Nemesis Nick
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Nemesis Nick at Paultons 18 Oct 2008Date: Saturday 18 October 2008
Venue: Paultons Park
Who Went: Just me
The last couple of months I've been meaning to pay a visit to Paultons Park one Saturday before the end of October. For various reasons yesterday (Saturday 18 October 2008) happened to be a convenient time to visit, so I went.
As many of you doubtlessly remember, RCCGB Summer Bash 2006 was at Paultons, and we went in around 9am to have an ERS on the then new coaster Cobra before the Park opened at 10am. Since many members were at the Summer Bash that day, and no doubt some have visited since, I'll assume many of you to be familliar with the rides there, and therefore won't bother to describe them all in detail.
Okay, so on with my visit yesterday. I caught the train to Southampton Central and bus to Paultons, then faced the long walk up the drive. It was about 10:30 when I got to the admissions point.
Once admitted, I decided to start with Cobra, as that's what we had the ERS on there at Summer Bash 2006, and what I've started with on my two solo visits since. So I started walking towards Cobra. As I neared Cobra, I saw the plot behind it set aside for the new Disk-o-Coaster which is due open next spring. I think there was an article in a recent issue of AIRtime about this, wasn't there?
Here's a list of rides I went on yesterday:
Cobra (roller coaster) x 4
The largest of Paultons three coasters, which opened in 2006. Made by Gerstlauer. My ride positions: right front, left front, left back, right back. I fancy the back seats give a more exciting ride. Hardly any AIRtime, but a fun ride all the same. I love all the u-bends at the top, and dips towards the end.
Dragon Ride (1 x midway, 1 x back seat)
A ride which spins around, and there's some undulations, so you go up and down a bit. You're facing forwards as it spins clockwise. Suddenly it stops and you spin anticlockwise, so your're effectively going backwards.
I wanted my first go to be at the front, but ended up being in the middle for my first go. On my second go, I managed to get the back seat. Resisted the temptation to have a third go, hoping to get the front seat. Two goes on this at once is ample, I think a third would make me sick.
Rabbit Ride x 1
One go on this miniature railway type ride, just to tick it.
Flying Frog (roller coaster) x 2
The smallest of the three coasters. One ride = three laps. I sat in the back seat both goes, to get the most thrilling ride I could. Tame but worth riding just for the record.
Astroglide
A six lane Astra slide (bumpy slide, wavy slide). Great fun. Unfortunately due to the lengthy queue, I only had two goes: once in far left lane, once in the fourth lane from left. I was hoping to ride all six lanes, but wanted to get on with other rides rather than spend ages queuing.
At this point I walked through the Japanese Garden before having any more rides.
Sky Swinger x 2
New to the Park this year, so I'll tell you a litttle. It's a chair-o-plane, with single and double seats. On both goes I took a single seat. The ride rises up a bit and tilts as it goes around clockwise. At the end it uprights, lowers till your feet touch the ground and stops. Quite a fun ride, you get the sensation of flying through the air whilst going round and round on an angle. Great if you like chair-o-planes.
Raging River Ride x 4
A log flume, need I say more? Two rises and two falls. I wore my cagoule and leggings on this so as not to get wet.
Finally, just before lunch, I alternated between Flying Saucer and Magic Carpet as follows:
Flying Saucer x 1
Magic Carpet x 1
Flying Saucer x 1
Magic Carpet x 1
I must admit, although I tend to eat like a horse, riding seems to reduce my appetite somewhat. It wasn't until around 1:30pm that I finally felt like a quick bite. I went to Wagoners Restaurant thinking of having a baguette, but decided to have one sausage, portion of chips and mug of coffee.
Floating Globe
Knowing it's unwise to ride immediately after lunch, I filled time doing other things. The first thing I saw outside Wagoners Restaurant was the new Floating Globe. It's a huge granite globe, floating on a film of water, therefore even a child can turn it. It took me a bit of effort to stop it and change its direction though. The funny thing is you can get the globe spinning with both poles going through the bottom, or even have the north and south poles become east and west poles! Left alone this will eventually right itself to spin on the proper axis at the correct angle of (23 degrees or thereabouts).
After that I spent some time exploring the gardens, then went to see the penguins.
Magic Forest
An indoor attraction featuring nursery rhyme characters. Some are animated, i.e. you see Humpty Dumpty fall backwards off the wall, and on again.
Having left Magic Forest, I returned to riding.
Rio Grande Train x 1
Just one go on this miniature railway.
