Airtime&Gravity Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 ^I am a fan of this type of marketing, and it's nice to see they still do more than the "there will be a psychiatrist on duty to help those who have been traumatized" type of things they have been doing lately. I usually love Merlin for their marketing, after all, it would probably be a PR nightmare if a U.S. park did some of the marketing Thorpe or Alton Towers does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollercoaster5000 Posted May 15, 2012 Share Posted May 15, 2012 Swarm's fire effect is now working! Â Also, LED lights and the on ride video will be in operation tomorrow! Image source Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duffgun Posted May 15, 2012 Share Posted May 15, 2012 I went to Thorpe Park today it was dead so got to do Swarm 6 times, I have to say that I wasn't expecting much but its a really fun ride that's very smooth and you can keep going on again and again. It's best on the outside seats on the back few rows where there is a decent amount of force to the ride not to much not to little just fine for my taste. Â I didn't see any fire effects being tested today though, would love to go back when it's fully working. Â Thorpe Park now need to get that GCI wooden rollercoaster built. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andybarnes84 Posted May 15, 2012 Share Posted May 15, 2012 Swarm's fire effect is now working! Also, LED lights and the on ride video will be in operation tomorrow! Image source  Thanks for the update! I look forward to returning to Swarm now that it's had a little time to loosen up.  And forget GCI, we need an Intamin woodie i.e. El Toro clone! (maybe go for World's tallest, but then you'd have to paint it white and blue like Stealth as to not upset the locals ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duffgun Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 Yeah I would like an Intamin wooden coaster. Apparently Saw was originally going to be a big Wooden GCI but they dropped the plans for it. There was a great picture of the plan on the Thorpe Park forum, it was a shame I love wooden roller coasters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollercoaster5000 Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 ! Credit goes to neil3211. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dominoes Posted May 26, 2012 Share Posted May 26, 2012 ^That's awesome! Hopefully it will get more powerfull though. Â On a less awesome note, here is the best PR stunt I have ever seen. (sarcasm) Â www.dailystar.co.uk/posts/view/249725/Jenny-Thompson-Ride-was-better-than-Wayne-Rooney/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eddytheviper Posted May 26, 2012 Share Posted May 26, 2012 ^Phenomenal drivvle. Â The least reputable 'newspaper' publishing the least likely story of the day just make me chuckle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snoflake15 Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 ^^ I have to ask why you were reading the Daily Star..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spinning man Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 Today on The Swarm, a bolt had fallen off either from a track or a support section. But, the swarm is up and running again. Very fast. (I suspect a small section of Rita's cable flew across england and hit this bolt to make it fall off. Intamin are the culprits!) Â Â Picture taken by Alex Murphy on twitter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simaticable Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 YES! Blame the Intamin cable! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BudtheWeiser Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 It was a close thing I was stood in the queue on the stairs for the left side when it happened and after a big bang as the coaster did its roll over the queue that bolt flew over the people on our side and smacked into the wall of the stairs and dropped to the floor roughly where I circled on the picture,it certainly would have done someone a serious injury if it had hit them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_koppen Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 What is it with B&M's throwing things off lately? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matteocrepaldi Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 That sounds very dangerous. I'm glad nobody got hurt. I also wonder how something like this can even happen with all the checks that are made before opening the ride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snoflake15 Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 It was a close thing I was stood in the queue on the stairs for the left side when it happened and after a big bang as the coaster did its roll over the queue that bolt flew over the people on our side and smacked into the wall of the stairs and dropped to the floor roughly where I circled on the picture,it certainly would have done someone a serious injury if it had hit them. Â Did it come like a bolt from the blue? Â I'll get my coat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BudtheWeiser Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 It was a close thing I was stood in the queue on the stairs for the left side when it happened and after a big bang as the coaster did its roll over the queue that bolt flew over the people on our side and smacked into the wall of the stairs and dropped to the floor roughly where I circled on the picture,it certainly would have done someone a serious injury if it had hit them. Â Did it come like a bolt from the blue? Â I'll get my coat. Â Â Hahaha Kind of Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RollerCoasterSmi Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 I'm kind of surprised no one has mentioned this yet but Thorpe are replacing Se7en with an upcharge horror maze "The Passing" this Halloween. I'm taking the hyping up of this horror maze with a pinch of salt (because it is Merlin!) Â The Passing (New for 2012)* - Prepare to be tried, tested and sentenced to death in The Passing, a uniquely interactive, intensely horrifying experience that will terrify even the bravest of thrill-seekers to their core. Using cutting edge techniques never seen before at Thorpe Park, you will experience the suffocating and claustrophobic terror of having your head confined and your sight removed by a hessian body bag as you face the unknown horrors of the after-life. Are you brave enough to book your time to die? Â Sounds to me like you'll be doing a standard horror maze with a bag on your head! