VIP Tour - Alton Towers

VIP TOUR TO ALTON TOWERS...[8D]


VERDICT
How to sum up the best days out of my life?

Well, let me start with how we got to this point. Back on October 9th 2004, the four of us attended the RCCGB "LoopAIRthon" event. We knew there would be an auction for charity, but we weren't aware of the top prize - a private behind-the-scenes tour of the park, with a look at Rita under construction, and a hotel stay to boot. Well, what a fantastic prize, but surely out of reach? As it turned out, we managed to clinch it with a final bid of ?????????700 (or ?????????175 each). A lot of money yes, but the auction was in aid of the NSPCC so it was totally worthwhile.

So began an agonising wait of over 3 and a half months! As the tour date came closer, we were all getting more and more excited in anticipation. And we certainly were not let down.

Friday, 28th January 2005

So, the big day arrives. The previous night, I had been upset that the new memory stick for my camera hadn't arrived, which would mean I would have limited space for photos and videos. But with 15 minutes before my train was due to leave, I went to the handily located sorting office for the area (it's right next to the station), and asked if I could pick up my post 6 hours early (and with no proof of address!). Thankfully there were some really kind people working there that morning, and they handed over my package with 10 minutes to spare before my train left!

A very happy bunny, I boarded the train. A minor hiccup happened in Crewe, when I realised that my train to Stoke-on-Trent had been cancelled. Fortunately, Paul was on hand to bail me out, and he came to get me. We arrived at the Hotel a mere 15 minutes late, which was fortunate considering how late we could have been in the circumstances.

We were then given a lift to the staff car park by the friendly Rachael from the Press Office. Once there, we were taken into the offices above Towers Street, where we met up with our guide for the tour, James Paulding (Park Manager). After an introductory chat, we also popped in to see Russel Barnes, who wished us the best for our day on park. Soon, we headed into the park, and our first destination, the X-Sector.

We met up with the Area Coaches, who were very friendly, and then headed to Oblivion. We kicked off the tour with a look around the maintenance garage, which provided some fascinating insight into the trains and how they work. Next, it was off to go down the Oblivion tunnel! I must admit that prior to the trip, I was really hoping we'd get to go there, so I was very excited. One thing that surprised me is just how far down it goes, and how steep the steps were. I suppose you don't notice when you fly through it at nearly 70 mph! After some good photo opportunities, we decided to head back into daylight. As we neared the exit of the hole, I suddenly realised just how unfit I am, being out of breath already!

Onto the next ride, the soon-to-be-departing classic indoor ride, Black Hole. We were taken various places including the maintenance area, the operator's cabin, next to the brake run, inside the spiral section at the bottom, and the most exciting/terrifying part, the spiral lift hill itself. The view of the track from the top is amazing. We also stopped off at all the block brake sections to have a look. We then came back down the lift to the ground. Phil asked if we could get a ride with the lights on, as he wanted to do a video, and we were told to come to the park early the following morning and we could get our ride before it opened to the public.

The next stop was back to Oblivion - but this time we would go up instead of down. We headed for the station, where we were fitted with harnesses for our safety. Once geared up (and after some more photo opportunites), we started the long ascent to the top of the lift hill. The views you get are truly jaw dropping. To add to the "vertigo" effect, the wind was howling, which just served to remind us that we were some 180 feet above the ground. Individually, we went near the edge of the drop, except for Paul who was feeling rather nervous. After a while, we climbed back down to earth, and I could swear that Chris was in paradise. I was feeling rather joyous myself, too.

We then met up with a ride operator from Ug Land, and headed towards Hex via the back of the Towers. We first stopped off in the control cabin, and had a look at the operator's controls. Then, we went inside the vault, and I discovered several details that I've never noticed before when the lights were off, for example the drawings on the walls. We also got to see how the smoke is released from under the "fallen branch". We took the opportunity to have a look inside the shed that houses the Hex "vault", and I was gobsmacked by just how large it really is. Imagine the vault, and it's not exactly a small room itself, encased in a building that has room to spare above and to the sides of it. Impressive.

