Pembrokeshire's Oakwood Theme Park says the two million dollar revamp of its famous Megafobia rollercoaster ahead of the 2023 season is continuing at a "rapid pace" - and is even offering enthusiasts a chance to own a piece of the original ride.
It revealed this week that it is auctioning off two sections of the original drop to raise money for two charities, Wales Air Ambulance and Greenacres Rescue, and will match the winning bid of each piece, up to a maximum of £500 per piece.
In the summer of 2022, the Theme Park appointed American rollercoaster design and construction company ‘The Gravity Group’ to undertake a $2M programme of retrack works on its famous wooden coaster ride.
Work started offsite last September, at the Gravity Group factory in Cincinnati, Ohio and the team have since arrived onsite at Oakwood Theme Park to commence the next phase of the project, including the first and second drops.
Oakwood says it expect works to be completed in early May, although this remains reliant on the delivery of materials from both Europe and the USA, which is being both shipped and flown into the UK.
"Works at Megafobia continue at a rapid pace, and we’ve recently seen the complete removal of the main drop track, walk boards and ledgers, these are the big timbers that the track sits on," stated an update from Oakwood.
"Some of the bents (support columns) have also been removed. These will be replaced for new, albeit at different sizes and heights to allow for our reprofiled and steeper drop.
"Over in Cincinnati, fabrication of the Vertical Engineered Track continues at pace.
"The beginning of the reprofiled drop has now been machined in preparation for shipping to the UK. Other sections of the ride left last week, and are due to arrive in the UK next week."
It added: "We’re auctioning off two sections of Megafobia’s original drop to raise money for two Welsh charities we actively support. You could have your very own section of Megafobia in your bedroom, lounge or garden!
"Each section comes from left hand track at the mid drop point, and includes the full track stack of eight timber layers, track running steel and side steel and comes complete with nails, bolts and saw marks! Furthermore, Oakwood Theme Park will match the winning bid of each piece, up to a maximum of £500 per piece."
Winning bidders will be contacted at the close of auction, and will have the opportunity to tour the Megafobia works upon collection of their track piece.
Details of the auction are available on the Oakwood Theme Park website.
Meanwhile the revamp of the Megaphobia rollercoaster, first opened in 1996, has been attracting interest nationally and internationally.
A spokesperson for Roller Coaster Club of Great Britain said: “The fantastic work being carried out on Megafobia will ensure that it is not only as good as new, but even better than when it opened in 1996!
"The re-tracking work is using the latest on wooden coaster technology will make this classic ride more exciting and thrilling than ever”.
And the European Coaster Club said: “It’s fantastic news that the much loved Megafobia is being given such a significant upgrade to become an even more thrilling and exciting wooden coaster that our members are already hyped to ride this summer on our annual club visit!
"The Gravity Group have a global reputation for upgrading wooden coasters and are well known for making the best even better. You can bet families and of course us coaster enthusiasts will love Megafobia 2.0”.
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