RCCGB Blackpool Bash 2017 Midi Report

Date: Friday 21 April 2017 to Sunday 23 April 2017
Venue: Blackpool Pleasure Beach
Who Went: Me and a large number of other RCCGB members, including Andy and Christine Hine, Adrian and Katelyn Hikin, Andy and Mary Knight, Barry Frost, Big Stevie B, Chris Bell, Chris Fletcher, Dan Ould, Dave Maryan, David Harrington, David Sung, Death, Debra Boggis, Derek Eddy, Ethan Russell, Gareth Preece, Heather Hall, June Ross, Leila Clemo, Mark and Margo Lewis, Martin Spruce, Matt Walker, Paul Heaney, Peter, Laura and Aiden O'Brien, Planenut, Ryan Hackett, Wendy Adams Evans.

DISCLAIMER: The above is NOT intended to be an exhaustive list of everyone who attended. It's a small sample of attendees; mainly those who performed billed or Gong Show acts Saturday night, and/or who I spoke to / rode with over the weekend. I sincerely apologise to anyone else who was there and I've not listed. Not all attendees (whether or not listed above) attended the event in its entirety.

Introduction

The Club's annual UK mega-trip to start the new coaster season. Once again the Blackpool Bash was a great success, with three professional entertainers performing Friday evening, a day of riding Saturday daytime (including the morning ERS), a Carry On films themed fancy dress party with songs, games, the Gong Show and a disco Saturday evening, and another ERS Sunday morning. A great turnout too with over 300 members from all over the UK (my list above is just a handful of them). I was determined as ever to attend the Blackpool Bash, and to take part in the Gong Show Saturday evening.

To make the rest of this report easier to read, I've split it into sections. Click the applicable link below to jump to the section you want to read:

Thursday 20 April 2017
Day One - Friday 21 April 2017
Day Two - Saturday 22 April 2017 (daytime)
Day Two - Saturday 22 April 2017 (evening)
Day Three - Sunday 23 April 2017
Monday 24 April 2017
Outro

Enjoy my report at your leisure.

Thursday 20 April 2017

Getting to Blackpool

I travelled to Blackpool by train Thursday 20 April. My journey from Bath Spa to Blackpool North began on the 11:29 train from Bath Spa to Newport (Gwent), followed by onward trains to Manchester Piccadilly and Blackpool North. Having finally reached Blackpool North at 18:05, I tried catching a bus from a nearby stop to somewhere near Withnell Road, but ended up catching a tram from North Pier to South Pier. After reaching South Pier, my hotel was a short walk away.

Thursday Evening

Having checked into my hotel I went to The Velvet Coaster (Wetherspoon) for an evening meal. I had a Curry Club meal: large Chicken Jalfrezi for main course, a pint of Fosters to drink and, for a supplementary fee, vanilla cheesecake for dessert. Having finished my meal I returned to my hotel and relaxed in my room the rest of the evening.

More about Thursday available here

Back to the top

Day One - Friday 21 April 2017

Daytime

For me Friday began with a delicious breakfast: cereal, a glass of orange juice, a full English breakfast, toast and coffee. I spent the day at Sandcastle Water Park, and was in the pool / slides area from approximately 11:20 until closing time of 17:00. A separate report about my day there is available here. After leaving I returned to my hotel room to relax for about an hour, and get changed for the evening.

Early Evening

Around 18:50 I went to Pablo's Fish and Chips for a Pablo's Special (fish, chips, mushy peas, bread and butter, plus fizzy drink). Mark and Margo Lewis were already there, so I sat with them whilst enjoying my Pablo's Special. Having finished my Pablo's Special I went straight to the Paradise Room.

Friday Fun

The Blackpool Bash officially began when the Paradise Room doors opened around 19:30. I entered the Paradise Room around 19:45, found myself a seat and bought myself a half a pint of Heineken. The fun began when Andy Hine appeared at 20:18 and said his annual catchphrase "Everybody say Blackpool".

The first official act was Bob Wooding. He did mostly magic, including a trick with five cards, the illusion of cutting a RCCGB member's hand in half and sticking a long pin through a balloon without it bursting. He also inflated a balloon, asked an audience member to specify an animal and shaped the balloon into that animal.

