James F
Hyper Poster
It's been over 4 years since I have been to our nations capital and in that time the world has changed; we've had two general elections, you can no longer get a last minute Christmas gift set at Debenhams and now you can literally get anything delivered to your home; none of these changes however were as impactful as the pandemic. It is now 2021 and like many of you on here it's been a while since I have gotten on any new credits, plans to go to Poland were botched and I couldn't move my work holidays (this is not to gain sympathy I know people went through pure hell recently)
I felt it was best to stick to the UK and with that in mind felt a trip to Thorpe Park and Chessington was in order. I had not been to Thorpe Park since 2016 (before DBGT opened) and I had never been to Chessington despite being curious about it for many years.
This won't be the most exciting trip report you'll read on here, but I hope you enjoy it anyhow.
Day 1: London (October 3rd)
After a quick 2 hour train journey from Wigan, I had made it so a (mostly) sunny London. As I was getting the train from Waterloo station in the evening I felt that it made sense for me to walk from Euston and see some of the sights on the way. The first place I stopped was Leicester Square. I have gone to the M&M World on previous visits, but given the huge queue outside I gave it a miss, The new Bond film was playing and with the queues of people outside it looks like the film may actually make it's money back (imagine spending millions on a marketing campaign and then have it all go to nothing) I know this is unrelated, but I thought it was a solid entry into the Bond franchise (I have done a quick review on the 'now showing' thread)
Looks great but It was just a bit out of my budget.
The London Marathon was taking place, it was great to see so many people involved, the picture doesn't but it seemed every other person was taking part.
The views from Waterloo Bridge.
Waterloo Bridge from Southbank.
London isn't complete without Merlin's cash cow. (I did it back in 2007 and I have no plans to spend £30 to go on it again)
Day 2: Thorpe Park (Day one of two)
Here's the main reason I came down to the south east. Following @jayjay's advice I walked it from my hotel in Chertsey which only took about 25 minutes and it was quick and stress free entry into the park.
I have always loved the entrance to Thorpe Park, while it might not have the majesty of Towers Street it does do a great job at hyping you up as you see the coasters on the horizon.
I started my day off with Colossus. It's my least favourite of the big 5 coasters at Thorpe, but it often gets the biggest queues, got straight on and did a front row ride. As a tall person I find the Colossus trains to be horribly uncomfortable, in fact I was very close to having to do the dreaded 'walk of shame' I had to push pretty hard to get the OTSR to lock, I have put on some weight this year, but I know it isn't just me. I don't find the actual ride to be that rough and I like the layout, it's mainly the trains and restraints which mark it down for me, still a decent coaster overall.
I was excited to get back on Saw as I hadn't been on it since 2013 as it was down during my last visit. I was pleasantly surprised by first ride in the back row, it was smoother than I remembered, however this was short lived as a re-ride later in the day at the front confirmed my fears that this ride had only gotten more painful, but it some ways it adds to the torture theme. I will still take it over Colossus though!
Okay now it's time for the "good" coasters. Like almost everything else that day Inferno had a walk on queue so I got my initial rides in and yep, it's still a solid invert, it's gotten more intense (if slightly rattley) each time I go on it. I love the atmosphere this ride has as well, the music before you dispatch out of the volcano always makes this ride that bit more exciting.
Now we have my favourite at the park Stealth!, it's my second favourite coaster in the UK (after Icon) and my 10th favourite overall, It's very short, but it makes every second count. One of the best launches out there and there is some great airtime especially at the back as you come off the top hat. The best thing was that I didn't have to leave the station for re-rides they kept the gate open so you could just keep going on as many laps as you wanted! I did 4 before I came off for a break as the intensity was starting to give me a headache.
I went for a ride on Detonator, I would say it's the 2nd best tower ride in the UK (after Apocalypse), it's forceful and the open feeling of the OTSR makes for some great airtime. It's my favourite flat at Thorpe for sure.
I got some currywurst for lunch, while it tasted good I was disappointed that there was no bun considering I payed an extortionate £5 for it, plus I got curry stains on my jeans.
I was really impressed at how good my rides on the Swarm were during my visit, I think I may have overlooked this ride because of it's short length, but similar to Stealth this ride does a lot in a short time period. Not to mention that it's still one of the smoothest coasters in the UK. The theming is top notch, Merlin really pulled the boat out here, I got plenty of rides in, I think I did 8 on the first day alone, also even though the park was quiet the ride ops were doing a great job with quick dispatches while the ride was running a two train service.
New Credit unlocked! While I have been to Thorpe a few times, I had never ridden the flying fish, but I secretly wanted to. It was hard to convince any family or friends to ride on this coaster aimed at children, so now that I am on my own, what better time to bring shame to myself. It's was okay, it was a bit jerky actually, it is what it is.
Considering I had nothing better to do, I went on Rumba Rapids, it was pretty lame.
Despite not even filling a full row due to low crowds, Rush was running both sides, it's a great flat although it is a shame about the short cycle.
