Oblivion (roller coaster)

Oblivion
Oblivion's vertical drop.
Location	Alton Towers
Park section	X-Sector
Coordinates	52°59′12″N 1°53′47″W
Status	Operating
Opened	14 March 1998
Cost	£12,000,000
Type	Steel - Dive Coaster
Manufacturer	Bolliger & Mabillard
Designer	John Wardley
Model	Dive Coaster
Lift/launch system	Chain lift hill
Height	65 ft (20 m)
Drop	180 ft (55 m)
Length	1,222 ft (372 m)
Max speed	68 mph (109 km/h)
Inversions	0
Duration	1:15
Max vertical angle	88.8°
Capacity	1,920 riders per hour
Max G force	4.5
Height restriction	4 ft 6 in (137 cm)
Single rider line available
Oblivion at RCDB
Pictures of Oblivion at RCDB
Amusement Parks Portal

Oblivion is a steel roller coaster located at Alton Towers in England. The ride opened as the world's first vertical drop roller coaster on March 14th 1998 amidst a large publicity campaign. The ride has a height restriction of 1.4 metres. With a maximum speed of 68 mph, it is the third fastest roller coaster in the UK and the fastest and tallest rollercoaster in Alton Towers.

History

During 1997, Fantasy World (the area of Alton Towers in which Oblivion was eventually situated) was closed off and all the old fantasy-themed rides were removed except the Black Hole. Surrounding the area were signs announcing the arrival of a world's first, codenamed "SW4". Over the year, Alton Towers' secrecy and the ever-deepening hole being excavated fueled speculation and hype. The details about Oblivion were finally unveiled in March 1998.

The "SW4" codename stood for "Secret Weapon 4". SW3 was Nemesis, and SW 1 & 2 were unbuilt roller coasters originally intended for the Nemesis site.

Oblivion's opening was accompanied by a massive publicity drive, including appearances on Blue Peter, The Gadget Show, news channels and cereal boxes.

Before Oblivion opened, in 1997, some marketing memorabilia was released, and its own brand of deodorant (Which were brought back for the 2011 season).

When Oblivion did open, it brought a totally new theme to the area. It was themed to look like a sinister government facility, unlike the fairground theme that Fantasy World had previously had. This meant that a re-theme was needed and thus the area was renamed X-Sector. The only surviving ride from Fantasy World, the Black Hole roller coaster, was also changed: the large tent that it was situated in was repainted to blue and silver instead of green and yellow stripes. To make the new X-Sector a major ride area, Alton Towers added two old rides from other parts of the park: Energizer and Enterprise (both from Festival Park, now Dark Forest). Both rides were repainted to fit to the new theme like the Black Hole tent (however, Energizer was removed from the area in 2001 to make way for a new flat ride, Submission; Energizer was relocated back to Ug Land and renamed Boneshaker until its removal from park in 2004).

In 2011, the area around Oblivion has been given a slight revamp to incorporate promotion for Fanta, the ride's new sponsor. With posters saying '150 ft drop, bring it on', despite the fact that the drop is actually 180ft.

Statistics

• Construction started: Early 1997
• Designed by: John Wardley
• Manufacturer: Bolliger and Mabillard
• Ride type: Dive Coaster
• Constructed by: JJ Cavanagh Construction
• Ride opened: 14 March 1998
• Total cost: Approx £12 million
• Length: Approx. 377 metres
• Highest drop: Approx. 180 ft (55 m)
• Height Above Ground: Approx 65 ft (20 m)
• Top speed: Approx. 68 mph
• Maximum G force: 4.5G
• Number of trains: 7 (only 6 in use at any one time)
• Passengers per train: 16
• Max throughput per hour: 1900
• Ride duration: Approx. 76 seconds

Ride experience

While riders queue they are shown numerous videos showing The Lord of Darkness (played by Renny Krupinski). CODENAME:XD001 He apparently lives in the underground tunnel and tells you that the ride is perfectly safe. One of the videos shows his alter ego, the Lord of Light, who is shown warning riders that they might die, but the Lord of Darkness is also there with him maintaining that the ride is safe. Another video, shown at the cafe, is a mock news flash detailing how a ride car has gone missing. This fuels the rumours that cars have fallen into the pit and have never been recovered. The Lord of Darkness leaves the last video with mocking, booming laughter, just as riders board the ride. Before the ride shuttle leaves the station, another short clip shows him saying:

"For some things, there is no rational explanation. There is no way out. There is no happy ending to this story. Welcome to the unknown; welcome to eternal darkness; WELCOME...to oblivion."

This is quickly followed by the Lord of Darkness' head disappearing into the distance and then the sound of an explosion. These visuals are all designed to build up fear and tension before the drop.

A picture of Oblivion's drop, taken from the guest observation area.

The roller coaster has a simple layout with a 150 ft (46 m) drop at 88.8° degrees. As each car reaches the drop it is held by a drop chain (reverse of a lift chain) for a few seconds before the clutch is released allowing the riders to drop into a pitch black tunnel. This is followed by a 90° banked turn that climbs up and makes the train lie on its side as it goes through. Then after dropping out of the turn the train climbs over a small rise in the track to the brakes, slowing down, and then pulls around back to the station. The open design cars accommodate sixteen passengers in two rows of eight. The back row is slightly raised to give passengers a clear view of the drop. A pre-recorded and disembodied voice saying 'don't look down' was played just before release, unfortunately in 2004, this sound effect was removed due to sound restriction on the park. However, the words "Don't look down" have been painted on the floor of the guest observation area which is visible to riders when the train is hanging over the edge.

Although regarded as the world's first vertical drop roller coaster, at its steepest, Oblivion's drop has an angle of 88.8° as the ride vehicle's bogies are not spring loaded. To avoid a sudden jolt as the ride levels out, the drop was made at a 88.8° angle so the upper wheels remain more in contact with the track; if the drop was a 90° angled drop, negative G's would push the upper wheels slightly off the running rail and hit the track suddenly when leveling out, causing discomfort to riders and increasing the wear and tear on the wheels. Newer models of Oblivion's type have vehicles equipped with spring loaded bogies which allow the vehicle to drop at 90° and cushions the force of the wheels during leveling out.

External links

• Oblivion at the official Alton Towers website
• Oblivion at RCDB