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Cedar Point: General Discussion

John_P said:
https://sanduskyregister.com/news/371583/update-top-thrill-dragster-to-remain-closed-in-2022/

Top Thrill Dragster is remaining closed for the 2022 season.

Really looking unlikely it'll ever open again at this point.

So they'll be 2 coasters down from last season now as well with no replacements in site.
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I wouldn’t necessarily declare it done for just yet; Steel Dragon 2000 was shut for 3 years after a similar incident, so we’re still within the timeframe where it could eventually reopen. On a more positive note, the Ohio Department of Agriculture found no issue with the ride when they inspected it. Perhaps it’s just undergoing a refurbishment?

Sorry if I’m missing something obvious here, but what is the second coaster that Cedar Point is missing compared to 2021?
 
Matt N said:
Sorry if I’m missing something obvious here, but what is the second coaster that Cedar Point is missing compared to 2021?
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Wicked Twister.

I am not sure Dragster is down for the count, there are probably a few options. Cedar Fair does have history with demolishing problematic rides, but equally they keep some headaches ticking over. They've just repainted Xcelerator so that doesn't seem to be going anywhere any time soon.
 
Accelerator is smaller and in California, TTD has to put up with those ridiculous winters along with 120mph launches every 45 seconds during its operating day.
Knotts could conceivably worry if they remove it they won't get permission for a substantial replacement, Cedar Point wouldn't have the same problem.

I do hope it reopens but with its age as well its another strike against it.

Maybe keep the top hat for the iconic image and turn the structure into a drop tower.

Then give Alan Schilke a call and ask him about those 500 foot roller coasters he can build.
 
Rick said:
Wicked Twister.
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Ah, of course… I forgot about WT! Cheers @Rick!

For my money, TTD would be a pretty huge loss from Cedar Point’s lineup if it went. It’s the park’s tallest and fastest coaster, so if coasters with similar status within their respective parks in the UK are anything to go by, I’d imagine TTD is pretty popular! Is it popular among park goers at CP?

While I’m admittedly not sure about TTD’s popularity, I’m not sure that they could manage a Wicked Twister-style removal with fairly limited fanfare quite as easily, if only due to the ride’s raw size. And while Cedar Fair has removed problematic rides in the past, I don’t think TTD’s problems come close to equaling the issues with the likes of Son of Beast (for which the 3-year SBNO period suggests that Cedar Fair did at least ponder saving it).
 
Top Thrill Dragster is THE coaster at Cedar Point. Definitely the one that would draw enthusiasts and visitors from outside of Ohio to the park more than any other. It's the original and best strata coaster.
 
Matt N said:
On a more positive note, the Ohio Department of Agriculture found no issue with the ride when they inspected it.
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Not necessarily a possitive, that. The ride seriously hurt someone while not having any identified underlying fault or issue. If a fault was found it could be fixed with checks and process in place to prevent reoccurrence, but if it can do that without fault how do you prevent it happening I the future? Is it inherently dangerous by design? How do you make it safe?

You can't just open it and hope it doesn't happen again, the risk is far too great...
 
pluk said:
Not necessarily a possitive, that. The ride seriously hurt someone while not having any identified underlying fault or issue. If a fault was found it could be fixed with checks and process in place to prevent reoccurrence, but if it can do that without fault how do you prevent it happening I the future? Is it inherently dangerous by design? How do you make it safe?

You can't just open it and hope it doesn't happen again, the risk is far too great...
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That’s a good point…

Perhaps that’s what the 2022 closure is for? Maybe they’re working out what they can do to help it operate safely again, and plan to refurbish it accordingly?

Another person also pointed out that the ride likely wouldn’t have had much off-season maintenance thus far due to the investigation, and 2021’s off-season maintenance was hampered due to COVID, so maybe this closure is just to allow some properly thorough maintenance to happen on it before a 2023 reopening?
 