Next Ashley Webber, sang some songs, including Elvis Presley ''All Shook Up", Neil Diamond "Sweet Caroline" and Louis Armstrong "What a wonderful world". He asked the audience to join in at certain parts of the songs e.g. making sounds or singing a whole line. Once Ashley finished, the interval followed, during which someone bought me half an orange juice and lemonade.

After the interval Rick Sheehan provided the final act of the evening, which went on for just over an hour. He began with a few vintage TV adverts. After the 1970s Thames ident jingle he performed an awards show. The rest of the evening he did impressions of Cliff Richard, Elvis Presley, David Dickinson, Jim Royle, Alan Carr, Liam Galagher, Ozzy Osbourne, Elton John, Freddie Mercury and Amy Whinehouse. His final impression was Mrs Brown, during which he intermingled into the audience immediately in front of the stage. When Rick finished there was still time to finish our drinks, but we had to be out by 23:00. I spoke to, and had my picture taken with some other members before heading back to my hotel for the night.

On the whole, an excellent selection of entertainment to start the RCCGB Blackpool Bash 2017. Many members liked my self-designed black "RCCGB Fun Night" T-shirt (with fluorescent pink lettering), my fluorescent pink sports shorts and my fluorescent pink football socks.

More about Friday available here

Back to the top

Day Two - Saturday 22 April 2017 (daytime)

First Thing

I awoke at 6:30, put on my red RCCGB T-shirt and had an early breakfast at 8:00 so I could be at the Paradise Room before 9:00. After breakfast I took everything I needed for the evening to the Paradise Room, and placed it back stage. Shortly afterwards I queued to be issued with my ride wristband, Park Pass and drinks voucher. In addition the whole Club gathered in front of the stage for a group photo. When the signal was given the Club entered the Pleasure Beach through the gate. It was dry and sunny at the time.

Morning ERS

The day began with a one-hour ERS on The Big One, Revolution and Blue Flyer. I began the day by having two goes on the Big One, second row followed by fifth row (next to Dan Ould). A fun ride to start the day, the only drawback was feeling the cold wind going up the lift hill, down the first drop and over the subsequent undulations at high speed. Afterwards I just had time for one go on Revolution before the ERS ended.

Summary of my rides during the Saturday morning ERS: The Big One 2, Revolution 1. Did anyone beat me on that?

Morning Free Time

After the morning ERS ended, members spread themselves around the Pleasure Beach and took over the rides. I began with Steeplechase. Since all three lanes were running, I rode the red, green and yellow lanes once each. On the way around the track I noticed the area which has been excavated for the new coaster Icon which opens next year. Next I had one go on the Gallopers, on the horse called Nick. I spent the rest of the morning in Nickelodeon Land, where I rode the wooden coasters Blue Flyer twice, followed by Nickelodeon Streak once (in the back row). Thereafter I rode Krusty Krab Order Up, SpongeBob's Splash Bash and Dora's World Voyage once each.

Lunch at Paradise Room

Around 12:40 I went to the Paradise Room for lunch. Once there I exchanged my drinks voucher for a Pepsi at the bar. Next I went to get my meal. Members could choose two of the following: beefburger, hot dog sausage, chicken burger; I chose beefburger and chicken burger, and they were served with chips. Buns were available to put the chosen items in and side salad was also available. During lunch there were speeches from Nev and a member of Pleasure Beach staff. Finally three birthday cakes to commemorate Nev's 50th birthday were unveiled, but they weren't cut at this stage. Club merchandise was available, including the red, purple and black RCCGB T-shirts which first appeared at the Blackpool Bash 2016; I bought myself a purple one.

Afternoon Free Time

Although the RCCGB wasn't going to have an afternoon ERS on Grand National for the third year running, I was nonetheless determined to ride it anyway. I rode Grand National twice; left lift hill followed by right lift hill. Next I rode River Caves and Wallace & Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic once each. By now I felt like a cup of coffee, so I went to T Café (which was nearest to me) to get myself one.

