The Smiler - Speculation

[TimeAgain]

Its always a funny situation when someone claims to have inside information on a subject, be it a rollercoaster or anything else. Really its a lose, lose situation. I mean there really is no gain from stating such things, other than to inflate your own ego, and gain the attention of enthusiasts online.

[Adz]

http://old.towerstimes.co.uk/news/

Bang.

[N3m3s1s]

I'm not sure. I'd like to know how many 'sources' there were. A bit unsure really...

[Adz]

Enough. We do not report rumours lightly.

[N3m3s1s]

Ok, I'll have to take your word for it. I like the shop idea.

[spin_doctor]

Its always a funny situation when someone claims to have inside information on a subject, be it a rollercoaster or anything else. Really its a lose, lose situation. I mean there really is no gain from stating such things, other than to inflate your own ego, and gain the attention of enthusiasts online.

In the one situation, you genuinely do know something no one on towerstimes knows, when you reveal this information, what difference does it make? Are you going to be praised and thanked..... no. Its going to be met with either rejection of the credibilty of what you've said (the majority), or acceptance of it by some, which isn't going to stop speculation, people are still going to discuss the construction and development of the ride, people are still going to query what/ if any the world first is going to be. So I just dont see how you saying/ not saying something has any bearing on anything, I dont see why you have a higher authority theatraises you above other people speculating/ wondering what the secret is, and what is the gain anyway? So when the secret element is finally revealed by AT, you can write on page 286 of this thread "I told you so"?

In the other situation, you dont know, and are speculating like everyone else, just to gain some attention. Then people will forget you said anything in a few pages. Im not have a go, Im just saying I dont see the point in someone saying this, and trying to tease people with the prospect of you revealing something.

Also I think Merlin do consider and appreciate enthusiasts, not anymore than the general public - but they do appreciate enthusiasts. e.g. Thirteen was "in general" met with some disappointment, by enthusiasts and the GP, so if people aren't satisfied, sales drop. AT wants to please the GP and enthusiasts, a good selling point for the ride, will attract both equally. So Merlin do care about enthusiasts, because they care about the success of their own theme park.

First of all, I never claimed to stand anything to gain, I simply (Possibly wrongly) assumed that people who scour these pages day in day out are looking to find out what the secrets of the ride are. I was surprised to find out that few people wanted to know and consequentially I didnt reveal it to anyone but the admin. I have no interest in gaining 'attention' online. I had information that I thought would be of interest to some people. When I revealed that Sub Terra would use lifts to travel to a lower section I was met with violent opposition and discredited and it turns out I was right. How many times do you have to be right before people value you as a genuine source? Like I said, I rarely post on these forums but when I do its only when Im certain about something.

Additionally, the purpose of me wanting to reveal what I knew is so we could drive the focus of the conversation to something more specific and eradicate pointless predictions so our speculation is more driven towards real possibilities. You suggestion that I have a higher authority or think myself above other people is immature and to be honest you sound like the only person to be jealous of the fact that I know something you dont. But I posted a simple request as to whether people wished to know or not, that is all.

More to the point, now that it has been revealed, I can say that I privately messaged TT team member 'Wes' telling him the secret about this ride is that it will have 14 Inversions. I did not know any more information than this, which is why I said it poses more questions that it answers as it makes people wonder how they can either fit so many extra inversions in the building, or what secret element might make this possible. I never knew about the rotating track section although I predicted it as the only viable possibility like many others.

Try not to get so uptight about the fact that some people know things you dont, as your not the only person on this forum, I had a extraordinary amount of people inbox me asking to know what the secret was.

[Luce]

For me, I have to applaud you spin_doctor coming to us about your knowledge - I guess it must have been a difficult decision especially because it's produced some interesting reactions as expected.

As for the 'secret element' itself, it's certainly a curious idea and if true, will be intriguing to see how AT pull it off

[Benji]

got a feeling a.t won't like that we 'know' about the whole secret weapon buisness..

[Nightfall]

The use of shipping containers in many Merlin attractions are a running joke for the financial department at Merlin because they are so cheap and make enthusiasts so angry yet the general public really don't notice or even care

Ah cute, they've been building them just for us! I feel flattered...

...and disappointed. Disappointed that they’ve let a joke get so far out of hand. It worries me that the people who run Merlin HQ offices seem to spend most there time trying to find cost cutting methods and joke about us rather than letting the people who work onsite at the parks decide how they think the park should be run. It makes all the difference when they are actually on site which brings me onto the next point:

The decision to take down a lot of the Fanta theming in X-Sector seemed to spring from the opposition of people in this forum, with a kindly worded letter from the Towers however, whilst this may have contributed to the decision, it came from a certain person at Merlin who's objection alone to the obtrusive nature of the theming was enough to have it taken down.

Good on Nick Varney. The letter was sent to him in the hope he’d visit the park and agree with our views. Thankfully he did.

Sorry I got distracted SW7:

So is it lap bars? That is the only thing I care about.

Im sorry I dont know this, I just know its a standard eurofighter car nothing new. Lapbars would be great but I somehow doubt this will happen.

