Hyperia
Thorpe Park
LocationThorpe Park
Park sectionOld Town
Coordinates51°24′06″N 0°30′44″W / 51.401661°N 0.512266°W / 51.401661; -0.512266
StatusUnder construction
Opening dateSpring 2024 (expected)
Cost£18,000,000[1]
ReplacedLoggers Leap, Rocky Express, Timber Tug Boat[2]
General statistics
TypeSteel – Hypercoaster
ManufacturerMack Rides
ModelHypercoaster
Lift/launch systemChain lift hill
Height71.9 m (236 ft)
Speed81 mph (130 km/h)
Inversions2
Trains2 trains with 5 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 20 riders per train.
Hyperia at RCDB

Hyperia is a steel Hypercoaster currently under construction at Thorpe Park in Chertsey, Surrey, England, UK. It will be the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the UK. It is being built on the site formerly occupied by both Loggers Leap and Rocky Express, and is expected to open in Spring 2024.[3] The choice of the name "Hyperia" is a reference to the coaster's classification as a "hypercoaster", with the theming of the ride being inspired by the fearless goddess, Hyperia, aligning with the slogan "Find your fearless".

History

Background

Loggers Leap opened in 1989 in the southern corner of the park, where it became the tallest log flume in the UK at the time of its debut. The ride operated through to 2015, but failed to open the following year and was addressed by park representatives as being "under redevelopment".[4] In February 2019, Thorpe Park confirmed that the attraction had been permanently closed, stating that "the area [which] Logger's Leap once dominated will be forming part of our long term development plans".[5] The rest of Old Town officially closed for good in October 2021, which included the retirement of the park's Rocky Express and Timber Tug Boat.[2] Lumber Jump was rethemed as High Striker and relocated to the Amity area of the park for the 2022 season.[6]

Planning and Approval

In December 2021, Thorpe Park officially held a public consultation for their new coaster project in Old Town, releasing various renders and information online.[7] Codenamed Project Exodus, the proposed ride promised to become the tallest coaster in the UK at 236 feet (72 m) tall, displacing The Big One's 213-foot (65 m) height at Blackpool Pleasure Beach after nearly three decades.[8] Although a manufacturer was not listed at the time, park officials confirmed that they'd conducted noise tests on "a similar ride in Turkey" (correctly assumed to be Mack Rides' Hyper Coaster at Land of Legends Theme Park).[9]

On 14 March 2022, Thorpe Park submitted an extensive planning application to Runnymede Borough Council detailing the proposed redevelopments of Old Town and Project Exodus construction.[1][10] While the council eventually supported the park's development, sustained flood risk concerns from the Environment Agency prompted a project referral to the Secretary of State, who posed no objections to the project.[11] Runnymede Borough Council officially granted permission for Project Exodus on November 2, 2022, although the application's case officer Christine Ellera would later criticize the Environment Agency's poor communication in the approval, stating that, "A rollercoaster which was partly in the functional flood plain was never going to be straight forward planning application but it should not have been as difficult as it was. We had a positive working relationship with both the planning agents, Lichfields UK and the applicant Thorpe Park. The difficulty was the lack of ability to engage effectively with the Environment Agency. I’m sure the level of service they are providing or lack there of, is not how they want to deal with matters".[12][13]

Announcement

On 9 February 2023, Thorpe Park launched Club 236, a passholder competition to visit the park with the chance of being among the coaster's first public riders in 2024.[14] It was also confirmed that Project Exodus would be built by Mack Rides.[15] Further details were submitted to the council in May, depicting a Pearl Gold and Papyrus White colour scheme – the structure's upper sections would be painted white in order to reduce its visual impact outside of the park.[16] In August 2023, it was announced that Project Exodus would not only be the UK's tallest coaster, but also the fastest.[17]

During the development phase, Merlin Entertainments – through the alias Vista Maxima Services LTD – initially filed a trademark for ICARUS in March 2023. However, HYPERIA was submitted later on in August, and would go on to become the final name of the ride.[18] Hyperia was formally announced on 5 October 2023 and accompanied by a promotional video that not only introduced the coaster's name but also presented its slogan, "Find your fearless." The video further provided a point-of-view (POV) glimpse into the ride experience.[19][20]

Construction Timeline

2021 - 2022
  • 2 November 2022; Project Exodus approved by the Runnymede Borough Council.[12]
  • December 2022; Demolition begins on Logger's Leap and the Old Town area.[21]
2023
  • 9 January; Ride foundation cages delivered to the park.[22]
  • April; Construction crews mark out locations for the structure's foundations.[23]
  • 22 July; First delivery of coaster supports arrive from Mack Rides.[24]
  • 28 September; First coaster track pieces arrive at Thorpe Park.[25]
  • 9 October; First support structure pieces installed at the ride's outerbank.[26]
  • 11 October; First track sections lifted into place.[27]
  • 16 October; Steel framework begins to be set up for the coaster's station.[28]
  • 22 October; A separate set of steel framework begins going up for the maintenance shed.[29]

In mid-November 2023, Thorpe Park placed tickets for Sunday 24 March on general sale to the public. This represented the first day of the 2024 season that was on sale, and combined with the tickets purchase link being placed on Hyperia's webpage, it became expected that 24 March 2024 was the targeted opening date for Hyperia.[30]

Characteristics

Plans released by the park suggest that the ride will be around 72 meters tall, reach a maximum speed of ~128 km/h, and feature 2 inversions.[31] The golden elements in the logo correspond to the golden and white track.