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meteornotes Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 Interesting. Will be curious to hear reviews of this. I've read reviews of other mazes where they put things on you/restrain you, and it sounds absolutely unpleasant. Â Though, as you said, it is Merlin Hype, so who knows what will actually occur... Â dt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ernierocker Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 I will do any traditional walk-through haunted house no matter how "extreme" it is. But, if it involves me being restrained in any way, I will probably pass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meteornotes Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 ^I'm the same. Read up on Blackout that happens in NYC around this time of year. It's like being in the middle of a movie. No way would I ever do it. Â dt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBparks57 Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 Yeah, this sounds like it could be an awesome element in the traditional haunts...but again could be all hype. Â Blackout takes it a little to far, haha. I went up to NY and passed on the Blackout Haunted House. I went to a show called Sleep No More (look it up, it's an interactive theater experience) and experienced something similar to this extreme of a situation. That was enough for me...so it will be interesting to see the balance they find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPDave Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 I can't get away from the notion that this isn't about improving the guest experience, but rather just getting more money through the door. Â So if this is replacing "se7en" does that mean that the experiment 10 one is going? I didn't think too much of it but it seemed to scare a few people so I assumed it was staying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jedimaster1227 Posted September 25, 2012 Share Posted September 25, 2012 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2208263/Breathtaking-Thorpe-Park-breathalyse-students-end-sick-shutdowns-popular-rollercoasters.html  Theme park managers are taking the drastic measure of breath testing students, after too many have vomited on rollercoasters while drunk or hungover during the first week of university. But far from turning them away, Thorpe Park staff are instead happily directing those who are over the limit to the most extreme rollercoaster - which hurtles them through the air head-first at up to 60mph.  It might sound like a harsh lesson, but research supported by the park has found the blast of fresh air on The Swarm is exactly what queasy guests need to settle their stomachs and avoid being sick.  Staff have seen a massive 250 per cent increase in the number of people being sick on rides this week, as new students arrive at university for the first time and get stuck in to the infamous alcohol-fueled freshers week.  The Surrey park, which is close to a number of universities,will breathalyse students to avoid an increase in ‘sick shutdowns’, on some of its most vomit-inducing rides and attractions.  Those who have more than 35mg of alcohol per 100ml of breath will then be fast-tracked onto the park’s proven hangover-busting rides, and turned away from others until they are feeling perkier. The move will hopefully appease families, who will no longer be forced to wait while rides are closed during clean-up operations.  The research, carried out by neuropsychologist Dr David Lewis, foundthe blast of oxygen on the high-speed Swarm improves drunk riders' metabolic rate, which boosts speeds at which toxins are broken down.  Mike Vallis, divisional director of Thorpe Park, said: ‘Thorpe Park does not condone drinking and riding, however, during this Fresher’s Week period, we realise that a number of our guests do not recognise that they are suffering from the effects of the night before. ‘We felt it was our duty to ensure that all of our guests enjoy the extreme nature of our rides and by putting them on The Swarm, which is proven to be the ultimate hangover cure. ‘We are confident our guests will have a great, and hopefully vomit-free, day.’ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meteornotes Posted September 25, 2012 Share Posted September 25, 2012 ^That might seriously be the strangest park-related article I've ever seen. I'm also surprised it's legal for a park to use a breathalyser. Â dt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCT3Bross Posted September 25, 2012 Share Posted September 25, 2012 Thorpe park has always had the strangest rules like the, forbidden to raise your hands during the ride, rule (it might smell). Now breathalysers? if you are to drunk you can't ride? Wow What follows? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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