Your favourite coasters at Blackpool Pleasure Beach

[DoctorAgonMD]

Hi, folks!

Having been to Blackpool Pleasure Beach just moments ago, I felt obliged to get the CoasterForce consensus on the park's coasters!

Its a small park but there are few noteworthy coasters due to their history. Take Steeplechase for example, a three track racing coaster that's the only steel steeplechase coaster of its in kind in the world!

Anyway, I'll stop droning on. Please feel free to explain why you've voted for your favorites in this thread as well.

 

[Peet]

We've had this a few times before but the last full-on poll was before Icon and (sobs) the demolition of Wild Mouse so probably due a refresh!

Anyway it's Grand National for me - pure balls-to-the-wall classic wooden coaster fun. Yeah it beats you up a bit but it's a small price to pay. The worst part of it is the dreadful throughput considering it's twin tracked so should shift the queue sooo much quicker than it actually does.

Icon is an objectively better ride of course, I do like it, maybe there is a bit of nostalgia, or maybe it's the poor comparison to Helix/R2H, but I can't bring myself to say it's my favourite.

(Puts on rose-tinted glasses) The Wild Mouse was by far the best ride in the park (takes them off again).

Anyway, in summary, Grand National is my fave.

Older topics below for interest - back in 2014 The Big One was the winner!

Rank the Blackpool Pleasure Beach coasters

Hi guys. Sorry if we've already got a thread like this, but as we've got coaster ranking threads for many other parks, I thought I'd make one for the Pleasure Beach. I'll get the ball rolling with my personal rankings, which may be a little controversial to some: Icon Nickelodeon Streak Big...

coasterforce.com

Favourite coaster at Blackpool

Which one of these is your favourite? Is it one of the wooden coasters? Or do you prefer the steel coasters like The Big One and Revolution?

coasterforce.com

 

[Will]

Sadly, since the demise of Wild Mouse, this has been like choosing your favourite symptom of the common cold.

The once great woodies are barely rideable, so too is the Big One and Icon sends me to sleep.

Gotta be Revolution, hasn't it...

 

[James F]

I've got to admit that I still adamantly love Icon despite acknowledging it's minor setbacks. It was the only steel coaster in the UK to actually focus on having real airtime, Hyperia might make Icon look a bit naff now, but despite that I always look forward to re-riding it.

There is quite a drop in quality after Icon for me, but Revolution and The Big Dipper are also ones that I have always enjoyed.

The rest of the coasters are sadly mediocre at best.

 

[chrisgeorgiou46]

I honestly feel like something happened to my ribcage since going on The Grand National 3 years ago (I would have been about 26). Part of my ribcage hasn't felt the same since. It doesn't hurt, just feels slightly different. I remember my chest slamming into the restraints a third of the way through the ride and then the rest of the ride I was honestly stressed out and just wanted to get off.

I even got an X Ray, it was fine, nothing major. Again though, just feels noticeably different ever since.

Never say never, but I probably wouldn't go back. I would at least avoid the wooden coasters, not because I don't trust wooden coasters, but because I don't trust BPB wooden coasters.

Icon was fun though! And like others have said Revolution is surprisingly forceful and fun.

 

[RevolutionRuleZ]

Grand National any day. Its an absolutely brilliant ride, fun, fast and packed with airtime, the racing element adds even more to a truly incredible coaster.

The battle for second place for me is a tough one, with the Streak and Dipper interchanging often, both are fun with decent pops of airtime.

I am not one to be drawn in by impressive stats, as such the Big One has bever been a ride I rate especially highly, probably my 5th favourite out of the 10 on park, nor do I go for its new so it must be great, which is why Icon I rate even lower as I find it absolutely dull.

 

[The_bullgod]

My number one will stay Wild Mouse.
My last visit to the park is from 14 years ago, so no count for Icon.
But from their current coasters it will probably be Grand National.

 

[DoctorAgonMD]

My number one will stay Wild Mouse.
My last visit to the park is from 14 years ago, so no count for Icon.
But from their current coasters it will probably be Grand National.

I highly recommend coming back just for ICON. It's great!

