Valhalla: Blackpool Pleasure Beach

[Anonymous]

Because I find this such a unique ride I thought it deserved its own topic.

After reading in depth about this ride I understand thats theres alot of problems with this ride even from today! Probbably effects not working or evacuations taking place are probbably the most things ive read about whilst reading into this ride.

What im finding hard to belive is that this ride actually cost £15 million? is that really correct that it cost MORE than the Pepsi Max? For whats actually inside I cant quite figure out why? I mean I understand that the ride layout itself is pretty decent pushing 5/6 minutes! Thats pretty impressive but themeing wise? in some parts it really does look half done.

Also people mention the effects and some of them dont work is there any obviouse ones that are missing from the ride that most of the time dont work? I'd be intreegred to know!

Going back to themeing of the ride, did they run out of ideas? litteraly some parts have huge amounts then near the end of the ride theres not alot at all partically the last scene which is just a big concrete foot and a fireball.

I'd be really interested to know any history you have about the ride or any knowledge you could share about it becuase I have a real big soft spot for this ride and I hope some of you fellow enthusiasts do too!

 

[Alastair]

Because I find this such a unique ride I thought it deserved its own topic.

After reading in depth about this ride I understand thats theres alot of problems with this ride even from today! Probbably effects not working or evacuations taking place are probbably the most things ive read about whilst reading into this ride.

What im finding hard to belive is that this ride actually cost £15 million? is that really correct that it cost MORE than the Pepsi Max? For whats actually inside I cant quite figure out why? I mean I understand that the ride layout itself is pretty decent pushing 5/6 minutes! Thats pretty impressive but themeing wise? in some parts it really does look half done.

Also people mention the effects and some of them dont work is there any obviouse ones that are missing from the ride that most of the time dont work? I'd be intreegred to know!

Going back to themeing of the ride, did they run out of ideas? litteraly some parts have huge amounts then near the end of the ride theres not alot at all partically the last scene which is just a big concrete foot and a fireball.

I'd be really interested to know any history you have about the ride or any knowledge you could share about it becuase I have a real big soft spot for this ride and I hope some of you fellow enthusiasts do too!

Yeah, £15m - more than every coaster ever installed at AT with the exception of Thirteen! I think the majority of it must have been spent on the ride system, and with Intamin being the manufacturer it would have been at a premium as opposed to a company suited to dark rides like Mack - Intamin would probably have had to develop the entire ride system from scratch.

As for the theming, it is mightily impressive - from the huge waterfall outside to the giant fireballs inside. The sheer amount of water that must go through that thing is inconceivable! I do agree though that £15m in 2000 seems excessive - although when you think about the size of the building it's in and the length of the ride, plus all of the safety mechanisms being made more difficult to maintain due to it being a water ride; it does add up.

The recent refurbishment is rather underwhelming I think. Basically all they did was replace the facade, changing it slightly although worsening the spray from the waterfall, and tweak the inside of the ride slightly - although most of the effects don't all work at once which is disappointing.

 

[Anonymous]

So am I right in thinking that this was Intamins first propper water ride? as in the ride system istelf? It does make you wonder why they diddnt choose Mack for example but then again it could have been due to cost. I remmember reading that Mr. Tompson was moaning and groaning about the ride system when it was finished? But I dont quite understand why if anyone could shed some light?

Going back to the refurb on the outside wasnt the whole idea to re-structure the whole of it so it diddnt go onto the station at all due to it damaging it but to this day its STILL doing the same thing?

A little nag at the ride that does annoy me in certain places you can see other parts of the ride (its track) and also the maintance shed whilst going through the skulls mouth and then you look at some areas of the ride and its completley covered in black cloth or whatever they use?

 

[Rick]

Valhalla uses the same ride system as the now defunct Typhoon Sea Coaster that opened in 1997 at Six Flags America.

 

[AstroDan]

Mack don't make a ride system like what is used on Valhalla.

Sent from my HTC Desire HD A9191 using Tapatalk

 

[Alastair]

Mack don't make a ride system like what is used on Valhalla.

Sent from my HTC Desire HD A9191 using Tapatalk

No, however Mack had much more experience in building water based rides. In my experience I've heard of many more Mack water rides than I have Intamin ones.

 

[Tim]

If I remember correctly the main cost of the ride was to build a new sub-station as Valhalla alone uses more power than all the other rides on that side of the park combined (maybe even the whole park).

Even without that I think they got a fairly good deal. There is an awful lot of very expensive effects in there although they very rarely all work at the same time. Considering Britain’s other £15 million ride only has a few air canons and a smoke machine you can hardly say it is lacking. Then compare it to a major dark ride in the states which could cost up to £100 million pounds and I'd say Valhalla has a lot going for it considering it's nearly a tenth of the price.

