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Thorpe Park | Hyperia | Mack Hyper Coaster | 2024

Nicky Borrill said:
But others I think heard ‘hyper’ and imagined a sprawling long out and back. They’ll not be disappointed when they ride it… ;)
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That’s a fair point. I was one of those who imagined an out and back, and I will make no secret of the fact I would personally have preferred one. However, I’m willing to reserve judgement on Exodus, as it’s certainly unique, and I think it looks like an excellent layout that plays to the strengths of it not being the longest ride in the world.
 
One of the recreations put Exodus length at 3133ft, not to far off Phantoms Revenge which i love. That coaster does not have to many elements but they are fantastic.

Exodus may not be as focused on airtime as much but all the elements look brilliant, if they did to much more the GP may be a bit overwhelmed.

It is a shame we dont have a B&M hyper in the UK and i do think this was our only chance to get one. I think Exodus is better than the B&M option but if say a Shambala clone was the other option i would be much more on the fence.

Given the space they had to work with i think Exodus is one of the best things they could have done, considering cost, problems they have had in planning and mabey it being to much for the GP, i can see why its not longer, but i am very happy with it in its current state. I would take a short amazing coaster over a long good coaster.
 
I think once it's fully built people will forget that they were worried about the length. Obviously it could be way longer but we don't get that in the UK these days anyway so at least it's still huge and has some great elements.
 
My issue with this is it's drop + 5 elements then brakes.
Using Matt's examples;
Nemesis - 8 elements
Skyrush - 6/7 elements
Zadra - 10 elements
Iron Gwazi - 11 elements

How about other recent installs in Europe;
RTH - 12 elements
Monster - 9 elements
Fonix - 13 elements
Kondaa - 16 elements

While the drop and elements on this do look like they will ride amazingly well, I just feel we are being short changed considering the opportunity.
 
With the Smiler they claimed to have responded to market research and feedback that rides were "too short"...this seems to be a government-esque u-turn on that.
 
Nicky Borrill said:
I'm not sure if you're joking or being serious....
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Why would I be joking? If that's what I experience, then that's what I've experienced. The Mack restraints dig right into my legs over airtime hills and found them really uncomfortable. I have rather large legs so this is probably a contributing factor, but I find the other manufacturers do it better.

The problem is with Mack restraints is that when you pull them over, if you do have bigger legs like I do, then you get the corner of the restraint holding you in, rather than the flat. B&M and Intamin setups don't seem to suffer this problem.
 
Screaming Coasters said:
Why would I be joking? If that's what I experience, then that's what I've experienced. The Mack restraints dig right into my legs over airtime hills and found them really uncomfortable. I have rather large legs so this is probably a contributing factor, but I find the other manufacturers do it better.

The problem is with Mack restraints is that when you pull them over, if you do have bigger legs like I do, then you get the corner of the restraint holding you in, rather than the flat. B&M and Intamin setups don't seem to suffer this problem.
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Sorry, you just never know on the internet these days… 🤷🏻‍♂️

I am a rather large person, with chunky thighs… I find them very comfortable… But we’re all different shapes :)
 
The thing I do find with Mack’s restraints is that they do have a tendency to tighten a bit during the ride. Sort of like the B&M Wing Coaster vest restraints, but less extreme.

I generally find them very comfortable, personally, but that is one thing I have noticed with them over the years.

As for the comparison with other restraint types; I can’t comment on Intamin’s, as I haven’t done a ride with their new overhead lap bar design, but I do personally prefer the B&M clamshells to the Mack restraints.
 
The B&M restraints pinch my fat legs a little at the top on each of the outsides. Nothing worth moaning about though, they’re still very comfortable, much better than 90% of restraints out there. And it’s only because of the extra weight since Covid, they were fine before.

B&M clams, Intamin OTS lap bars and Mack OTS lap bars are all god tier restraints, that I wish every coaster had. I don’t mind RMC either, I find them a lot comfier than some people seem to.

Restraints I struggle with, Shoulder Restraints, GCI, and those bloody horrible xcar / gravity group cross body things!!!
 
Weirdly, I actually really like the GCI ones… I’ve never found them anything but extremely comfortable myself.