Having finished my coffee I enjoyed riding Big Dipper twice: fourth row followed by front row. Sitting in the front row gave me the advantage of an unobstructed view of the track all the way around. Next I had two goes on Infusion, second row followed by back row. Having left Infusion I met Peter O'Brien outside Wallace & Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic, and spoke to him for a few minutes. Afterwards I felt like another cup of coffee, so I went to T Café to get one. Next I rode Avalanche, Revolution and Diego's Rainforest Rescue once each. After that I was hoping to ride Wild Mouse, as that was the only wooden coaster I hadn't ridden so far Saturday. Unfortunately that was closed when I passed it; hence I ended up not riding Wild Mouse all day Saturday. My final ride of the day was one go on the tall drop tower Ice Blast.

Summary of my day in order of activity

Morning ERS: The Big One 2, Revolution 1

Steeplechase red track 1
Steeplechase green track 1
Steeplechase yellow track 1
Gallopers 1
Blue Flyer 2
Nickelodeon Streak 1
Krusty Krab Order Up 1
SpongeBob's Splash Bash 1
Dora's World Voyage 1

Lunch at Paradise Room

Grand National left lift hill 1
Grand National right lift hill 1
River Caves 1
Wallace & Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic 1

Coffee at T Café

Big Dipper 2
Infusion 2

Coffee at T Café

Avalanche 1
Revolution 1
Diego's Rainforest Rescue 1
Ice Blast 1

Cumulative Summary of My Rides (ERSs and Free Time Combined)

Ride	Total
Avalanche	1
Big Dipper	2
Blue Flyer	2
Diego's Rainforest Rescue	1
Dora's World Voyage	1
Gallopers	1
Grand National left lift hill	1
Grand National right lift hill	1
Ice Blast	1
Infusion	2
Krusty Krab Order Up	1
Nickelodeon Streak	1
Revolution	2
River Caves	1
SpongeBob's Splash Bash	1
Steeplechase green track	1
Steeplechase red track	1
Steeplechase yellow track	1
The Big One	2
Wallace & Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic	1
TOTAL	25

Altogether a fun day of riding. The morning ERS went well, it's a pity I missed Blue Flyer in that time, but at least I rode it twice later in the morning. During the rest of the morning and after lunch I enjoyed plenty more coaster and non-coaster rides. Best of all it was dry and sunny all day.

More about Saturday daytime available here

Back to the top

Day Two - Saturday 22 April 2017 (evening)

Having left the Pleasure Beach around 18:15 I walked straight to the ground floor of the Casino Tower. I showed my Back Stage Pass, and was escorted up to the Paradise Room. I chose my seat, set up my camcorder, put on my evening outfit and rehearsed my Gong Show act. Around 19:30 the doors opened to members not taking part. This year's theme was Carry On (as in the films), and many dressed in something connected with Carry On films. I wore my navy pyjamas, dressing gown and slippers to be a patient from Carry on Doctor. Food was on sale, so I bought myself curry and rice, and also a drink.

The First Half

The Coaster Crazy Show began around 20:15 with Wendy Adams Evans singing a coaster themed variation of Love Shack, with Blackpool in place of Love Shack. She was accompanied by four others clapping their hands and swaying. When they finished Nev gave his opening speech, including some jokes. Next he asked audience members to wave their arms in the air along with the song "Hands Up", to recreate the Pleasure Beach fountains. Afterwards three ladies, under the name Carry On Girls, sang their own coaster-themed version of The Ballad of Barry and Freda, with "Let's Ride It" in place of "Let's Do It". The first game involved six adults who were attending their first Club trip. Each had to pick a number between 1 and 49 and remember it. Nev called out six numbers, and those whose number he mentioned had to sit down. The one remaining standee was asked what number he chose, and he replied "22". Nev told him to take the envelope off the back of his chair, open it, and the number pre-printed on the paper inside was 22. Amazing! Next Ella & Mollie, under the stage name CJ, performed a well-choreographed dance routine accompanied by the Martin Jensen song "Solo Dance".