We headed down towards the octagon from here, effectively doing the ride backwards. We saw how far the gallery goes after you turn left towards the vault. And from there we moved to the queue line section, where we saw the motif on the back of the entrance doors (which is never usually visible because you can't see it when the doors are open).

Needing to sort out steel toe-capped boots for the Rita construction site, we arranged to pick some up from the offices in Towers Street. On our way back, we grabbed some lunch from the staff canteen in Magic HQ, which was a tadge cheaper than the food on park. Very nice, too.

Our batteries recharged, we headed back to the offices in Towers Street, to pick up our equipment for the Rita construction site. We all had boots, a high-visibility jacket, and a hard hat. And off we went to see Rita, up close and personal. Once we arrived at Ug Land, we signed in, and walked into the site. It is coming along really well now, and the steelwork is being installed at a fast pace - they were putting sections up even as we were there! We had a good look around, which gave us all an idea of just how huge Rita will be. Not just in terms of area, but also the height - the supports we saw were massive, and they were only about half the size of the ones that will support the highest point of the ride! I can safely say that now, we're even more excited about this roller coaster, if that is possible.

To get a better overview of the site, our next stop was the top of Corkscrew's lift. I was suffering badly by this point due to my boots being about 3 sizes too small for my feet, but I figured that there's no gain without pain. Or something like that. And for me, Corkscrew is synonymous with pain anyway.

Up the lift we went, this time without the harnesses to reassure us. This has to have been one of the scarier parts of the tour, as the wind was really strong up there, and the lift platform is relatively small. Still, the views were equally if not more impressive than Oblivion's, and it was nice to be able to see every part of the construction site at once. Clinging on to the walkway rail for dear life, I begun the climb back down. Phew. We also noticed while we were there, just how close one of Rita's footers comes to Corkscrew's station, which has been modified to accommodate this. After a final look around the site, we signed ourselves out, and then had a quick look in Fountain Square at some of the interesting ride components awaiting installation.

We decided to head to the Forbidden Valley next, as we weren't sure how much longer it would be before nightfall. Straight to Nemesis then, where we messed about in the station and also saw the modified exit ramp, and the hole that's been cut into the side of the beast to allow for a single rider queue, which should be a useful addition in my opinion. We walked up the lift hill, noticing the structural repairs that were happening to much of the theming. We also spotted the pipes being used to replace the existing ones that pump the "blood red" water out of the pit. This was the least precarious lift hill, as not only are the steps wider, but with the distance to the ground effectively staying roughly the same distance all the way up, it didn't feel too high up.

We came back down, and took the opportunity to pose for a photo sat on the front row of Nemesis. Then, we nipped into the maintenance garage to have a look around. It was odd seeing one train with the rows separated, and we had a look upstairs at the mass of spare parts for the ride. It amazed me just how much work goes into getting a train overhauled for the start of a new season.

Once that was done, we headed for Air. Venturing into the first tunnel, I took the opportunity to ask about its theming (a common gripe on internet discussion forums). Apparently there are no plans to do anything just yet, but it may well be looked into. Smoke was ruled out because it interfered with the ride's sensors.

Up to the top of Air's lift hill, which was also good for views. On one side, we could see Nemesis in all her glory, and on the other we could see Air's layout below. After having spent a little while up there taking more photos, we came back down (again, no harnesses, because the platform has large railings either side). Once back in the station, we couldn't find the light switches (you'd be surprised at just how difficult they are to locate!), but James managed to spot them and lo, there was light. It was fun to change between the normal white lights and the ice blue ones. One of the trains had the water bottle test dummies in, which are used to simulate how the ride performs with guests on board. We had a play with the control panel, which is scarily high-tech in terms of what it can tell you about pretty much everything each component is doing on the ride. Once our curiosity had peaked, we then walked to the Air maintance shed, and had a look at one of the trains "stripped naked". Again, the detail in the components showed just how technologically dependant this ride is. After another "light switch hunt", we had a look upstairs at all the spare parts. And yes, I can finally put a major debate to rest - I can officially lift an Air wheel without struggling. Betcha never knew that. Back to the station, and we had a look inside the computer room, which had some interesting drawings of the ride on the wall.