 

[Flash Shift]

The only one I like that much is Icon despite having been on it probably the least of them all. Wild Mouse was pretty good and Revolution is pretty nice too. Everything else is pretty rough though I did use to enjoy Grand National.

 

[Matt N]

After taking my first visit to Blackpool since 2019 on Wednesday, I’ve done a bit of housekeeping in the rankings, and I now feel at liberty to express some updated thoughts on Blackpool’s crop of coasters!

My current ranking of Blackpool Pleasure Beach’s roller coasters would be as follows:

1. Icon - I did wonder if 6 years and quite a few notable new additions to the coaster count might have made me like Icon less than I did in 2019, but if anything, my revisit to Blackpool only renewed my love for it. I think it’s an absolutely phenomenal coaster! Yes, it’s not the most intense of rides, but I find it to strike the perfect balance between fun, thrills and rerideability! There are some brilliant moments of airtime on there; the top hat at the beginning shines, but some other awesome airtime bits on there include the twist and drop into the second launch, the Jr Immelmann and an exceedingly fun little drop halfway through the second half! There are also some lovely moments of floaty hangtime that strike just the right balance without being excessively slow and hangy, with the roll and Jr Immelmann both providing some lovely hangtime! The twisty layout also keeps things really interesting, in my view; when I'm on Icon, it just feels like I'm twisting and floating my way around every part of the layout, and when combined with the smoothness and sublime Mack restraints, it's absolutely joyous, in my view! Overall, then, I think Icon is absolutely phenomenal; while it may not be my overall #2 or UK #1 anymore, it's still a wonderful ride that sits proudly in my 10/10 tier, the lower half of my top 10 and in my UK #2 spot, and it's definitely my favourite on park! Each to their own, but I remain surprised that it's so commonly disliked; I always come off it smiling and laughing! 10/10, #9/135
2. Avalanche - There's something I quite like about a bobsled coaster, and Avalanche is a very good one! It feels like you're constantly gaining speed, and some of those transitions and corners pack surprising force! Some of the turns towards the bottom of the layout in particular are really whippy; I almost felt as though I was getting airtime in some of them, and they really do pack surprising speed! Strangely, I'd also say that I like it considerably more than Schweizer Bobbahn at Europa Park despite the two rides being the same model; Schweizer Bobbahn was nothing to write home about at all, from memory, whereas Avalanche is really good fun! 7/10, #43/135
3. The Big One - I wasn't a fan of this at all the first time I rode it back in 2018, but it has grown on me a fair amount with time! I have to admit that it wasn't running badly at all on my recent trip; it was a bit rough in places, and I would have preferred it a bit smoother, but it was nothing too terrible at all, and some of the earlier sections of the layout had decent speed to them! I do admit that the Big One is the weakest coaster over 200ft I've ridden by some margin, with no airtime whatsoever and a lack of any particularly notable forces after the first drop. With that being said, that first drop is still an incredibly impressive sequence; I just love the raw speed you get flying down that first drop and into the first hill! And in general, some of the higher elements do have a nice sense of speed, what with the wind blowing in your face in some of those earlier sections! There's also something I find oddly charming about the Big One's layout that keeps high and traverses its way around various classic BPB attractions; it's sort of what I imagine one of those Jet Coasters in Japan being like! 6/10, #53/135
4. Nickelodeon Streak - I was unfortunately unable to ride this on my recent revisit, but I seem to remember it being quite a fun woodie on my previous rides; it had some speed and airtime, and it wasn't too rough either! 6/10, #58/135
5. Revolution - For a coaster that's not overly tall, fast or long, Revolution does pack a punch! The drops have some really surprising ejector airtime, and the loop has some nice forces going in the forwards direction! However, I'll admit that I'm not sure whether I'm such a fan of the backwards loop on this; I find it goes to my head a tad. But all in all, I think the airtime and fun forces in the forward loop still make it a good ride! 6/10, #59/135
6. Big Dipper - This unfortunately wasn't running very well on my recent visit. There were some fun bits of airtime, but all of the valleys were pretty rough; it made me come off feeling a little in need of a new spine! Big Dipper has a long layout with some fun bits of airtime and good laterals, but the roughness definitely knocks it down a lot for me based on Wednesday's experience. Enjoyment was definitely impeded for me by the way it was bashing my knees against the side of the car in every valley. It's quite charming, though, and with a retrack and/or new trains, I do think it could be quite a fun ride. 4/10, #88/135
7. Blue Flyer - I haven't ridden this since my first visit to the park in 2018, but I seem to remember it being a fun, if unremarkable, junior wooden coaster. One aspect of it I remember is the lovely smell of garlic bread as you pass through the Big Pizza Kitchen building! 4/10, #94/135
8. Grand National - I haven't ridden this since 2019. From memory, it has a very decent layout, with some great bits of airtime and really good speed throughout... but is hugely impeded by the fact that it's truly, truly brutal. I don't think I've ever known wooden coaster roughness quite like that of Grand National, as I seem to remember it beating me to a pulp throughout the ride! The trains and restraints also don't help, with the lap bars seeming to dig in a fair amount when you get airtime. To possibly an even greater extent than Big Dipper, I think a retrack and/or new trains would do absolute wonders on Grand National; there's a very decent coaster hidden beneath the beating, I feel, as it has a strong layout! 2/10, #119/135
9. Infusion - The SLC layout is good and the ride looks the part... but unfortunately, that's about all I can say that's positive about Infusion. My recent ride on it was dominated by the fact that it is utterly, ludicrously rough from start to end; it felt like my head never stopped banging, and with those awful thick OTSRs, it made my ears and shoulders hurt like hell. Overall, I think it's an utterly vile contraption, and easily one of my least favourite coasters I've ever ridden... it's almost impressive how the park's second newest coaster can beat out most of the heritage woodies and Arrows in terms of roughness and discomfort! 1/10, #132/135
10. Steeplechase (Left & Right) - I hate to say this about such a unique ride... but I didn't enjoy either side of this in the slightest. The rides are incredibly uncomfortable, with Heimlich manoeuvre-style braking and turns that make the seat sides try and painfully impale you in the hips constantly, but they also don't really do much of anything. As rough as it is, Infusion at least tries to give some thrilling output, whereas Steeplechase doesn't really do a lot other than bash you in the hips. These are definitely two of my least favourite coasters ever, and as much as I hate to say it about something so unique, I don't think I'd care if Steeplechase went at this point. 1/10, #133/135 and #134/135