As far as I know Gerstlauer now offer their Euro-Fighters with lap bars as standard. If SW7 doesn't have lap bars it'll be because Merlin has specifically requested it. I can't imagine them doing this as it would slow down the dispatching progress and negatively effect the riding experience.
It’s a shame it sounds like they are sticking with the standard trains as I calculated the theoretical capacity of this scenario a while back and got an answer of 864pph. (original post). That would be really low by Alton's standard (at the Th13teen event they said 1000pph was the absolute minimum for a coaster). I was hoping they'd add an extra row of seats at the very least.

I'll comment on the other news later...

[spin_doctor]

I agree that it has gotten out of hand, thats the problem when you have such a huge company operating attractions all over the world, Alton Towers is just one of hundreds of subsidiaries of Merlin so the detail and care that seemed to be put into Alton Towes when it was run by Tussauds has been somewhat scarce since.

With regards to lapbars, I personally wouldnt mind either way however, I have heard people who are afraid to go on rides with OTSR because they associate that with a bigger or scarier ride. My sister for example flat out refuses to go on any rides with OTSR. So if this is common then perhaps having OTSR may add to the scaryness of the ride. Also if this revolving track section is slow, we may see a unique type of restraint, a comfortable one like air. Just a thought.

[Nightfall]

That revolving section with lap bars would be incredible (although not if they flip you too many times as it'll get boring). Anyone who's been on Blue Fire at Europa Park will know what I mean. The last inversion is mental! Feels like you've been thrown right out the vehicle. You wouldn't get the same effect with OTSRs.

[Boz]

If we think about it logically, this was actually a foregone conclusion.
Merlin are losing a world record at the beginning of 2012. 12 Looping Coaster in china is going to take it. We all commented at the beginning of the year, saying how rushed the submission of the plans seemed. The revolving track idea means That Merlin can reclaim the record, and claim yet another worlds first at Towers. Not only that, but the hypnotic theme they seem to be driving at right now, completely suits the idea of a revolving section of track.
TT sort of stumbled upon the glass floor idea, and our sources have confirmed we were right.
With regard to lapbars, we're still none the wiser on that I'm afraid, but here's hoping  [-o<

Again, many thanks to spin doctor for bringing us yet another reliable source. But it was not the only source, and merely confirms what we had already guessed at.
TT never reports on mere rumors, without substantial evidence/sources to back it up.

[The Moon]

Oh dear... At least we have a solid ride to back it up though. And as for lap bars, if they are then we will certainly be seeing the Iron Shark style. Gerst wouldn't develop an entirely new system when one not a year old is available and developed.

[spin_doctor]

That revolving section with lap bars would be incredible (although not if they flip you too many times as it'll get boring).

Well if its going to be marketed as having 14 Inversions (Which it is :P) Then this means it would have to revolve 6 times. Is this too much?

I think this ride is going to be amazing. With Thirteen, the whole ride really was about the drop, with this one, the ride could survive easily without this rotating section, so together, I think we may have the best ride at Alton Towers, providing its smoother than Saw and the scenery is up to scratch which with that huge spider and the landscaping and the glass floor, I think we are onto a winner. 

[Nightfall]

That revolving section with lap bars would be incredible (although not if they flip you too many times as it'll get boring).

Well if its going to be marketed as having 14 Inversions (Which it is :P) Then this means it would have to revolve 6 times. Is this too much?

Yes, but I didn't want to say it as I've already shown what I think about the Inversion record. More Inversions does not equal a better ride. In fact I feel it just distracts from good pacing and makes re-riding quite dull. But if the ride duels as the plans show it can then that's enough to keep me mildly happy. Roll on SW8.

[danwhit709]

So the revolving track section twists 6 times? that must take a while surely?? making the throughput even less...

[jackgcse]

Just to point out I thought they would have a tilt section as their special feature...I think I can at least get a bronze medal for my prediction!!!!! Woop Woop! Hahaha! Should be good...as long as it is done correctly, which I am sure Alton Will do!!!

[BananaRoll]

I really hope the rotating trick track happens at the end of the ride; don't want the rest of the fantastic-looking coaster to be ruined by a sickly start.

Have to admit, whilst their unique method of executing 14 inversions sounds interesting, I am a bit disappointed with the secret. Am trying to reserve judgement before riding, even though I find coasters which simply cram in the inversions one after the other tedious. Give me airtime anyday, something which only one coaster (Oblivion) at AT really has.

Airtime>inversions  A Mega-Lite for SW8!

Another thought, I rode Winjas in Phantasialand last week, which has a vaguely similar idea with a tilting trick-track lift section. It broke down 3 times whilst I was on it, resulting in the track lift stopping midway then being repeatedly lowered and lifted until it connected with the rest of the coaster. The section seemed to be wrought with problems. The amount of times they had to send out test cars during loading was ridiculous. I know it's a Maurer ride; but on a non-busy day it had terrible through put. I hope Gerstlauer can provide a more reliable trick track with SW7, other wise we may be looking at one slow-moving queue line.

[oliviamae]

i imagine it'll be at the start, a kind of hypnosis type thing

[scw55]

I wished the spoiler hadn't existed. Yes, it was basically bang on what I suspected but I was having fun speculating about it.
And now everyone's talking about it. So now I can either never touch a SW7 discussion forum and stop having fun speculating or stay and drown myself in spoilers.

Difference between speculation and a spoiler is that speculation uses information that is available to all.
A spoiler basically involves dropping your trousers.

I wonder at what stage of the layout this will be. If they'll 1up every inversion record it'll cause chaos to the self-duelling elements.