Blackpool Pleasure Beach has unveiled thrilling footage its new rollercoaster Icon, being powered for the first time.
Racing through a labyrinth of tracks, the video shows the heart-stopping twists on turns on Blackpool Pleasure Beach’s hotly-anticipated £16.25 million roller coaster.
Not one for the faint hearted, those brave enough to jump on board Icon can expect thrilling speeds of up to 50 miles per hour, as well as soaring heights of just under 25-metres.
The sheer force of the roller coast is so powerful that the launch of the ride features acceleration four times more powerful than the nation’s favourite supercar, a Lamborghini Gallardo.
As the world’s most interactive roller coaster, riders may not know whether they are coming or going.
The spine-tingling rollercoaster whizzes, loops and cuts through Blackpool Pleasure Beach’s other rides 15 times, including the world-famous Big One rollercoaster, Big Dipper and Steeplechase.
If this wasn’t enough, the ride also claims another accolade, as the UK’s first double launch rollercoaster.
In the promotional footage, Technical Director, Alex Payne, explains how the ride works: “We’ll tease you first of all, because we like to tease people.
“We’ll roll you out the station, stop you and when you’re least expecting it then we’ll launch you – and that’s acceleration that’s akin to a Formula 1 car.”
Adrenalin junkies can expect not one, but two, powerful thrusts of acceleration. Payne continued: “You’ll go up to round about 75 kilometres per hour, at the end of launch one and when you come back into launch two we’ll boost you again, already carrying some speed, up to 85 kilometres per hour.”
This means that while being propelled through the air, riders will experience the same levels of G force as felt by a Formula 1 racing driver.
What’s more, riders will feel fully immersed into the experience. Payne said: “You’re not sitting cocooned within a car or a train, you’re pretty much on top with your arms free, your legs free. It’s a very very open seated position and you’ll feel very much a part of the whole experience.”
The theme park’s newest addition took a whopping five months to install by a team of 50 engineers and even had to use a crane to hoist the final piece of the steel track into place.
Work began on the adrenalin-pumping ride in December 2016, with a staggering 100,000 hours invested into making this the ride of your life.
Managing Director at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Amanda Thompson OBE, commented: “Since work began in December 2016 we have seen hundreds of pieces of track hoisted into position in anticipation of this moment.
“The track comprises of hundreds of tonnes of world-class steel transported from Germany and manufactured using state-of-the-art engineering processes for a smoother, faster and more exhilarating ride than ever experienced before.”
Nick Thompson, Deputy Managing Director of Blackpool Pleasure Beach, added: “The completion of ICON’s track has been no easy feat, as it loops through and around the Pleasure Beach’s other rides 15 times.
“To see the track in its entirety is hugely rewarding and brings us a significant step closer to sharing this unique rollercoaster experience with the public in spring 2018.”