 

[Anonymous]

Also on the very last part when you go through the ''storm'' if you'd class it as that just before you go past the part where to 2 logs crash together and you get covered with water what are the air cannon purposes for there? It makes rarther an usual sound is it just supposed to scare you or is it sposed to be a fire effect? I know every time I visit I cant work out what it is. Its long a rod typed thing with a hollow middle.

 

[Dar]

Intamin told Geoffrey that what he wanted couldn't be done, but he told them to press on regardless. That's why a great deal of the effects don't work every cycle.

It's also why PBB and Intamin's relationship is now virtually non-existent!

 

[Scott]

It's a weird one... So strange that its brilliant but the OTT wetness puts me off riding it...

 

[Andrew]

You get wet. Very wet. It's themed to vikings. You get wet. It's fun.

That pretty much sums it up.

Oh, and you get wet.

 

[John]

It's themed to pirates.

Erm... Vikings.

I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with Valhalla. It's epic, but obscenely wet, almost to the point of unrideability (is that a word?) on all but the hottest of days.

 

[Andrew]

It's themed to pirates.

Erm... Vikings.

I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with Valhalla. It's epic, but obscenely wet, almost to the point of unrideability (is that a word?) on all but the hottest of days.

Oh, well, erm, nobody saw that...
My mind is messed up.

I'm sure I said Vikings...

 

[Anonymous]

So let me get this right..

What Geoffrey wanted was a water ride with dark elements so technically a dark water ride? He approached Intamin asked them for help and what they could do, they said it simply wasnt possible but told them to carry on anyway.

The final product Intamin knew there was going to be alot of problems and had told Geoffrey from the start and after opening the problems got worse and Geoffrey contacted Intamin complaining?

Is that whats basically happened with the ride?

 

[Alastair]

Intamin told Geoffrey that what he wanted couldn't be done, but he told them to press on regardless. That's why a great deal of the effects don't work every cycle.

It's also why PBB and Intamin's relationship is now virtually non-existent!

That's why you don't want a clueless park owner micromanaging the rides on park.

 

[Groundking]

So am I right in thinking that this was Intamins first propper water ride? as in the ride system istelf? It does make you wonder why they diddnt choose Mack for example but then again it could have been due to cost. I remmember reading that Mr. Tompson was moaning and groaning about the ride system when it was finished? But I dont quite understand why if anyone could shed some light?

Going back to the refurb on the outside wasnt the whole idea to re-structure the whole of it so it diddnt go onto the station at all due to it damaging it but to this day its STILL doing the same thing?

A little nag at the ride that does annoy me in certain places you can see other parts of the ride (its track) and also the maintance shed whilst going through the skulls mouth and then you look at some areas of the ride and its completley covered in black cloth or whatever they use?

He was moaning about it because he was told be Intamin that what he wanted to do was unrealistic and impossible (especially for technology at the time), but he pushed on regardless. So the result is is that we get a horrifically expensive ride to run (when it opened in the first year Gas for the fire effects alone cost £250000, let along all the water, lighting, and other effects), that HAS to be run as it's one of the headline attractions at the park, whilst also being expensive to maintain (mainly the station as GT decided to build it too close to the rock face, and the current re-furb has cost something like 2m to do ) and no where near the que eater it was designed to be (it was going to have 18 boats and have throughput at 2k, has 12 boats and only manages 1k at best).

Regardless, when it's on form and it's a nice day it is my favourite dark ride in the country, it's just occasions like this don't come around very often.

 

[Pixie-Ro]

I have to say that although I don't know anything about the technical side of this ride, what I do know is that it is one of my favourite rides ever. It is the one wet ride that I will go on whatever the weather...give me a poncho and off I go! ;D

 

[Tom]

I have to question all these so-called Geoffrey Thompson quotes.

For a start, the ride system - that is the vehicles and track effectively - was built by Intamin, whereas virtually everything else was created by Sarner.

It's far from impossible to have all of the effects working at once, it is either poor maintenance or rotation on the basis of cost.

 

[Alastair]

I have to say that although I don't know anything about the technical side of this ride, what I do know is that it is one of my favourite rides ever. It is the one wet ride that I will go on whatever the weather...give me a poncho and off I go! ;D

The poncho's are useless. The hood may as well not exist as it comes down as soon as you go down the first drop/the air cannon/any other point where the boat moves slightly fast. As well as this the poncho does not protect your feet at all, which are always drenched in copious volumes of water wherever you try and keep them. There is also the issue of water pooling in the lap area, which then obviously falls onto your feet when you move and soaks you even more.

In short, it is near impossible to stay dry on Valhalla - the most thorough wet ride in the country undoubtedly.

 

[Anonymous]

In reply to keeping your feet dry Ive always found putting the poncho over your knees and putting your feet on the side of the boat.

Upon entering the ''out side'' part of the ride before you drop backwards on the left hand side is it an air cannon that shoots up? If so it seems abit pointless? And is there any reason why the boat stops then moves forwards and litteraly BANGS and jolts forwards?