Blackpool has an interesting coaster selection in that Icon is my favourite ride there by quite some margin. Nothing else makes my top 25%, albeit 5 of the coasters make my top 50%. I do think that the park could maybe use another modern thrill coaster to complement Icon, and as said, I think Big Dipper and Grand National would both benefit immeasurably from a retrack and/or new trains.

 

[Burniel]

All from 1 visit (and in many cases 1 ride), so take with plenty of salt. Looks like I have fairly generic opinions on this though.

1. Icon - perhaps a bit too harsh to say "by default", but it's fundamentally of a different calibre to everything else there.
2. Big One - I really like how it looks and the first drop was insane in the back row. Rest is a bit forgettable.
3. Revolution - front and back rows have some of the best airtime in the UK. Loop is intense. Overall a pleasant surprise but obviously not a full layout.
4. Grand National - liked it a lot actually, next time I'll pack my spare spine so I can manage more than 2 laps.
5. Avalanche - it's fun, nothing crazy, and it's losing points for how badly it was operated on my visit. More rides needed.
6. Nickelodeon Streak - neither Blackpool's best nor worst wooden coaster, I can't remember it being bad in any way, but highly forgettable.
7. Steeplechase - I feel it's the sort of ride I'll never rate highly but will be sad to ever see it go.
8. Big Dipper - unlike Grand National, the pain on this one just wasn't worth the layout. Might have just been in a bad seat, can't remember.
9. Blue Flyer - default junior coaster placement, but bonus marks for being wooden.
10. Infusion - the worst coaster I've done so far, period. Party round my place the day they shut this thing down.