Alton Towers Secret Weapon 7 (SW7)

[Felipe]

Thanks for the update and concept art, Roodles!

That spider element looks wicked!

 

[UK-Trigg]

News Update....

Recent marketing, constuction updates and The Smiler The game have proven what has been believed by myself and others for a while, The Smiler will beat the the Inversion world record. Although this has not been announced by Alton Towers you can clearly make out 14 inversions so far with a high possibilty that their will be more, the current record is held by Colossus (Thorpe park and others) with 10 Inversions.

Rumour was rife after supports started going up which pointed to Inversions which were not on the original submitted plans, since then we have has aerial updates, the app and augmented reality marketing all pointing to more and more inversions. 14 Inversions can be made out through the various forms of media and I believe there could well be more to come. I predicted 15/16 a while back.

Believed Inversions, so far.

1/. Hybrid Corkscrew/Barrel roll under stationCONFIRMED/CONSTRUCTED
2/. Zero G rollCONFIRMED/HALF CONSTRUCTED
3/. ImmelmannCONFIRMED ON PLAN & AR IN GAME
4/. Immelmann. CONFIRMED ON PLAN & AR IN GAME
High speed flyover hill under spider's leg creating great airtime & head chopper
5&6/. Stafford knot (batwing) CONFIRMED/CONSTRUCTED
7/. Corkscrew over flyover, through Immelmann & under spider's legCONFIRMED IN GAME
Breakrun before vertical lift
Vertical lift followed by banked turn too left
8/. Zero G rollCONFIRMED/HALF CONSTRUCTED
9&10/. Sea-serpant roll under & through Immelmanns CONFIRMED IN GAME
another high speed flyover under spider's legs creating more great airtime & head choppers
11&12/. Cobra rollCONFIRMED/CONSTRUCTED
13/. Barrel roll CONFIRMED/CONSTRUCTED
14/. CorkscrewCONFIRMED/CONSTRUCTED

Courtesy of clayj @http://forum.towerstimes.co.uk/the-smiler/secret-weapon-7-construction/2220/

If you downloaded The Smiler The game app you can use the scanner within the app to scan the image below to see an AR version of The Smiler. It's pretty cool.

The Smiler The Game can be downloaded from here http://www.the-smiler.com/the-game/

 

[JungleSkip]

Looks awesome. And I really like how they seem to put theming elements along the ride track. I wish Hulk could get some stuff like that in its back end!

 

[bobwadd]

That's going to be one sweet coaster :thumbs:

 

[UK-Trigg]

Update 1.....

Press release from Alton Towers

Alton Towers Resort announced today that its new 2013 roller-coaster, The Smiler, is going to ‘marmalise’ the minds of riders to give them a thrill like no other. Not only will the ride involve plunging 30-metre drops, hurtling speeds of up to 85km per hour and extreme turns, but The Smiler will feature twisted psychological effects to mess with riders’ mind.
The combined physical and mental assault is rationalised by a new report from researchers at New Scientist magazine revealing that mental anticipation is a key-contributor for ensuring an extraordinary thrill experience.
Existing roller-coasters at the UK’s leading theme park already put the body through its paces. Now, The Smiler will play with the mind by blurring the lines between illusion and reality. Riders will be subjected to five mind manipulations including jabbing needles, blinding lights and optical illusions, to maximise the fear factor.

