Oakwood Discussion

[thefatone]

Still better than anything on The Flume.

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Not really. Bathtub water effects and stupidly scary duck pisses all over the skull rock theming.

I love Oakwood, and I love that they've attempted theming, however Skull Rock's stuff utterly sucks. The rest of the area is really well done though. But the warehouse with a couple of things to look at (and they speak but you cannot hear them) is awful.

 

[Sam]

Shock news!

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT...

RIDE BRER RABBIT FOR THE LAST TIME!

Since 2001 our Brer Rabbit ride has been entertaining guests of all ages. Although intended as a ride to primarily entertain the youngsters, Brer Rabbit has actually proven to be a popular ride for every generation and has even gained 'cult' status amongst many of our guests.

Now we're getting ready to say Bye Bye to Brer and his fellow bunnies, with the ride closing its doors for the last time on the 3rd November, in order to make way for an exciting new future development.

Are you sad to see this ride go? Will you be joining us this week to say farewell to the rabbits and hear Brer's mischievous story one last time?

Brer hopes you can join us!

Brer was a bit rubbish, so happy about this. I wonder if they're going to go down the Blackpool route and use the ride system and route for a new, probably IP-based, dark ride? Though actually, the throughput with that train thing is appalling. I'd much rather they just bulldoze the whole thing and use the land for something new.

Spooky 3D next please!

 

[Anonymous]

I've got a feeling a new coaster is on the way!

 

[joelpagett]

They may do something like Hobbs Pitt at Pleasurwood Hills which used a similar system and created a totally different experience to what it used to be? Or they will just buldoze it

 

[13fangirl]

Apparently Oakwood are planning on using Brer Rabbit as just a. Que line for a new ride. Is this a waste? Due to lazy engineering when they could be doing something useful with Brer?

 

[Enter Valhalla]

Apparently Oakwood are planning on using Brer Rabbit as just a. Que line for a new ride. Is this a waste? Due to lazy engineering when they could be doing something useful with Brer?

Well I think it's good to finally see some development in that Wild West area. Sadly it doesn't sound like it's going to be anything anywhere near as big as we'd hoped... which disappoints me since I never got a chance to ride Knightmare

If Brer is being used as a queue line, it does beg the question of whether a park as small as Oakwood needs such a long queue line for whatever new ride they decide to put in. I'm guessing the new development will be, at best, a second hand coaster re-themed, likethey di with the log flume and junior dragon/ corcodile coaster. Does that require a queue line as long as Brer's tunnel, hat was a pretty big tunnel. Speed's queue lineis literallly just one curve round a hill and I've never seen that full despite Speed's abysmally low throughput.

Going back t the subject of wild West, that Dixie Diner place just needs rippingout and replacing with something. It literally never seems to open anymore

 

[Sam]

Apparently Oakwood are planning on using Brer Rabbit as just a. Que line for a new ride.

[citation needed]

But cool if they are. As a ride it was pretty crap, but if they ripped up all the tracks and re-used the space as a queueline for a coaster, it'd be one of the best queues in the UK.

Where are you getting your info from, 13fangirl?

 

[13fangirl]

I got the info from a usually very reliable source of Oakwood information. I'm sure you'll appreciate that I can't go into too much detail for their sake and also nothing's been officially announced yet. This was the same source that told me in March last year about Neverland but it didn't get officially announced until May. I'm guessing that they don't know 100% so we will have to wait and see up to a point. But it's a strong possibility. I had never considered that it might be a que line till now. Fixing Brer's problems was apparently going to cost alot and involve alot of work.

 

[BigAl]

Just spotted this on Oakwood's Facebook:

OAKWOOD THEME PARK SEEKS HEAD OF MARKETING

About the Company
Oakwood Theme Park, one of Wale’s top tourist’s attractions and one of the top ten theme parks in the UK has an opening for a Head of Marketing to join its team.

About the Role
Reporting to the Park Director of Oakwood, your primary focus will be to drive the business forward using innovative marketing and sales techniques to increase visitor numbers, revenue and market share.

Your interpersonal skills will be excellent, ensuring you can build successful and professional relationships both externally and internally. You will help develop the sales systems and actively encourage a ‘sales culture’.

