Seaside Amusement

Set on the north western English coast Blackpool Pleasure Beach or Pleasure Beach Blackpool, or whatever it's calling itself this week, is a true amusement park which established itself over 100 years ago, the park is crammed full of amusement goodness with a vast array of rides, attractions, catering outlets and entertainments

The sheer quantity of rides is brilliant, there really is so much to do and everything has its own distinctive character which gives the park a very special atmosphere, there are literally roller coasters everywhere the eye can see, including the best collection of wooden coasters anywhere with legends like the twin track raw energy of the racing Grand National, the classic out and back thrills provided by the Big Dipper, the no restraints attached Roller Coaster and wicked hairpin turns, sharp drops and trick tracks of the more intimate Wild Mouse

Plus there's slightly more unusual collection of modern steelies such as the tumbling helixes of the Avalanche bobsleigh, the forward and backwards looping shuttleness of Revolution, the seemingly never ending banked twists through the very illuminous galaxy of the Space Invader, and the triple tracked racing Steeplechase

There's a great array of more classic attractions that you don't find at the more modern theme parks such as the original rocking tug Noah's Ark, the great Gold Mine ride which takes riders on a tour of a creepy mine shaft, the brilliant River Caves which is nearly a mile in length or the fantastic creepy walk-through spook house Trauma Towers which has a few tricks up its sleeve and a finale feast of spinning surprises

Don't miss Walt Disney on acid, or better known as the Alice Ride, and marvel at the sheer complexity of the animatronic monument that is the leaping frog, if you even dared to think how they pulled that off your head would simply implode

Next to the fluorescent paint fest old dark ride charmers, is a very modern marvel, Valhalla is a new generation of dark rides which is more like been inside some kind of special effects department at a hollywood movie studio, riders experience real lightning bolts, real blizzards and fires and plunge down three distinctive drops including one in reverse, this ride is scientifically proven to be more wetter than swimming in the neighbouring Irish Sea

Providing the weather is ok, I find holding your arms out a bit while riding the Flying Machine and braving the skyward launch of Ice Blast with your legs held out can be effect methods of drying off after a drenching form Valhalla

Pleasure Beach Blackpool is a legend of an attraction, over a hundred years in the making, and still captures millions of people every year with its unique brand of charm and pure and simple entertainment

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