Amusement Tomorrow

Is it really just because of Zamperla? On August 1, 2023, Cedar Point announced the reimagining of the formerly defunct Top Thrill Dragster that operated at the Point from 2003 to late 2021. After a very unfortunate accident, Top Thrill Dragster ceased operation and from then on, rumors started about what would happen to it. As the tallest and fastest roller coaster at the time of its opening and as a coaster that stood at the limit pushing Cedar Point, it was mostly thought that the ride would be renovated. After more than a year silent, Cedar Point released a statement on September 8, 2022 confirming that “Top Thrill Dragster, as [we] know it, is being retired” (@cedarpoint on X). With this, even more speculation began.

Top Thrill 2 will open at Cedar Point in 2024 as a (mostly) all-new ride. The track and tower that were the main element of Dragster will remain in place with a new launch track and all new height matching 420 foot tall, vertical spike adorning the back half of the also all new multi launch system. The ride will feature all new trains and systems courtesy of Zamperla, an Italian amusement ride manufacturer that is looking to establish itself in the large scale coaster market. Top Thrill 2 will roll riders out of its predecessor’s original station and on to a brand new launch track. New LSM, magnet technology developed by Zamperla themselves. As said by Ramon Rosario, Zamperla’s Director of Sales for the US, “As Cedar Point continues its tradition of roller coaster excellence, Top Thrill 2 stands as a testament to the park’s commitment to delivering unmatched thrills and extraordinary guest experiences. The ride’s innovative design, breathtaking speeds, and technological elements will undoubtedly captivate roller coaster enthusiasts and thrill-seekers alike and the new 420-foot-tall spike tower will redefine the famous Cedar Point skyline.”  

Since the announcement, there has been a steep dip in hype for the reimagined attraction. Despite the usual efforts done by the Cedar Point PR team, Top Thrill 2 has left the scene as other announcements are made. This is very unusual for Cedar Point announcements. A new Cedar Point ride especially roller coaster captures and dominates the attention of enthusiasts for months on end and Top Thrill 2 seems to be getting only just about as much attention as Wild Mouse, the recently added 2023 spinning family coaster. Why is this?

Top Thrill 2 is extremely marketable in itself. Many people already know of the famed Dragster and many most likely missed the news of its closure through its timing around the pandemic. Dragster was not in operation for very long coming out of 2020 closures and only operated half of the 2021 season. While yes, Top Thrill 2 adds an incredibly intriguing spike, this hasn’t been enough to win over the group that would continue discussion around the coaster’s addition, the coaster enthusiasts. As far as I saw, beside the park’s initial marketing, the only repost/edit of the announcement that gained widespread popularity was an Attractions Magazine TikTok/Reel. The announcement caught the attention of the public, but didn’t keep it stuck on the hook for very long. The public media that has covered the coaster has seen much fanfare and excitement though. Local news in Ohio always do a very good job covering the coaster, though details may be exaggerated at times. Many people are extremely excited about the coaster, but many are also afraid to take on the experience. The ride will be very intense and honestly looks pretty scary which I believe will cause many casual riders bow out of riding. Many enthusiasts are also claiming that they are not going be riding. These claims are most likely hollow, but it’s interesting to hear their reasons why…

Roller coaster enthusiasts have simply not kept the conversation surrounding Top Thrill 2 going. Much hype surrounded the announcement and it seemed as though everyone was talking about what the new attraction would look like. Concepts came into headlines that were extremely exciting and the spike was all but confirmed, with speculation surrounding whether or not it would be twisting. As soon as the coaster was announced there was certainly excitement, but that died seemingly quickly. Let’s just get down to it though, this will be the second tallest roller coaster in the world, the third fastest, and there is going to be a 420ft tall vertical, straight spike.

Top Thrill 2 is going to be an incredible experience and I am so glad that that section of the park will finally come to life again. With Dragster dead in the middle of the park, Cedar Point these past few years hasn’t felt complete. Dragster had my favorite ride experience in the world when it was operational. Was it the best roller coaster? Not necessarily, no. But the experience it provided was so above and beyond, I am so glad that we get to ride even a sliver of what it was before.

One of the best views on any coaster came from the top of the original tower. 420ft up high is really no joke and of course, if you look to the right on a clear day, you can see Canada. That’s such an insane fact. The new guaranteed rollback is also going to be really terrifying. No, I never got to experience a Dragster rollback which I am sure was absolutely insane, but now every single cycle will feature one. A backward 30mph boost from 70mph-100mph will be jarring for sure, but super intense. From that intense launch will then be a 420ft tall vertical, straight up and straight down spike will ride like a dream (or nightmare I guess). That element is so under hyped right now, I foresee that it will be a highly favored element for enthusiasts. Then from that free fall drop into another boost all the way back up the original tower, with that incredible twisting drop into the brakes, Top Thrill 2 is no joke. If it doesn’t win a ton of awards next year I’d be shocked. So, why do the enthusiasts not like it? Clearly I am the odd one out here with how excited I am.

