ICON look set to be opening on 25th of May! Who'll be making a trip to the Pleasure Beach to ride it?



EDIT: Blackpool Pleasure Beach have now confirmed the rides opening date!

Yay an opening date, but it seems that the back row will have a different height restriction.

This is an odd move as Macks other mega coasters are all 1.3m or below.

We heard about this a while ago, apparently this is no different to Blue Fire & Helix. It's due to the BigBoy seats being on the back row. All other rows are 1.3m

I wrote this as a reply on a different forum about the Financial Health of The Pleasure beach and thought I might as well share it here.

I've dived into their Annual Filings to Companies House to see what their financials have looked like since 1987.

https://medium.com/@simon.stirrat/blackpool-pleasure-beach-financial-health-f0f8be8a4b4f

In short: Blackpool do have financial issues, a high debt level and seem to rely on new investments to produce profit. They've improved a lot over the years though, it also shows just how much Valhalla and Pleasureland Southport affected the company.

The 23m relates to creditors under 1 year, there's also 10m due after 1 year so in total they owe 33m.

Breaking it down 21m relates to bank loans and overdrafts then another 8.6m is owed to group undertakings which relates to the hotel.

The Thompson's are quite comfortable with this because the directors were paid 1 million between them last year.

Justin wrote:

I must agree. Icon is the only reason I'm making my first ever trip to Blackpool. 

You never been to Blackpool?  I love it up there, we normally visit at the end of the Season when the illuminations are on.  
Also Justin, am I correct in reading somewhere on the forum that you are from my neck of the woods (Norfolk)?

You should enjoy it up there.  It's a bit like Great Yarmouth but a whole lot bigger and better 

Plenty to do up there including the 

Pleasure Beach
3 x Piers 
Tussauds wax works
Sealife
Blackpool Tower
Blackpool Zoo
Illuminations (Sept to Nov)


You won't want to come home again 

Blackpool is not as clean as Yarmouth, but I still love it, the pleasure beach is good, some great woodies and novel rides.  Valhalla is not what it used to be, but still a great ride. 

Same here Justin, Suffolk represent!

I've also never been up to Blackpool, the place is just too far away. Sure, the same with Alton, but Blackpool is another hour and a bit. If I do head up there it would have to be for a long weekend trip hitting up other places. I've also heard from people that Blackpool isn't exactly the most attractive place around, so it would be only for a day and onto somewhere else. I am looking forward to Icon though.

Unlike Alton Towers, Blackpool is much easier to reach by Public Transport. From London it takes me less time to get to Blackpool Pleasure Beach than it is to drive Alton Towers. I don't mind Blackpool (as a town), it's a bit cheap and run down in parts but everyone I met was friendly and Pleasure Beach and the Merlin attractions were well worth it.

As an aside, I understand that the first 'preview date' for Icon is the 19th May. Is this correct? I'm booked to go 17th/18th so I'm praying for some soft openings. Otherwise I'll head back in June.

After seeing a few recent videos from Pleasure Beach Experience, it looks like Icon is now testing on 3 trains. Also, the Icon logo has now been added onto the station building along with more theming and rock work taking place!

As mentioned on other threads Helix, another Mack double launch coaster, now has seatbelts for this year. According to the park (via TPW) this is because guests felt 'unsafe' and 'exposed' whilst riding. 

I've already seen some Facebook and Twitter posts about people not happy with an inverting coaster with 'only' lapbars, I wonder how people will react when they ride ICON?

Slightly OT but am I right in thinking that ICON will be the second inverting coaster in the UK with a lapbar? I can only think of G Force at Drayton Manor as they other one.

Schwarzkopf looping coasters have operated with lap bars for decades, many still operate with only a lapbar. On the odd occasion one of his coasters stalled on the loop, its been well proven a lapbar is more than adequate to hold someone in place. Personally, I have no concerns about Icon's restraints. 

It always amazes me that there is such concern when additive seat belts are not present. Perhaps parks should advertise that, for example on Mack megacoasters, the duel hydraulic fail safe restraint mechanism is vastly superior and safer than those seatbelts.

If they feel the need to put seatbelts on ICON, let's hope they are more through-put efficient than the ones added to Helix... i.e. a front or side seat belt attached between the restraint and the seat; not a lap-belt!