Thorpe Park Resort

[MakoMania]

Heard some people say it will not reopen until 2019. Very dissapointing if true, my first visit to Thorpe Park in 3 years is just over a week away.

We can only speculate as to what is wrong, but it surely doesn't help that Merlin doesn't give the budget for spare parts to be ordered in advance and stored at the parks.

I remember in 2013 when Oblivion at Alton Towers was shut for several weeks due to its lift hill chain box needing replacement. They didn't have the budget to pre-order spare parts so had to wait weeks before a new one was delivered from B&M. The exact same thing happened to Galactica last year and that was also shut for a very long time. Meanwhile SheiKra at Busch Gardens has not one but two spare chain boxes ready in case there is an issue with the current one. (They only take a couple of days to install and get going.)

We don't know what has happened with The Swarm, or even if it is true that it will be closed for the entireity of the park's busiest period of the year, but I just hope it isn't Merlin's budget constraints on spare parts that have lead to extended downtime yet again.

[DeadJack5]

Reports are coming in that it's a broken lift hill chain and will be out for the rest of the season.

[Wagstaff04]

Hope it’s back by the time my visit in March rolls around. 

[Swarm Chris]

Hope it’s back by the time my visit in March rolls around. 

I would say that unless something else unforeseen goes wrong, it will definitely be up and running then.

[JSMarsden]

Hi,

I don't post often but i was there in the queue line when it broke down.

The train had just started on the lift hill and the back row had been going up the lift hill for 1/2 seconds (this left the train abound 1/3rd of the way up the hill, maybe a touch less). All of a sudden there was a loud grinding/smashing noise with the train stationary. After about 3 - 4 seconds the noise had stopped, more than likely due to the whole operation being shut down. The queue line was evacuated and 30 mins later people were taken from the ride and down the steps one by one.

It sounded like the chain had come off the train but i believe thats pretty much impossible? So most likely a gearing issue that was mentioned before (by somebody with more knowledge than me!)

On another note: I guess any parts that break have to be paid for by Merlin and ordered via B&M (and then fitted by B&M?) - Guess warranties aren't that long!

[PhNx Survivor]

If the noise you describe is a smashing/grinding noise, then that will most likely be the gearing, as gears are designed in a way that when under maximum to increasing tension the gear will sheer, resulting in the gears teeth seperating from the gear itself and causing a very loud uncomfortable noise.. have had a lot of experience with this noise as I work in a machine shop with 3 lathes. In light of this, well done for experiencing such an event, wish I was there for it

As far as warranties go.. the relationship Thorpe and B&M have is quite strong.. so i’m sure a cheeky discount could be arranged :lol

[JSMarsden]

If the noise you describe is a smashing/grinding noise, then that will most likely be the gearing, as gears are designed in a way that when under maximum to increasing tension the gear will sheer, resulting in the gears teeth seperating from the gear itself and causing a very loud uncomfortable noise.. have had a lot of experience with this noise as I work in a machine shop with 3 lathes. In light of this, well done for experiencing such an event, wish I was there for it

As far as warranties go.. the relationship Thorpe and B&M have is quite strong.. so i’m sure a cheeky discount could be arranged :lol

Hopefully sort it before the end of the season but i highly doubt it. I guess they leave the train where it is until the gear is fixed, or do they have a way to back it into the station?
I guess i was lucky to experience it. I was there for 2 days and only got to do the Swarm once (first ride of the day on Saturday) so i suppose a front row ride is better than nothing at all!. Bit of a shame as i rate it as one of the best in the park and the throughput is great. (Usually lowest queues out of anything)

[Swarm Chris]

From what was described, it definitely sounds pretty terminal and not likely to be a quick fix. Very glad it kept anything that broke, contained within the ride system.

Given the noises I heard last week and the description here, it makes me wonder if it was something that should have been identified and serviced before it went pop. Having it closed for preventative maintenance during Fright Nights would not have gone down well from an operations view. But if they tried to get the last couple of weeks out of it, I'm guessing the cost and complexity of repair just went up significantly.

I guess it was lucky that they didn't put a scare zone in Swarm Island this year, they'll just be able to close it off now.

[JSMarsden]

Yes as far as I'm aware they had a sign showing The Swarm was closed on the way to Swarm Island and didn't see a single person even looking/walking near it on the full day.

Like you said it was probably a gamble hoping the ride would hold out for just 2 more weeks

[PsychOXRat]

Just went on TWD, member of staff told me they were fitting a new chain today and that it should be testing tomorrow, possibly opening in the afternoon, also said that the issue wasn't terminal and it wouldn't be shut for the rest of the season. I'm in the park again tomorrow so I'll see if it is testing.

Edit: just seen it test today. Whatever the problem was seems fixed

[PhNx Survivor]

Forgot to mention, that gears sheering and breaking isn’t really a major problem, can be easily fixed and can literally be done in an hour or so.. well, dependant on the type of gear I guess haha.

And if that’s true about the chain.. must of done a lot more damage than originally thought.. but if true about opening for the weekend, then that’s pretty good going!

[Ismail]

https://www.thorpepark.com/2019

Hopefully something big!

[Swarm Chris]

https://www.thorpepark.com/2019

Hopefully something big!

There are no planning permission requests for anything at the moment. Sadly, I would temper those hopes a little. My guess is maybe something is getting re-themed. At most, a small flat ride being added somewhere.

[Swarm Chris]

If it's up and testing, then this is good! Perhaps I should have given the park a little more faith to have spare parts in stock.

[PsychOXRat]

I've only seen it test once today, so it could be either broken again, or the park's too understaffed to run it

[DeadJack5]

I've only seen it test once today, so it could be either broken again, or the park's too understaffed to run it

It may just need more testing to make sure the part has been fitted correctly

[Swarm Chris]

Double post of disappointment.

There's a banner at the exit to Thorpe now that says:

"Watch out for our 2019 events, visit thorpepark.com/2019"

That's not sounding very new attraction-y. I wonder if they'll rely on seasonal events rather than any new attraction next year. If so, hopefully they're given a larger budget and that we don't just end up with Love Island Lates: Extreme.

[PsychOXRat]

Today Swarm's queue message went from "Closed" to "Come Back Later". Looks like they're going to try and open it today

Edit: it has now opened

[PsychOXRat]

Seems to be a power outage today on half the park, stealth, tidal wave, swarm, nemesis, detonator and the teacups all went down at the same time

[Swarm Chris]

That'll be the SSE side of the park again then. Thankfully the mazes are on the other side of the park and should have their power provided by a different provider.

Edit: SSE hoping to get everything back up and running by 6pm.