Icon is a steel multi-launched roller coaster, located at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, in Lancashire, UK.
The ride not only opened as the United Kingdom’s first full circuit double-launch coaster,
but became the park’s first new roller coaster in over 10 years.
Icon has established itself within Blackpool as a must-do attraction, quickly becoming
one of the UK’s best roller coasters.
The ride itself opened to the public on the 25th of May 2018, at the cost of 16.25 million pounds.
This makes Icon one of the parks biggest all-time investments, and their first custom designed
brand new roller coaster since the Big One, in 1994.
Built by MACK Rides, the attraction is the company’s well known launch coaster model,
which accelerates riders to a high top speed, before allowing them to navigate a multitude
of twists, turns and inversions.
Like all of MACK’s launch coasters, Icon utilises Linear Synchronous Motors, LSM’s,
to propel guests in two separate locations.
Riders are both accelerated at the beginning of the experience, as well as part way through
the ride, ensuring the trains maintain a constant high speed.
As visitors walk up to the ride, they notice the details of the area.
According to member of the design team, Amanda Thompson, Icon has been stylised.
As oppose to a dedicated theme, the attraction features a general Japanese stylisation, in
the form of Toriis, the iconic Japanese arch structure, as well as paintings of Cherry Blossom.
Besides these, the ride carries an overall modern look.
Scattered throughout the area are golden icon daggers logos,
often found on the side of buildings.
Within the plaza, guests can hear the attraction’s custom designed soundtrack,
entitled ‘Icon: Dare to Ride’ by The Notable Stranger.
To join the queue line, guests pass through the ride’s entrance structure, a large archway
supported by two pillars.
The path towards the station building winds next to the initial launch of the coaster,
offering great interaction between those riding and those waiting.
This interaction is further enhanced at various points of the ride experience, as visitors
can watch the trains accelerate through the first launch, and dive into the 2nd.
After the short queue, guests enter Icon’s station, and board one of three ride vehicles.
The trains consist of 4 cars, each of which seat riders in 2 rows of 2.
This leads to a total of 16 guests per train.
Once visitors have boarded, and lowered their comfortable lap bar restraints, the trains
roll forwards out of the station.
Coming to a stop on the first launch straight, guests hear the intensity of the ride’s
soundtrack rise, before accelerating down the track towards a short tunnel.
At this point, riders quickly climb an airtime hill which travels beneath the lift hill of
the Big One, and plummet back towards the ground.
The trains then navigate an inclined loop, followed by a mixture of twists, leading riders
towards a series of snappy low to the ground banked turns.
Guests then climb towards their first inversion, an inline twist.
The trains slowly navigate the twist, which takes place through the inclined loop, before
diving down into the attractions 2nd tunnel element.
Riders emerge from the misted tunnel directly into the 2nd launch straight.
Guests are once again accelerated, this time to the maximum speed of 85kmh (53mph), directly
into the rides 2nd inversion, an Immelmann.
The trains climb the 27m (88.5ft) high structure, slowly navigating the top of the element,
before plummeting back towards the ground.
At this point, riders enter a snappy overbanked turn.
This is immediately followed by a curve to the left, an ejector airtime hill, a forceful
helix section, and a fly-over the rides entrance structure.
After completing an off-axis airtime hill, the remainder of the layout meanders back
towards the station building, allowing guests to enter the final brake run.
During the 75 second experience, riders traverse through 2 inversions, and navigate a total
of 1143m (3750ft) of track.
Like many roller coasters within the United Kingdom, Icon shows that rides don’t have
to be tall, or fast, to provide a fantastic experience.
Icon’s lap bar restraints, which remain a rarity in the country on inverting coasters,
help to enhance the ride further by securing guests in an open and free manor.
On top of this, the attraction’s interaction with the parks other roller coasters provides
fantastic head chopper moments throughout the layout.
It is because of these factors that Icon has quickly become one of the UK’s greatest
theme park attractions, with many stating it to be the best roller coaster in the country.
Therefore, the final question remains: What’s your opinion?
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