Valhalla (Pleasure Beach Blackpool)

Valhalla
Blackpool Pleasure Beach
Status	Operating
Cost	£15,000,000
Opening date	14 June 2000
Closing date	November 2011, reopened June 2012
Replaced	Fun House
General statistics
Type	Dark ride
Manufacturer	Intamin
Designer	Sarner Ltd
Lift system	Two lift hills
Height	80 ft (24 m)
Drop	62 ft (19 m)
Length	610 m (2,000 ft)
Speed	70 km/h (43 mph)
Max vertical angle	70°
Duration	Approximately 6 minutes
Restraint style	None; grabrails only
Height restriction	117 cm (3 ft 10 in)

Valhalla is a large indoor dark ride at Pleasure Beach Blackpool in Lancashire, England. It was opened on 14 June 2000 at a cost of £15 million (equivalent to more than £23 million in 2015) - one of the most expensive water rides ever to be built - and is the longest indoor dark ride in the world.^[1][2] Both a dark ride and a water ride, Valhalla uses special effects which incorporate fire, water, snow, thunder and lightning.^[3]

Replacement

Valhalla replaced the Fun House, (which burned down in 1991 in its place); Valhalla opened in 2000..

Design

Valhalla was largely designed by Sarner, based in the United Kingdom, including its ride effects and electronics. Additional water effects were designed by American company Technifex. Intamin provided the vehicle and track elements. Conceived by former park owner Geoffrey Thompson, the ride is based on Valhalla from Norse mythology and covers sixteen different scenes.

It is based on a similar ride, Viking Toktet (also known as Vikinglandet), found in Norway's Tusenfryd and designed by Sarner. Both rides use elements of a traditional log flume ride combined with the design of a traditional dark ride with additional special effects to dramatize the ride experience. Valhalla uses physical effects such as a dramatic change in temperature and artificial snow throughout the duration of the ride. Riders experience extremes of temperature ranging from -20°C to 40°C.^[4] There are various water effects during the ride course, including a water vortex and track elements include a turntable (where the boat is turned around thus facing backwards).

More than 100,000 imperial gallons (450,000 l; 120,000 US gal) of water are recycled per minute, and roughly 35,000 cubic feet (990 m³) of gas is used an hour to provide the flame effects.^[3] The ride has a capacity of 2,000 per hour and each journey lasts approximately six minutes covering almost half a mile.^[3] The ride is housed inside a building approximately 80 feet (24 m) tall. The front is covered with artificial rock effect (replaced in 2012) and a huge waterfall flows down the ride building facade, dispensing 12,000 gallons of water per minute.

Ride experience

Boats enter the ride through a skull head's mouth

Due to the extremely wet nature of the ride, warning signs are positioned at the entrance stating "you will get wet" and "you may get SOAKING WET". mobile phones and cameras are not allowed on any part of the ride including the queue lines. Clear plastic rain capes are available to buy at the ride's entrance at a cost of £2.30 or £3.50 for more durable ones which can be purchased at the gift shop under the flying machines

In the Viking-themed station hand built by a team of Russian carpenters, riders board a Viking-style longship.^[5] The boats can seat from six to eight people, having three or four rows of two-seater benches (the three seaters have more leg room). Despite the ride featuring several drops, they have no lap bars, only padded and metal grab rails. The boats can become filled with several inches of water during a typical day of operation and a ride operator is usually seen with a pump removing excessive water in the floor of the boats as they pass through the station. In general riders can be expected to be asked to board the boats quickly as they do not stop in the station. Ride operators usually check the number of riders in groups prior to boarding and on occasion will tell you where to sit to ensure that the weight is evenly distributed.

Viking chanting music, 'Song of the Elders' by Rhythmos (originally composed for the park's Hot Ice show), plays in the station and throughout the ride, although is not clearly audible in all parts.