It was now time for the Kids' Gopher game, in which ten children under 12 took part. When called, they ran into the audience to fetch the item specified by Nev, e.g. camera, hotel key, 12-sided £1 coin, only to find one less chair on their return, thereby forcing the child unable to find a seat out each time. During the round of eight children (when they were asked to fetch a hat) the child who was eliminated fell over and knocked his wobbly milk tooth out on return to the stage. Nev said this was the first time a tooth had come out on stage. On the final round the man one child brought on stage was wearing a dress (not a skirt as Nev asked for), so Nev declared both children joint winners. The final act before the Gong Show was June & David under the name Twokulele. June sang Caro Emerald's song "Liquid Lunch", whilst both of them played their ukulele.

The Gong Show

The Gong Show was originally planned to feature eight acts, however a ninth act not on the printed list back stage was added late. First to perform was David Harrington playing "Let It Be" by The Beatles on his electronic keyboard. He reached the end of the tune without the horn going, and much cheering and applause at the end. Next Death sang his coaster-themed variation of "Combine Harvester" (The Wurzels), with instances of "combine harvester" changed to "roller coaster". He reached the end of the song without the horn going, and cheering and applause at the end. Third to perform were first-timers, Gemma & Leila, performing medley of their favourite Disney songs. Their act featured 11 songs, including "Under The Sea", "Bare Necessities" and "A Whole New World"; they did various actions (some with props) along to each song. The horn finally went during their last song "Let It Go" from Frozen. Next Chris Bell sang "Pheasant Pluckers Son", but attracted plenty of booing, and part way through the song the horn went. The fifth act was Ethan Russell, who solved three Rubik's cubes, accompanied by the tune "Ride Of The Valkyries" (Richard Wagner), in 1 minute and 46 seconds. This attracted cheering and applause whilst he solved them and at the end. My performance of "Aga-Doo" was next. Although some of my actions during the chorus were different to those seen in the Black Lace "Aga-Doo" video (available on YouTube), you could say my actions were my interpretation. Just after the line "She showed me much more, not only to dance..." the horn went. Act 7 was Ryan, Matt, Rachel & Dan, under the name Carry On Drinking, dancing around the stage to the song "Alcohol Is Free" (which represented Greece in the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest). After they made it to the end of the song, the audience clapped and cheered, but for some odd reason Nev gave a short horn blast. Next Martin Spruce read a poem which mentioned rides such as Nemesis and Megafobia. Despite lots of boos and "get off" requests from the audience, he read for quite some time, until eventually the horn went. The final act, Medieval Madness, was a late addition. This involved a male member as narrator, three ladies waving pink ribbons, someone wearing a dragon outfit, and two others wrapped in cooking foil. After plenty of booing and off calls the horn went. Between the third and fourth acts Nev admitted the quality is getting too high, and at the end he said the final act is the sort of cack we want next year.

Top two: Death, Ethan Russell; Winner: Ethan Russell
Bottom two: Medieval Madness, Carry On Drinking; Ultimate worst: Medieval Madness

Fair enough, I wasn't in the top two this year, but I wasn't in the bottom two either.

Rest of Coaster Crazy Show

Back to the billed acts. Dave Maryan sang "Don't Rain on My Parade" with no additional performers on stage, followed by "Human" (The Killers) with two children Alice and Harry (under the stage name CJ Junior) dancing around the stage. Once Dave had finished his act, Nev announced that because the show was behind schedule, the final game "Wood v Steel – The Race", billed to follow next, was dropped. Without further ado the finale followed. I had only just returned to my seat after buying myself another drink, so I had to leave my drink on my table and go back stage to appear in the finale. The finale featured Wendy Adams Evans singing "Do Wah Woody" (a coaster themed version of the Manfred Mann song "Do Wah Diddy"), accompanied by members who had taken part earlier including me, waving their arms in the air in time to the music. When the song finished, Nev gave his closing message and thanked all who had performed and the staff.