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John_P said:
Top Thrill Dragster is THE coaster at Cedar Point. Definitely the one that would draw enthusiasts and visitors from outside of Ohio to the park more than any other. It's the original and best strata coaster.
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I'm not sure I buy this, Dragster doesn't feel like the park's signature ride, but it's an icon of the skyline, for sure. If people are drawn for the ride, in my experience they have a 50% chance it'll run at all and there's every chance it will be closed for a good chunk of your visit, in my 6 or so visits since it opened, I think it's run on half of those.

If they can find a way to do something with it, they might. I also don't buy the view that it's all plain sailing outside of this issue. If you overlook the reliability headaches, the ride has had its fair share of issues and caused a number of injuries, mostly due to cable mishaps. In its earlier years a number of things were modified to improve its reliability and this did seem to help, but age has not been kind. It just feels like something that's too big, too complex, too painful to maintain and that will only get worse with age. If you're going to write it off as a bad job, surely it's best to do that after it's maimed someone.

Is there a civil case pending between the park and the injured guest? I haven't seen much about that.
 
Rick said:
I'm not sure I buy this, Dragster doesn't feel like the park's signature ride, but it's an icon of the skyline, for sure. If people are drawn for the ride, in my experience they have a 50% chance it'll run at all and there's every chance it will be closed for a good chunk of your visit, in my 6 or so visits since it opened, I think it's run on half of those.

If they can find a way to do something with it, they might. I also don't buy the view that it's all plain sailing outside of this issue. If you overlook the reliability headaches, the ride has had its fair share of issues and caused a number of injuries, mostly due to cable mishaps. In its earlier years a number of things were modified to improve its reliability and this did seem to help, but age has not been kind. It just feels like something that's too big, too complex, too painful to maintain and that will only get worse with age. If you're going to write it off as a bad job, surely it's best to do that after it's maimed someone.

Is there a civil case pending between the park and the injured guest? I haven't seen much about that.
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I thought you must be exaggerating, but I've just looked on Queue Times, and Top Thrill Dragster has had 56% availability since 2016. Even Merlin would have some concerns about that:
https://queue-times.com/parks/50/stats

To give a comparison, X2 at Magic Mountain has a relatively respectable 86%.

I've never been to Cedar Point, but for me Top Thrill Dragster does feel like their most iconic ride. Losing it would be a massive blow. But that is really poor availability.
 
Funcone said:
I thought you must be exaggerating, but I've just looked on Queue Times, and Top Thrill Dragster has had 56% availability since 2016. Even Merlin would have some concerns about that:
https://queue-times.com/parks/50/stats

To give a comparison, X2 at Magic Mountain has a relatively respectable 86%.

I've never been to Cedar Point, but for me Top Thrill Dragster does feel like their most iconic ride. Losing it would be a massive blow. But that is really poor availability.
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How does that compare with other Intamin hydraulic launch coasters?
 
Skyscraper said:
How does that compare with other Intamin hydraulic launch coasters?
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Well Xcelerator was mentioned in this topic, as it's at another Cedar Fair park. According to Queue Times that's had 94% availability. That's only since 2018 (it doesn't look like Knott's Berry Farm's been on Queue Times for as long as Cedar Point), but there's a big difference between 56% and 94%.
 
Skyscraper said:
How does that compare with other Intamin hydraulic launch coasters?
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For some perspective, Rita is 87%... which of the big 7, is interestingly only lower than Nemesis & Oblivion: https://queue-times.com/parks/1/stats

And Stealth at Thorpe is 82%: https://queue-times.com/parks/2/stats

And looking at the other strata coaster, Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure, that is only slightly higher at 62%: https://queue-times.com/parks/37/stats

Perhaps it's an issue unique to the 2 strata coasters?
 
Thinking I am going to try and get out to Sandusky again this year. It's been four years, which is the longest I haven't been since the first time I went.

I am feeling extremely old of late. Maverick is 15 years old in the next couple of months, it feels like it opened yesterday.
 
Rick said:
Thinking I am going to try and get out to Sandusky again this year. It's been four years, which is the longest I haven't been since the first time I went.

I am feeling extremely old of late. Maverick is 15 years old in the next couple of months, it feels like it opened yesterday.
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Crikey, I remember watching a documentary (Megabuilders I think?) following its construction! 🙃
 
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