| Welcome to the R C C G B - The Premier Roller Coaster Club of Great Britain ! | |
 |
 |
 |
Day 10 - Monday 15th June 2009 Trip Report from The Great Escape |
Day 10 - The Great Escape (Six Flags). Today was another good start time. Our hotel was only half a mile from the park, so we didn't need to get on the bus until 09:45. After a short trundle down the road we arrived at the park entrance. Today Great Escape was closed to the public, so we have an EPS (Exclusive Park Session). Without any delay we were greeted by the park staff that had come in especially for us today, and soon made our way to the first ride which was of course the legendary Comet. The Comet is a very historical coaster starting it's life at Crystal Beach many years ago and featured on all good coaster related TV programs, making it a 'must do' for any coaster enthusiast.
The riding started shortly after 10:00 and was excellent. The coaster is very re-rideabe and as a result only a few trains that left the station had any empty seats on them. The ride is also very picturesque and in an area of the park that allows you to walk alongside all the way to the end, resulting in excellent pictures of the structure and riders enjoy the 1st and 2nd drops. Everyone really enjoyed this session riding many times at both the front, back and in the middle. We were also supposed to have the Avalanche coaster open, but due to technical issues it was down, so we carried on with The Comet, and noone complained. Just shows how good it was!Following the session on The Comet, we had lunch provided by the park. Many thanks to the catering staff for coming in today and preparing a great lunch for us! With some aggressive looking clouds looming over the hills in the distance we finished lunch and the other coasters were opened up for us. These included the Canyon Blaster, Sreamin' Demon and the Boomerang. After 2 dispatches of Canyon Blaster, lightning was detected in the distance and the rides stopped.
Luckily this was a temporary delay and the rides re-opened after about 10 minutes for us. As we had the park to ourselves, a challenge had been drawn up on the club's forum site which involved a Boomerang! According to our information, the record was 11 rides, so a bunch of members set off to break it, and they did notching up 12 consecutive Boomerangs before our time was up. During this challenge other members went off to ride the newest attraction at Great Escape the Sasquatch which is a double Shot & Drop tower. One shoots you up, the other drops you down.
Finally it was time to leave at 14:00 as we have a long 260 mile drive north to Seabreeze. We all stopped in the gift shop to buy various souvenirs and stuff, then headed to the bus for the journey. On arrival at the bus, we were met by Santa's little helpers!!!! Yes, our bus had now been transformed into a Christmas bus, complete with tinsels, baubles, lights and most importantly Santa!! (Bob the driver). So we set off with carols playing much to the amusement of passing motorists etc.
Finally, many thanks to the staff of The Great Escape for turning up today and making it possible for us to enjoy The Comet, and other coasters and of course, the catering staff for lunch.
Please Note: All on ride photographs were taken WITH PERMISSION of the theme park and ride management. Under no circumstances should any member of the public or club member attempt to take photographs on rides without express permission from the theme park. Safety comes first - follow the rules!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Comet | Comet ERS | Comet ERS | Comet ERS | Comet ERS |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Comet ERS and their staff join in! | Sreamin' Demon | Boomerang | Boomerang Challenge | Boomerang Champions |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Sasquatch | Sasquatch | Santa's Little Helpers | Santa Claus, aka Auto Bob | Heather's getting carried away |
