GhosterForce 8 - Trip Reports

[EnigmaHyena]

As usual I had a great time, I was only at the Thorpe day but that was still enough to send me home (or back to Thorpe the next day in this years case...) smiling after having an awesome time with hilarious fellow geeks. Too many funny things for me to list, especially all the retarded things that happened at House_of_Scarlet, but other trip reports give a good feeling of just how lively and chaotic the Live was c:

Thanks to Mark for organising GF yet again, thanks to the Bar 360 Grill staff for consistently messing our orders up and forgetting things, and thanks to everyone who attended for being awesome!

Oh and Scarlet, my second Thorpe day was epic, containing 900 glowsticks, me and my sister genuinely **** ourselves in Experiment 10 (even though that was my 3rd time lol), our friend Luke wearing a suit completely covered in red and blue fairy lights which looked absolutely hilarious just seeing a glowing ball of light shooting up to the top of Stealth and doing the course of Colossus...and just about every ride op sang Christmas songs and cheesy Take That songs over the speakers...good times! Oh, but it'd be nice if it didn't rain literally EVERY time we got in the queue for Rush...stupid weather!

Roll on next year, and of course roll on Swarm! <3

Also have to echo Joey's laughter at spontaneous hyper John and how the photos always failed to catch the jump.

 

[Beans]

Wow what a live, so good to see everyone again seems such a long time. Just love the big family atmosphere, so missing everyone now....

Thank you to Mark for organising another epic GF.

Thanks to Ian for arranging the ERT on Saw, I think I rode it about 5 times.

Thanks to Thorpe Area Ride Manager Neil Harris and Becky for being our hosts for this ERT. Told you all Thorpe Staff were epic, (okay I suppose I am slightly biased.....but it is true.....LOL)

James on Stealth for once again embarrassing Leigh with the A-Kid run...

Seeing the Faces of public when Slayed and I went front row on Stealth, kept pointing at us, and also for having to untangle the “web” from the harness.

Rumba with Joey and Scarlet. And Scarlet I was supposed to be a Zombie..Haha, not offence taken, love you too. By the way the young girl Kirstie whom we had with us is really jealous of your figure!!

Neal in Colossus queue line putting on make-up, and once I had poured the blood on being accused of bashing him over the head....

Slammers Epic fail....and to top that a 36 person pass for it breaking....

Scaring kids in Inferno queue line, just kept starring at them and then at the top jumping out behind the rock and scaring the pants off them, also a group of girls wouldn’t come near me.

Waiting outside Experiment 10 for others and watching people reactions, some even came up close, and I would jump at them and scare them, got asked so many times did I work for the park, and gave loads of Hi 5’s for those brave enough.

Colossus’s wet run, absolutely flying round the track, and hearing the language from Joey behind. Yes JOEY actually giving Colossus praise, see I told you it wouldn’t kill you....LOL

Watching everyone geeking over Swarm, in the place where I have done for the last two weeks....

Coming 2nd to Az in comp, well Az’s costume was perfect to say the least....

On way home stopping at Maccy D’s at Gatwick. 2 paramedics in queue next to Phill, I walked past and one caught me in a side glance and jumped saying ”**** that made me jump a bit” and then “I think she is beyond our help” Other people just kept staring and waving, especially when we left they all waved through the window.

Poor girls face of the car than rear ended me on way out of Gatwick, as I got out of the car to face her, I had actually forgot at that moment how I was dressed as was more angry with what happened but ot was only when I got back in the car Leigh and Kirstie reminded me, she looked so horrified, and thinking about it now she might have thought I had hit my head on windscreen and the blood was as a result from that. I thought it was because reality hit, she had only been passed her test 3 weeks so can you imagine what that will do to her insurance....

Ians heroics in Vampire queue, not so sure about his rendition but he saved the day!!

So many Glowsticks, was fun trying to get Glowstick patterns for the camera.

Winning that dreaded Drayton Manor coin box, I keeps trying to hide it but Phill keeps putting it back on display....

Will gate crashing lunch time and watching the others pig out, yes MARK I only had 2 plates unlike some, not a whopper in sight.

Missing Richard!!

Talking to others I hadn’t done so to before!

