Nemesis Nick at Swansea LC Water Park August 2014

Date: Sunday 10 August 2014
Venue: Swansea LC Water Park
Who Went: Just me.

Introduction

Officially this was the final day of RCCGB Mega-Glow-Mania weekend 2014. After the Club visited Folly Farm on Friday 8 August and Oakwood Theme Park on Saturday 9 August, some members chose to spend Sunday 10 August at Heatherton World of Activities. Although I attended both Folly Farm and Oakwood the previous two days, I gave Heatherton a miss for various reasons. Whilst planning my Sunday train travel, I discovered that by leaving Tenby at 11:05, I could reach Swansea around 13:15, and thus enjoy an afternoon session water sliding at Swansea LC Water Park during the rest of the afternoon before resuming my train journey home to Bath in the evening.

Welcome To Swansea LC

I finally reached the LC reception around 13:30. On arrival I was told the water park was really busy, and the next available session would be 14:30. Rather than stand at the reception and wait until then to get a ticket for that session, I went to the LC café for a coffee to kill time. This was a big mistake, because when I returned to the reception around 13:50, I was told the 14:30 session was sold out and the earliest I could now be accommodated was 15:15. When I mentioned what had happened so far, I was told that when I entered at 13:30, I could and should have bought my ticket for the 14:30 session straightaway. Unfortunately I wasn't told that on arrival; if only I'd known then I'd have bought my 14:30 session ticket and then had a coffee. Anyway at this point I bought a ticket for the 15:15 session, and sat in the café again with nothing to do until I was able to go to the changing room at 15:05. Once there I managed to find a tall locker big enough to contain my large holdall, rucksack and laptop bag.

Background Information

The old Swansea Leisure Centre opened in 1977 and closed in 2003. During 2007 the building was gutted out and rebuilt internally at a cost of £32 million. In March 2008, the current LC opened on the site of the old Leisure Centre, and it's completely different to what it used to be inside. I know, I went to the fun pool and slides at the old Swansea Leisure Centre during my week long Swansea holiday in June 2000. The current LC has commonly been known as LC2 (even I've called it that), since the wave logo which appears after the initials LC resembles a 2, but officially it is LC. Logically though, one could say the current LC is the second leisure centre to be housed within the same building shell. This was my fourth visit to the LC Water Park in its current form, having previously been there early September 2008, August 2012 and August 2013.

Swansea LC Water Park Features

The water park boasts several features, outlined below.

Aqua Tube

A narrow twisting closed tube water slide, which lands in a catch tray. This slide is really fast.

Aqua Slide

This water slide is open top all the way down. There's a u-bend to the right just after the start, followed by a straight bit, a bend to the right, a straight bit, u-bend to the left and finally land in a catch tray. This slide gives a longer and slower ride than Aqua Tube.

Master Blaster

You need an inflatable tyre to ride this roller coaster water slide. There are several places where it goes up as well as down. If the RCCGB decided to do an organised visit here (e.g. outside the coaster season) this would be the one for us to have an ERS on.

The Aqua Tube, Aqua Slide and Master Blaster were made by Aqua Leisure International, but I don't know the heights of the slides.

Wave Pool

A funny shaped fun pool with wave machine. It's not on continuously, but the wave sessions are quite frequent.

Lazy River

This spurs off the Wave Pool. You swim around clockwise with the flow.

Boardrider

A surf facility which you have to wear a surf suit and helmet for. I think you have to pay extra for it; anyhow I gave this a miss.

All of the above have been there since the place opened in 2008.

Volcano Bay

Volcano Bay opened in summer 2010. It's a mock-up of a volcano with a slide descending from it. I didn't bother with this during my visit.

The only extra Swansea LC Water Park could do with is a space bowl. Every good water park should have one. Strangely enough, the old Swansea Leisure Centre actually had a space bowl.

My Session In The Water Park

Having changed I handed my key to an attendant in exchange for a wristband, I was given a black one. The session was officially due to last about two hours. At the end of my session all bathers with black wristbands including me would be asked to leave.

When I finally entered the pool and slides area at 15:15, I headed straight for the slides. Lo and behold, the queues for all three slides were rather long. My initial impression was that nobody would get many slides today. Anyway, I began with two goes on Aqua Tube. The queuing time was longer than I would have liked for both goes, but the slide was fast and fun, and therefore worth the wait both times. Next I faced an even longer wait for the Aqua Slide, but once it was my turn I enjoyed its long and gentle ride to the bottom. Due to the long queue I limited myself to just that one go on for now. Afterwards I enjoyed another eight goes on Aqua Tube. The queuing time varied considerably from almost as long as earlier to just two or three in front of me. Interestingly the queue was shortest when the wave machine was on, presumably because that's when other bathers tended to take a break from sliding to enjoy the pool waves during those moments.

So far I still hadn't been on the Master Blaster roller coaster water slide, and as a RCCGB member I was determined to have one go on it. I faced a lengthy wait at the landing point for a tyre, and another wait at the top to get on to the slide, but again it was well worth it. Seated on my tyre, I set off on the Master Blaster around much of the water park, taking in uphill as well as downhill sections. A mega fun ride which was all over too soon. Sadly this was my only go on this all afternoon as I didn't want to wait ages queuing again for it.

By now my two hour session was drawing to a close. I rounded off my session with one go on Aqua Tube, one go on Aqua Slide and two goes on Aqua Tube. After that I headed towards the wristband return point. Just as I was doing so, all bathers with black or purple wristbands were asked to leave, as their session was over. As I handed in my band, I said to the person behind the counter "perfect timing". Even if my colour hadn't been called, I would have needed to have left now anyway to allow time to dry myself, dress and get something to eat on my way back to the station, as the time was now 17:20. Having dressed I finally left the LC at 17:30.

Summary of my sliding in actual order:

Aqua Tube 2
Aqua Slide 1
Aqua Tube 8
Master Blaster 1
Aqua Tube 1
Aqua Slide 1
Aqua Tube 2

Cumulative summary of slides:

Slide	Total
Aqua Slide	2
Aqua Tube	13
Master Blaster	1
TOTAL	16

Outro

Highlights

Sliding the Aqua Tube and Aqua Slide.
One go on Master Blaster roller coaster water slide.

Lowlights

Long wait for a two hour sliding session.
Water park was way too busy for my liking, hence my overall slide count was lower than I'd have liked.
Long queuing times for the Master Blaster at the collection point and launch point.

Summing Up

A wet and wild afternoon session at Swansea LC Water Park to round off Mega-Glow-Mania weekend. It was great to slide the Aqua Tube, Aqua Slide and Master Blaster again one year on from my previous visit in August 2013. The Master Blaster roller coaster water slide is definitely the best of the three. It's a pity the queuing times for tyres and the launch point were so long, which is why I limited myself to just one go on Master Blaster. Nonetheless one go on the Master Blaster was better than none. I didn't go in the Wave Pool or Lazy River at all this visit, as I wanted to have as many slides as I could.

It was really infuriating that I ended up having to wait until 15:15 to begin sliding, and hence it was 17:30 by the time I finally left the LC. The upshot of that was I only just had time for a burger and fries plus a sundae at McDonalds in Castle Square before returning to the station in time for the 18:24 London Paddington train on which I was to resume my journey home. I'd have preferred an earlier session to have been out of the LC building by around 16:45, in order to have comfortably fitted in a Sunday Club roast at Wetherspoons before returning to the station for the said train. Waiting over one and a half hours in the LC reception / café area, two hours of water sliding and a rushed meal at McDonalds was not, in my opinion, the best way of dividing my available time in Swansea.