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Why?, Where?,
When?
Back in the mid to late 1970's, Alton Towers was a bustling
attraction, with a fun fair in the grounds of the Towers.
John Broome, then Managing Director of Alton Towers Ltd, decided
that he wanted to make the park into a new style of leisure
attraction. Then back in late 1979, 68 containers were shipped
to the U.K., and transported to Alton Towers. Inside were
massive steel structures which would change the fate of the
park forever. The Corkscrew is an Arrow design coaster, manufactured
by Vekoma, and cost back then £1.25 million. The ride
has had very little changed since then, apart from some new
trains in the mid-ninties, and a bit of a theme applied to
it in 1999 when Ug Land was created. These days, the Corkscrew
is showing its age, and people complain of the uncomfortable
ride it offers. The days of the Corkscrew may be numbered.
But What
Is It Like?
The queue winds its way around the perimeter of the coaster,
leading you into the loading station. You board your car,
and may notice how small and cramped they are. The shoulder
restraints come down, and here, adults will find that there
is very little room for movement on the arms, as the sides
of the car are very close to the restraints. The train leaves
the station, up the lift hill. The lift hill is quite high,
and gives views of Alton village below. A quick turn and dip
to the right increases your speed significantly, and takes
you into what is the best part of the ride. The first drop
is fast and steep, leaving your stomach somewhere a few cars
behind. A fast helix takes you into the double corkscrew,
and the on-ride photo. The rest of the course is pretty non-descript
with a couple of minor drops, and fast turns, but it is all
just a little too average to enjoy. Also, by this time, your
head will have been jolted around so much, that you may just
have a headache for a few minutes after leaving the loading
station.
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click image for
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Present
Day
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Pictures
from the past
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Construction
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construction pictures available |
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Submit
your photos
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If you have photos
we can use, especially from the past or construction
periods, then please email them to us at pictures@towersalmanac.com
(No bigger than 100k please)
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