Reading everyone posts is now making me sad as I know it is another year until the next GF. Phill has said it was the best he has been too, and our friend also enjoyed herself, she thinks we are all mad but still wants to come again next year

Now for the PHOTOS....Paparazi Beans strikes again....


http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set= ... d9130c812a

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set= ... fcbbb9b353

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set= ... 08df9ed61e

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set= ... 243efe9777

 

[AJ]

 

[TarinMaria]

I'd just like to say I had a lovely day on the 25th and I'd like to thank everyone at the CWoA meet for accepting me into the group. It's such a shame the time passed so quickly! I'd definitely like to do that again some time! The long queue lines for rides seemed much shorter due to the fun people, especially the Slayed dancing, and the rides were wonderful as always. I was shocked at the fact they've now put smoking areas in. And I laughed when I was mistaken for a nineteen year old...
So yeah, THANKS LOVELIES!! <3

 

[jayjay]

Somebody videoed the Slayed dancing, right? So many people have mentioned it, and I'm curious now.

 

[Beans]

I do believe Peeps and Mushroom were videoing at the time...

 

[MouseAT]

Yes, I have the Slayed dancing and Mexican Slayed on video. I just need to get my act together and actually pick an appropriate song so that I can actually get started on the video. It's proving to be more difficult than I thought.

 

[Ollie]

What was Jordan dressed as at Thorpe? She was just wearing normal clothes.

 

[Ian]

^ The Ghost of Amy Winehouse.

It's been a running joke for a few months now.

Winning that dreaded Drayton Manor coin box, I keeps trying to hide it but Phill keeps putting it back on display....

PMSL! It's the most dreadful thing I could find. **** knows how I'm going to top that next year! Maybe take a photo of the vile ornament for those who couldn't attend? I can just imagine Phil leaving it places where you'd hate to find it.

I'm still giggling about the reaction when I unveiled the Th13teen mug, "Ooooooooooooooooo.......errghhhhhhh!" LOL!

For me, the faffle is always my personal highlight because I love the reactions <3 I really enjoy gathering theme park crap throughout the year, but for now I can enjoy an empty space on top of my wardrobe for four months

 

[kimahri]

I left my picture of Jordan's-sister-on-raptor-signed-by-Ian-from-Coasterforce in plods bag. :c

 

[Beans]

Winning that dreaded Drayton Manor coin box, I keeps trying to hide it but Phill keeps putting it back on display....

PMSL! It's the most dreadful thing I could find. **** knows how I'm going to top that next year! Maybe take a photo of the vile ornament for those who couldn't attend? I can just imagine Phil leaving it places where you'd hate to find it.

Here is that dreadful item, looks like it will be our 5pence collecting box for now, HELP....

 

[MouseAT]

Well, what can I say that hasn’t already been said? What an amazing few days! That has to be one of the best CF Lives I’ve been to in a long time.

Unfortunately, I don’t have any photos this time around (which feels weird – usually I get back from a CF Live and the first thing I do is offload and upload photos). On the plus side, that’s because I was shooting loads of video footage. I’ve finally got some music picked out, so I can start work on the Live video over the next couple of days.

Anyway, on to the list of many highlights:

• What an amazing group of people! A great mix of CF regulars, and wonderful newbies who all seemed to have a great time. I do hope little mouse does make it to a few more Lives in the future, even if it can get a little confusing at times
• The weather was surprisingly mild for a Ghosterforce. Admittedly I was wearing many layers, but even so, I’m used to Ghosterforce being synonymous with “freeze your nads off” weather.
• ERT on Saw, and the resulting shouts of “Coaster” and “OW”.
• Neal managing to shrewdly negotiate a 36 person exit pass for the entire group after Slammer decided to spite us yet again.
• Morg the Magnificent.
• Mysterious Sue is genuinely insane. Don’t worry Sue – normality is a good starting point, not something to aim for.
• Witch! She’s a Witch!
• The costume competition results, complete with evil spider Slayed.
• A really good ride count at Thorpe, with all the major coasters running really well.
• Front row night ride on Nemesis Inferno (whilst everyone else was off doing the mazes/faffing).
• James (the ride-op on Stealth) being absolutely mental when Wooly and I were abusing single rider before the evening meet-up. Hilarious times.
• Sue’s incredibly dodgy sweets with worryingly strong adhesive properties.
• Colossus running amazingly well at night in the rain. MORE OF THAT!!! (The downpour was perfectly timed too – it hit just after we’d made it into the station so we didn’t get soaked standing in the queue).
• Ian (pointing at Vampire): “John, that is an OLD machine”.
• Everyone doing the Mexican Slayed in the Bubbleworks queue. Especially once people started singing along to the Bubbleworks music, much to the amusement of the ride hosts.
• All the amazing faffle tat. My Alton mug survived the journey home in one piece as well.
• The optimistic box dragon. May it rest in peace after being brutally murdered by Neal.
• GLOWSTICKS!!!
• Hanging on to my hat so that it didn’t go flying off on Dragon’s Fury and Vampire.
• Our group being recognised by one mother in the Vampire queue at the end of the day. “Were you all here last year?”.