After Show Party

During Nev's closing speech the stage went down to form the dance floor for the after-show disco, which lasted about an hour. Many including me danced along. The mix of song snippets had changed a bit compared to recent years; as well as the usual "YMCA" (Village People), "Can-Can", "The Locomotion", there were several modern hits which haven't featured previously. Towards the end the following four songs were played in full:

Dancing Lasha Tumbai (Ryan and co appeared on stage just in front of the curtains doing the actions)
Amarillo
Always Look on the Bright Side of Life
New York

The Warner Brothers cartoon "That's all folks" marked the end of the disco. Finally those who had dressed up assembled for a group photo. Afterwards members were asked to pack up and leave as quickly as possible. Around 23:35 I finally left the Paradise Room via the spiral stairs and was back at my hotel a few minutes later.

Summary of Evening

Show Opener: Wendy & Co.- "Blackpool"
Introduction: Andy Hine
Act 1: Carry On Girls - Ballad of Barry & Freda
Game 1: Lottery
Act 2: CJ (Ella & Mollie) - Dancing
Game 2: Kids' Gopher
Act 3: June & David - Twokulele

The Gong Show
1: David Harrington – "Let It Be"
2: Death – "Roller Coaster"
3: Gemma & Leila - Disney Lip Sync Medley HORN WENT
4: Chris Bell – "Pheasant Pluckers Son" HORN WENT
5: Ethan Russell - Rubik's cube challenge
6: Nemesis Nick – "Aga-Doo" HORN WENT
7: Ryan, Matt, Rachel & Dan – Carry On Drinking
8: Martin Spruce – Poem HORN WENT
9: Medieval Madness HORN WENT

Top two: Death, Ethan Russell; Winner: Ethan Russell
Bottom two: Medieval Madness, Carry On Drinking; Ultimate worst: Medieval Madness

Act 4: Dave Maryan - "Don't Rain on My Parade" / "Human"
Finale: Wendy Adams Evans - "Do Wah Woody"
Andy Hine: Thank Yous

After Show Party (Disco)

Group photo

Altogether an excellent evening of entertainment. For me it was great to perform "Aga-Doo" in the Gong Show. The after show disco provided a lively end to the evening.

More about Saturday evening available here

Back to the top

Day Three - Sunday 23 April 2017

First Thing

I awoke at 6:50. Since it was St George's Day, I put on my navy St George's flag T-shirt and had breakfast at 8:20. After breakfast I went to the Casino Tower. At the main desk I exchanged my voucher for a wristband and gate pass. Whilst there I spoke to Mark and Margo Lewis.

WOW ERS

Around 9:45 the Club entered through the gates for the WOW ERS on Big Dipper, Wild Mouse and Grand National. Unfortunately only Big Dipper and Wild Mouse were open at the start, so I began with one go on Big Dipper. Having completed that go, I was hoping to have a second go on Big Dipper, but when I saw its increased queue length, I decided to approach Wild Mouse or Grand National instead. Since Grand National was still closed, I approached Wild Mouse next. However with due to the queue length, and only three cars in service, it took me longer than I expected or wanted to get on it. Hence I had just one go on Wild Mouse.

Grand National finally opened around 10:30. I rode it once up the left lift hill followed by once up the right lift hill. Suddenly the Club was informed the Grand National ERS was extended until noon, due to the later-than-expected opening of Grand National. Very soon afterwards, Club usage of Grand National thinned out considerably, leaving only a few members per train. I was mystified as to why that happened, because in the past Grand National has been well-used by Blackpool Bash attendees throughout the ERSs on it, but it meant the few who continued riding Grand National during the extra exclusive time were able to have lots of goes on it. I rode the left and right lift hills of Grand National in sequence three more times. Although the ERS was due to end at 12:00, by 11:50 I felt in need of a break from riding, so I left Grand National and went to the café near the fountains to get myself a much-needed coffee. I spoke to Nev and a few other RCCGB members there whilst drinking it.

After ERS

The ERS finished at 12:00. No further Club activities were scheduled for Sunday. Members with Sunday wristbands stayed and continued riding. Those without Sunday wristbands left and went straight home or visited other Blackpool attractions. Since I had a Sunday wristband I continued riding until the Pleasure Beach closed at 17:00.

