Why?,
Where?, When?
Much secrecy surrounded
the new ride at Alton Towers during 1993. It was named SW3-
Secret Weapon 3, when construction began in the area called
Thunder Valley, next to the Thunder Looper. Before the park
opened in 1994, there was a massive advertising campaign on
television for the new attraction, but there was no hint to
what it was.
Once the park
opened, customers where treated to their first glance at the
ride while they traveled on the monorail from the car parks.
What Alton Towers had installed was the new B & M Suspended
Roller coaster, similar to ones seen in the U.S. The major
difference between those and Nemesis was that due to the height
restrictions, much of the ride was designed to go below ground
level, giving it a special quality that none of the others
had.
But
What Is It Like?
Nemesis is probably
one of the most impressive rides in more than one way or another,
with your first view of the ride arriving on the monorail
you will be higher than most of the actual ride itself, as
you glance at a twisted metal structure. When you enter Forbidden
Valley you will probably not see Nemesis but will most definitely
hear its 'roar'.
When you enter the
queue and probably after a trek through woodland surrounding
the ride you will start to go down into Nemesis' pit with
track structure surrounding you. You will also notice various
"blood" waterfalls all flowing towards a massive
lake of blood just feet away from people's legs at the base
of the vertical loop. Once inside the station and boarded
your car you are whisked out the alien structure which the
whole ride centres around, you are slowly pulled up the lift
hill, then as the clicking stops and everything momentarily
goes silent you quickly gain speed down a small drop then
into the first barrel roll, round a tight curve as you hurtle
towards Nemesis just second before you hit the station you
are whisked away in a zero-g-roll over the station then round
a tight 180 stall turn then down to the lowest part of the
ride with the lake of blood below pulling 4Gs in a vertical
loops then through a tunnel under the queue then probably
the only part of the ride for a breather - only a second or
so - as you go around a large 180 degree turn over many spectators
below, into a tunnel out of a tunnel into a tight barrel roll
just missing the smoking "Mushroom Cloud Tours"
bus perched off the edge of a cliff then into and out of another
tunnel then into a final turn in the break run.
Now time to get
your breath back after forty-five seconds of sheer, intense
thrill.
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Present
Day
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Pictures
from the past
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No pictures available
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Construction
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Submit
your photos
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If
you have photos we can use, especially from the past
or construction periods, then please email them to
us at pictures@towersalmanac.com
(No bigger than 100k please)
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