With construction of Secret Weapon 8 well underway at Alton Towers Resort, MI7 has taken to the skies once again to bring us an exclusive aerial update from the construction site of the Resort’s first wooden roller coaster. We take a look at MI7’s latest transmission to see the latest progress across the Resort.
Secret Weapon 8
Some of the most significant progress has been on the lift hill which is now almost at its peak where the track will transition into the first drop. In anticipation of the next phase of construction of this section, supports have been added for the first drop. One third of the way up the lift hill the images clearly show the change in gradient, however at this stage it is unknown why this change is required. Approximately half way up the lift hill, metal supports have been added to the underside of the structure where, according to plans, a pathway will pass underneath the ride. Similar supports are also evident two thirds of the way up the hill where the track will pass through the ride structure. Further detail of these metal supports, as well as the rest of the lift hill can be seen in a number of close up images which have been sent to us by a member of the TTSP Community.
MI7’s aerial images also offer us a unique perspective of the station and maintenance building, including the layout of the track as the trains will exit the station, turning to the right and into the lower section of the building before banking left to engage with the lift hill. The final portion of the track can also be seen as the trains will enter the brake run before making a left turn to progress through the maintenance area and back around into the station. Work on the track in this area appears to be well advanced as both the aerial and close up images show the first layers of pine have been laid which will be further built up before the metal track is placed on top.
At the lower end of the site further additions have been made to what will eventually be the theming feature with even more metal work being added, and further wooden supports being installed in preparation for the track to pass through.
One thing which is evident from the aerial images is the difference in height between the highest point of the ride at the top of the lift hill, and the roller coaster’s lowest point where it passes through the theming feature, suggesting the roller coaster could potentially gather a fair amount of speed as it makes its way around the course. The images also offer us our clearest view yet of how the overall layout will look for the ride.
CBeebies Land Hotel
MI7 also took flight over the CBeebies Land Hotel to get one last look at progress on the Resort’s newest accommodation which opens this weekend (8th July). At the main entrance to the Hotel, the colourful rainbow arch has now been installed, along with the entrance theming feature. The Hotel car park has now been fully tarmacked and marked with just some final planting needed to finish the area.
General Update
As always, MI7 has also transmitted some stunning shots from across the Resort, including overhead images of Dark Forest, Forbidden Valley, and the Towers Ruins. One thing that is evident by the Towers Ruins is that preparations are already well underway for this year’s Scarefest with the bridge exiting the Towers (which for the past two years has formed part of the route for Sub Species: The End Games) already constructed. In further images sent to us by one of our community members, we can also see that the wooden platforms which lead across Her Ladyship’s Garden to the entrance of Terror in the Towers: What Lies Within have also been reinstated having been removed following last year’s event.
What are your thoughts on MI7’s latest transmission? Make sure you discuss your thoughts on this and more over on the Attraction Source Forum. As construction continues on various projects across the Resort, we’ll be sure to bring you all the latest updates.
