X:\ No Way Out

[Ryan King]

Well, I was just remembering back to the UK Trip in 06. And one coaster came across my mind, X:\ No Way Out. I remember Elissa Saying "The reason WHY people CAME on the UK Tour!"

 

Well...I didnt really get this ride AT ALL! Sent you backwards..in the dark...and not much themeing. I didnt really understand what this coaster was supposed to accomplish and was really more confused then usual! So I did some reasearch...and found out for some ODD WTF reasons. The coasters "themeing" or lack there of, is supposed to make you feel like youre in a computer virus? Anywho..Ill quote some Wikipedia to help people understand this odd coaster a little better...

 

Also upon reading Wikipedia i discovered that X:\ No Way Out Is SUPPOSED to get rethemed SOMETIME this year...Anyone hear anything different?

 

-Ryan

 

X:\ No Way Out (commonly referred to as X and no way out) is a roller coaster located in the Lost City area of Thorpe Park, England. It was the park's very first non-powered Roller-Coaster. An odd name for an equally odd ride. Marketed as the "world's first backwards roller coaster in the dark", and was built themed around the idea of 'being trapped in a computer virus', hence the name. The ride is situated inside a blue and burgundy pyramid. The ride once had a long indoor queue line through black corridors and a few themed rooms, including a revolving tunnel. This has since been cut short, and used for Thorpe Park's Fright Nights.

 

The coaster itself is somewhat tame, although some excitement can be derived from the unusual sensation of travelling backwards on a roller coaster. Realizing how unreliable the on-train sound effects (helicopter noises) were, the park has now added sound effects around the ride, including some rather evil laughter and some incomprehensible speech. Previously on the ride, at three points, the train would stop and shudder back and forth with riders assaulted with wind, mist and scent, although these effects were generally unreliable.

 

THE RIDE

 

As you approach the entrance you queue up in an outside queue, separated from the indoor queue due to it being cut short. You are then let in the building by a staff member, following the narrow corridors, until you eventually get to a small queue outside the station. Depending on the popularity of the ride, a small room with a staff member inside takes loose items. You then walk through into the compact station, and stand behind the air gates. The empty train then rolls in backwards from the exit platform into the station. The air gates are opened, and you take your seat in what seems to be a very roomy type of train. You lower the lapbars, and they are checked. The air gates are closed, and a very formal recording plays the message twice, "The ride is about to begin. Please keep your arms and legs inside the train at all times". Just as the second recording starts, the train is shot off backwards into the pitch black darkness.

 

The train curves, straight into the drive tyre lift hill. A strobe light flashes, lighting up the whole pyramid. You are immedantly sent into a helix, and over a small top hat, straight into the first set of brakes. Depending on whether they are working, pipes of air must squirt above from you as the train shudders back and forth. The train then shoots off backwards again. This is said to be the most thrilling part of the ride if you're sitting at the front, as you a flung forward. Another second brake run then occurs while strobe lights flash. The ride is then sent into a short brake run, then sent into the unloading station, as a recording plays "The ride has come to an end. Please exit to your left".

 

Onride photos are no longer available on this ride. It is said it was sent to Stealth, another ride at Thorpe Park.

 

Staff also share a belief this ride is haunted.

 

Re-Theme

The ride will be re-themed for the 2007 season.

Photos from RCDB

Photos from RCDB

Photos from RCDB

[Canobie Fan]

Hmm.. Now I think I did find a way out.. As I rerode it.

[Satoshi]

the ride itself looks like Euro-Mir at Europa Park and the inside of

its building also looks really kinda darker than Disney's Space

Mountain. but the darkness rides are going to make us want to

feel so scary that i can't expect what's gonna happen in the dark!

[HAJiME]

Well, since thorpe is one of my locals... Aren't i lucky.

 

I like X:/WTF for all the wrong reasons. It's one of those "it's so terrible it's halarious" rides.

 

I don't remember much of it when it was still using it's 'theme.'

 

The main difference though was you never used to know it was backwards. There where 'elevators' that took groups to the train, and you didn't realise it went backwards until it left the station. The doorways before the station used to close.

 

I think it was last year, but they put like techno music on in the pyramid (the music in the queue was from the matrix, but no one seemed to know where the other bit was nicked from) and had like, lights and things. And it was AWESOME fun. And then they stopped doing it! UGH.

 

It would be so cheap to 're-theme' with some christmas lights and funky music, but no. Thorpe suck.

[Cerberus]

Every year for about six years, people have been saying it'll get a retheme.

And every year for the past four years, it has received weird home disco junk from Maplin.

 

...Possibly as a private investment from the ride team.

...Possibly as a sarcastic nod to how tacky the attraction is

 

Frankly I'm past caring myself. I wouldn't even mind if the ride stayed as it is, since I never actually hated it.

 

They can't make it worse and they can't make it better, so bring it on

[Stealth]

^ Yeah, there have been rumours flying around saying X:\ will get a retheme for ages but nothing major has ever happened. I read somewhere that £60 grand was apparently signed off to be invested in the ride this year so who knows. You might be sitting there expecting to leave the station backwards and suddenly go forwards.