The main reasoning that I can gather is the manufacturer, Zamperla. They have never built a ride quite like Top Thrill 2 before. Really actually, anything like it before. But to be fair, no one has except Intamin. Intamin is the original manufacturer of Top Thrill Dragster, but it is a ride that they really do not credit themselves with at all, having removed it from their online installation catalog since its closure, which they don’t normally do. They manufactured the accelerator models all around the world with the original Xcelerator at Knott’s Berry Farm (probably due for its Top Thrill 2 treatment in the near future), Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure which is Dragster’s, younger, taller, faster brother and Formula Rossa at Ferrari World Dubai which doesn’t have the height, but does feature the speed as the fastest roller coaster in the world. 14 roller coasters total are accredited to the Intamin Accelerator model, but the technology powering their show stopping launches is all but defunct at this point.

Intamin no longer manufacture the hydraulic launch systems that power these blazing fast roller coasters. In the United States, only three roller coasters feature this system including the previously mentioned Xcelerator and Kingda Ka, as well as the recently opened Matugani at Lost Island Theme Park in Iowa. They have switched to magnetic launches for their recent additions. These magnetic systems are much more reliable for consistent operations. Originally thought to be inefficient and not strong enough for speeds as high as Top Thrill 2 would require, quick innovation has proven that a 120mph launch in a relatively short distance will be possible. The complexity of the old Dragster system when compared to the new magnetic system is wild. The amount of moving parts that Dragster featured is truly incomprehensible. I hope we get some sort of “making of” documentary like we got for Velocicoaster, but that is probably unlikely at this point.

In this case though, Intamin has no connection to Top Thrill 2. Top Thrill 2 will be about as Intamin as Phantom’s Revenge is Arrow Dynamics. But clearly here, Zamperla is taking a lot of inspiration from Intamin. By using these more reliable systems, Top Thrill 2 should absolutely be a much better ride all in all than it was before. The launch certainly won’t be as strong as before, simply because the speed and acceleration will be slower, but nothing compares to the intensity of an Intamin hydraulic launch. But saying that, the ride will most likely be in operation more than Dragster was. While again Zamperla hasn’t worked on a ride of this scale, their other models are quite reliable. Wild Mouse usually only closes for block issues or cleaning…

Cedar Point and the Cedar Fair chain as a whole has since dropped Intamin for that very reason. Intamin pushes the limits of what their systems can handle and it’s not guaranteed that Intamin rides are always going to be reliable or steadily operational. Cedar Point clearly struggled with Top Thrill Dragster and has with their other Intamin rides as well. This topic could create a whole separate article and has been covered in the “Problematic Coasters” series by ElToroRyan many times, but Intamin and Cedar Fair, just have a very inconsistent track record and both have gone separate directions with their services. Cedar Fair since 2010 has gone with other manufacturers such as B&M and GCI, both highly regarded for reliability in their respective fields. Cedar Fair also worked with RMC in 2018, but haven’t since that year after struggles with the operations of Steel Vengeance. The Cedar Fair additions since 2010 have been safe, high capacity, and nicely tested models. Which in my opinion, is a great strategy.

Last year though, Cedar Point expanded their manufacturer repertoire with Wild Mouse and Zamperla. With their Boardwalk reimagining of the Northeast section of the entrance area, Zamperla and Cedar Point worked on a new spinning family model. Wild Mouse is a great addition to Cedar Point and I see a bunch more of these going into parks literally anywhere. Small and compact, kind of the perfect addition for any park. We can only wait to see if that will actually happen, but the point is that Zamperla is definitely going to be a contender in the future as evident by Cedar Point and also Six Flags Fiesta Texas in 2024. It is also important to note that Kings Island is sort of testing Vekoma now. They are adding a Vekoma family coaster and we will see if possibly next year they add a large scale Vekoma roller coaster, but again we’ll have to wait.

Coaster enthusiasts are just stubborn in this case. I know that the rider count will be extremely high despite everything I’ve said. The ride may not top roller coaster ranking lists, but just like Dragster, it will provide one of the best ride experiences out there. Dragster was never the best “roller coaster” among the likes of an RMC or B&M giga coaster, but it was also a personal favorite. Do I think that Top Thrill 2 will be better than Dragster? I am not sure and I won’t be until it opens. Saying that, the launch, no won’t be as intense as before, but the huge spike will be insane and the backward 100mph launch will be certainly a crazy moment. And again, you do all of that before doing the old Dragster layout. Top Thrill 2 has a lot going for it and I hope there is good coverage of its construction because it will be really fun to follow along. It is extremely unlikely that Top Thrill 2 flops, but Cedar Point needs to be really on top of everything though and that is never guaranteed…

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