The light beginning to fade, we headed past Ripsaw towards the Sky Ride station, where we tried unsuccessfully to gain entry. Then it was over to the Monorail garage where again, we couldn't get in (something to do with paranoid techies after the recent vandalism!), but we had a look at the yard outside which is really huge.

Heading back towards the entrance, we walked past Dynamo, which was a must-have photo opportunity for me. James told me to "pull myself together", but I couldn't do it. Being so close to my beloved Dynamo and not being able to ride... it was just too much.

Once the rest of the group had prised me from the ride, we headed back to Towers Street, via Katanga Canyon and also the Skyride warehouse next to Towers Street. Another attempt to find the light switches this time proved unsuccessful, but not to worry. A short walk later and we were back in the Towers Street offices to round off the day. We spent a good 20 minutes nattering to James and members of the marketing department (can't remember your names sorry, fatigue had set in by this point, but you're both a good laugh!). James called a minibus to take us from the offices to the Hotel, which was very good of him, and also booked our place in the Secret Garden Restaurant for that evening. We chatted with him until it arrived shortly afterwards, and said our thank-yous-and-goodbyes.

We arrived at the hotel, exhausted but ecstatic. We spent the evenings wandering around the hotels, at one point playing in the arcades, where Paul was determined to complete his set of Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles. He just needs Leonardo now...
We spent a good 15 minutes relaxing in one of the only quiet areas, just outside the Conference Centre. Heading back to our room, we fell soundly into a well-needed sleep.

Saturday, 29th January 2005

I must admit that it was far from easy to get up, still being quite tired from the previous day's escapades. But get up I did, and we all headed for a tasty breakfast in the Secret Garden Restaurant. A few croissants later, and Paul spotted Baby Bear (it's his birthday every day, don't you know). I couldn't resist the opportunity to pose with my favourite costumed bear, so that's what I did. He was still in his pyjamas, bless him - must've been out drinking the previous night.

Once we'd packed our bags and checked out, we drove to the park entrance, and waited outside the gates. After notifying the staff of our intentions, we were let in to the park and headed for the Black Hole. We managed to get on the ride with the lights on, as promised, as they did their brake testing. It was interesting being able to see all of the track as we were on it. We then had another look behind the scenes of the coaster, but had to leave eventually as the public seemed to want to ride it for some reason.

The rest of the day was spent riding the rides and generally having fun. We spotted James and had a quick chat with him, before he had to run off to stop some people walking past the "No Entry" barriers. I got my first ride ever on Doodle Doo Derby, which has a disturbing sound effect for the "pig". Phil and Chris had to leave at around midday, so Paul and I got a few rides on Oblivion and Black Hole before also leaving the park.



Sum up, you say? Well, I'm not sure where to start really. A big thank you must go to James, Rachael, the Area Coaches, and everybody who went out of their way to make us feel more than welcome. No request was too much, and I really can't thank the people involved enough for what they did for us. This trip was something really special which I will treasure forever. I'd also like to thank my friends, without whom this trip wouldn't have been anywhere near as fun.

More than anything, I left the park with a sense of optimism for the season ahead. Everything we saw indicated that good times are coming for the park - the amount of effort being made, even in the tiny details, to improve the park in terms of experience, queue times, accessiblity... I think a lot of the doubters will change their opinions come opening day.

How to sum up the best days out of my life?
Well, I'm not sure I can really. I guess the only phrase that springs to mind, is "thank you".

