Shockwave Posted July 19, 2006 Share Posted July 19, 2006 I just got back from a great week in the low countries with a few friends. We visited 5 parks over 5 days, we drank a lot, played coaster 20 questions till we couldn't think straight and generally had a damn good time! The first park we hit was Drievliet, which is on the outskirts of The Hague in Holland. It's a pretty small park with 3 credits, all of which are built by Maurer Sohne, including two spinning coasters, a wild mouse, a Mack powered coaster and some other cool little rides. It's a getting a Maurer Sohne launched X-Car next year, so I may well be back in 12 months. The park is very shady in parts, and has a pretty nice atmosphere. We killed about four hours here doing pretty much all the rides. And Walibi Belgium is up tomorrow. Wavre is this way! The sign told me so! We even found time to "Pfaff" about on the way to Belgium. This could be the highest point in Holland up ahead. And this was the first of many we saw! After a few hours it was time to drive to Wavre. This was IKEA No.1 of the trip. Oh yeah, Martyn was on the hunt for hot chicks all week, so he started early today! I think we found out why the power cut halfway round! On my ride, the power cut, it rolled back and they had to reset it! So does that count as a credit, Jeff? Who cares if it's powered, it's damn fast! Credit or no credit, we thought it was great fun! So I tried explaning that to Rob, Mark & Martyn - to no avail! Dynamite Express is one of those Jeff Johnson credits. These rare creatures can be found in parks with cameras looking for that perfect photo spot. Spot the coaster geeks. Blue sky + Wild Mouse switchbacks = GOOD! Dutch "Rattlesnake" was running lots of trains and no trim brakes! OK, enough flat rides, time for credit no.3 of the day. Quick, cameras out! Rob looks like he's gonna be sick! The waveswinger was given plenty of w00tage! Ferris Wheel through the trees! Once again, this spin dry was brough to you by Huss! The Huss boat finished our tumble dry cycle. Dutch kid gives it the seal of approval. Is this a troika? I really don't know my Huss flat rides. =( So after getting wet, you gotta dry off. This spin dry is brought to you by Huss! BIIIIIG splaaaaaaaaash!!! Portable Log Flume splashed us good. This was the least scary dark ride of the trip. Rob explains to Martyn that size does matter when you're racing down these things. Waterslides of 'you get slightly moist". Like a towelette! Since the park had no maps, we used this one on the camera. Smiling on Xtreme is a coded message for "OMFG! This ride should be way smoother!" Not even the trees could hide this ride's roughness. Xtreme kicked our asses good. So how would the other Maurer spinner grace our presence? But it span round like crazy! It's a like a short, outdoor, free spinning version of Haunted Mansion. So, not like Haunted Mansion at all really! W-hoot! W-hoot! Time for the first credit of the day. Shame they were a bit slow. They weren't even "slides of mild terror!" The staggered slides of death make an appearance! It spins and stuff. It was an OK ride, made better by the hot chicks on it. Hehe, Lunatic! Almost worth a LOL or two. The front section is Space themed with a few flat rides. Here we are at Drievliet! Check out our awesome people perspective! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imdrunk Posted July 19, 2006 Share Posted July 19, 2006 That place looks pretty cool. I know they don't have a bunch of powerhouse coasters, but it looks like a fun place to visit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shesaidboom Posted July 19, 2006 Share Posted July 19, 2006 That spinny owl ride looks crazy. And weird. I would like to ride it. Too bad I wont be travelling overseas any time soon I will be looking forward to more updates from your trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted July 20, 2006 Share Posted July 20, 2006 Come on Tom, get your Walibi Belgium photos up! Here's my Drievliet photos for now http://www.the365project.co.uk/Galleries/Drievliet/index.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shockwave Posted July 20, 2006 Author Share Posted July 20, 2006 OK, here's our day at Walibi Belgium! This was probably my favourite park of the whole trip. The rides were great, the park and its atmosphere were really nice, the characters were awesome, I can't think of a bad thing to say about this place! Oh yeah, their new coaster is now delayed for another year, which is a real shame because it looks sweet. But prototypes have never sailed smoothly, so here's to hoping it's ready by next year becayse the park really deserve it! Here's Part 1 of the day: Thanks to Greet and Walibi Belgium for the awesome tour around the ride, and we wish them the best for getting it ready for the 2007 season! Shred those trees! But she didn't tell us about the limbo section! Greet