Having finished my coffee I went to Nickelodeon Land, where I rode Nickelodeon Streak twice (back row followed by fifth row) and Blue Flyer twice. Thus I had now ridden all five wooden coasters at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. Funnily enough, I didn't ride any of the wooden coasters again later in the day. Next I had one go on Krusty Krab Order Up, which ended up being my final Nickelodeon Land ride of the day. After that I enjoyed Revolution and The Big One once each. Whilst queuing for The Big One, I saw Barry Frost and Derek Eddy ahead of me, and they ended up on the same train as me, albeit a few rows in front of me.

At this point I felt like a light snack, so I went to T Café for a chicken salad baguette and lemonade. The rest of the afternoon I rode Wallace & Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic, Grand Prix, River Caves, Flying Machines, Ice Blast, Derby Racer and Avalanche once each. Finally I just had time to ride Infusion three times (back row, sixth row, seventh row) before the rides closed at 17:00. Without further ado I headed towards the exit. I don't recall seeing any RCCGB members whilst passing through the exit building, or just outside. Was I really the only RCCGB Blackpool Bash 2017 attendee to have stayed in the Pleasure Beach until closing time?

Summary of my day in order of activity

WOW ERS
Big Dipper 1
Wild Mouse 1
Grand National left and right lift hills in sequence 4 times over

After ERS:
Coffee at café near fountains

Nickelodeon Streak 2
Blue Flyer 2
Krusty Krab Order Up 1
Revolution 1
The Big One 1

Lunch at T Café

Wallace & Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic 1
Grand Prix 1
River Caves 1
Flying Machines 1
Ice Blast 1
Derby Racer 1
Avalanche 1
Infusion 3

Cumulative Summary of My Rides (ERS and Free Time Combined)

Ride	Total
Avalanche	1
Big Dipper	1
Blue Flyer	2
Derby Racer	1
Flying Machines	1
Grand National left lift hill	4
Grand National right lift hill	4
Grand Prix	1
Ice Blast	1
Infusion	3
Krusty Krab Order Up	1
Nickelodeon Streak	2
Revolution	1
River Caves	1
The Big One	1
Wallace & Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic	1
Wild Mouse	1
TOTAL	27

Altogether a coaster crazy final day of the RCCGB Blackpool Bash 2017. It's a pity Grand National opened later than expected during the morning ERS, and hence Big Dipper and Wild Mouse were rather busy as a result. Fortunately the Club had Grand National until midday to make up for it, but it's a pity so few wanted to ride it after 11:00. Although the few like me who did ride it beyond 11:00 managed to get lots of rides on it, the atmosphere and enjoyment one would normally expect from a Grand National ERS was lost with so few members on each train. I was surprised how few RCCGB members stayed in the Pleasure Beach after the ERS ended, but anyway the rest of the day I enjoyed many more coaster and non-coaster rides. Best of all it was dry and sunny all day.

Sunday Evening

For the first time ever, I stayed Sunday night in Blackpool. Having left Blackpool Pleasure Beach around 17:15, I returned to my hotel room and relaxed for a couple of hours. Around 19:15 I went out again. Initially I went for a brief walk around South Pier followed by part of the beach. After that I went to The Velvet Coaster (Wetherspoon) for my evening meal. I took a while deciding what to have, but eventually I chose BBQ Chicken Melt served with chips, peas, a mushroom and a tomato for main course. A drink was included in that meal; I chose one pint of Thatcher's Gold cider. As if that wasn't enough, I had Bramley apple crumble with custard for dessert. Altogether a delicious two-course meal on my last night in Blackpool. Having left The Velvet Coaster, I returned to my hotel room and relaxed the rest of the evening.

More about Sunday available here

Back to the top

Monday 24 April 2017

Monday First Thing

This was my first time of waking up in Blackpool on the Monday morning after the Blackpool Bash since I first attended the RCCGB Blackpool Bash in 2008. Nonetheless, I was determined to make the most of my extra day in Blackpool. Having put on my "I'm Not An Adult I'm A Big Kid!" T-shirt I began packing and had breakfast around 8:40. My breakfast was the same as the previous three mornings. After breakfast I finished packing and vacated my room around 10:00.

