A SOUTH Lakeland daredevil climbed to the top of the tallest rollercoaster in the UK without a harness on a windy and rainy day.

Thrill-seeker Kain Hogg, from Kendal, risked his life scaling the 213-foot high The Big One at Blackpool Pleasure Beach with two friends.

The 20-year-old defended his actions, saying he was not trying to 'cause trouble'.

But David Walker, leisure safety manager at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, warned against ‘normalising’ this kind of behaviour.

And bosses at the theme park blasted the stunt as 'irresponsible'.

 

“We wanted to be able to accomplish climbing the highest rollercoaster in the UK and the fourth highest in Europe,” said Mr Hogg.

“As a group we’ve climbed many structures before. Cranes, bridges, buildings, but nothing like this.

“I’ve climbed for around four years. So I’ve always enjoyed being at the highest point in a city.

“We love photography and the best shots are always at the places you aren’t necessary allowed in. But we aren’t here to cause trouble and waste police time.”

Mr Hogg posted a video clip from the top of the rollercoaster to video-sharing platform TikTok.

But Mr Walker said: “An appetite for adventure is fine – commendable even – but done in the right context.

“The bottom line is that if things go wrong, it does not only impact on the individual involved but also their family, the emergency services and staff who work at places like this.

“Part of the risk is normalising this kind of behaviour and causing copycat activities by young people.

“We urge people to think about that before they do this and post it online.”

Mr Hogg said the trio found it easy to get into the Pleasure Beach as there were ‘many places to climb over’.

“Our emotions were mixed,” he said.

“Adrenaline was pumping and the excitement of climbing the structure was our main emotion.

“We weren’t too bothered about security or police but we were hoping we wouldn’t encounter either of them.

“We climbed it with zero safety equipment.

“We were not concerned for our safety but security were as we climbed this when it was very windy and rainy.”

Mr Hogg said previous climbs had taken him up buildings in Canary Wharf, London, shopping centres in Manchester and lots of cranes - including one in Liverpool on Sunday.

A spokesman for Blackpool Pleasure Beach described the trio’s actions as ‘dangerous and irresponsible’.

He said security patrols became aware of ‘intruders’ at the theme park at around 7pm on July 7. They were ‘apprehended and handed over to the police’.

“Blackpool Pleasure Beach’s security team operate with vigilance over a 24-hour period across the 42-acre site, assisted by CCTV surveillance, monitoring activity on the grounds of Blackpool Pleasure Beach,” he said.

A spokesman for Lancashire Constabulary said no arrests were made.

Mr Hogg said there had been no repercussions as yet and that the trio had ‘not heard from the park’s board of directors on our stunt.’

“The police were very nice,” he said. “And the police officer genuinely stated that ‘in 17 years I’ve worked for the Lancashire police I’ve never been called to something like this.’

“The policeman even hinted that he was slightly unfortunate to have not seen us on the very top.”

At the time that it opened in 1994, The Big One, then known as The Pepsi Max Big One, was the tallest rollercoaster in the world. Blackpool Pleasure Beach says it is also one of the longest rollercoasters, at more than a mile in length. The first drop on the ride has an incline of 65 degrees.