Matt N
CF Legend
Hi guys. I know it feels like I’m dominating the Polls section somewhat at the moment, so I apologise for that, but I have another really intriguing comparison thread idea.
The UK has two coasters that are short rides, but pack a huge punch within the given duration. They are Stealth at Thorpe Park and Oblivion at Alton Towers. They're two quite different rides in terms of ride type (Stealth is a 2006 Intamin Accelerator Coaster, while Oblivion is a 1998 B&M Dive Coaster), but they are similar to each other in terms of their succinct, one-trick approach. So my question to you today is; which do you prefer?
This might be controversial, but my vote goes to Oblivion. Oblivion is a coaster that I never used to rate very highly, but it's one that's grown to become one of my favourite coasters in recent years. Yes it might be short, but man it packs a punch! That drop provides a phenomenal moment of sustained airtime, and then when you fall through the tunnel, that raw sense of speed is absolutely unrivalled! After that, you get a nice bonus pop of surprising airtime into the brakes! The ride is also lovely and smooth for a B&M of its age, with nice comfortable OTSRs, and it's a coaster that I feel like I could ride over and over and not get bored of, in spite of its length!
Stealth is an interesting one for me, because while I think that launch is a raw sensation that Oblivion can't quite match and the airtime over the top hat is excellent, I have a few nitpicks & caveats with it that mean it doesn't match Oblivion as an overall ride experience for me. Firstly; this is something I've only noticed on my recent rides, and it's something that no one else ever seems to pick up on, but from my experience, it's been getting a bit on the rough side lately. The entry and exit from the top hat have been rather jolty as of late; the entry in particular really jostled my head about and gave me a bit of a headache on my recent rides. This is a fairly recent development; in the past, I only ever noticed a slight rattle on the exit. Secondly, the harnesses aren't as nice as Oblivion's; while this is a very minor niggle, I do feel rather pinned into them by the end of the ride, which does make me feel a bit uncomfortable, although the very brief interval between hitting the brake run and getting off makes this one more OK. Finally, I don't think it's as consistent as Oblivion, although in fairness I think that's by virtue of it having longer trains. For me, Stealth has a definite "magic seat", and that's the front row. While I won't deny that front row Stealth is brilliant, the quality of ride in the front vastly outweighs the quality of ride in the other rows for me, to quite a surprising extent, so the fact that I can't guarantee being able to get the best out of Stealth every time does take away from it a bit for me. Oblivion is far more consistent; there's no real difference between seats, and you know you're getting the best out of Oblivion every time you ride it.
I feel like most will prefer Stealth, however; I'll be interested to see how much of a minority I'm in... what are your thoughts?
The UK has two coasters that are short rides, but pack a huge punch within the given duration. They are Stealth at Thorpe Park and Oblivion at Alton Towers. They're two quite different rides in terms of ride type (Stealth is a 2006 Intamin Accelerator Coaster, while Oblivion is a 1998 B&M Dive Coaster), but they are similar to each other in terms of their succinct, one-trick approach. So my question to you today is; which do you prefer?
This might be controversial, but my vote goes to Oblivion. Oblivion is a coaster that I never used to rate very highly, but it's one that's grown to become one of my favourite coasters in recent years. Yes it might be short, but man it packs a punch! That drop provides a phenomenal moment of sustained airtime, and then when you fall through the tunnel, that raw sense of speed is absolutely unrivalled! After that, you get a nice bonus pop of surprising airtime into the brakes! The ride is also lovely and smooth for a B&M of its age, with nice comfortable OTSRs, and it's a coaster that I feel like I could ride over and over and not get bored of, in spite of its length!
Stealth is an interesting one for me, because while I think that launch is a raw sensation that Oblivion can't quite match and the airtime over the top hat is excellent, I have a few nitpicks & caveats with it that mean it doesn't match Oblivion as an overall ride experience for me. Firstly; this is something I've only noticed on my recent rides, and it's something that no one else ever seems to pick up on, but from my experience, it's been getting a bit on the rough side lately. The entry and exit from the top hat have been rather jolty as of late; the entry in particular really jostled my head about and gave me a bit of a headache on my recent rides. This is a fairly recent development; in the past, I only ever noticed a slight rattle on the exit. Secondly, the harnesses aren't as nice as Oblivion's; while this is a very minor niggle, I do feel rather pinned into them by the end of the ride, which does make me feel a bit uncomfortable, although the very brief interval between hitting the brake run and getting off makes this one more OK. Finally, I don't think it's as consistent as Oblivion, although in fairness I think that's by virtue of it having longer trains. For me, Stealth has a definite "magic seat", and that's the front row. While I won't deny that front row Stealth is brilliant, the quality of ride in the front vastly outweighs the quality of ride in the other rows for me, to quite a surprising extent, so the fact that I can't guarantee being able to get the best out of Stealth every time does take away from it a bit for me. Oblivion is far more consistent; there's no real difference between seats, and you know you're getting the best out of Oblivion every time you ride it.
I feel like most will prefer Stealth, however; I'll be interested to see how much of a minority I'm in... what are your thoughts?
