I went away for the weekend with my girlfriends last week, and on the Saturday we visited Blackpool Pleasure Beach for the day. With the weather in Blackpool being tropical, it was never going to rain, it was never going to pour, it was never going to make us so drenched we were wetter than we would have been in the shower - that would just never happen! Here is what happened!
I was pretty apprehensive beforehand, the idea of being strapped into a seat, with no chance of breaking free was something that didn't put a smile on my face. However, pre-stroke, the adrenaline rush I got on a roller-coaster was not one I'd shied away from, and I wasn't going to let a bit of anxiety ruin my day out.
The first ride we went on was called ''Flying Machine''. It was the first ride when we walked into the park, and considering as soon as we walked through the door it began to pour with rain, we joined the first queue we saw so we didn't have to wander around in the rain for ages. We queued for about 20 minutes before it started to dry up a little bit, we waited to get into our seats and once we were sat down the rain decided to pour again. The little carriages were then lifted into the air and they went around in circles like a giant carousal. In the wind and rain, all we could think about was getting of the ride, with myself and Robyn just complaining the whole way around. When we got off we were drenched so we went and bought some pleasure beach ponchos, and used the log flume dryers to dry out.
Eventually the rain began to pass over, and the sun even began to shine a little bit. After a couple more gentle rides, we decided to head for some lunch - the coffee and cake went down a treat, and we then decided to join the queues for some of the more thrilling rides.
The Grand National ride was the next on our agenda. Robyn doesn't like big rides so she headed off to the arcade to try to win herself a cuddly toy, while we waited to get out seats. The rain seemed to have put people off and the queues were quite small so we didn't have to wait too long. I sat with Bridie, with Alex and Alice in front, and Abi on her own in the carriage before that. I had no idea what I had signed up for, the ride was much longer, much higher, much faster, much bumper than I had thought and with Bridie refusing to hold on the entire time, my nerves were shattered. When I came off the ride, my heart was pounding and my hair was so windswept I looked like I'd been dragged through a hedge. But the feeling of the bar being pushed down wasn't one that worried me too much (even if I did check it ten times).
Next up was the Big Dipper, a very similar ride, that Alice and Robyn weren't fussed about so they headed off for some food, while we waited. Once we got seated I was really enjoying it, until we began to climb the first big hill, and it stopped suddenly and started to slide backwards before it locked into place. The heart started pounding and the tears came, and I just shut my eyes and cried the rest of the way around - thank you girls for trying your best to reassure me.
And with that, my thrill seeking day came to an end. Abi, Alex and Bridie headed for infusion, so they could be tipped upside down and inside out, they said they'd try it without me but if they thought I'd enjoy it they would go on it again with me. Needless to say they came back pretty speechless and were definitely not falling over themselves to do it again - ''upside down more than upright'' was something I think I heard Alex say!
Despite the pretty shambolic weather, we still had a great time, and I would definitely go back again!
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