 

Personally I think the ride is well past its sell by date. Not just because these days it can't really compare to much else but the fact that Thorpe hasn't maintained the old magic of the ride. As I say it seems to change slightly evey year but not in a way that improves the ride at all. So a major retheme this year would be a welcome sight to me, and although it would be weird without the ride at Thorpe I wouldn't really miss it that much if it was removed completely.

[IceDragon]

i like it.

 

from what i understand, the block breaks are the firewalls and password encryptors or something.

 

i just like it. theres no reason as to why, its just a great ride

 

the theming should be done either by this year or next... dunno whats being changed though...

 

i need to go there anyway, photography coursework calls

[Nemesis Inferno]

^Firewalls? Since when?

 

Most I remember for this is that is was supposed to be the best thing since sliced bread for the RMC, plus their swan-song...

 

Shame money went and now it sits there all lonely and random...

 

It really needed work done to it to make it look as if it belongs to the park, I still think that a RotM look would be lovely, but knowing Thorpe, it'll end up being rubbish in the end...as usual...

[Nrthwnd]

Why

 

bother

 

now?

 

[Stealth]

Why

 

bother

 

now?

 

 

Because with the large new coaster they are building they don't have the money to completely knock it down and re-build it, but something needs to be done. As I have said over the years small things have been done, but nothing that has helped really, maybe now they have realised it's time to sort this thing out. They will be spending a fairly decent amount on it if it is the rumoured £60 grand but if they really are planning for a large scale ride in the near future this is all they can really afford.

 

Personally I'm not getting my hopes up anyway. I doubt anything will be done, it has been rumoured for so many years now, and if they do, do something it won't be amazing.

[downunder]

It sounds like it has the greatest theming since Disaster Transport, Disney's imagineers must be sh**ting themselves with fear.

[IceDragon]

^Firewalls? Since when?

 

 

when you (if you) try to hack someone you always get hit by a firewall, metaphorically speaking, the block breaks are the firewalls preventing you from continuing on...

[CK Media]

lemme just say this

 

X:\

C:\

 

Drive names.

[Ryan King]

Well, im hoping it gets the re-theme it deserves. Although I only rode it once, it WAS an interesting experience..i def. didnt expect it to carry me backwards!

[verticalzero]

I've always said regarding X: "Re-theme and re-track the layout of it, have different coloured spot-lights, lasers and fog machines.

 

A great example is the Scooby Doo coaster at Movie World in Aus.

 

X: needs to have some £60,000 TLC.

 

The main thing for Thorpe is the "Fish" has returned for revenge on Stealth

 

I dearly miss "Phantom Fantasia / Wicked Witches Haunt", a classic dark ride which caught fire in Y2K.

[nemesis-storm]

Well, im hoping it gets the re-theme it deserves. Although I only rode it once, it WAS an interesting experience..i def. didnt expect it to carry me backwards!

 

>Run Sarcasm

 

OMFG ! .. It travels backwards !

 

>End Sarcasm

 

The bit I dont get is the air/water sprayed into your face !!

[Ed]

I hate this ride. Everything about it needs to be destroyed and replaced with a Hello Kitty land.

[RCfanatic]

I rode it last summer for the first time, and i must say i liked it, okay its a VERY odd ride with odd theming, but i just had fun riding it! The backwards turns and the darkness are a bit disorienting, and the ride has some fun G's here and there, i came out laughing and thinking "WTF?", but i had fun!

[piers]

I always just feel like I'm gonna fall out straight after the 'stops'.

Don't know if I would mind, may give them an excuse to improve on the ride!

[TPDave]

X:\ (I love the "meh" face in the ride name :\) Will be getting a re-theme this year. The £60k figure is correct.

 

It's based around the X research studios and you're taking a tour of them, stuff goes wrong and you end up going backwards in the dark. They're just trying to give it some purpose to avoid it being X:\WTF!?

 

Dave "It's finally getting a re-theme" Wilson

[BarryH]

The ride was indeed WTF? I was waiting for something to happen whent he ride stopped, but I only saw the same darkeness that I saw before.

 

I seem to recall a strange odor in the X:\No Way Out building during the TPR UK trip. It wasn't me, though.

[cfc]

I found it oddly endearing--like an Ed Wood movie. Its stupidity reaches a bizarre level of grandeur.

[Carnage]

The only thing I liked about it was the cool shadow affect created by the light coming through those giant fans.

 

The ride itself was just a waste. Didn't even feel like it did anything.

[Louise]

^ I believe when we rode it in June none of the effect were working... At least I sure don't remember any air or water effects there like have been mentioned in this thread and elsewhere. To be honest though, it was really "WTF?!" enough without any effects. Bizarre. I didn't hate it, I just meh'd it because it confused me so damn much!

[Nrthwnd]

^ I remember the fans. But I was in the front car that went backwards first. Then forwards.... I dunno. Confused? You betcha.....

 

Anyway, I do remember the wind effect, and the cars shaking at one point in it...

 

And the 'taking off' in the opposite direction felt odd... but rattlingly endearing, LOLOL!

 

An older ride that's definitely seen better days (and years) but is trying it's darndest to keep up with everybody else in the park.

 

Means well, but still confusing to figure out, hmmm?

 

Just an observe.