Thirteen CLOSED

[Eagie]

[quote=""Don't_Look_Down""]If you install a prototype, then you should expect many problems. Not a good move for the top UK theme park IMO.[/quote]

Surely it is the job of the top UK theme park to get world's firsts? Are you suggesting that Alton only install tried and tested rides and don't try to create new experiences?

[Islander]

What you're essentially stating is that the top UK attraction shouldn't innovate. Which makes no logical sense at all.

[Don't_Look_Down]

Of course theme parks should introduce new rides, but look at it from the public's view. Most people could care less that Th13teen, Air and Oblivion were world firsts. The average person doesn't even know what a Psychoaster is - they just want rides to work, and expect it from a theme park with a good reputation like AT.

[Islander]

[quote=""Don't_Look_Down""]The average person doesn't even know what a Psychoaster is...[/quote]
To be fair, I don't think anyone knows what a psychoaster is, other than a load of marketing :censored: :P

Thing is, though, if the big, world-famous parks who have the money to spend on world-firsts don't do it, then who will? Certainly not the little parks who don't have the money. It makes perfect sense that the big parks innovate, just as how, say, large electronics companies will innovate with televisions or whatever.

[thefatone]

At the end of the day [god i love saying that]... if people didn't care, then the parks wouldn't do it.

They always wanna try and do something new, a first of something. Otherwise they wouldn't bother going to the park to ride them, and also the parks would be just building pinfaris left, right and centre

[Eagie]

[quote=""Don't_Look_Down""]Of course theme parks should introduce new rides, but look at it from the public's view. Most people could care less that Th13teen, Air and Oblivion were world firsts. The average person doesn't even know what a Psychoaster is - they just want rides to work, and expect it from a theme park with a good reputation like AT.[/quote]

So therefore only parks with bad reputations should trial new rides? And just how will these parks pay for these rides?

Of course the general public care - the words "world's first" on an ad campaign will add thousands to the gate receipts.

And even established rides break down. There are mechanical devices - that happens! Cars are not exactly new technology but breakdown all the time, all that can be done is to minimise downtime and work to prevent the causes of breakdowns as much as possible.

I am happy that theme parks keep pushing the boundaries and accept the trade of to this is that we have to put up with a few teething probs before it all settles down.

[AstroDan]

Thirteen is open, three trains, 35 minute queue. Just been on.



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[Magrathea]

[quote=""Don't_Look_Down""]
People will be angry, naturally, but then it serves AT right. If you install a prototype, then you should expect many problems.[/quote]

And you're suggesting that they didn't expect many problems? Yet, how many rides, on their opening day, exceed their theoretical capacity in the first hour of operation?

Th13teen's only in its second year, and naturally there are still going to be problems that need ironing out, and flaws which need to be sorted, but I'd say that by now Th13teen is no longer the sole reason for people visiting the park, and that guests would be equally angry if, say, Air was down.

Some stupid members of the general public will always get angry at ride closure, regardless of how new or prototypical the ride is (only this year, I've seen groups of children hurling abuse at hosts on Dragon Falls when the ride shut down for 5 minutes).

Obviously it has had down time, and its bad periods, but personally for such a complex prototype I think Th13teen's done fantastically, especially when you compare its reliability to the off-the-shelf launch coaster next to it.

[Pennywise]

[quote=""Magrathea""]
Th13teen's only in its second year, and naturally there are still going to be problems that need ironing out, and flaws which need to be sorted, but I'd say that by now Th13teen is no longer the sole reason for people visiting the park, and that guests would be equally angry if, say, Air was down.
[/quote]

Whilst I agree with you for the most part, I'd say that more people would be disappointed were Th13teen down than if any other individual attraction was, solely because the majority of visitors still won't have ridden Th13teen, whereas they will most likely have visited previously and rode the other major attractions.

[Magrathea]

[quote=""D4n""]
Whilst I agree with you for the most part, I'd say that more people would be disappointed were Th13teen down than if any other individual attraction was, solely because the majority of visitors still won't have ridden Th13teen, whereas they will most likely have visited previously and rode the other major attractions. [/quote]

You raise a valid point, but I'd be interested to know how many people have had friends report back negatively after riding something which wasn't the mega-intense psychocoaster they expected, which distils in their mind to "Th13teen is not a very good ride".

[Tom G]

Obviously prototype elements are going to give downtime, but this should have been largely sorted out fifteen months after opening. If you're telling me it's impossible to make it more reliable than it is now then maybe it isn't the sort of ride that should have come to Alton Towers after all.

How many people slag off Valhalla for not knowing what's going to be working inside and what isn't, and if Jubilee Odyssey is going to be open or it isn't? This is exactly the same thing - a lottery!

[thefatone]

[quote=""Tom G""]Obviously prototype elements are going to give downtime, but this should have been largely sorted out fifteen months after opening.[/quote]
Well considering they haven't had this problem occur before, then... I don't really blame them for not having sorted it out

[Tom G]

And how may I ask do you know what the problem is?

[thefatone]

Well my step mum knows this guy who is related to this woman who owns this rabbit who used to belong to the head of tech services dept...

Well, we all pretty much know its to do with the crypt, that they've used a crane to get to it and they've had intamin on site. And this hasn't happened before.. soooo...

[Islander]

[quote=""thefatone""]...that they've used a crane to get to it...[/quote]
Has this actually been confirmed anywhere? I know a couple of people said the crypt roof was off, but I also know that a couple of people have stated that it didn't come off...

[AstroDan]

It's definite. The initial fault was with the crypt.

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[Tom G]

The crane is definite? I can't see where they would be able to position one easily for access? I would have expected all parts to be more easily serviceable than requiring such a dramatic course of action.

[Islander]

I know the fault was with the crypt, Dan - I was simply asking specifically about the roof-off-crane claim.

[Vik]

Though opened a bit late, Th13teen remained open for the rest of the day today

[Don't_Look_Down]

Well, Th13teen has broken down at least once on most of my trips to AT (it's even broken down with me on it).

There's teething problems, and then there's Th13teen