Nemesis Nick at Brean Leisure Park

Date: Saturday 1 September 2012
Venue: Brean Leisure Park Fun City
Who Went: Just me

Introduction

The first Saturday in September last year (Saturday 3 September 2011) the RCCGB held its Summer Bash at Brean Leisure Park Fun City, and I enjoyed attending that trip at the time. Now that a year had passed, I fancied going to Fun City again. This was partly to increase my counts of visits to Brean Leisure Park and its individual rides on Ride Count. Since no RCCGB trip to Fun City was planned for this year, I wanted to go there anyway, perhaps with one or two other members. As it happened, I ended up going there alone. Funnily enough, presumably due to my solo visit being the first Saturday in September again, I managed to make the itinerary almost a carbon copy of the Summer Bash 2011 from the moment I left Bath Bus Station first thing to when I got back there late evening, thereby creating a sense of déjà vu without the company of other Club members through the day.

Getting To Brean Leisure Park

I awoke at 5:45am to catch the 7:25 bus from Bath Bus Station to Bristol Bus Station, whereupon I caught the 8:22 bus to Weston-super-Mare. Once there I had a spot of bother finding the correct stop for the onward bus to Brean. After my memories of last year, I expected it to depart around 9:40am from High Street, but buses no longer go from there. I ran to the bus stop outside the front of the railway station, and thankfully I managed to get on the 9:43 bus to Brean there. I finally reached Brean Leisure Park at 10:21am, nearly 3 hours after leaving Bath!

Brean Leisure Park

Morning Coffee

There was still over half an hour to go before Fun City was due to open at 11am. Meanwhile I felt partial to a coffee having not had one since my early breakfast before setting off, so I looked for somewhere to get a coffee. Starbucks at Brean water park was open, so I had a medium Caffé Amercano there.

Fun City Morning Riding

Admission

By the time I'd finished my coffee and left Starbucks, Fun City was open to visitors. I entered Fun City just after 11:00am, and immediately bought myself a wristband. Once fitted with my wristband I wanted to start with Astro Storm, but it was out of action. The staff were hoping to get it running as soon as possible.

Shockwave

Thankfully the sit-down looping steel coaster Shockwave was running, so I began my day with Shockwave. This Pinfari preZyklon TL59 originally operated as Crazy Loop at Flamingo Land (Malton) and Pleasure Island Cleethorpes. Since 2004, it has been operating at Brean as Shockwave. The lift hill, first drop, vertical loop and other elements made for a fun ride, albeit a bit rough. It's certainly not one of my favourite looping coasters. For now I had just one go, which consisted of one lap of the track.

Caterpillar Coaster

This D.P.V. Rides Minicoaster Apple has been operating at Brean since 2001. Unlike the other three coasters, one ride consists of two laps of the track. Not a particularly exciting coaster but to me riding this was as important as the other three bigger coasters. I had two goes: one in the front row followed by one in back row, in order to compare the difference. Riding at the front gave me an unobstructed view of the track ahead, whereas riding at the back I could see the front of the train ahead of me going around the bends. Apart from that there seemed little difference between the front and back.

Magic Mouse

Now for the mouse coaster Magic Mouse. This Reverchon Spinning Coaster has been operating at Brean since 2007. There was just one problem: I was the only rider at the ride entrance, but due to the wind speed there had to be three riders in a car. Thankfully two more riders turned up shortly afterwards, so the attendant put me and them on one car together. The ride car left the station, ascended the lift hill and worked its way along a series of straight bits and U-bends. Altogether a fun ride, enhanced by the car spinning on each U-bend. Due to the inconvenience of requiring other people to ride with, I just had one go for now.

Shockwave

Back to the looping coaster Shockwave. Once again, I limited myself to one go for now.

Astro Storm

At last Astro Storm was running. This Zierer Four Man Bob is the former Space Invader 2 from Pleasure Beach Resort Blackpool. Late July 2011 it began operating at Fun City as Astro Storm. The 3-seater train, which resembles a space ship, goes through the doors, turns right and ascends the lift hill. On the way up are lights which change between red and green. Personally I think they're superfluous really. Once at the top, there's a thrusting sound and the train winds its way along the course of the track. Along the way you pass tiny lights, which presumably resemble stars. There are also strong air currents to add to the fun, though I question their significance considering there is no air in Space! Finally there are more bizarre lighting effects in the home straight before the train stops at the exit platform. I enjoyed four goes on this: Si8 front, Si1 back, Si1 front, Si1 middle. My verdict: better than X:\No Way Out at Thorpe Park, but I'm not overly keen on it.

