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IAAPA held its first tradeshow in almost two years last week in Barcelona. Expo Europe 2021 boasted 439 exhibiting companies. More than 8,500 participants attended the event, a little more than half the 2019 figure (15,900 attendees in Paris) Attending all 3 days of the tradeshow, I certainly noticed a comprehensive set of health protocols in place to adapt to the Covid-19 situation. Seats were set apart by at least 1 meter during conferences. Everyone except for presenters on stage was required to wear masks. Vaccination or a negative Covid test was also mandatory to attend, with staff conducting temperature checks at the entrance of the Conference Hall. Some photos of the trade floor: The educational programme offered several new developments, such as a panel discussion on inclusivity (featuring Mack Rides' Chief Sales Officer Thorsten Koebele) and... a marketing session on how to best use TikTok! Also new for 2021 was the Sustainability Day in collaboration with PortAventura. IAAPA certainly appears to keep out for societal and marketing trends. Plopsaland' Marketing Manager Charlotte Depuydt offered her insight on the new opportunities TikTok offers. Last but not least, I had the priviledge to interview yet again Sascha Czibulka and Daniel Schoppen, respectively Executive Vice-President and Vice-President Design & Development of Intamin. Both offered comments talking us through the process of designing Hot Racer and Kondaa among several highlight projects. "Big Dipper is a good showcase for our Hot Racer product. [...] We learned very quickly what were the limitations [of this model] because the geometrical boundaries of this area have pushed us completely into these limitations checks" explains M. Schoppen. Full video interview coming later this month!

Those “bolts” or up stop bolts were commonly referred to as “mushroom bolts” thanks to their shape. The wheels only help during the corners to keep the speed up and also to balance the carriage. The Mushroom bolts do all the hard work.

and once again....only ONE PASS holders are eligible to win the prize, not membership holders

Low key a shame we won't be seeing a huge celebration of 50 years at Sea World, but given Spooky Nights will be running on the weekends, that should suffice.

I’m a sucker for Arkham cause it was the first suspended/inverted coaster I ever went on when I was 10 years old (as I’m sure a lot of us Aussie enthusiasts can relate to 😂) Now 9 years later, I’ve been on Nemesis Inferno and the almighty Montu! Ye, I haven’t ridden any other SLCs, and B&M is just the master at inverted style coasters. I wouldn’t wait more than 20 minutes for Arkham when it was still breathing, and especially after seeing what the world offers in terms of coasters,I don’t think I would’ve gone back haha. I suppose Australian coaster enthusiasts who have not been on coasters abroad would have enjoyed Arkham so much more, and the last time I rode it, I hadn’t yet travelled sooo yehh. Just from what I remember, the new restraints had made a big difference, but I’m more than thrilled a replacement is on it’s way haha.

Here is some updated pictures of the expansion! Its crazy to now understand the size of H2Oasis, this will end up being a welcomed addition and will provide so much relief to Wet'n'Wild Junior in summer and on busier days.

Double Barrel is indeed complete and the final drop for Kaboom is in place too

Due to popular demand a new attraction will be installed at Adventure world! To help you get back on those rides you missed out on. Try our New Calisthenics class!

The new meerkats exhibit has been really well done. And is split across three levels. The new cafe is a nice setup too