As for down points, there really aren’t many:

• Burdenous London public transport. The tube on Saturday was horrifically busy, stations are never on the line you want to travel on, and morning commuter services towards London are just horrendous.
• Fake KFC chicken is vile.
• The lack of the annual CF shouting match on Buccaneer. Then again, we didn’t miss much to be honest – when I rode Buccaneer on the Wednesday morning, it was dire – hardly any airtime at all, even in the back row.

I do hope Marc starts feeling better soon, as I know he was feeling really rough at the end of the day on Tuesday. All the best mate!

Like many other people, I’m definitely on a post-live downer at this point. I think it’s partly because I’ve just had such an amazing season (attending every UK Live, plus the Italy one), seen so much of everyone over the past few months and had an epic couple of days before the Live started, the realization that it’s all over now until next year is hitting harder than it ever has before. I miss all you crazy people! It doesn’t help that my iPod seems to have developed an annoying habit of playing depressing songs on random at the moment either.

Then again, I keep getting memories of hilarious Live moments popping into my head and making me laugh, so I suppose it all balances out.

Anyway, once again THANK YOU to each and every one of you who made this season so amazing.

 

[Aaron]

Finally got round to getting in here

First off may I say that I had an absolutely wonderful day, it was SO good to be back at a CF live again, and I promise to try to get to more next year (will even book holiday time so I can go to BOTH days of GF next year!)

It really was lovely to see so many old friends after so long, people who I actually do have a special place in my heart for, sounds pissy but it's true, I have so many really good friends on CF and it has been far too long that I haven't seen some of you!

My highlights of the day include (Non exhaustive list)

- seeing swarm up close for the first time (yes, geek lol)
- THAT cable tie... (sorry Will)
- pretty much everyone with a camera showing me it and letting me have a play (haha, my reputation precedes me?)
- spot the mustard trousers game (I wasn't playing but it was fun to watch)
- Rapids and getting absolutely drenched, my jacket and hat did not take kindly to that!
- Being accused of witchcraft literally all day long
- one of the hosts asking me where my piano was
- meeting some new people (sorry if I didn't seem very talkative)
- Winning the costume competition - seriously was not expecting that, thanks to anyone who voted for me! <3
- getting to walk round all day as a time traveller
- great discussions of conspiracy theories in the inferno queue (which I have never seen so long, but it went fast with people to chat to) resulting in much stroky beard time...
- Riding inferno with my goggles on making everything very dark green...
- Stealth with goggles on meant I could actually keep my eyes open properly on the launch lol
- coming into brake run and shouting "The experiment was a SUCCESS!!" (I crack myself up)
- being asked by random people why we were dressed up and if we were touching people etc. (weird)
- most staff who served me being impressed by my costume
- creating a new religion in the queue for Experiment 10 (Morg be with you! And also with you)
- Experiment 10 was good fun, but I did get stuck with some randomers who were terrified (the ones who had been high fiving us all day)
- I got my mexican food in the evening YAY
- telling Les that I'd been to the future and spoken to the aliens, and that they had his name at the top of their list of abductees
- flashing everyone with my one tiny LED of doom (more next year I promise)
- having an argument with someone (possibly mouse?) in the stealth queue about the contents of my glowsticks (it WAS plutonium i'm telling you!)
- Stealth in the dark with Neal on a practically front row (cos we're both so tall XD)

This list is long but still doesn't nearly begin to describe how good a day I had, the laughter and the time spent with very wonderful people.