Madame Tussauds

To fill up my final day, I visited Madame Tussauds Blackpool. After leaving the hotel I caught a tram from South Pier to Central Pier and entered Madame Tussauds around 10:30. Once admitted I saw plenty of waxwork representations of TV celebrities, sports stars, pop stars and comedians spread over three floors. About mid-way around I got to the recreation of the Rovers Return Inn on the second floor. As well as seeing figures of Coronation Street characters, I bought myself a pint of Boddington from the bar there. I photographed many of the sculptures and had my picture taken beside several of them.

Monday Late Afternoon

After leaving Madame Tussauds around 15:00, I caught a tram from Central Pier to South Pier, returned to the hotel where I stayed to collect my luggage, and caught another tram from South Pier to North Pier. When I got to North Pier around 15:45, I went to Frying Squad, where I had fish, chips, mushy peas and a drink (I chose coffee) as a meal deal. It felt odd to be eating a cooked meal at that time in the afternoon, but it was the only time that suited my travel plans.

Journey Home

Having left Frying Squad I walked straight to Blackpool North station. When I got there around 16:40, I went straight into the station, through the ticket barrier and waited in the ticket holders' part of the concourse until it was time to catch the 17:12 train to Manchester Piccadilly. Having reached Manchester Piccadilly I had time to buy myself a takeaway coffee before catching the 19:07 train to Bristol Temple Meads followed by the 22:23 train to Bath Spa. I finally reached Bath Spa at 22:37 and home about 15 minutes later.

More about Monday available here

Back to the top

Outro

Highlights

Meeting members I've met on previous Club trips again (including Andy and Christine Hine, Death, Matt Walker, Mark and Margo Lewis, Peter O'Brien, Planenut, Ryan Hackett, Wendy Adams Evans).
Wearing my self-designed RCCGB Fun Night T-shirt, fluorescent pink sports shorts and fluorescent pink football socks to the Friday Fun Night.
Saturday morning ERS on The Big One, Revolution and Blue Flyer.
Sunday morning WOW ERS on Big Dipper, Wild Mouse and Grand National.
Good overall ride count both Saturday and Sunday (during morning ERS and normal time).
Riding all the coasters and many other rides again.
Riding all five wooden coasters (including both lift hills of Grand National) in succession Sunday morning.
Two nights of entertainment, plus dancing in the disco Saturday evening.
Performing "Aga-Doo" in the Gong Show Saturday evening
Dry, sunny weather Saturday and Sunday.

Lowlights

Wild Mouse out of action when I approached it late afternoon Saturday, hence I didn't ride it at all that day.
Grand National opening later than expected Sunday (but at least the Club had it until noon as a result).
Disappointingly low Club usage of Grand National during the extended exclusive time after 11:00 (but the few like me who continued riding it consequently had lots of rides).

Summing Up

Another mega excellent weekend away at Blackpool Pleasure Beach in Granadaland, my tenth Blackpool Bash to-date. It was great riding the Big One, Grand National, Big Dipper and other rides again, and catching up with other members. At the Blackpool Bash, the ERSs and other riding are only part of the fun. The other major chunk of the fun includes the Friday evening entertainment, Saturday lunch and Saturday evening Coaster Crazy Show and disco. It was great to be in the Gong Show for the eighth time to-date. Although I wasn't in the top two this time, at least I wasn't in the bottom two for once. No wonder Nev says in the Blackpool Bash invite "If you can only make one Club trip this year, make it this one". Many thanks to Andy Hine for all the effort involved in organising a trip of this nature, including Friday evening entertainment, all of Saturday's events in the Paradise Room, and the ERSs Saturday and Sunday morning. Thanks also to the three professional entertainers Bob Wooding, Ashley Webber and Rick Sheehan Friday evening, to the ride staff required for operating the applicable coasters for the Saturday and Sunday morning ERSs, to the caterers for providing food Friday evening, Saturday lunchtime and Saturday evening, to the sound technicians Friday and Saturday evening, and to all members who performed billed or Gong Show acts Saturday evening. An added bonus was the dry and sunny weather all day Saturday and Sunday.

RCCGB Blackpool Bash 2017 can be likened to a three-course meal as follows:
Starter: Friday Fun (Friday evening entertainment)
Main course: Saturday daytime and evening activities
Dessert: Sunday morning ERS and free time thereafter

Back to the top