Magic Mouse

So far I'd ridden the other three coasters at least twice each, but had only ridden Magic Mouse once. Determined to have at least one more go on Magic Mouse I approached its entrance. Two other riders were already there, eagerly awaiting a third person to provide the necessary three riders. Thus the attendant asked me to ride with them in car 8. This was my only go this time around, and indeed last go on this for today as I never returned to it later.

Now that I'd ridden each coaster at least twice, I rode a few non-coaster rides before lunch.

Terror Castle

A ghost train. The train runs on a track, which has ups and downs, so can this be classed as a coaster? As you would expect there are some spooky / gory characters along the way. One character had fluid coming out of his mouth to look like he was being sick. Just before the end I was sprinkled with liquid, thankfully it was only water. My verdict: alright but not overly impressed with it; I thought certain lighting effects were overkill. This was my only go on here all day.

Waltzer

Self-explanatory, I fancied a go on this next. The 1981 Eurovision Song Contest winner "Making Your Mind Up" (Bucks Fizz – UK) was playing whilst the previous lot got off and I plus others got on. I didn't time the duration of the ride but it lasted a generous amount of time. Although the spinning action resulted in a fun ride, once was enough for now. As it happened, I never returned to this later in the day.

Next I queued for Sizzler (Cyclone), but when the ride that was in progress ended, the attendant said this was going to be closed for a while, so I looked for something else to go on.

Hellraiser

A set of ride cars attached to a central structure. As the central structure spins clockwise at high speed, the ride cars go up and down over the perimeter undulations, and are flung slightly outwards due to centrifugal force. Although another fun ride, once at a time was enough. I didn't return to this later in the day. This was my final ride before lunch.

Lunch at Subway

Feeling peckish, I left Fun City and went to Subway just up the road for some lunch. I got there at 1:05pm. Unfortunately a lot of other people must have decided to have lunch at that time too. There was a queue and it took me what seemed like ages to get served. At 1:22pm I was finally able to sit down and eat my meal: a 6 inch Sub Meal (Italian BMT + coffee).

Fun City Afternoon Riding

At 1:44pm I was back in Fun City, and continued as follows.

Bumpy Slide

A four lane Astra slide. Since I'd just had lunch, I went on this next. One payment of tokens or showing one's wristband once gets you two slides. Having queued and shown my wristband, I enjoyed two goes. Afterwards I queued again for two more goes. For some reason the far left lane (as you stand at the top facing downwards) was closed. However the other three lanes were in use. On each go the slide was quite fast and I went right across the run-out into the padded wall at the end.

Wave Swinger

Next I rode the Wave Swinger, largely due to the fact that it's located close to the bumpy slide. The ride experience was no different to any other Wave Swinger, but still once was enough for me. This was my only go on here all day.

X Factory

This KMG ride looks and works like a Miami. Its row of seats beneath two vertical arms goes up, sideways and down. The attendant told me this ride also has water jets which are used certain days, but they were switched off today. Going up, across and down was extremely exciting, I even had pops of airtime. For now I only had one go.

Frisbee

A witch's hat type ride. I fancied a go on this next. A fun ride, but one go on Frisbee was ample for me. This was my only go on here all day.

X Factory

Back to X Factory for one more go, and it was just as much fun as my earlier go. This ended up being my final go of the day on here.

Sooty photo

Just after 3pm Sooty appeared outside his studio. I had my photo taken with him.

Astro Storm

Back to the Astro Storm. The waiting time varied, but it was never more than a few minutes. This time I enjoyed six goes: Si6 (front), Si8 (back), Si8 (front), Si6 (back), Si6 (back), Si8 (back).

Sizzler

Just about everyone in the RCCGB must have been on this sort of ride at least once somewhere, you may have seen it called Twister or perhaps Cyclone. For some strange reason Fun City call theirs the Sizzler, I'm not sure why. I had one go on this. Another fun ride, and still one of my favourite non-coaster rides.