Bad points

- mark flashing his snatch at me quite a few times (MY EYES ARE BURNT)
- awful journey to the park and missing the Saw ERT meaning I missed my ride on Saw at all)
- not getting an "az won the costume competition" shoutout tweet from @coasterforce >:C
- having to say goodbye in the evening
- not being able to get to chessington on tuesday (and having to work too :|)

I've seen all the photos people have posted so far, really good memories. Looking forward to seeing the videos, I saw some of peep's footage and it's epic

 

[mouse]

- having an argument with someone (possibly mouse?) in the stealth queue about the contents of my glowsticks (it WAS plutonium i'm telling you!)

I wasn't at Thorpe. :?

 

[Aaron]

^ shows how much attention I was paying then haha. Sorry bud

 

[marc]

I forgot about Will and the cable tie lol. How the hell he did not know what one was I will never know lol, he knows what it is now having it attached to his shoe lace most of the day

 

[Rach]

Finally got a bit of time to post something up! (Even though I really should be at work now - but yay for getting off early)!

Anyway, I had a fantastic day out on Monday, so glad I made the decision (if a rather silly one) to come down for the day and go back on the night. I'm sorry I couldn't say bye to everyone, 7pm was my cut off and I just had to get going. I didn't get home until gone midnight as was in work for 9:45 next morning! Also, apologies if I was a bit quite, I'd had to work the Sunday before (my only other day off) on top of my already long 65 hour week, so I was pretty knackered! Saying that, I still am now!

But anyway, it was bloody great to see everyone again and it'll probably be a while until I see anyone again really. I can't take time off work, and we're open on Saturday's which would be my usual park day, so it may be a fair while until the next time...

Thorpe was surprisingly good! I did think at first they were up to their usual standard with Colossus and Slammer breaking down. But after that, things really improved and the queues I was surprised to see were minimal throughout the day!
Everything also felt like it was running much better than when I last went to Thorpe (August) and a little more powerful.
Inferno was one of the biggest surprises along with a smooth Colossus and a powerful cycle on Samurai which I did despise until earlier this year!

This year I had to do the mazes after hearing all about Experiment 10, I just had to see what it was all about. I did buy the fast track for the 4 so I could get them all done in the space of an hour! Many thanks to Tina for minding my bag for me whilst I done them! Muchly appreciated!
It was £17 really well spent. I loved all the mazes! Experiment 10 was my personal favourite along with Asylum. Both were very well thought out and very well done. Se7en I done back in 07 (geez, that seems ages ago now...) and it was much better than before and I did really enjoy it.
Curse was certainly the weaker of the 4, didn't enjoy it as much as the others, but that could also be down to the couple behind me twatting around for most of it and the one person on the back of me nearly strangling me when actors got too close. :roll:

The Saw ERT was great as well. Many many thanks to Thorpe and Ian for arranging that one for us! I also didn't find it as bad as normal, certainly no headache from it! It was also so very smooth in the back in comparison to the front! I did enjoy my 4 rides and was well worth getting a taxi to the park rather than the chav express so I could attend it.

Once again, I had a fantastic time, it was great to see people again, especially as I know it'll be a while before I can again. Thanks to all involved, it was fab!

Oh and bring on Swarm, it looks delicious!

 

[Aaron]

^Rach I'd love a full size copy of that pic if you have it plz?

 

[SaiyanHajime]

Some more photos for those sans Facebook.

Gift for Will. <3

Bubbleworks Sue still dancing...

The terribly drawn box of mints Scarlet won in the faffffffle.

Best ride on Dragon Falls ever. Full boat of whyyy.
[imghttps://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/s720x720/313140_10150436948821271_644541270_10668798_1566477225_n.jpg[/img]

Scarlet's FACE.<3

MORE Slayed dancing.

Here's the whole album. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... 59ff9c642d

 

[MouseAT]

It's video time!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wG7VNnzDnM[/youtube]

As always, if you want to watch the high definition version in full screen, you can do so at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wG7VNnzDnM.

Enjoy! Now I'm off to get some more SLEEP!