I do think that a family thrill scale GCI/Gravity Group for Oakwood would be great. Drenched replaced with some kind of elevator lift water coaster and a mining themed area, inspired by Tornado Springs, would all be amazing for the park's future.

I think the immediate future for this park is to target families.
Make spooky 3D story ride instead of spooky.
The space by speed could be the next area worked on I think.
As it’s quite flat.

I'd love to see a compact launched coaster, something along the lines of Fury at Bobbejaanland, Helix at Liseberg, Junker at Alahärmä, etc. A launched Gerstlauer would be a good proposition as it's not too intimidating for families, it's not too big or costly, and Oakwood has proof that Gerstlauers can draw crowds there. I do have waking nightmares of Oakwood getting a pre-owned SLC or Boomerang, though *shudders*

With Alton Towers rumoured to be removing Spinball Whizzer from its line-up, would this be a good investment for Oakwood? Attracting more guests is surely the aim, so would this prove a 'cheaper' way of doing this without the big-bucks of a brand new coaster?

Not heard this rumour.

Any ride would at this point, they really need investment and something to shout about again.

Mattovey1984 wrote:

With Alton Towers rumoured to be removing Spinball Whizzer from its line-up

I had no clue that Spinball was rumoured to go. Is there some kind of source on this, if you don't mind me asking about the source.

Also, this would be amazing for Oakwood. A new signature rollercoaster for the park indeed

Coaster Chall wrote:

Mattovey1984 wrote:

With Alton Towers rumoured to be removing Spinball Whizzer from its line-up

I had no clue that Spinball was rumoured to go. Is there some kind of source on this, if you don't mind me asking about the source.

Also, this would be amazing for Oakwood. A new signature rollercoaster for the park indeed

The rumours have been about for a while. Whether there is any truth in this, no one 100% knows. Shawn Sandbrook from Theme Park Worldwide thinks it will be removed soon, as does Sean Evans (Lift Hills and Thrills). These are two people who live very close to Alton Towers and Shawn used to work at Alton Towers, so perhaps he has some inside info?

As a dedicated Alton Towers community I'd hope you would hear it here first if that was true!

Every coaster comes to the end of its life at some point, but Spinball, and any Maurer spinning coaster is far cheaper to replace in parts than other coasters.

It was only a few years ago that large parts of Dragon's Fury were removed and replaced due to excessive wear and tear, and the ride vehicles are cheaper to replace individually than a larger coaster train.

I feel there is still plenty of life left in it, especially as it is so popular. The removal also depends on whether the land is earmarked for development - but there are plenty of other vacant spots to install new attractions first.

Chris wrote:

As a dedicated Alton Towers community I'd hope you would hear it here first if that was true!

Every coaster comes to the end of its life at some point, but Spinball, and any Maurer spinning coaster is far cheaper to replace in parts than other coasters.

It was only a few years ago that large parts of Dragon's Fury were removed and replaced due to excessive wear and tear, and the ride vehicles are cheaper to replace individually than a larger coaster train.

I feel there is still plenty of life left in it, especially as it is so popular. The removal also depends on whether the land is earmarked for development - but there are plenty of other vacant spots to install new attractions first.

I was wondering why it would be removed, because there is alway a queue for it. If it was removed though, I would still say it would be a good investment for Oakwood. I do like the ride as its a different dimension to the other coasters in the park and it would be sad to see it leave and not go to another UK Park that needs something to draw crowds back after the 2020 season.