The boat travels in the same way as a traditional log flume and is carried from the station to the left into the entrance via the mouth of a large carved skull figure. A waterfall from the mouth is stopped via infrared sensor just as riders are about to pass through it, but occasionally will not stop, soaking riders as they go through. As the boat enters the building, a Viking warrior is seen in a cave in the wall (this used to be two crows). Once inside, a dog-like beast comes into view and to the right, a 2-headed dog appears from the shadows barking at the riders lit by strobe lights acting to guard the entrance to Valhalla.

Fire lit torches give off a great deal of heat as you pass under a dog-like beast climbing the lift hill. The rock tunnel surrounding the lift hill rotates around you with eerie noise and rainbow lights and in front of you a projection of a Viking tells you of the journey ahead:

"Where lightning strikes to burn the soul. Where fires rage to ignite evil. Where the chill of ice freezes eternity. The kiss of death has tortured the lives of these viking warriors. Their stricken souls await to accompany you through the twilight world of the gods. Where mist shrouds the human form. ENTER VALHALLA!"^[6]

There’s a tiny dip which sends the boat hurtling into darkness before lights flash as you turn right with dragon heads and a large UV lit face, as the ride reaches the next corner (right turn) a demon head (now with some hair) raises up behind a hole in the wall. The boat then enters the famous "fauxfire" room (known as steam room). This is a corridor of simulated fire effects,^[7] it is steam with lighting effects that make it look like fire. The boat turns right into a corridor with water pouring down either side. Water drips from above onto riders as light appears at the end of the tunnel.

The boat then enters an area where the outside is exposed and the theme park can be seen, the boat moves towards this window and gives the impression that it may not stop and go over the edge. The boat suddenly and sharply stops and a jet of mist fires into the air. It then creeps forward slightly, stops and is the then rotated clockwise approximately 90 degrees via a turntable before a second jet of mist fires into the air and the boat begins to move quickly backwards into complete darkness. There is then a small drop into another turntable where the boat is rotated around 100 degrees to the left and begins to move forward again. Powerful wind effects are utilised during this rotation.

The boat enters the ice room where temperatures of around -20°C and artificial snow are faced, in the style of Fimbulwinter. Perspex figures, simulating skeleton warrior-style and tiger ice sculptures watch you pass by. The boat proceeds around this room and into darkness again where there is a sharp drop of some 60 feet and 70 degree incline. Around halfway down the drop there is a blanket of mist and lighting effects which lead the rider to believe that the ride is about to level off before it eventually plunges into water below. Right before the drop, riders can sometimes see a spiked log come into view before the bottom of the drop is visible, however it is difficult at times to see this clearly. If riders are also quick enough on the drop, they will see a large longship wrecked on their right hand side and the 2nd drop to their left.

A tunnel of water jets is then passed through,^[7] which deposits considerable amounts of cold water over the boat, particularly for those sitting on the left hand side of the longship. The lights start flickering on and off as two water cannons shoot water straight up into the air which comes down onto the boat. The lights flicker on to show you are going to pass under a water fall. As the lights go off, the waterfall stops and you pass under it turning around to start the climb of the 2nd lift hill. whilst going up the lift gill, you can see all the action happening if you look right

At the top of the hill the rides pass under a swinging set of skulls with eerie eyes accompanied by distant screaming. Turning right past a Viking warrior, rides see a jungle like setting where the boat encounters two gigantic log hammers which swoop down and appear to be heading to sandwich crush the boat but simply create a huge splash, further drenching those on board.

The boat then turns left where it passes under a rolling spiked log and the sounds of arrows passing over head which riders feel are just missing their heads. There are also fire-lit arrows in the walls to simulate this. The boat then passes into a dark area passing a skeleton with lit up eyes into a dark room. A crow is lit up briefly, then another skeleton is lit up with wind effects blowing it around which then says "Please do not lean forwards on the next drop."

The boat then goes down a large double drop, plummeting into a ring of fire which is extinguished by the splash of water just in time before facing an inferno of longships visibly ablaze and temperatures briefly up to 110°C when fireballs are ejected.

