ICON is an intense, world-class steel launch roller coaster located at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. As the United Kingdom’s first multi-launch roller coaster, this £16m attraction is widely considered one of the best coasters in the country, offering a highly interactive experience that weaves closely through existing rides and structures.
ICON at Blackpool Pleasure Beach
Manufactured by Mack Rides of Germany, ICON utilizes high-tech Linear Synchronous Motors (LSM) to propel the train along the track. The ride accelerates from 0 to 80km/h in just 2.25 seconds, before reaching a peak height of 88ft and a top speed of 85km/h. With its layout interacting closely with other rides and attractions 15 times during its journey, ICON holds the title of the world’s most interactive roller coaster.
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ICON Statistics
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- Current Wait Time: Loading…
- Top Speed: 85km/h (52mph)
- Original Cost: £16m
- Estimated Cost Today: £17m
- Track Length: 3750ft (1140m)
- Height: 88ft (25m)
- Manufacturer: Mack Rides
- Type: Steel Launched
- Lift/Launch: LSM-launch (x2)
- Inversions: 1
- G-Force: 4.3 G
- Trains: 3
- Passengers per Train: 16
- Ride Duration: 2m 41s
- Year Opened: 2018
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The ENSŌ Experience: A New Twist for 2022
In the 2022 season, the park introduced ENSŌ, a revolutionary spinning carriage upgrade attached to the rear of one of ICON’s trains. Named after the Zen Buddhist symbol for “circle,” ENSŌ allows the back two seats to rotate freely via a self-rotating magnetic mechanism. This provides dynamic, unpredictable spins and fresh viewpoints during every launch and inversion. Because there are only two spinning seats per train, this experience carries an additional up-charge, but it is an essential treat for returning fans looking to “dare to rotate.”
Engineering the World’s Most Interactive Ride
Blackpool Pleasure Beach is arguably the most ride-intensive amusement park on the planet, making the installation of ICON a formidable engineering challenge. To accommodate the layout, the track was designed to pass above, below, and between iconic existing attractions such as The Big One, Big Dipper, and Avalanche.
The construction utilized BIM (Building Information Modeling), a specialist computer software that allowed engineers to create a precise virtual model of the ride. This ensured that the ride’s safety envelope—the clearance area around the vehicle—was perfectly managed while navigating through existing infrastructure. Supporting the track required multiple specialized piling techniques due to the complex ground conditions at the site.
ICON Ride Station Logistics
Instead of the traditional track switching process, ICON utilizes a unique sliding station design. The entire platform, including the unloading area and storage lockers, slides horizontally to align the carriages with the service bay track, creating a streamlined and highly efficient operational process.
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