verticalzero Posted February 26, 2007 Posted February 26, 2007 For those who are intrested: http://www.parkworld-online.com/news/fullstory.php/aid/252/Future_Beach.html
Menghini Posted February 28, 2007 Posted February 28, 2007 Interesting... I didn't know they also owned Southport. Though it is kind of obvious ("pleasurebeach"). So it's not very surprising they moved Infusion...
verticalzero Posted February 28, 2007 Author Posted February 28, 2007 Blackpool also owned "Frontierland" in Morecambe till this closed in Nov 1999. The Park had a woodie called "Texas Tornado" built by "Harry Traver" which went the same way as "Cyclone" at Southport.
Menghini Posted February 28, 2007 Posted February 28, 2007 Blackpool also owned "Frontierland" in Morecambe till this closed in Nov 1999. The Park had a woodie called "Texas Tornado" built by "Harry Traver" which went the same way as "Cyclone" at Southport. Really? That's a pity...
yorkie360 Posted March 1, 2007 Posted March 1, 2007 ".. if the cost of keeping something old outweighs the value of maintaining it, then we have to think carefully about it. The trouble is you end loving these things more than you should do and at the end of the day we are a business and we’ve got to make sure we keep the right things. I find this a little distressing .. stressing ROI over sentimentality. It's sentimentality that allows a 100 year old park like this survive .. people come to BPB not just for the rides but also for the history. If you take away too many old rides that don't perform like they used to, you'll just end up with a Six Flags Over Lancashire, and no real character. Good interview, by the way.
robbalvey Posted March 1, 2007 Posted March 1, 2007 I really can't believe how many typos this article has for what is supposed to be a "real" magazine: I’ll be taking the Pleasure each in a new direction, but his legacy was that he changed the face of the industry totally. He wasn’t just famous for dealing with Blackpool Pleasure Beach, he was famous for dealing with government issues, basically leading the industry on a world scale. Everyone sought his advice and Pleasure Beach is a benchmark for the industry as a whole. He put the Big One in, no one had done that before when he built it: The tallest fastest rollercoaster at that time, and everyone followed him; building even taller and faster ones. But he was the man that had the guts and the courage to something like that. He was a great guy, full of enthusiasm and life and fun. He saw this industry as a great big adventure, and just adored every single second of it. No, we actually had very little trouble with it. We’ve since closed the park, but that wasn’t the reason. What it actually did it was make the park a much safer environment. We had less vandalism. Maintenance costs nowadays are so high, and you really shouldn’t have to put up with someone gong around trashing everything because they think it’s fun. That’s not an environment for a family to be in. Isn't that kind of unacceptable? --Robb
Menghini Posted March 1, 2007 Posted March 1, 2007 I really can't believe how many typos this article has for what is supposed to be a "real" magazine: (...) Isn't that kind of unacceptable? --Robb It is, I agree! So we don't believe the interview/article?
Hercules Posted March 1, 2007 Posted March 1, 2007 I don't care about the article..... she is sexy, not to mention with a British accent?! Woo....!
coastrfreak2000 Posted March 1, 2007 Posted March 1, 2007 ...it’s great to work with water because it’s something everyone likes. There will also be a bit of interaction with the Big One... Dan would disagree...
Adrian Posted March 1, 2007 Posted March 1, 2007 I find this a little distressing .. stressing ROI over sentimentality. It's sentimentality that allows a 100 year old park like this survive .. people come to BPB not just for the rides but also for the history. Hmmm...not entirely sure that's true. 30m of debt with visitor numbers dropping tells me that keeping all of the old rides isn't the way to go on.
Janster Posted March 2, 2007 Posted March 2, 2007 I don´t know what to think of BPD. On the one side, I really enjoyed being on those antique Roller Coasters. It's nice to ride them once, but that's it! Blackpool also has the good old atmosphere as well. But I experienced it once, and that's enough! On the other side: I'm living here and now, and I know that modern technology makes it possible to build rides like Oblivion, Nemesis, Air and Rita. Those rides really, really, really work for me. I return to Alton when I'm around, no doubt about it. I can't say the same thing about blackpool. So perhaps replacing one of them antiques by a state of the art coaster is a good thing to do for BPB.
yorkie360 Posted March 2, 2007 Posted March 2, 2007 I grew up with annual visits to BPB and I guess I'm a little biassed towards keeping the old rides. I love B&M's and other modern coasters, but I can't really think of one modern ride (ie. last 20 years) that's been well executed at this park. I think the Revolution and Steeplechase fit in reasonably well, but pretty much everything else built since has been pretty poor .. be it Space Invader, the Big One or Valhalla. The Big One to me is the ultimate waste of space and money .. the first drop is the only good thing about it - it's just a modern scenic railway which cost way too much and overshadows the rest of the park. And believe me, I'm a big fan of BIG coasters. BPB will never be a Alton Towers or Six Flags, and the only way it'll ever survive in the long-term is to preserve the old woodies and dark rides which will retain the old character, and swap out the modern coasters & rides from time to time.
gisco Posted March 2, 2007 Posted March 2, 2007 BPB will never be a Alton Towers or Six Flags, and the only way it'll ever survive in the long-term is to preserve the old woodies and dark rides which will retain the old character, and swap out the modern coasters & rides from time to time. Since your an expert on running theme parks, why don't you buy BPB and run it the way you know it should be run. You should have no trouble getting investors to help you buy it because it is obvious to everyone that is what needs to be done.
yorkie360 Posted March 3, 2007 Posted March 3, 2007 Gisco, I'm certainly no expert, but I think the points are valid. Please let me know if you think I'm wrong!
Louise Posted March 3, 2007 Posted March 3, 2007 I think it's all about finding the right balance. I'm not exactly big on the whole history thing, but I do have an appreciation for old coasters and the stories behind them. But at the same time, as much as we don't necessarily all like to think of it that way, the amusement park industry IS a business, and they do have to weigh up whether it's worth the cost of keeping things maintained over putting the money into something new that at the end of the day, will bring in more custom. I'm almost certain that coaster enthusiasts have FAR more appreciation for the history of things than a large proportion of the GP, who care more about a big brightly painted pretty new coaster with inversions. Interesting article. Agreed about the typos.
Jim Disney Posted March 6, 2007 Posted March 6, 2007 ^Agreed... I'd hit it... And I'd also like to smack the writer and copy editors around some for screwing up an article that bad. Pathetic really.
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