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Thirteen, Intamin ''psychoaster'' - Alton Towers 2010

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andrus

Giga Poster
Hehe, this got some big proportions! ^^

Just take it easy, ok? I responded to your (UC) comment because I feelt offended. But i guess I'm fine now. All I wrote in my first post was that "Ollie" should say that he was addicted to roller coasters to get a good chance to ride 13 on the opening day..

BUT some things I think you're wrong about. I don't know how it is with Alton, but some parks like Holiday Park (EG) and Liseberg (Balder) brag a lot of how high their rides rank in different polls, wheter it be golden ticket or mitch hawker.. In fact they make the majority of their marketing based on that fact (remebering Liseberg had adverts in the newspaper every second day four years in the row saying 'Balder is the best coaster in the world according to enthusiasts')! I just assumed that Alton too would care about enthusiasts since they're the most favoured park in Britain by them, but I might be wrong..

Secondly all enthusiasts doesn't moan. At least I don't, but then I might not qualify as an enthusiast? I actually think that SLC's are good :) haven't ridden a boomerang in a long time so I don't know about them.. But I definitely don't moan!

And when I'm talking of "pain-in-the-ass-kids" I am talking of kids who are a pain in the ass, not the general public.. There's a big differnence in regular kids and those who are just plain anoying! ^^
 

bob_3_

Giga Poster
Enthusiasts make up a very, very small percentage of a park's annual guests. The "random pain in the ass kids" you speak of, or, to be more appropriate and inclusive, the "general public," make up (by far) the majority of a park's guests.

I see people say this all the time, and yes it is true, BUT it's ignorant to think that an enthusiasts opinion is irrelevent to a park owner. Who writes theme park reviews? who rates rides on public websites! The GP will search a park/ride online and see enthusiasts responses. They'll then decide which parks to visit based on our reviews!

If you please the enthusiasts you get ALOT of free publicity.
 

Screaming Coasters

Strata Poster
So it was a lie when he told the public that he only dressed as a woman in bed with Jordan..... Ohhhhh, ewwwwwwwww :S

Oh and Steve, places like Tripadvisor.com are mainly full of bad reviews from people who have had a horrid time. I'm with Rich on this one. We actually give a better view than others.

My reasoning is this -

The general public probably visit once a year (most of the people on sites such as tripadvisor and watchdog). If they have a bad visit that year, BANG straight on and slag it off. Hell, Alton Towers is riddled with negative reviews.

Now, us as enthusiasts and annual pass holders visit far more often. (Notice how I said annual pass holders too) We experience both the good and the bad times far more frequent, so we have a more balanced opinion based on that fact alone. It's like when I ride Rita - Some days I think its crap, but other days I get an amazing ride out of it. It's just you, on the day, and I believe that one single experience can't make up for a solid opinion.

Did you know that Disneyland Paris' latest maintenance schedule was molded around us enthusiasts? All the missing effects and such, are being brought back because we asked for it back. Theme parks have ears to us too and usually, it's for the best.

Just because we are labeled as an enthusiast, doesn't mean we're not general public - it just means we're a bit more experienced.

Let me put it this way...

If I ran Ferrari and Joe Bloggs down the road approached me and said, "Oh your spoiler is too low, make it bigger" Am I gonna listen to him? They may skim over the idea.... But what if a mechanic told me that, someone with actual experience? Hell yeah I'm gonna listen, he could have a point!

Just last year, BBC1's TV programme 'Top Gear' got supercar manufacturer Koenigsegg to add a rear spoiler. Because of their clout, Koenigsegg did it and hey, it worked.

So UC, I don't completely agree with you, but at the same time, I see what you're saying... I think its a real sit-on-the-fence matter.

But thats my drivel over with now :)
 

Mark

Strata Poster
Guys, any chance we can get back to actually discussing Thirteen. I fear we have digressed somewhere along the line...
 

Martyn B

CF Legend
I got a really random question that I dont think warrants its own topic, so, does anyone have any idea when the contract is up with Imperial Leather? This would probably give us an idea of when the Flume would either be re-done to suit Mutiny Bay, or removed.

(It kinda does fit in I suppose, with UgLand's departure and Rita's retheme...ish)
 

Nemesis Inferno

Strata Poster
I think it's next year... Defo is up next year for Bubbles, but for Flume I can't say with any full confidence...

Someone on Towerstimes probably knows for certain, but I'll imagine any work on it will more than likely take place next year if that's the plan....
 

Martyn B

CF Legend
Well they waited for UgLand's contract to expire before replacing Corky, so I guess they may do the same with the Flume (Hopefully). Either re-theme it or replace it with a Woodie :D
 

Gazza

Giga Poster
bob_3_ said:
Saw a few people complaining about exposed shed and stuff.

WHY?! even the best themed rides don't bother theming the maintanence shed. Maybe not big budget parks like Disney and Universal do but don't be surprised if you notice some metal on display!
Disney and Universal aren't quite innocent either...Cali Screamin' has a standard tin shed for its maintenance area that is in plain view on the final brakes...and on Dueling Dragons the first thing you see coming out of the station is it's huge maintenance shed.
 

Martyn B

CF Legend
^ I think it was the Ug Land name trademark that ran out this year, that must have been what he meant

Ahh, ya see, I knew I was on the right track somewhere. I think it may have been furie who posted a while back with some kind of copy of paperwork showing that some type of contract expired in 2009.
 

mannithemamouth

Roller Poster
someone help but i cant understand why there would be a contract to something they named themselves i can understand with imperial leather but not the ug land name, correct me if im wrong though!
 

Jools

Giga Poster
mannithemamouth said:
someone help but i cant understand why there would be a contract to something they named themselves i can understand with imperial leather but not the ug land name, correct me if im wrong though!

Imperial Leather has sponsered the ride to get some brand recognition, in hope people will buy their products, whilst Ug Land was Alton Towers brand, and the only way they could stop other companies using their logo and products was to make a copyright contract.
 

Gazza

Giga Poster
mannithemamouth said:
someone help but i cant understand why there would be a contract to something they named themselves i can understand with imperial leather but not the ug land name, correct me if im wrong though!
They didn't have a 'contract' for Ug Land, they had just registered the name 'Ug Land' as a trademark....

It's like the word 'Big Mac', McDonalds own that word as a registered trademark, so only they are allowed to use that word when selling goods or services.

However, you have to keep renewing your trademarks so you maintain the exclusive use of the words.

However, Alton Towers let their trademark on 'Ug Land' lapse because obviously they didn't care anymore since the area was being rethemed.
 

Martyn B

CF Legend
mannithemamouth said:
someone help but i cant understand why there would be a contract to something they named themselves i can understand with imperial leather but not the ug land name, correct me if im wrong though!

Jools said:
whilst Ug Land was Alton Towers brand

I'm pretty certain (though not 100%) that there used to be a tv programme called 'The Ug's', they were cley models a bit like Morph (I think..) and I think that's where UgLand then came from.
 

furie

SBOPD
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
I know the show you're talking about, but I think it was completely unrelated. Ugland was purely Tussauds' IP.

I had a cartoon character I used to drawn back in the 80's called Ug - again, no relation - it's just one of those common terms for cavemen I think.
 
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