I agree on the Gravity Group ones, though… I think those Timberliner trains and restraints were one of my biggest niggles with Mine Blower. I remember the restraints felt quite tight, and I also seem to remember the Timberliner trains feeling a bit… unrefined, for lack of a better word, in how they tracked. Based on my 2019 experience, I don’t remember it being rough by any means (perhaps a little rattly at worst; certainly nothing too terrible), but I do remember those trains tracking a bit weirdly compared to the GCI trains. I probably sound crazy, but does anyone else know what I mean?

I’ve got to say, though, I think my least favourite restraints are still those on Olympia Looping… I really did not like those shoulder bars that dug in horribly throughout the ride. Actually, I think Colossus at Thorpe Park might be a contender too, with its very tight legroom and restraints…

At least we can take solace in the fact that roller coaster trains have grown considerably roomier since the days of Colossus, and that Exodus will not have similar legroom issues…
 
Matt N said:
Weirdly, I actually really like the GCI ones… I’ve never found them anything but extremely comfortable myself.

I agree on the Gravity Group ones, though… I think those Timberliner trains and restraints were one of my biggest niggles with Mine Blower. I remember the restraints felt quite tight, and I also seem to remember the Timberliner trains feeling a bit… unrefined, for lack of a better word, in how they tracked. Based on my 2019 experience, I don’t remember it being rough by any means (perhaps a little rattly at worst; certainly nothing too terrible), but I do remember those trains tracking a bit weirdly compared to the GCI trains. I probably sound crazy, but does anyone else know what I mean?

I’ve got to say, though, I think my least favourite restraints are still those on Olympia Looping… I really did not like those shoulder bars that dug in horribly throughout the ride. Actually, I think Colossus at Thorpe Park might be a contender too, with its very tight legroom and restraints…

At least we can take solace in the fact that roller coaster trains have grown considerably roomier since the days of Colossus, and that Exodus will not have similar legroom issues…
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Oh gawd, I forgot them, don’t have any issues fitting in, but those shoulder things are really crappy. The way they come down as soon as you hit 1.00001G makes them so uncomfortable.

I’m gonna throw in the comfort collars, on the Premier Rides coasters, like Ice Breaker. They’re surprisingly forgiving for bigger folk, plenty of room, despite the appearance of the trains. And they’re not as hard to get into as some make out, as long as you think about shifting the collars out the way before you sit down. Also, no issues with these trains and restraints on Sky Rocket IIs. But that airtime on Ice Breaker just launches my shoulders into the collars, and it’s so painful. Feels like my shoulders are impacting 2 solid steel bars at terminal velocity! Such a shame, as it’s a nice little coaster with some good airtime (hence the issue!)
 
I adore Mackbars and the innovations they've brought but I won't deny that they can dig a bit - wasn't a big problem but a whole weekend of riding Helix did leave my legs feeling a tad numb. I'd still take them over trying to contort myself into colossus or olympia looping's awful OTSRs (and honestly I think I found them more comfortable than Taron's trains - I remember the corners of the restraints digging in a bit during some of the laterals!)
 
Matt N said:
Jack Silkstone has confirmed in his livestream that Exodus has been unanimously approved by the council!

It still needs to go to the Secretary of State due to the EA’s objections, but this is still a huge step!
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This is obviously great news. As I understand it, what this now means is:

-Construction still cannot take place until the Secretary of State has made their decision
-Thorpe directly requested the decision go to the Secretary of State, owing to the EA dragging their heels and being uncooperative
-Whatever the Secretary of State rules will be pretty much final. The EA could appeal, but as I understand it, that would be unsuccessful
-The decision from the Secretary of State seems like it could take up to 22 weeks to be reached. Including time for Christmas breaks, we're looking at mid-March 2023 at the potential latest for a decision. That assumes no delays or other things I don't know about. Obviously it could be significantly quicker though.

Now here's the thing. If construction was due to start next month, and gets delayed until say March/April 2023, how significant will that be? Will we see the ride open summer 2024? Or even later in the year? Or do the park pull the executive decision and wait till 2025 to open it?

Good news, and I reckon it means Exodus is coming for definite. But when is the big question.
 
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