Wild Water

A log flume. Whilst queuing I put my cagoule and leggings on so as not to get wet. When it was my turn I got into one log and set off. The layout of this is somewhat similar to the one at Cornwall's Crealy; the log went up the first lift hill, and down creating a splash. After that it went up the second (taller) lift hill, and down creating an even bigger splash. Finally the log returned to the station. Altogether a fun ride.

Being as I had my wet weather gear on, I queued again for a second go. At the end of my second go, I left the ride and removed my rain gear.

Sky Diver

A drop tower. The ring of outward facing seats rose and fell several times. A fun ride, better than Trauma Tower at Woodlands, but tame compared to Ice Blast at Pleasure Beach Resort Blackpool. This was my only go on this all day, I wish I'd had time for more goes.

Xtreme

Similar to Hydro Max at Pleasure Island Cleethorpes. This has two pairs of seats back to back at one end of the boom, with another identical set at the other end. I sat at one end, and the ride set off. As the ride picked up speed, it felt like riding a big wheel, but much better. The motion gave the sensation of flying through the air, up, backwards over the top and down again. Sometimes the set unit flipped over at the top; when that happened it seemed strange momentarily seeing the sky below me. When the ride ended I was stuck at the top, whilst the attendant changed riders at the other end. Finally the boom turned half a revolution so I could leave and more riders could get on at the end where I was. This was my only go on here all day.

By the way, the rumour I heard late last year is true: the Xtreme that was in exactly the same spot (and which I rode during the RCCGB Summer Bash 3 September 2011) ceased to be at Fun City late last year. The identical ride, also called Xtreme, that's here now is brand new, built this year. Therefore the current Xtreme which I had one go on late afternoon today is not the same ride as I went on last year. That will be confusing for ride counters who create cumulative counts of rides during multiple visits to a park over time; many will erroneously think this is the same ride as was here in the 2011 season.

Sizzler

My final non-coaster ride at Brean, one go on Sizzler. I enjoyed this go just as much as my earlier one.

Shockwave

There were now just a few minutes left before my daytime wristband was due to expire at 5pm, so I had one go on the looping coaster Shockwave. When I left the train, there was just enough time (a couple of minutes) in which to return to the entry platform and have a second go. At the end of my second go the time was 5:02pm, i.e. my wristband had expired.

Summary of day at Brean Leisure Park in order of activity

Coffee at Starbucks

Shockwave 1
Caterpillar Coaster 2
Magic Mouse 1
Shockwave 1
Astro Storm 4
Magic Mouse 1
Terror Castle 1
Waltzer 1
Hellraiser 1

Lunch at Subway

Bumpy Slide 4
Wave Swinger 1
X Factory 1
Frisbee 1
X Factory 1

Sooty photo

Astro Storm 6
Sizzler 1
Wild Water (Log Flume) 2
Sky Diver (drop tower) 1
Xtreme 1
Sizzler 1
Shockwave 2

Cumulative Summary of Rides at Brean Fun City

Ride	Total
Astro Storm	10
Bumpy Slide	4
Caterpillar Coaster	2
Frisbee	1
Hellraiser	1
Magic Mouse	2
Shockwave	4
Sizzler	2
Sky Diver (drop tower)	1
Terror Castle	1
Waltzer	1
Wave Swinger	1
Wild Water (Log Flume)	2
X Factory	2
Xtreme	1
TOTAL	35

Saturday Evening

Bus to Weston-super-Mare

Now that my wristband had expired, it was time to head back to Weston-super-Mare. Unlike last year, it wasn't possible for another RCCGB member to offer me a lift. Thankfully there wasn't too long a wait for the 17:23 number 112 bus to Weston-super-Mare. As soon as it turned up (a couple of minutes early) I got on and it departed on time.

Walk Along Seafront

At 5:54pm I left the bus at Sandpiper bus stop by Clarence Park. That's close to where I was dropped off on the seafront last year. After that I walked along the seafront, just like last year. Along the way I saw Carters Funfair, but just like last year didn't go on any of their rides.

My plan for the next couple of hours was just like last year: enjoy a fish and chip takeaway and take a walk around the Grand Pier before resuming my bus journey home around 7:30pm. One subtle difference though: I was hoping to have a ride or two on the pier. There was one other obvious difference which suddenly struck me whilst walking along the seafront: I wouldn't be meeting Lucy Cosnett and Carol, or any other RCCGB members on Grand Pier.