The boat then veers around to the left into a final explosive scene where a small fireball goes off to the left shortly followed by a huge fireball explosion to the right. Both explosions come scarily near the longboats. Another water cannon shoots up to the left and then the boat sails out of the building where a photograph is taken of the typically drenched riders and later available to purchase at a cost of £10-£15. A final water cannon goes off

The longship then re-enters the station where riders disembark and the use of a stand-up drying machine can be acquired at a cost of £1 for two minutes.

Awards

When it opened in 2000, Valhalla won many dark ride and water ride awards. In 2015 Valhalla was named "Best Water Ride In The World" By The Amusement Today Golden Ticket Awards.

Reduction in effects

At its opening and during its early years of operation, Valhalla was laden with additional effects such as lightning/sparks, explosions, and fire features. These have gradually become more unreliable, removed or rotated after a decade of operation. The above ride experience description is typical of what one will experience when riding today, however effect operation is frequently rotated, for example the "fire square" and the talking viking head on the lift hill are the most common effects to be out of operation. Certain fire explosions may not go off due to ignitor/sensor error. This also is to save costs.

Grand National Fire

In May 2004, a fire which damaged the Grand National rollercoaster and the Alice in Wonderland dark ride was extinguished using some of Valhalla's huge water content.^[8]

2011 - 2012 Refurbishment

Valhalla was closed towards the end of the 2011 season to undergo a major refurbishment. The structure used to hold the facade had begun to decay and the old parts of the big one track used needed to be replaced.This meant a new facade had to be constructed.

The refurbishment of the facade included: Demolition of the existing facade and supports, removal of the shop, construction of a new steel support structure for the facade which was carried out by jchdraughting (who did some work in Nickelodeon Land), a new exit built, a new "fauxrock" facade and the waterfall system to be restored to its original glory.

As well has the work to the front of the building there were changes to the effects and a few minor scene changes were also made. The lightning room was completely removed and was replaced with 2 Viking skeletons, a large carved Valhalla sign and laser effects. The sound of lightning remains in this area and it is a possibility that the lightning may return in its original Teslacoil format at some point. The ride music system was also improved to ensure that it was no longer patchy and could be heard throughout the duration of the ride.

Valhalla re-opened on 5 May 2012, though the waterfall above the station remained off to allow the new facade to set. It was switched on later in the season, but there were initial problems with the waterfall bouncing off the new facade onto the roof of the station causing damage. This has led to a wall being constructed on the waterfall side of the station and a perspex sheet being added to the end of the station to stop spray coming in. Riders now get soaked in spray as they leave the station.

Ride Theme Music

The main theme music used for the ride is a soundtrack known as "Song Of The Elders" by Rhythmos. This music is played very loudly in the ride station, and at some points during the ride. It can be noted that the Valhalla music sounds different in each place around the ride - in the ride station it sounds raucous and loud whereas in some places throughout the ride is comes across as more distant and mysterious - probably to do with the positioning of the speakers. The theme music used to be patchy throughout the ride, this was improved somewhat during the 2011/2012 refurbishment but there is still room for further improvement. For the first two years of operation Valhalla had different theme music - the old piece can still be heard on the first lifthill. This is very hard to believe when riding it today because the current theme music adds a lot to the overall experience.

Other sound effects throughout the ride include dogs barking, snow falling, thunder (this has since been removed), crows, screams and Odin on the first lift hill. There is also a second piece of music that plays on the first lift hill, but only briefly. This was previously the main theme for the ride. Furthermore, two similar pieces of music (which could even be different sections from the same piece) can be heard upon both leaving and re-entering the ride's station. If anyone knows what the second piece of music is, please add it in here.

High Running Cost

Given the complexity of the ride system and expensive effects used Valhalla has very high running costs which reach £147,000 per month in peak season. The ride also has reliability issues. Moreover, Valhalla uses one third of the whole park's power supply.

References