I was going to do Trekking Tractors next, but due to the queue, up against the shorter queue for the Wave Runner, decided to do Wave Runner first.
Wave Runner
Four wavy watercoasters. You go down fully clothed in dinghies. However I only had time for two goes: the far right slide, followed by the second slide from left. At the end of each turn you put your dinghy on the conveyor belt to take it back to the top.
Trekking Tractors x 1
By now the queue was shorter, so I went on this. New last year (2007), and whilst waiting I noticed the ride is made by Metallbau Emmeln. You sit in a tractor and get taken around a guided track. It's flat, but goes around loops and bends, past a themed trail: fruit plot, vegetable plot, various items of farm machinery, etc. Tame but worth riding just to tick it.
Pirate Ship x 2
Need I say more. First go second row in from end, second go an end row. I wouldn't like to risk more than two goes on this at once.
Jumping Bean x 1
A vertical tower, you sit on a gondola and go up to the top, then down part way and up several times, then lowered gently to the bottom. The towerw is 40 feet tall, but you only go up 30 feet due to the decoration at the top.
When I first went on this at Summer Bash 2006, I thought it was one for the brave. However, having been on the 210 foot tall Ice Blast at Blackpool Bash in April this year, Paultons Jumping Bean seems small by comparison!
I was going to have a second go, but the ride cut out with another lot of riders on, and they had to wait for the engineer to reset it, so I went away to do other rides for now.
Tea Cup x 2
Speaks for itself, an old favourite. I spun my cup on both goes.
Kontiki Ride x 2
Differs from Pirate Ship in that it swings and spins. First go second row from end, second go a central row. Two goes was my limit, I think a third would have made me sick.
Viking Boats x 2
Boats which go round and round. Had this to myself for two goes!
Stinger (roller coaster) x 8
You must remember this if you attended Summer Bash 2006, the Park's second largest roller coaster - it's red. I had eight goes on it. Yes that's right, I can comfortably ride this eight times, and could probably manage more. Since one ride is two laps, I thus had a total of 16 laps. I tried it at various positions including front, roughly mid way, and back. The nearer the back you are, the more thrilling it is, but the front gives you an unobstructed view of the track. Again, not one to bother with if you're expecting AIRtime, but still fun to ride all the same.
Jumping Bean x 2
Back to the Jumping Bean: two more goes.
With ride closure time of 5pm fast approaching, I wanted to fit in one more go on Cobra for the road, so I walked all the way back to the other end.
4:53pm Passed Astroglide. Hardly any sliders were waiting for it now. Resisted the temptation to have a go as I wanted to have a go on Cobra. As far as I was concerned going on Cobra a final time was more important than one more go on Astroglide. Had I gone on Astroglide, I'd probably have missed the last car of the day on Cobra by the time I got there.
Cobra x 1.
At two minutes to five, I got into the car (right back) for Cobra. The attendant said this would have to be my last ride as it was closing. I made the most of this final go.
At this point I started heading back towards the exit. Passing Astroglide, it was closed, as I expected, so no chance of a quick go on that. I finally left the Park and after walking the driveway, reached the bus stop around 5:20. Just in time for bus to Southampton and then another short gap for my train home.
Outtro
Well on the whole, what a mega fun day I had at Paultons yesterday. Best of all, it was a beautiful sunny day almost all day (it clouded over part of the afternoon, but remained dry during that time).
The Loopathon is said to be the Club's and many members send-off to the UK coaster season. As many of you know, I wasn't at either day of Loopathon for the second year running, so my solo visit to Paultons yesterday was, in effect, MY send-off to the 2008 UK coaster season.
Seeing as they're opening a new coaster next spring: Disk-o-Coaster, how about us having our 2009 Summer Bash at Paultons? The ERS could be on Disk-o-Coaster. Just one I thing I envy though. Disk-o-Coaster will have riders facing outwards on a giant disk (like Disko at Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach), which will spin and travel a track. How re-ridable will that be do you think? Will multiple rides in an hour-long ERS on it make me and other members sick? As I've already explained in this report about the exisiting rides at Paultons, yesterday I had no problem riding Cobra four times and Stinger eight, but I wouldn't like to risk more than two at a time on Dragon Ride, Pirate Ship or Kontiki Ride.
Just for comparison, at this year's Summer Bash at Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach, I managed eight goes on Roller Coaster in the 75 minute ERS on it, but once at a time was enough on Disko.
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