The Smiler’s 5 Mind Manipulations:
• The Inoculator (A jab of happiness as you pass by stage one of the Marmalisation process)
• The Tickler (Aims to tickle you until you cant resist smiling)
• The Flasher (A giant flashing device, blinding you as you hurtle underneath the leg)
• The Giggler (Infectious, intoxicating laughing gas)
• The Hypnotiser (Has the power to disorientate, mesmerize and disrupt your self-awareness)
The Thrill Report, commissioned by Alton Towers Resort and compiled by researchers from New Scientist, details the importance of using mental and physical cues on roller-coasters so riders can experience a greater sense of excitement.
The report has found that the ultimate ‘Thrill-Factor’ is composed of five ‘acts’ similar to the set-up of a play. This is because thrilling experiences work best when constructed as stories or narratives.
Exposition explains the set-up: a ride’s branding and its look and feel do this.
Rising action increases the user's anticipation of discomfort. Queuing is part of this "act", and the slow climb of the roller-coaster
Climax or crisis essentially the moment of terror, a precipitous drop or jerk, supplying both physical and mental cues for fear
Falling action involves turning terror into release, catharsis or pleasure. After a precipitous drop, roller coasters often follow smoother curves that are more enjoyable than the drop.
Denouement a period of reflection, a time to compare notes with friends, get a photo of ourselves on the ride, and maybe claim we weren’t scared at all.
“All the experiences we use to generate thrill – whether a scary film, bungee jump or roller-coaster - involve an element of fear. This ancient emotion is triggered by either a physical stimulus, such as pain or being thrown around, or a mental one, most commonly the anticipation of danger such as the rising action on a roller-coaster. Roller-coaster designers believe that by pulling both our mental and physical strings, it is possible to create the best possible thrill”, the report edited by New Scientist editor, Jeremy Webb says.
John Wardley, a ride consultant at Alton Towers Resort, commented: “We know people get a thrill when they ride roller-coasters, but in order to heighten that feeling of excitement we needed to design a roller-coaster that also incorporates a variety of mental cues. The Smiler will be different from other traditional coasters in that it will combine intense physical effects to put the body through its paces, along with the unique mental elements to mess with the mind. After riding the coaster they will have experienced full mind and body marmalisation.”
The Smiler will be Alton Towers Resort’s biggest ever investment and will feature a track the length of ten football fields, 30-metre drops and speeds of up to 85km per hour. The Smiler is an all controlling force committed to ensuring you smile. Always.

Update 2

Latest aerials courtesy of http://old.towerstimes.co.uk/index.php

Over view of the site showing new twisty track.

Close up, Inversions R Us amd final straight breakrun.

Ground works continue at the top end of the site

One of the legs of the "Marmaliser" theming element, complete with "Tickler", starts to take shape.

Update 3.....

This time courtsey of Alton Towers Twitter page.

This one is taken from the top od Oblivion, what a view before the drop.

Update 4....

These are direct from AT face book page http://www.facebook.com/altontowersresort

Site overview from atop of Oblivion

Part of a new loop, looks like an immelman or a dive loop. This was lifted from time lapse video so look forward to seeing that in the future :thumbs:

This is above the toilet block and shows the start of yet 2 more inversions.

Overview of The Smiler and Oblivions drop, nice paint job :thumbs:

 

[Felipe]

Very cool! On top of everything, special effects! Very, very nice!

Thanks for the update, Roodles! :thumbs:

 

[UK-Trigg]

It is moving along, this is going to be a beast of a coaster. Can't wait to bring you live updates from opening day,due to time difference most of you will probably be in bed though :rofl:

 

[DrAwsome]

Thought I'd share this updated projected layout recreation I found while searching youtube. All I can say about it is man this ride seems like it will be very disorienting
[video=youtube;M1t7z7VkRXs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1t7z7VkRXs[/video]

 

[Andy]

That may be just a few too many inversions for me

 

[UK-Trigg]

Not much construction but a nice shot none the less, courtesy of Alton Towers Twitter.

From the precipice of Oblivion.

 

[Brervixen]

Looks pretty damn amazing!

 

[UK-Trigg]

Agreed Brer.

Looking forward to opening day next week, Xsector has been reported to be open which means we will be able to get up close and personal with The Smiler. It's great to see the constuction updates but it wil be even better to see it in the flesh whilst grabbing some shots of my own.

 

[UK-Trigg]

Update times again, these first pics are from Alton Towers via their FB page. http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151497473001201.1073741825.21765316200&type=3

Loops, loops and more loops

From a top of Oblivion, is that an Immelman I see forming?