The rollercoaster's speed is predicted to be roughly 81 to 82 miles per hour, potentially dethroning Stealth (also at Thorpe Park), having a top speed of ~80mph, as the fastest rollercoaster in the UK. However, considering the minimal difference between these speeds, there is some ambiguity regarding whether Hyperia will indeed surpass it in reality.[32]

References

  1. 1 2 "Thorpe Park submits £18m rollercoaster plans". RideRater. 14 March 2022. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  2. 1 2 Ross (30 November 2021). "Thorpe Park – Goodbye Old Town Rides!". themeparkrm.com. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  3. ↑ Site Plan as Existing. Thorpe Park. Archived from the original on 2021-12-10. Retrieved 2022-03-24
  4. ↑ Talbot, Charlotte (25 January 2017). "Thorpe Park's Logger's Leap to remain closed for 2017 for 'redevelopment'". Surrey Advertiser. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  5. ↑ "Will Loggers Leap be re-opening?". THORPE PARK Resort. An Island Like No Other. Archived from the original on 22 February 2019. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
  6. ↑ "High Striker, Thorpe Park". Theme Park James. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  7. ↑ "Thorpe Park 2024 Rollercoaster Public Consultation Plans Uploaded". Theme Park Guide. 10 December 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  8. ↑ White, Steven (14 December 2021). "Thorpe Park new rollercoaster: 5 new things we just learned from public consultation". Surrey Advertiser. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  9. ↑ Marden, Duane. "Hyper Coaster  (Land of Legends Theme Park)". Roller Coaster DataBase.
  10. ↑ "Planning Application: Redevelopment of 'Old Town' area within Thorpe Park". Runnymede Borough Council. 14 March 2022.
  11. ↑ Lewis (3 November 2022). "UK's tallest rollercoaster Project Exodus approved for Thorpe Park Resort". Attraction Source. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  12. 1 2 "Town And Country Planning (Development Management Procedure)(England) Order 2015". Runnymede Borough Council. 2 November 2022.
  13. ↑ "Christine Ellera". LinkedIn. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  14. ↑ @THORPEPARK (9 February 2023). "Who wants to be on the FIRST public ride of our BRAND NEW..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  15. ↑ "Thorpe Park – Hyperia (Project Exodus)". 18 October 2023.
  16. ↑ Carly (4 May 2023). "Thorpe Park Resort submit details of external materials for Project Exodus". Attraction Source. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  17. ↑ @THORPEPARK (16 August 2023). "We couldn't let #NationalRollercoasterDay go by without mentioning a little thing we call 'Project Exodus'-our new #coaster coming soon to #ThorpePark😉🎢
    Not only is it going to be the UK's tallest #rollercoaster, but it'll also be the UK's fastest!🎢✨
    orlo.uk/News_U5POL"     (Tweet). Retrieved 18 October 2023 – via Twitter.
  18. ↑ @jaystocky (16 August 2023). "hmmm" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  19. ↑ Boyd, Milo (6 October 2023). "Thorpe Park's new ride will be 'UK's tallest and fastest rollercoaster' and it looks epic". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  20. ↑ Graves, Kieran (11 October 2023). "New Thorpe Park rollercoaster named as on-board video teased". Surrey Advertiser. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  21. ↑ "Thorpe Park Old Town Demolition Begins". Theme Park Guide. 29 December 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  22. ↑ "Project Exodus Ride Foundation Footers Delivered". themeparkguide.co.uk. 9 January 2023.
  23. ↑ "Project Exodus Footer Markings Appear On The Construction Site For Thorpe Park's New Roller Coaster!". themeparkinsanity.co.uk. 22 April 2023.
  24. ↑ "Ride Supports For Project Exodus Delivered". themeparkguide.co.uk. 22 July 2023.
  25. ↑ "Thorpe Park: Project Exodus track arrives!". ukthemeparkspy.co.uk. 28 September 2023.
  26. ↑ @ParkWorldMag (13 October 2023). "Hyperia- the UK's soon to be fastest and tallest rollercoaster..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  27. ↑ @ThorpeParkMania (11 October 2023). "Hyperia - up close and personal!..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  28. ↑ @J_Silkstone (16 October 2023). "Latest Hyperia construction!! 🏗️🎢..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  29. ↑ @AttractionSc (22 October 2023). "Hyperia's train storage garage foundation is complete, and the building..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  30. ↑ Hyperia: 24 March opening date expected. RideRater. 18 November 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
  31. ↑ Genprofilelink("newsplusnotes") (22 March 2022). "Thorpe Park Planning Large New Roller Coaster". NewsPlusNotes. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
  32. ↑ RideRater (5 October 2023). "Hyperia: Thorpe Park rollercoaster named | RideRater". Retrieved 17 October 2023.
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