It took me a surprisingly long time to test out this ride. Much as I was keen to experience what was the world’s tallest coaster when it was built, it was its location that delayed my plans. I had never been particularly attracted to Blackpool as a place to visit and it seemed an awfully long way to go for one ride. My attitude, however, proved to be a foolish error as when I finally made the trip I had a great time and have returned several times since.
The Town
Blackpool the town was pretty much everything I expected it to be. This is the tacky British seaside resort incarnate and is littered with scruffy amusement arcades, less than salubrious guest houses and a proliferation of gift shops selling plastic rubbish. There are some decent sights to take in if you look hard enough but the shopping experience is generally poor. What did impress me was the Pleasure Beach which was far superior to my expectations.
The Pleasure Beach
On the occasion of my first visit I had made the journey to ride the Big One and had not given much thought to what else might be in the park. Although this place is not aesthetically pleasing, has little or no theming and is a bit frayed at the edges there is a good selection of rides, in fact frankly a better offering than at the other English parks. In addition to the historic woodies and some great attractions for the kids, they have the truly outstanding Valhalla water ride, the memorable but quirky Steeplechase, Infusion (if you don’t mind a bit of head bashing) and several amusement park staples like the Wild Mouse. The recently added Wallace and Grommit Thrill-O-Matic ride is decent enough and there are several shows to enjoy too.
The Big One
Naturally on entering the park for the first time I ran past everything and headed straight for the Big One. Its location right next to the sea only serves to make it look taller and more intimidating and I jumped into the train with great anticipation. The climb up the first hill towards the ocean is magnificent and this is followed by a severe crank to the right before the first drop. So harsh and sudden is this feature of the circuit that it actually quite shocked me and had me reaching for something to hold onto to. For someone who always rides everything with arms in the air this was a bit of a surprise!
The first drop is thrilling and the rest of the journey is a high speed hack alongside the sea with several hills and drops to keep up the momentum. It has to be said that this isn’t the smoothest coaster in the world but it isn’t too painful despite giving you a fairly comprehensive shaking. The biggest problem is that sea air if it is a cold day. My eyes were streaming at the end of the ride and so ski mask or similar would be useful if you want to see where you are going!
All in all the Big One delivered a great ride with plenty of thrills and only minimal discomfort. I have heard people say that the ride bashes you up a bit but I thought it was fine and I haven’t changed my mind since. It is certainly not as bad as Infusion but that is another story!
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Article by Sally Stacey