Steel Force (roller coaster)

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Steel Force

Location Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom
Type Steel - Sit down
Status Open
Opened May 30, 1997
Manufacturer D.H. Morgan Manufacturing
Designer Steve Okamoto
Height 200 ft (61 m)
Drop 205 ft (62.5 m)
Length 5600 ft (1706.9 m)
Max speed 75 mph (120.7 km/h)
Duration 3:00
Capacity 1700 riders per hour
Cost US$10,000,000
Max G force 2.5
Steel Force at RCDB
Pictures of Steel Force at RCDB


Steel Force is a roller coaster at Dorney Park in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Built by Morgan Manufacturing and designed by Steve Okamoto, it opened in 1997 as a coaster just barely qualifying as a hypercoaster, its lift hill being exactly 200 feet tall. It is 5,600 feet in length and has a 205-foot first drop and a top speed of 75 mph. Gives the rider over 2.5 G's at the bottom of the first hill. Two 120ft tunnels and a 510-degree helix accentuate Steel Force’s high speed thrills. After its midcourse brake run, the coaster has four “camelback” humps to provide airtime on its return to the station.

It takes three minutes for 36 passengers seated two by three in one of three trains to ride the 2000 tons of steel and 12,150,000 pounds of concrete footings held together with 2,742 anchor bolts. Steel Force provides for 1700 riders an hour.

When Steel Force was opened it laid claim to being the longest, fastest, and tallest roller coaster on the East Coast, since losing that title it has been ranked among the top 10 steel coasters in the world.

Steel Force’s logo was originally intended for the stand-up coaster Mantis, which had opened at Cedar Point a year earlier. Mantis initially was to be named “Banshee,” but had its name changed for sensitivity reasons. The logo was no longer appropriate after the name change, so Dorney Park adopted it for its Steel Force coaster a year later.


Golden Ticket Awards: Best Steel Coaster
Year 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Ranking
4
4
6
16
11
14
15


Roller coasters at Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom

Dragon Coaster - Hydra the Revenge - Laser
Little Laser - Steel Force - Talon - Thunderhawk
Wild Mouse - Woodstock's Express

Past:    Flying Dutchman - Hercules
Scenic Railway - Wild Mouse