I went to Thorpe on Tuesday, and had some interesting rides on some of their coasters. I got
16 rides in in total (!!!), which I was very pleased with!
Stealth (1x row 5, 1x row 7, 1x row 10) - I’ll admit I’m growing increasingly unsure where I stand on Stealth. There’s so much I love about it; the launch is insane, and the airtime over the top hat is brilliant! In the back row especially, you get whipped off of it with a phenomenal amount of sustained ejector! However, am I the only one who’s increasingly finding it a bit rough? I noticed yesterday that it really bopped my head about a fair bit entering and leaving the top hat in a way that it never has before (I’ve only ever noticed a slight rattle in the past), and I found the top hat entry in particular to not be that pleasant at all due to how much the ride was bashing my head about. It’s a shame, as it never used to be that bumpy, and I do love the launch and airtime. I still don’t dislike Stealth on the whole, and I guess the top hat entry and exit are only a little bit of it, but I’m afraid to say it’s definitely dropped a fair bit for me after yesterday; controversially, I’d actually say I prefer Rita based on my most recent experiences with that one.
6/10
Nemesis Inferno (1x row 7, 1x row 1) - On the contrary to Stealth, I’ll admit Nemesis Inferno is a coaster that’s grown on me a fair bit in recent years, and it was running very well indeed yesterday! Just the right amount of force, great pace, fairly smooth (a touch of headbanging, but nothing major at all); what’s not to like? The tunnel was also in full working order yesterday, with both bright orange lighting and tons of mist; brilliant! One thing I will say is that I don’t think the front on Inferno is quite as much of a drastic improvement as it is on Nemesis for me, but it was still great! Whether or not I prefer it to Nemesis is something I’ll have to decide when I reride the original this coming weekend, but on the whole, Inferno was running great yesterday, and it is a coaster I really enjoy!
9/10
The Swarm (2x row 7, 2x row 5, 1x row 4) - I’ve always had a real soft spot for Swarm, and yesterday was no exception! That first drop is absolutely insane, I love the raw sense of speed and exposure the winged seating position gives you, the pacing is brilliant, and that last inline twist still gets me with its brilliant negative g-forces every single time! However, following yesterday, I do have a couple of small caveats with it that mean it isn’t 10/10 material for me anymore. Firstly, the vest restraints aren’t terribly comfortable, and seemed to cause me more issue today than they did on my previous visit. Secondly, the one outer seat ride I had, while not rough per se, was surprisingly really juddery, and while the inner seat rides I had later on were pretty smooth, the judderiness of it on that particular outer seat ride did take away from it a bit for me. Thirdly, while I know this one is more down to personal preference, there is one bit of Swarm that I wasn’t finding too enjoyable on Tuesday, and that’s the low helicopter helix. I don’t know whether it was the heat, but that section was consistently making my eyesight go for a good few seconds on Tuesday, and I’m increasingly realising that while Swarm didn’t do anything to my body upon getting off (e.g. making me feel sick, making my head hurt), I don’t personally find that greying out sensation too enjoyable. On the whole, I do still really, really enjoy Swarm, and I’d still say that it’s my favourite at Thorpe Park purely based on how utterly brilliant some of its biggest highs are (the only section I’d say I don’t rate highly is the helicopter helix), but I’m afraid it’s slipped down a bit for me; I can’t personally put it as 10/10 material anymore.
9/10
Saw The Ride (1x row 2) - Saw has never been my favourite coaster, but I have to say; by Saw standards, it was not running badly at all on Tuesday! I rode in the back row, and I can honestly say that it was possibly the smoothest ride I’ve ever had on Saw! Ultimately, it still isn’t my favourite coaster, because it was a bit of a headbanger on the first drop, and everything after the MCBR, although not as bad as usual, was still a touch too much on the rough side for my liking, but everything after the first drop up to the MCBR was honestly not too rough at all, and it made me realise that I do actually really like Saw’s base layout; I’d argue that it has my favourite layout of any Gerstlauer in the UK, and I love the fast pacing and surprising amount of airtime it has! Overall, while the first drop jolt and rough ending do still ruin it a bit for me, and for that reason, it still isn’t one of my absolute favourite coasters, Saw was not running badly at all on Tuesday! Put it this way; it’s the first time I’ve ever done Saw and not had a pounding headache getting off, so I’ll take it!
6/10
Colossus (1x row 10) - I’ve never particularly liked Colossus at all, and I’m afraid that Tuesday’s row 10 ride did absolutely nothing to change that. It was extremely rough, and combined with the uncomfortable restraints, I’m afraid it was possibly the worst ride I’ve had on Colossus in some time; I came off with sore ears, sore thighs and an absolutely pounding headache. It’s a shame it’s so rough, because even though I wouldn’t be huge on the second half regardless of ride comfort, I think the first bit of it would ride quite well if it were smoother, and I also find it a really aesthetically pleasing coaster!
2/10
Flying Fish (1x row 17) - Flying Fish is a fun enough little coaster for what it is; given it’s a small powered coaster, I can’t really think of anything to criticise about it, as even though it’s certainly no Runaway Mine Train, it’s not a bad little ride! Ultimately, though, it doesn’t really stack up against the other coasters in the park by virtue of its much smaller scale.
3/10
If I had to rank the coasters based on how much I enjoyed them yesterday, I’d probably go with:
- The Swarm
- Nemesis Inferno
- Saw The Ride
- Stealth
- Flying Fish
- Colossus
I apologise if I sound a bit harsh on the coasters here (I know that based on my comments, you probably all think I’m a complete pansy in terms of roughness and/or intensity tolerance), but I can only be completely honest with you, and say what I honestly thought and how much I honestly enjoyed the rides.
