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Oh come on. Merlin don’t give a **** about ‘angering’ Blackpool or about what Blackpool claim, not least because the Big One’s height claim is false/uses height above sea level, but also because they are competing businesses and don’t care about hurt feelings at a rival company. If Merlin accept...

Firstly I agree with @Wazzupnerds that a proper, decent family coaster would be a good choice and work to balance the park’s lineup, but as has been said I think it’s unlikely and could dilute Chessington’s attendance which Merlin don’t want. I’m also not at all optimistic about a hyper coming...

Literally just for the press coverage. No one is actually going to use it.

Love the wild use of terrain - how the base of the drop is actually lower than the splashdown which sits that little bit further up the hill. Similarly the turntable/pivot at the start of the backwards section is also at ground level but then drops backwards down the hill. Potentially this could...

I don’t think I’ve ever seen trains put on the track before trackwork is complete. Is this normal for Gersts?

Not to mention the hot oil landing in your face! Given the onboard motor and the cog/teeth all along the track, I imagine there’s more of a risk of oil/lube dripping down than normal? 120mph waves suggested in that video!!! I’m hoping the 0 on the end is a typo as that is a full order of...

Yikes, agree this approach makes it look like they’re hiding something, even if that’s not the case. On a related note, I find the concept of a ‘private police force’ completely mad. Private security sure, but a private organisation that can make arrests, hand out fines, put people in custody...

I don’t think I really buy that the primary reason for Spanish parks not doing well is the distance for tourists to travel to get to them. Spain easily has a big enough population to support the domestic theme park industry on its own. Port Aventura, Parque Warner and Parque de Atracciones are...

Well I massively over-predicted! Blaming @Pear for pointing me down the changes to Phantom’s Revenge path 😅 It’s indeed their new halloween event: https://www.kennywood.com/things-to-do/phantom-fall-fest A bit more info on the above website.

Surely they wouldn’t change the track layout? It’s fantastic as it is. I presume something cheaper than that anyway - new trains, or one car backwards?

Fantastic news, I hope Merlin take heed and start making similar decisions. Good throughput and the ability to get on many rides without too much waiting makes such a positive difference to a day - I’m far more likely to return if I know I can enjoy the park and not have to spend hours in queues...

Even two decades after I first rode it I’ve got to give this to The Ultimate. After you’ve been physically and psychologically battered by the high speed, barely-banked turns of the insane forest run after the second lift hill, you start to gently coast as you come out of the forest along the...

Wow. I know that this is a fan idea, but it’s brilliantly done and actually a great layout that would slot in perfectly. It would be one hell of an area of a park anywhere - Dragon Khan is really getting quite rough these days but still a strong coaster, and Shambhala is obviously one of the...

Forgot how unbelievably good this looks. Wishing against the odds that Europa’s new coaster is in this ridiculous league.

Well summed up I think! Good for Chessington to get such a headline ride even if it is short and will probably struggle for capacity. Interesting what this means long-term for B&M - will they start offering a lot more small-scale coasters at a reduced price to parks? Also great spot by @JoshC...

Was going to say - it had gone faster than I could report it!!

I completely agree, really nice & vibrant colour! I also think the aerial shot shows how well-constructed the area is - something of interest at every point, e.g. ride, theming, playground, shop - all space is used really well.

I know that this is subjective (and maybe also influenced by body shape etc?), but I didn’t feel Valravn’s restraints impeded the ride experience in any way. There was still airtime and a good range of forces - I felt all the talk about the vests killing the ride were all massively exaggerated...

Wasn’t this in the earliest iterations before B&M had come up with spring-loaded bogies to keep the wheels against the track? I’m sure someone more knowledgeable can correct but I thought it was only the first couple of DMs that couldn’t be completely vertical. EDIT: @Crazycoaster got there...

The spec sheet given in the news article says it’ll have 8 riders per train, rather than the 9 of the old-style cars. Based on this it’s indeed looking like they’re going for the 2-row Lightning trains. With the smoothness improvements Matt mentioned above, plus the new train design, then...