Cedar Point, Sandusky Ohio. One of the largest amusement parks in the world. A massive multi-mile resort with tons of rides, live events, beaches and 17 staggering roller coasters that is soon about to hit 18. Now this year, Cedar Point welcomes Top Thrill 2, a replacement coaster for Top Thrill Dragster.
What Happened to Top Thrill Dragster?
One of the most iconic coasters at the park was Top Thrill Dragster which wowed guests with its 420 foot drop and 120 mph launch speed. In August 2021, an accident occurred on the ride where a piece flew off of the ride and struck a woman in the head. She is still alive but she suffered minor brain damage and sued Intamin Manufacturing (The company that made Top Thrill Dragster) and Cedar Point. This closed the ride and many people thought it would never re-open due to its previous issues and frequent breakdowns throughout it’s lifetime.
The Revival of Top Thrill 2
Last year Zamperla Manufacturing took over and re-did the ride in a new way. They changed the color and added a new element to the ride to have guests come back to a “new experience”. Now, there will be three launches and the first will not be very fast and will make it halfway up the tophat (A tophat is an element dominantly featured on launched coasters. It is a massive hill shaped in the iconic top hat shape). Then, the train will roll back down and hit the same launch backwards as it shoots up a 420 foot tall spike which will Thrill the riders. Finally, it will fall down the spike, now facing forwards, and shoot up the original tophat, cresting the top and spiraling down the 420 foot tophat as the ride comes to a close. It debuts this May and has opened for pass holders. It will open with the park on May 4th.
Conclusion
This new transformation will draw in crowds and will surely be a hit. This will be a great way to re-advertise an old favorite and many are excited. This may be a new beginning for Zamperla as if the coaster is a success, more may be built and may reintroduce the hydraulic as an LSM (Linear Synchronous Motors) launch, after the model being dormant since Red Force opened at Ferrari Land in 2017.
Sources:
“Red Force, Coaster.” Red Force, Stats, Opening, and More., Port Aventura World,
www.portaventuraworld.com/en/ferrari-land/rides/red-force. Accessed 24 Apr.
2024.
Cedar Point Completes a New 420-Foot-Tall-Tower on Top Thrill 2. Blooloop,
blooloop.com/theme-park/news/cedar-point-completes-top-thrill-2/
#:~:text=The%20new%20ride%20is%20the,at%20a%2090%2Ddegree%20angle. Accessed
24 Apr. 2024.
Zamperla Lightning Model. www.zamperla.com/product/lightning. Accessed 24 Apr.
2024.