Vanderberghe was our guide for tour. She told us that the queue is gonna have lots of interactive bits like smoke and winds effects. Because they're going on the test buggy thing! Why the climbing gear guys? I'll have my ride programmed at 150mph and going backwards please! This is the station. It's very blue and stuff. But despite the setback to for ride, the park's PR were brilliant! We were given a backstage construction tour thanks to Rob's e-mailing skills! Verti-not gonna-go-till next year now! Hey Joey! So we went straight to Walibi Belgium! Damn. Looks like we're going hungry for a while. Come on, it doesn't look too bad! So does this mean I can't get the stuffed crust Four-for-All today? Welcome to Pizza Hut! The way to Walibi! But first, we gotta make a stop for some early morning food! And this is our car! Here's our countryside hotel for the first two days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted July 21, 2006 Share Posted July 21, 2006 So while we wait for Tom's second half of his Walibi Belgium photos, here are mine! http://www.the365project.co.uk/Galleries/WalibiBelgium/index.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ECZenith Posted July 21, 2006 Share Posted July 21, 2006 Very cool TR, and yes that is a Huss Troika. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgwfreak Posted July 21, 2006 Share Posted July 21, 2006 Awesome TR!!! Nice to see that Six Flags is well represented (In Gang) So where do the non-gang members go in? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted July 21, 2006 Share Posted July 21, 2006 Dude!!! We ate at that Pizza Hut last summer!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedracer Posted July 22, 2006 Share Posted July 22, 2006 Vertigo looks like fun and all, but hanging from those long sections of freespan would have me just a little bit anxious : http://www.the365project.co.uk/Galleries/WalibiBelgium/photo31.html Great pix btw guys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apollo210 Posted July 22, 2006 Share Posted July 22, 2006 ^^ lol Elissa. That Pizza hut must have been damaged in a storm, or by some little s. Vertigo looks awsome! To bad it got delayed for a whole year. Maybe opening for Walibi's opening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shockwave Posted July 23, 2006 Author Share Posted July 23, 2006 Dude!!! We ate at that Pizza Hut last summer!!!! The Theme Park Review curse strikes again! Here's some more photos from the day. I also hasten to apologise for not taking any photos of the kiddy coaster or the awesome Tutankhamon dark ride! See you next month! Walibi Belguim gets two thumbs up. Some pictures in this update came fresh from the huge ferris wheel. Err, yes. It's a monster fresh from the Belgian waffle stand. Is it a monster? What that coming over the hill? Front or back? Front or back? The station is a very classy affair. Time for the best woodie of the trip. But not fast enough to escape the Turbine exclusive signature shot! Rainbow train goes fast... My first ever Anton S. Shuttle Loop, and it was sweet! Sorry Derek, they had to brick this loop up. This ride was awesome because it gets all the hot chicks wet. Angry cat eats raft boat. Airtime douple dip!!! Flashback/Splashback was good fun. Boomer-oooow!!! Here's one for the Aussies! It may be an SLC but I've been on lot worse. This one wasn't too bad! First drop art shot. If you can consider an SLC a work of art. Oh joy, it's an SLC! In to the heart of Vekomaland we go.. Angry! Like this! Dalton Terror is 250 feet of Intamin tower goodness. As nice as it looks, we have come here to ride stuff. Please be open next year! Vertigo really makes a mark on the skyline. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thomas2 Posted July 23, 2006 Share Posted July 23, 2006 Nooooo you didn't take any pictures of the kiddie coaster!!! Great that you had a good time at WB. It's really a fun park. Too bad Vertigo doesn't open this summer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shockwave Posted July 24, 2006 Author Share Posted July 24, 2006 Day 3 - Bobbejaanland, nr Lichtaart, Belgium. This was another fun filled day, and probably the wettest day of the whole trip by virtue of us going on all five water rides! I liked this park a lot, even though it doesn't have a tremendous skyline - the tallest thing in the park is the giant wind turbine, and you you can't ride that! The park has a nice selction of coasters, none of which are too similar, unless you count the wild mouse mirrors as two credits! The worst part of today was getting there, some busy traffic and diversions which were not signed didn't help! Here's Part 1: "Yep, we soaked those kids good!" Martyn & Rob prove that you really need two people in a raft to enjoy this! The Non-Dan approved water slides were really cool! We didn't stay dry for long... Speedy Bob is two Wild Mouse