblivion as we were right next to the entrance.
From here it was a quick dash to Th13teen and then on to Rita. Neither had a big queue and I actually enjoyed Rita for once. Its just a shame it's still scaffolding forest. Skyride over to valley and I had the pleasure of watching a few members get extremely moist on Ripsaw (Well absolutely soaked would be more like it!)
Woodland walk back to hotel and a few cheeky beverages were had whilst the hotel singer murdered a few songs (not helped by a crap audio system). We said our goodbyes and I think I can say everyone had a great day. It was a little expensive on my part and it was full of fails on Alton's part, but all in all I loved it mainly down to the people I was with.
The day REALLY didn't start off well at all. Got £50 out of the ATM on towers street and headed off to corner coffee. Ordered my drink and handed over the money (Not all £50. They are expensive, but not that bad). I was then told by the lady there was a problem and a supervisor came out and told me that they couldn't serve coffee for another half an hour. I'm sorry, but aren't you a COFFEE shop?!
Anyway, luckily I had time to kill waiting for the others to arrive so I said I would be back later to collect my coffee. So I headed over to Towers Family Restaurant to get a breakfast bap. On the way I found a #Smileseat ticket. Absolute WIN I thought and things were looking up. The bap was ok and was asked if I wanted a drink with it. The urge to rage at the woman behind the counter was immense, but I thought it was unfair to have a go at something that wasn't her fault. I also had the idea of returning water back to the waterwheel and maybe a fountain. It really needs something to jazz the place up a bit.
I returned to get my coffee and waited in the queue. I got to the front, only for the girl who served me the first time to try and charge me. I was like hell no! So anyway the supervisor came out and sorted it. Was not a happy chappy!
Took a walk over to the valley, knowing full well that most people would still be at the hotels. Sent a txt or two to Badger just to make sure. After meeting up with them we headed to Nemesis. Getting a nice early ride on Nemesis made things a bit better, if only for a short period of time! She was on fire and was thrashing around and made up for my bad experiences earlier. Got off Nemesis and the dirty beast decided to help herself to £40 out of my pocket. I thought I had it all zipped up. Clearly not! Well there goes the happy mood again!
We heard that Chris and Nat were at Duel so we headed over. Duel was a bit.. well... meh! Most of the effects seemed to work, but it needs touching up so badly and those vents really do ruin the effect. After Duel we headed back to the entrance as some others said they were on their way. I decided to give corner coffee another go and actually got a decent drink with no queue. The others turned up and we headed back to Nemesis, via skyride.
Lets just say I didn't make the same mistake again! All zipped up we braved the beast and she was still flying around. Nemesis still comes out on top as my favorite ride on park. We were going to do Air, but it had a huge queue and then we headed to Ripsaw to find it was closed. So we then headed back to Duel to see James. It was still meh, but made somewhat better by the extra company we had got.
A quick walk to rapids and we managed to board fairly quickly given the weather. I was expecting a much bigger queue. The ride was on form and we did get a good soaking. Sorry to the guy (Ian I think?) who I nearly sat on whilst avoiding KFC megawave!
So after rapids it was lunch and oh boy were we in for a treat. For some unknown reason we followed Will to Corner Coffee (Why I have no idea). We got a panini and a drink. To say that Wills panini didn't look great would be the understatement of the year. My dog has barfed up stuff that looks more edible! Fortunately I had a different flavour to Will and nommed half of mine. I then came over all guilty and gave Will my other half and tried a bit of Wills panini. It was god awful. A mixture of onion that clearly wasn't onion, a lump of bacon fat and some strange white liquid that resembled a certain male bodily fluid. It really was that bad!
Soooo... after that farce, we headed over to Oblivion and it had hardly any queue which was good. What can you say about oblivion. It's just a drop into a dark hole! Saying that, I still think the mists needs to be changed to dry ice fog or even oil based fog. The mist effect doesnt work too good and just gets you wet as you go through the tunnel.
The Smiler next and it seemed as though the deafening roar has gone, but one train still stands out as being much louder. Using my #Smileseats pass, me and Will (he just happened to be standing next to me) got on almost straight away. We also got the front which was awesome. Ok, it was a tad rough, but it wasn't that bad and I came off smiling :twirly:. The others went on Submission and then The Smiler.
Whilst they were doing that, we headed over the Cloud Cuckoo Land and went in Ice Age. It was the only remotely cool place on park and by this point we had all had enough of the heat. Some of our group went on Gallopers before heading back down the The Smiler to see if the others had come off yet. We didn't wait too long before they came off and we went back on Oblivion as we were right next to the entrance.
From here it was a quick dash to Th13teen and then on to Rita. Neither had a big queue and I actually enjoyed Rita for once. Its just a shame it's still scaffolding forest. Skyride over to valley and I had the pleasure of watching a few members get extremely moist on Ripsaw (Well absolutely soaked would be more like it!)
Woodland walk back to hotel and a few cheeky beverages were had whilst the hotel singer murdered a few songs (not helped by a crap audio system). We said our goodbyes and I think I can say everyone had a great day. It was a little expensive on my part and it was full of fails on Alton's part, but all in all I loved it mainly down to the people I was with.
M
Mankey
Apparently I was here this weekend. I know weird right?
Was lovely to see you all again! I've missed you lot, you make me laugh more than I should and smile so much it hurts. I was glad I got a ride on Smiler, It was pretty good but sadly my ride was a little rough. Still, I don't mind a bit of roughness.
I am glad I came. And hopefully I'll see you all very soon!
In other news, I'm watching the news and HS2 is on. Lmao!
Was lovely to see you all again! I've missed you lot, you make me laugh more than I should and smile so much it hurts. I was glad I got a ride on Smiler, It was pretty good but sadly my ride was a little rough. Still, I don't mind a bit of roughness.
I am glad I came. And hopefully I'll see you all very soon!
In other news, I'm watching the news and HS2 is on. Lmao!