You will be responsible for generating new business to achieve our ambitious growth strategy and aspiration to become the most desired leisure attraction to visit in the UK.

Key Aims of the Role
• To develop strategies in order to grow the business and ensure maximum exposure for Oakwood Theme Park within the Welsh/Irish and UK markets.
• To build brand awareness through building and capitalising on a wide range of network of contacts externally
• Develop a detailed Marketing Plan and implement the communications strategies (media – traditional, digital, and social; PR, and sales promotions) using agencies, specialists, and market research where appropriate.
• Management of third party and partnership relationships including contact generation, pitch presentations, deal negotiation and successful implementation of activity
• Be responsible for our Seasonal Sales & Beach Teams

As an experienced sales and marketing professional you will have excellent negotiating skills, brand management, sales and networking skills as well as a proven track record of building professional relationships. Your creative flair will ensure you are always thinking outside the box and are innovative in your ideas you bring to the table.

This is a full time post which involves working 5 days a week and often includes working weekends and Bank Holidays and late nights during the season.

A full driving licence and a car owner are essential criteria.

If you have the attributes, experience and enthusiasm we are looking for please apply with covering letter along with your CV and outlining your salary expectations to Janeen Pickup, Group HR Manager, c/o Blue Planet Aquarium, Cheshire Oaks, Cheshire, CH65 9LF. Email: [email protected]

Aspro Ocio is a Spanish multinational company with its headquarters based in Madrid. Aspro owns and operates over 40 leisure attractions across Europe.

Here in the UK Aspro owns and operates Blue Planet Aquarium Aquarium, Deep Sea World, Bristol Aquarium, 4 Blue Reef Aquariums, Smugglers Adventure and Oakwood Theme Park.

Applications must be received by Saturday, 18th January 2014

 

[James]

Aside from the fact that The Smiler actually holds the world record P) .... just a fun post or something a bit more serious?

Oakwood certainly needs another star roller coaster for the park to compliment Megaphobia and Speed.

 

[Anonymous]

Aside from the fact that The Smiler actually holds the world record P) .... just a fun post or something a bit more serious?

Oakwood certainly needs another star roller coaster for the park to compliment Megaphobia and Speed.

Strictly speaking Ejanaika got there first, but that's for another discussion. Haha!

But on the subject of a 4D at Oakwood. HELL YES!

 

[Tom]

I think the Guinness Book of Records recognised it as the seats spin, but it did differentiate between track inversions and other 'flips', as it named Colossus at the same time.

 

[Benzin]

How on earth can Oakwood afford a S&S 4D coaster?

Probably taken inspiration from Thorpe's FB, randomly posting images of rides for market research...

 

[Anonymous]

The post has since been deleted. Pretty strange...

 

[Tom]

Reverse psychology I think, but very interesting.

 

[Sam]

'similar'

They're not considering an S&S 4D, obviously. Presumably they're thinking of installing an Intamin ball coaster for 2015:

 

[Ted]

The Intamin ball coaster seems like a pretty good investment for Oakwood! It'd be the first of its kind in the UK.

How much do they cost?

 

[James]

They only cost a few million don't they? Other parks have bought them for roughly £3 million so that's easily within the kind of budgets we assume Oakwood would have for a new coaster.

Strictly speaking Ejanaika got there first, but that's for another discussion. Haha!

But on the subject of a 4D at Oakwood. HELL YES!

It's debatable. Although as it stands right now Guinness World Records mark it down as track inversions so The Smiler wins hands down.

 

[John]

If Oakwood are genuinely considering a Ball Coaster, I would have thought this is more likely:

 

[CGM]

S&S's new compact 4D model is very similar to the Intamin ball coaster so they could be looking at one of those. They mention controlled spinning in the press release. I think that the S&S model uses magnets to influence the position of the cars rather than the free spinning of the Intamin model.

Quite how Fiji Q managed to convince Guinness that Eejanaika inverts 14 times I have no idea. I have never seen anyone in the coaster community acknowledge the record. I certainly don't as it clearly doesn't invert riders 14 times, nowhere near in fact. Since when did the orientation of the track have any bearing on whether the riders are inverted?