Takeaway

At 6:15pm I got to The Waterfront Fish Bar (which is opposite Grand Pier). From there I had a fish and chip takeaway. I sat on the sea wall to enjoy my fish and chips. Afterwards I enjoyed another seaside must-have: a whippy ice cream from PJ's.

Grand Pier

Having finished my ice cream at 6:41pm I went on Grand Pier and walked straight to the Pavilion at the end. There I fancied one go on the Free Fall drop tower (2 credits) and one go on Helter Skelter (1 credit). Although there were ticket machines on the ground floor, I had a 25% off rides coupon which I wanted to use. An attendant told me I would have to go to shop upstairs to use that coupon.

I ascended the up escalator (SJEC) to the first floor, and went to the shop selling ride tickets. There I was able to use the 25% coupon to buy 3 credits. That would have cost me 3 x £1 = £3, but with the 25% discount coupon I only had to pay £2.25. Whilst being served I joked I'd already been on one of their rides made by SJEC (the up escalator). Having left the shop, I briefly went on to the first floor balcony and looked towards the sea front before descending the down escalator to the ground floor. Without further ado I took to the rides.

Free Fall

A drop tower. I didn't ask how tall it is, obviously being an indoor ride its height is limited by the height of the building. Nor did I find out who made it. This one is more like the Trauma Tower at Woodlands in that it has a row of seats on the side of the tower (a stark difference from the seating arrangement on Sky Diver at Brean). The seat unit rose up the tower, through a hole in the first floor and reached its summit well above first floor level. After that there were plenty of partial drops and rises before the final descent. Altogether a fun ride, although the ride experience can be better compared with Trauma Tower at Woodlands than Sky Diver at Brean or Ice Blast at Pleasure Beach Resort Blackpool. I only had one go on this.

Helter Skelter

This is a bit different to a traditional funfair helter skelter. You go up the staircase in the middle and land on a wide open area. At the top you have a choice of two spiral slides (one red and one blue) which go around the outside; you wait at the top of the slide you want to go down. When the preceding slider has cleared the bottom you can go. I decided to go down the red slide. At the start I went disappointingly slowly, but gradually picked up speed on the way, and was going really fast towards the end.

I checked with the attendant how many goes you get for one credit; he said just one slide. Looking back I now wish I'd bought one more credit in order to have one go on the blue slide as well.

Summary of Grand Pier Rides

Free Fall 1 go.
Helter Skelter red slide 1 go.

After that I left the Pavilion and walked back along the pier to the exit. At 7:20pm I was finally off the pier. Without further ado I walked straight to the group of bus stops in Alexandra Parade. The next bus to Bristol was due at 19:36. Meanwhile I resisted the temptation to look for a takeaway coffee nearby as I didn't want to risk missing that particular bus.

Journey Home

From Alexandra Parade I caught the 19:36 bus to Bristol Bus Station. I felt really tired when I sat on the top deck, as it was now over 12 hours since I left Bath Bus Station this morning, and nearly 14 hours since I woke up. Having reached Bristol Bus Station I caught the 21:00 bus to Bath. I finally arrived Bath Bus Station at 9:44pm and home at 10pm.

Outro

Highlights

Re-riding the four coasters and many other rides that I first rode at Fun City last year.
Riding Astro Storm four times straight off in the morning and six times straight off in the afternoon.
Meeting Sooty at 3pm.
Fish and chip takeaway followed by whippy ice cream on Weston-super-Mare sea front.
Free Fall and Helter Skelter on Grand Pier, Weston-super-Mare.

Lowlights

Difficulty finding the correct bus stop for the Weston-super-Mare to Brean bus mid-morning.

Summing Up

Altogether a fun day out. This was my first visit to Fun City since the Summer Bash last year, and also my first ever time of going there alone. Naturally one year on from last year's Summer Bash, during which I rode with Happy Helen all day, I felt someone was missing whilst on the rides this time. Nonetheless I still thoroughly enjoyed riding the four coasters (Astro Storm, Caterpillar Coaster, Shockwave and Magic Mouse) and other rides at Brean Leisure Park Fun City again. My biggest achievement was clocking up 10 goes on Astro Storm as I wasn't expecting to have that many goes on it. Just one point about the four coasters, they're all steel. Come on Brean, get some wood!