Steel, twisty steel.

Looking down site from the toilet block

A different view of the "Staffordshire Knot"

More twisty steel, and a straight.

Ready for the next piece

This photo is taken from the time lapse camera

These next aerial photos are once again courtesy of http://www.towerstimes.co.uk/sw7, Many thanks Adz.

Overview, more track in place and the station building now has a roof

Overview from the opposite end, over on the right the mainanance building starts to take shape

Better view of the station and maintanance buildings also in this picture you can see the start of "Marmaliser" theming element, its down by the left of thw crane.

Track is growing by the day now, with a minimum of 14 inversions, In this photo you can see 8 inversions and another under the station, this is going to be one extreme ride.

Underneath the maintanance building you can make out the begining of the lift hill, looks like a standard chain lift, so no launch after all :down: still looks like plenty of room underneath there for a suprise or 2 though.

Blivvy sporting her new paint job and new Smiler logo stop of the "Rehydrater"

Geat shots as ever from Towerstimes, you can view all the aerial shots, and more in hi res here http://forum.towerstimes.co.uk/sw7-updates/towerstimes-sw7-aerial-images-full-size/

Alton Towers opens on Saturday for the new season I will be on site and hope to bring another update over the weekend :thumbs:, presuming I dont busted by security :down:

 

[THORPID]

Great update, roodle thanks!

Now it's coming together it looks very very intense!

 

[UK-Trigg]

I was on park for opening day today and managed to grab these pics. The aerial shots don't do this thing justice, it is far bigger than I imagined. Seeing it in first hand today really got me pumped for the ride, it truely is an awesome sight. I hope you enjoy the pics.

Xsector the home of The Smiler.

A shot from Oblivions Queue line.

Close up loops.

Gerstlaurs onsite office.

Twisty track with station in the background.

Smile. Always.

Next piece please.

More supports and the next piece going to situe.

Work was moving at quite a pace today.

Station and shop areas are taking shape

This shot puts it in a better perspective, much more track to the right and still lots more to go up. its gonna be a big ride.

Staffordshire knot.

Parallel track.

A lot more pictures from today can be found over at Towerstimes http://www.towerstimes.co.uk/sw7/construction/

 

[Andy]

Excellent update Roodles, but two things. First being this coaster looks a little to twisty for my taste, and second they were really far behind on this thing. I wonder if they can even start testing before April?

 

[Felipe]

Great updates, Roodles! Thanks for the pics! :thumbs:
Looks crazy fun to me I hope I can make it out there sometime in the near future!

 

[UK-Trigg]

Excellent update Roodles, but two things. First being this coaster looks a little to twisty for my taste, and second they were really far behind on this thing. I wonder if they can even start testing before April?

I think a few will not like the twistyness of this ride, I imagine a lot of cleaning up :ack: in the unload area. Personally I can't wait if the more inversions the better for me, I am an Inversion junky although I hope we get airtime too.

The opening date is a worry I must admit, Alton Towers have a May opening date plastered everyehere from park maps to in park posters and national media, they will look bad if they have to delay again. I was hoping for an early to mid may opening as I am out of the country at the end of May and will have to miss the opening if it is after this date. I have a feeling that I will indeed be missing the opening, I will be gutted if this happens :down:

Alot of track is still im the staging area and I have read that they will have to test for around a 200 hours (does this seem correct?) thats around 7 hours a day for a whole month. If these figures are correct then they have around 6 weeks left before teasing has to start for an end of May opening.

Hurry up already!

 

[Andy]

Testing hours depends on government regulations, manufacturer requirements, and so on. Not to mention with it having new features that can increase testing time. My question is if they get into a time crunch "can" they run 24 hours with those douchbag neighbors?

 

[bobwadd]

Awesome shots. I really love that vertical drop!!! Thanks Roodles :rep: