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Is a new wooden coaster for the UK actually a good idea?

SaiyanHajime

CF Legend
I'll keep this short and to the point.

We all know the rumours about why the UK won't get wood, apparently people think they are dangerous and outdated. Probably because all the wood coaster we do have are old and dangerous... And any Brits may go and ride abroad (Gwazi, Stampeda) are pretty damn terrible.

Do you think a wooden coaster could actually be successful in the UK despite this research?

I'd be worried that no UK park would be capable of maintaining a wooden coaster sufficiently well enough for it not to be absolutely dire in a few years. Can you imagine what it would be like at a Merlin park. :/

What do you think?

Wood for the UK? Good idea or terrible idea?
 
Bad.

The Chavs want steel coasters with loops and all. Enthusiasts would love it but the rest of the country? I'm not sure...
 
I think somewhere like Drayton or Flaminge would do well with one.

It's served Oakwood and Blackpool well, so, why shouldn't somewhere else be able to?
 
New woodies do well around the world don't they? I don't think there would be as negative reception here as you say,

Surely the manufacturers would warn parks of the maintenance requirements? And obviously there is the threat of ADIPS inspection yearly to ensure that they are staying on top of their needs.

The only modern woodie (I think) I've ridden is gwazi but I've heard good things about other recent ones so I would quite like to see another one!
 
Az said:
The only modern woodie (I think) I've ridden is gwazi but I've heard good things about other recent ones so I would quite like to see another one!
If this is true, then it's tragic. ;)
 
Er, thanks... :-/

But yes, I believe it is, unfortunately my coaster bank is not as in credit as I'd like it to be (bit like my actual bank lol)

I've been on the old ones like scenic railways and the ones at Blackpool but don't think any other recent woodies I've been on count as modern;

Zeus, Parc Asterix
Megafobia, Oakwood
Magnus Colossus, Terra Mitica

Perhaps even gwazi doesn't?
 
Poor Az.

I do think, a well maintained woodie would do wonders. I do remember the days of talking about a Woodie in China was just stupid.. yet here we are.

Of course, all you need is one good one at a major park to set off the boom.
 
I don't think I'd count Gwazi as a modern woodie in the same way that I see El Toro or Troy as a modern woodie. T'was only a joke though. ;)

- - -

I really don't know about a woodie for this country. I mean, the ones that exist are clearly quite good (well, Megafobia and Grand National), but I don't know how much exposure they get. Megafobia is fairly out of the way and I only know a few people who've heard/ridden it outside enthusiasts. Blackpool is different I think, as it's famous for 'old' woodies.

I think if a park was to take the gamble, and built a properly good ride, then we'd see it being a success, but the issue is that investments like coasters are so big that you don't want to gamble it being a flop either. I mean, I'm not putting forward much of an opinion, but I think it's the sad (and maybe obvious) truth.
 
There's no reason why a woodie couldn't be built in the UK. We have seen simple designs that give real competition to steel counterparts in every other part of the world. As Snoo said, it just takes good upkeep and maintenance.
 
Another problem is that I think the longer a park goes without adding one, the more difficult a time they're going to have in justifying and marketing it. Wooden coasters are the gaming PCs of the coaster world. They are expensive in comparison with the "console" coasters, and require more time and effort to keep clean/upgrade/swap out old parts. They're also multi-purpose though, and capable of delivering experiences other platforms/coasters aren't, and so they're valuable. The problem is convincing people they need to spend more to get more, if they've been spoiled with cheaper "consoles" that may only be good for 3-5 years.
 
^That's a really good analogy except that woodies are cheaper than steel coasters in the initial investment ;)

And I kinda think the fact we haven't seen one in AGES could work for the park if they played their cards right. Just make it out like it's all crazy and different cause it's made of WOOD!
 
Oh, well I guess they're like desktop PCs over laptops then? You can upgrade/keep value in desktops but laptops are far, far harder to upgrade and so depreciate/become obsolete much faster? Whee analogies.

I think given Gravity Group's new cheapo model that we're certainly more likely than we ever have been to see another around here somewhere.
 
^That's true, we've all been asking ourselves 'what's left to do' in terms of a world first for Alton to market, but the public haven't had a wooden coaster marketed to them for years. I think it would work if someone took the gamble, I just don't think that anyone is likely to do that
 
I think it would be a good thing for the UK to get one. I mean, they're actually very popular, in Blackpool, Nash, Big Dipper & Roller Coaster sometimes have larger queues then most other rides, before anyone says about the dispatch time, it isn't, it's popularity.

As stated above, with the release of the new GG and GCI cheaper, small models, I think it could be possible we see another woodie in the UK in a few years to come...
 
I would love to see a woodie at Drayton Manor. It would suit that park so well.

I could never see their being a woodie a Thorpe though.
 
I think this is the toughest sell for any park in the UK (in terms of both to management/investors and to the public) and certainly the biggest risk we as enthusiasts face.

For most Brits, wooden coasters are old things. Our experience of them are as old objects. When we travel to Florida, etc, I suspect we take that misconception with us too. Stampeda, Gwazi etc? They give a similar ride to the old coasters in the UK, so why would we think of them as modern devices?

We have Megafobia of course in the UK which goes against this, but it's so far out of the way it's not really in anyone's mind when they think of wooden coasters (if they're aware of it at all).

The UK public won't (generally) have a great positive view of wooden coasters. The people in charge of deciding on getting one will also be well aware of this. It doesn't help that Megafobia hasn't been a great success in terms of dragging people to the arse-end of nowhere ;)

I think that people are right that they think that we (the UK public) are constantly after the latest and greatest piece of ride technology. "It needs loops and and to shoot you around and to be scary as **** and everything!!!"

Yet in reality, people like rides. People like PMBO and Infusion. They don't care that these are poor examples of the ride types, they like them because they meet what they think of in a coaster. For people who don't ride coasters very often, they're a good ride.

People want satisfaction from their coasters and it doesn't have to come from something new, they do have taste and they do like a good ride. It's why the wooden coasters at Blackpool remain ever popular, at heart, they're not actually bad rides - but more importantly, they match people's expectations of what a coaster should be. Lift hill, big drop, arms up, screams and lots of up and down. It works within their sphere of experience.

The problem is, if somebody in the UK takes the plunge and makes a new coaster, what is it going to be? Are we going to see a smaller scale "family wood"? Another Antelope that is completely overlooked (for good reason)?

Without a lot of confidence in it, parks are likely to plump for the "cheaper option". Dipping their toes into the water of wooden coasters. Something lite on budget, small in scale so that if it doesn't work out (which they don't think it will), hasn't cost too much in terms of space and money.

It's a worryingly possible attitude and that's where the danger lies. If Drayton or Flamingoland went down this route, it wouldn't show any other park that wood is the future. We know as enthusiasts that wood can be every bit as exciting as steel. We have seen in Europe and America that people understand the much rawer thrill of the wooden coaster and lap it up (lift hill, steep drop, arms up, screams, lots of up and down). However, a half-arsed "it'll never take off anyway" attitude will simply prove to the UK industry that they're right. The public don't like them, they don't bring people in and if any park does make one and do it badly, will result in us never getting another wooden coaster in the country again.

So as much as we want (I'd say need) a new wooden coaster to help kick off a desperately needed "good coaster" collection in the UK - it has to be handled correctly, by the right people with the right budget and the right attitude. I don't know if that's something we have in the UK or not, but we need to hope beyond hope that if it's done, we get it done properly that first time around.
 
I think, in the UK, wooden coasters have a good marketing strategy of 'you're going to die if you ride this, look how old and rickety it is!' And that definitely it the conception of woodies over here, as various market research has proved. But then, once people ride it (initially for the fear of omggunnadie) they COULD realise that actually, this is really fast and fun, and thus will reride. Then, they'll tell their friends. Then more parks will get them. Yay!

I wish this would happen, I really do. Woodies ride completely differently to steel coasters, and I much prefer it. I just wish I had been on more to be able to do a proper comparison.
 
I think Britain does need a new woodie. Not sure where It'd go though though most likely to a smaller park like FL, DMP or LWV.

In terms of what GP think, until I told him about a year ago, one of my friends had no idea you could get wooden coasters and now sees them as something cool, intresting and most importantly, fun. With that, I'm hopeful.
 
The two main points seem to boil down to:

1. Will a woodie bring people to the park?

2. Will it ride like crap in 10 years time?

In answer to number one, I don't believe that people would look at a new GCI and automatically think its going to ride like Grand National. If you put an advert on TV and give some good shots of airtime hills and overbanked curves then it's going to look fun, it doesn't matter if its built of steel or wood. Therefore I don't believe that it would be more diffucult to advertise to the UK or any other country, if anything installing a brand new woodie when there hasn't been one built in England for decades would spark interest in itself. If the coaster looks impressive and rides well then it will be popular.

Regarding point two, who knows . . . It's all down to the park and how much money and attention they're going to put into it. It's clear from other countries that with the right staff on the job, and by replacing materials when needed you can keep a woodie in shape, Blackpool have been doing it for years, admittedly some of their woodies are in poor shape now but they've been operating the best part of 100 years. But it's also clear that if the park don't put the effort in the ride will deteriorate, probably quicker than a steel coaster, but a woodie would still be cheaper to restore.
 
Most of this has been covered so i will keep it short and sweet.

Merlin won't take the risk, that has been stated many times, yet Alton Towers is the perfect location for one, so shame.

I think you have to look at independant parks, owned and run by enthusiasts who can see the potential benefits of investing in one, Colin Bryan has always been fond of them, however he's been spouting that for the past 5 years, so maybe we can rule out DMP, Yet look at flamingo Land and you have a realistic possibility, we all know the chap than runs the place is a huge enthusiast (Sorry, can't get his name as Jimmy Wales has closed down Wiki for 24 hours, Moron!), so it's surely only a matter of time before he has a butchers at a bit of wood. here's hoping!
 
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