Overall Rating: 5/5




INTERESTING FACTS

????????? The queue line for Oblivion is being altered to allow for a single rider queue.
????????? A hole has been cut in the side of Nemesis to allow for an SRQ to be installed. In addition, the original exit path has been widened to give disabled guests much more room.
????????? Rita - Queen of Speed's announcements, eg ones apologising for the ride breaking down, will be voiced by two men in a "motor racing commentator" style.
????????? The waterfalls on Nemesis are definitely being replaced this closed season. The new pipes are awaiting installation in the Forbidden Valley.
????????? The official website for Rita will soon be updated, most likely with some construction photographs.
????????? The marketing campaign for Rita will include many different mediums, including TV, radio, and posters.
????????? The park are considering making the 5th March into an "event" to mark the last day of operation of the Black Hole.
????????? Some area of the park are getting improved speaker systems, Katanga Canyon being one of them.
????????? The Storybook Land bookworm is being refurbished, so at the moment there is an empty space where it used to be.
????????? The entrance signs for the same area are also being redone - hence their absense too.
????????? There is now a Spectacular Laser Shooting service being offered in the Hotels.
????????? There was a Philips QIC conference at the Alton Towers Hotel this weekend.


PHOTOS + VIDEOS AVAILABLE AT:

http://www.yeah7.com/photos/2005/altontour/

http://www.yeah7.com/videos/videos.htm

http://www.jankett.dsl.pipex.com/tripme ... photo.html

http://www.jankett.dsl.pipex.com/tripme ... video.html


Yours,
Dragon2000

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wow cool i want to go on 1 of them [:D]

That seemed like an amzing day. It must have been great! Very good summary!

[gouldy]

Don't think I've every seen Oblivion or Nemesis quite like that before. I want to attend one of these 'VIP' things ... I'm important too!

Cant wait till i am old enough to be able to go on one of those trips. Do you ever think they will do one again?

Glad you had a nice time, it looked like a very fun trip. Oh and i know you got it from the RCCGB event, do you know when members will have to start joining again for the new season. I am asking because i havent been a member since 2002 cos i havent been able to go on any of the trips, but this year im gonna join again as i have enough money to actually take part. Do you know when.

BTW thanks for all those great pics and the summary and everything. I must admit this picture http://www.jankett.dsl.pipex.com/tripme ... tos/26.jpg is the greatest pic of oblivion i've ever seen!

wow, great pics of the coasters, and i seen the constuction photos of Rita.

Originally posted by jpecool

Do you know when members will have to start joining again for the new season. I am asking because i havent been a member since 2002 cos i havent been able to go on any of the trips, but this year im gonna join again as i have enough money to actually take part. Do you know when.

Usually members join/renew in February and then membership lasts until the next January. Currently waiting for the website to be updated with membership prices for the 2005 season.

Visit:
http://www.rccgb.co.uk/

Yours,
Dragon2000

Orignaly from www.rccgb.co.uk
With well over 1000 members from 17 different countries it is the Club to be in if you want to meet people of all ages who like you have a passion for the 'King of the Amusement Park

We have over 8500 [pshades][lol] I went to Blackpool the same days some people went from the RCCGB and i was expecting htereto be thousands of them. I saw about 10 members in thepark that day!

Anyway your VIP tour looked so freeking awesome, im literaly green with envy. I've always wanted to go down the Oblivion hole

[gouldy]

I bet you'd like to go down any hole you could get your hands on Edge [:P]

Just don't take any pictures of that, cus we don't want to know [;)]

Some new photos of Rita! She is coming on very quick now. These are the latest 3:
http://ugland.myphotoalbum.com/view_pho ... ent&id=adv
Yes that is corkscrews station which Rita is passing over!! And if im correct, corkies corkscrew is just on the other side of that station too. Hmmm, 2 near misses at once. Yayyyyyyyyyyyy! Alo dont forget to look in the background where you can see lots of rita surrounding ugland!
http://ugland.myphotoalbum.com/view_pho ... ent&id=adu
This pic shows the turn out of the launch and the 3rd turn right next to each other. The space in front of them where the footers are is where the track will rise into the 3 airtime hills at the crossover point! Looks big!
http://ugland.myphotoalbum.com/view_pho ... ent&id=adt
This sows the bottom of thedive out of the first airtime hill. Looks like we may get some big G's! Yayyyyyyyy again!

looks like its going to be a great coaster!

Visit this page to find out more!
http://www.coastercrazy.com/forum/topic ... hichpage=7

yeah does look great from the plans.

P.S. Are weeweeslap and coastercrazy the same sites?

yep. They are just different colours, although im not sure how many people use each.