I ended my day with a soaking ride on Tidal wave as I was wet from the rain anyway (plus I was staying on site) I love the early 60s Americana theme,
hearing those amity radio songs makes me feel like in Universal Studios Florida about to ride Jaws (R.I.P)
I hope you enjoyed part one of my trip report, part two will include the Thorpe Park Cabins, Black Mirror Labyrinth, DBGT and Chessington.
I felt it was best to stick to the UK and with that in mind felt a trip to Thorpe Park and Chessington was in order. I had not been to Thorpe Park since 2016 (before DBGT opened) and I had never been to Chessington despite being curious about it for many years.
This won't be the most exciting trip report you'll read on here, but I hope you enjoy it anyhow.
Day 1: London (October 3rd)
After a quick 2 hour train journey from Wigan, I had made it so a (mostly) sunny London. As I was getting the train from Waterloo station in the evening I felt that it made sense for me to walk from Euston and see some of the sights on the way. The first place I stopped was Leicester Square. I have gone to the M&M World on previous visits, but given the huge queue outside I gave it a miss, The new Bond film was playing and with the queues of people outside it looks like the film may actually make it's money back (imagine spending millions on a marketing campaign and then have it all go to nothing) I know this is unrelated, but I thought it was a solid entry into the Bond franchise (I have done a quick review on the 'now showing' thread)
Looks great but It was just a bit out of my budget.
The London Marathon was taking place, it was great to see so many people involved, the picture doesn't but it seemed every other person was taking part.
The views from Waterloo Bridge.
Waterloo Bridge from Southbank.
London isn't complete without Merlin's cash cow. (I did it back in 2007 and I have no plans to spend £30 to go on it again)
Day 2: Thorpe Park (Day one of two)
Here's the main reason I came down to the south east. Following @jayjay's advice I walked it from my hotel in Chertsey which only took about 25 minutes and it was quick and stress free entry into the park.
I have always loved the entrance to Thorpe Park, while it might not have the majesty of Towers Street it does do a great job at hyping you up as you see the coasters on the horizon.
I started my day off with Colossus. It's my least favourite of the big 5 coasters at Thorpe, but it often gets the biggest queues, got straight on and did a front row ride. As a tall person I find the Colossus trains to be horribly uncomfortable, in fact I was very close to having to do the dreaded 'walk of shame' I had to push pretty hard to get the OTSR to lock, I have put on some weight this year, but I know it isn't just me. I don't find the actual ride to be that rough and I like the layout, it's mainly the trains and restraints which mark it down for me, still a decent coaster overall.
I was excited to get back on Saw as I hadn't been on it since 2013 as it was down during my last visit. I was pleasantly surprised by first ride in the back row, it was smoother than I remembered, however this was short lived as a re-ride later in the day at the front confirmed my fears that this ride had only gotten more painful, but it some ways it adds to the torture theme. I will still take it over Colossus though!
Okay now it's time for the "good" coasters. Like almost everything else that day Inferno had a walk on queue so I got my initial rides in and yep, it's still a solid invert, it's gotten more intense (if slightly rattley) each time I go on it. I love the atmosphere this ride has as well, the music before you dispatch out of the volcano always makes this ride that bit more exciting.
Now we have my favourite at the park Stealth!, it's my second favourite coaster in the UK (after Icon) and my 10th favourite overall, It's very short, but it makes every second count. One of the best launches out there and there is some great airtime especially at the back as you come off the top hat. The best thing was that I didn't have to leave the station for re-rides they kept the gate open so you could just keep going on as many laps as you wanted! I did 4 before I came off for a break as the intensity was starting to give me a headache.
I went for a ride on Detonator, I would say it's the 2nd best tower ride in the UK (after Apocalypse), it's forceful and the open feeling of the OTSR makes for some great airtime. It's my favourite flat at Thorpe for sure.
I got some currywurst for lunch, while it tasted good I was disappointed that there was no bun considering I payed an extortionate £5 for it, plus I got curry stains on my jeans.
I was really impressed at how good my rides on the Swarm were during my visit, I think I may have overlooked this ride because of it's short length, but similar to Stealth this ride does a lot in a short time period. Not to mention that it's still one of the smoothest coasters in the UK. The theming is top notch, Merlin really pulled the boat out here, I got plenty of rides in, I think I did 8 on the first day alone, also even though the park was quiet the ride ops were doing a great job with quick dispatches while the ride was running a two train service.
New Credit unlocked! While I have been to Thorpe a few times, I had never ridden the flying fish, but I secretly wanted to. It was hard to convince any family or friends to ride on this coaster aimed at children, so now that I am on my own, what better time to bring shame to myself. It's was okay, it was a bit jerky actually, it is what it is.
Considering I had nothing better to do, I went on Rumba Rapids, it was pretty lame.
Despite not even filling a full row due to low crowds, Rush was running both sides, it's a great flat although it is a shame about the short cycle.
I ended my day with a soaking ride on Tidal wave as I was wet from the rain anyway (plus I was staying on site) I love the early 60s Americana theme,
hearing those amity radio songs makes me feel like in Universal Studios Florida about to ride Jaws (R.I.P)
I hope you enjoyed part one of my trip report, part two will include the Thorpe Park Cabins, Black Mirror Labyrinth, DBGT and Chessington.
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