Corkscrew (Cedar Point)[]
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| Corkscrew | |
|---|---|
| [1]
The final inversion on Corkscrew | |
| Cedar Point | |
| Coordinates | 41°29′1″N 82°41′7.25″WCoordinates: 41°29′1″N 82°41′7.25″W |
| Status | Operating |
| Opening date | May 15, 1976 |
| Cost | $1,750,000 USD |
| General Statistics | |
| Type | Steel |
| Manufacturer | Arrow Dynamics |
| Designer | Ron Toomer |
| Model | Looping corkscrew roller coaster |
| Track layout | Out and Back |
| Height | 85 ft (26 m) |
| Drop | 65 ft (20 m) |
| Length | 2,050 ft (620 m) |
| Speed | 48 mph (77 km/h) |
| Inversions | 3 |
| Duration | 2:00 |
| Capacity | 1800 riders per hour |
| Height restriction | 4 ft 0 in (122 cm) |
| Trains | 3 trains with 6 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 24 riders per train. |
| Fast Lane available | |
| Corkscrew at RCDB | |
Corkscrew is a steel roller coaster at Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio. When built in 1976, it was the first roller coaster in the world with 3 inversions.
Contents[] |
General[]
The ride's station is located on the midway directly across from Top Thrill Dragster, between Power Tower and Magnum XL-200. Corkscrew was the first coaster to have inversions featuring a walkway underneath. It consists of an elevated station that houses the patriotic cars, made in combinations of red & white, white & blue, and blue & white. They are designed in this manner because they debuted in 1976, the U.S. Bicentennial.
Ride experience[]
Riders leave the station when the ride operator releases the pneumatic station brakes. The slight decline of the station allows the car to roll out down a small drop and around a declining 180 degree curve until the train reaches the chain lift. The lift operates at or near a speed of 5 mph (8.0 km/h) and ascends, at a 30 degree angle, an 85 foot (26 m) lift hill; then riders are dropped 65 feet (20 m) at a 45 degree angle, gaining speed up to 48 m.p.h (77 km/h). The next element is a bunny hop, so named for the quick rise and fall. The end of this hill is lower than the beginning. It then goes through a vertical loop (Corkscrew opened only 8 days after the first modern coaster to feature a vertical loop, Revolution at Six Flags Magic Mountain). It then coasts up an incline. After a piece of flat track, the train curves around a 180 degree descending turn, heading into the twin corkscrews over the midway of the park. In the "eye" of the corkscrews, it is traveling at 38 mph (61 km/h). It completes these two corkscrew loops, comes through trim and block brakes, and coasts back into the station.
The ride is 2,050 feet (620 m) long, consisting of blue tubular steel track with a 48-inch (1,200 mm) separation between tubes, built on 5 acres (20,000 m2), rides for 1 minute and 40 seconds, and has three 24-passenger trains. Almost daily, a train is transferred off the track once ridership reaches a point that permits two-train operation with little or no waiting in line. A different train is cycled off each day. The ride was designed by Ron Toomer and built by Arrow Dynamics. The total cost of construction was $1.75 million, and the ride has had over 30 million total riders since opening in May 1976.
Sister Coaster[]
Four years after the Corkscrew opened, a similar coaster - also known as Corkscrew - opened in Valleyfair in Shakopee, Minnesota. Rather than having the bunny hill, the Valleyfair model goes right into the loop, and the loop is followed by a short hill and an only slightly elevated curve, compared to the higher flat-topped hill and descending turn on the Cedar Point model. The Valleyfair model has a helix at the end.
Records[]
| Preceded by | First coaster with 3 inversions
May 1976–March 1980 |
Succeeded by |