Infusion (roller coaster)

Infobox roller coaster
name= Infusion


caption=Photo of the ride showing the fountains underneath
location= Pleasure Beach Blackpool
section=
type= Steel
type2=Inverted
type3=
status=Open
opened=2nd May 2007
manufacturer= Vekoma
designer=Vekoma
model=SLC (689m standard)
track=
lift=
height=109
drop=
length= 2260
speed= 49.7
inversions=5
duration=1mins 36sec
angle=
capacity=832
cost=
acceleration=
gforce=
restriction= 52
rcdb_number= 3672

Infusion is an inverted steel roller coaster at Pleasure Beach, Blackpool in Blackpool, Lancashire, England. It is the first inverted coaster to be suspended entirely over water. The ride is constructed by Vekoma and runs two trains, each with eight cars and a capacity of up to 16 passengers.The ride has adopted the tagline 'Immerse your senses.' Similar models of the suspended coaster are situated around the world.

History

Infusion is an £8 million roller coaster now operating at Pleasure Beach Blackpool. The ride opened at the park in 2007, but had been operated by the Pleasure Beach company since 1999, as "Traumatizer" at sister park Pleasureland Southport. At Pleasureland, the ride was sponsored by the soft drinks firm A.G. Barr (makers of Tizer, hence the name), and operated without any water effects. When Pleasureland closed in 2006, the ride was dismantled and relocated to Blackpool. At Blackpool, the ride was placed between the "Big Dipper" and the "Pepsi Max Big One" on the former site of the log flume near the Tom Sawyer bridge and was the first 'new' coaster to open at the park since "Pepsi Max Big One". The ride now boasts numerous special effects including cascading walls of water and sprinklers, and a photo point and shop in which riders can purchase on-ride photographs and tee-shirts.

The ride is specifically themed as a water coaster, with the queueline passing exploding fountains and a small clear blue pond with fish on view easily from the station. The bright blue structure and track replaced the red paint of the TraumaTizer.

The ride

The ride itself is a standard model Vekoma Suspended Looping Coaster (SLC), however, the Pleasure Beach has added numerous water effects and given the ride a glossy feel. Amanda Thompson, current Managing Director of the park insisted that the ride would be a leap of success for the park's marketing chain, which in 2006 saw the removal of many classic rides, including the Log Flume, Whip, Turtle Chase, Black Hole, and Spin Doctor. The ride was unveiled under a mass-marketing campaign for the park and opened to the public on Wednesday 2nd May 2007. This ride contains all the usual elements of traditional suspended looping coasters built by Vekoma: the opening heartline loop, a sidewinder, and a double in-line-twist. Riders must be 132 cm (1.32m) tall to ride. The ride runs off the Pleasure Beach wristband operation service and off ride tickets. Without the usual wrist-band service, riders must pay seven tickets. The amount of water used on the ride is enough to fill two Olympic swimming pools.

Hype

Since launching on Wednesday, May 2nd, the ride has received an overwhelming amount of hype, even gaining its own website (www.rideinfusion.com) and reports from BBC Newsround, the Daily Star and Daily Express newspapers. The ride also made a comic appearance on TV's GMTV. MD Amanda Thompson and her brother/deputy MD Nick Thompson both rode Infusion on the morning of its opening. Amanda Thompson believes the ride will attract well over the current guest number of 6 million and says thrill seekers will love the exhilaration. The ride was described on GMTV as being one of the most beautiful roller coasters in the country. The ride was officially launched by T4's Vernon Kay who described the ride as 'breathtaking.'The Sun Online claimed Infusion to be 'The best roller coaster operating in the UK' beating Nemesis at Alton Towers and even the park's own Pepsi Max Big One.

There is a red-carpet style handprint of Vernon Kay, acting as a monument by the ride. In a similar fashion there is a monument featuring Red Rum, the famous racing horse, as part of the Steeplechase ride.

Ride experience

The ride starts off with the train rolling from the station, after a narrow floor is lowered, onto the lift hill. At the top of the lift hill, the train slowly curls down a side-winding drop, brushing past a row of water sprinklers. The train then catapults into a heart line inversion or 'butterfly loop', where the train enters a vertical loop only to be pulled into a twist at the top of the loop and vice versa downwards. After pulling out of the loop, the train sharply pulls into a tight dip, dropping towards the lake, past the on-ride photo camera, and quickly pulling into the sidewinder (a half-loop into a half-corkscrew) From this, the train rolls into a double in-line-twist before a drop and swoop into a smaller dip and into the brake run, where the train slowly proceeds towards the station platform.

Despite the park claiming that the ride is the largest of its type in the UK, it is actually the smallest of the three Vekoma designed Suspended Looping Coasters in the country, the other two being "Jubilee Odyssey" at "Fantasy Island Amusement Park" Ingoldmells, Skegness and "Kumali" at Flamingo Land Theme Park and Zoo.

External links

* [http://www.rideinfusion.com Ride Infusion] - Infusion's Official Website
* [http://www.blackpoolpleasurebeach.com Pleasure Beach, Blackpool website]
* [http://235club.org.uk/clubpb/wb/pages/posts/infusion--immerse-your-senses-in-20074.php Press release]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lancashire/6573039.stm BBC News "Pleasure Beach's New Thrill Ride]