coasters next each other. Only one side was running today. Wave if you like your Wild Mouse with no trim brakes! It sure lives up to its name! At least we had Speedy Bob to dry ourselves on. And by this point, we had got pretty wet. But we couldn't escape the whirlpool! I think this is what Dan has nightmares about. Too bad it wasn't working! El Rio was one of the best Rapids rides on the trip. And now onto the big rapids ride. We all loved the squishy floor! This is Part 1 of the water rides section. You can tell Joe is not here because unlike Cypress Gardens, this boat ride didn't stop on the lift. Martyn was going pretty fast as well! Yes they were! Rob is still moving at quite a pace. Man, I hope those slides are better than the ones at Drievliet. It didn't go upside down, but inside it was like Spaceship Earth on hallucinogenics! But I was more focused on Revolution through the trees. Joy of joys! The George Foreman grill is also next door! Not much airtime, but not too shabby. Jezus Eik! That's pretty big! After getting into the park we went straight to the giant frisbee. I think Peter Gabriel would love this ride. With or without the nut-busting restraints. Now how did German Tom pronounce this again? Jezus Eik! We're lost! If you ever need to save petrol, drive on to the back of a flatbed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dchamero Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 Does it looks like that or the rapids' tub at Walibi has no seatbelts???? it looks like the riders are standing up in the middle of the ride.... do they let you do that???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 I think one of the Belgium people told us that there was an accident on the rapids and that drop hasn't operated in like 5 years! I was also really surprised by how awesome Bobbejaanland was!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 That sucks, that "ferris wheel" lift looked awesome, and drops on Rapids are always great fun. Anyway, my Bobbejaanland pictures are here: http://www.the365project.co.uk/Galleries/Bobbejaanland/index.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
viking86 Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 Does it looks like that or the rapids' tub at Walibi has no seatbelts???? it looks like the riders are standing up in the middle of the ride.... do they let you do that???? I dont think you will find a rapids ride in Europe with seatbelts. And yes, its not uncommon to see people stand up to avoid getting wet.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freefallbestrideever Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 That looked like alot of fun and those mascots were hilarious Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shockwave Posted August 16, 2006 Author Share Posted August 16, 2006 So I finally got time to photoshop the rest of the trip! Here it is in bits. My own signature move to end the day! ...you'll have to make do with two pics like these. Because my photoshop skills are non-exsistent... That one is also sexual. Vertical Loop! Gigiddy-gigiddy! Heh heh. Alll-right! Phallic coasters always impress. And we couldn't forget about Typhoon! It was really good though! Powered 'credit'. Because it doesnt 'coast', so it's not a 'coaster!' This Log Flume is Elissa approved! Dont' fall asleep. Video bewaking you! Someone give this angry totem pole some candy. There's a boat getting soaked in there somewhere. The Indoor Flume was awesome! Even Dan would like it...if he was wearing six waterproof layers. Bench: The Ride got a token run! That'll do nicely. Would have even better with a train in there! An EXCLUSIVE shot. It's a big kiddy coaster! Oki Doki, it's time for more quadri-lingual warning signs! Bobbejaanland proves that pastil colours on a coaster do work. Kinda. I guess it could be a lot worse! Well it wasn't bad. Nothing special, but it didn't leave your ears bleeding like other Vekomas. Do yourself a favour, Chief. Don't turn around! Why, oh why did they have to get rid of the cool airplanes? No Belgian park is complete without a Vekoma ride! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shockwave Posted August 16, 2006 Author Share Posted August 16, 2006 I forgot to add the most awesome pic of the day!!! This is the real reason we got lost on the way to Billie Jean Land. We were following this truck and saw this crazy picture on the back! So we got a bit closer and found this. It's probably not worksafe, so don't say I didn't warn you. There's your warning. And if you're under-age, look away now. You've seen Snakes On A Plane... Now see... Tits! On A Truck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted August 16, 2006 Share Posted August 16, 2006 Finally Tom! I'd forgotten about that truck! Haha. Bobbejaanland rocked! Now hurry up with Efteling pics! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts