An exciting new thrill ride will be operating on Clacton Pier by early
summer, it has been confirmed.
All the refurbished component parts for the Looping Star have now been
delivered to the landmark attraction.
Managing Director Billy Ball said work on preparing for the ride is
progressing well and on schedule.
“We bought the Looping Star in 2019 and for various reasons – mainly due
to the storm damage – we have not been able to get it up as quickly as we
wanted,” he said.
“Having spent the money we need to be generating some income from it and
we are confident that will happen by early summer, probably be the end of May.
“People are likely to see the entire structure in place by the end of
April and then we will need to go through all the tests and procedures before
customers can go on it.
“The Looping Star is part of the Pier’s 150th birthday
celebrations this year and we know a lot of our customers are really looking forward
to its installation.”
The attraction – which will have a three car train with 12 seats – is replacing
the old Stella’s Revenge which was sold to the theme park in South America last
year.
The Looping star includes a ten metre loop and was bought from a park in
Scotland which is owned by relatives of Mr Ball.
It was originally made by the Italian firm, Pinfari, the oldest and most
successful transportable roller coaster manufacturers in the world.
The outdoor ride deck on the Pier has been revamped to accommodate the
new ride which will be erected on the west side.
An observation wheel – which is going through the planning process with
Tendring District Council – is expected to be in place ready for when the site
reopens for business after lockdown.
“The earliest date the Government has given is April 12 and we are
working towards that for certain areas of the Pier to be back operating,” added
Mr Ball.
“At this stage we expect it to be rides but it could include some other
attractions, depending on the guidelines.”
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