Thunderbolt (Kennywood)

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Thunderbolt
Kennywood's Thunderbolt
Location	Kennywood
Type	Wood
Status	Open
Opened	1924
Manufacturer	Andy Vettel & John A. Miller
Designer	Joseph E. Drambour
Track layout	Out and Back Roller Coaster
Height	70 ft (21 m)
Drop	95 ft (29 m)
Length	2,887 ft (880 m)
Max speed	55 mph (89 km/h)
Inversions	0
Duration	1:30
Height restriction	4 ft 4 in (130 cm)
Thunderbolt at RCDB Pictures of Thunderbolt at RCDB
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The Thunderbolt is a wooden roller coaster located at Kennywood Park in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh. Originally built by John A. Miller in 1924, the ride's name was Pippin until 1967, when it changed to Thunderbolt beginning with the 1968 season, coinciding with an expansion of the track headed up by Andy Vettel. The all-wood coaster follows the surrounding terrain with a track length of 2,887 feet (880 m). Its maximum height is 70 feet (21 m), but because of the track layout and the natural ravines on which the ride is set, the maximum drop is 95 feet (29 m). Reaching a maximum speed of 55 mph (88.5 km/h), the ride takes 90 seconds to complete its circuit.

The Thunderbolt's three Century Flyer trains were built by the National Amusement Device Company, carry 24 riders in four cars, are red, blue, or green with aluminum paneling, and have been operating since the Thunderbolt was known as the Pippin.

An interesting feature of the Thunderbolt is that after departing from the station, the train does not immediately go up the lift hill as on most other coasters. Instead, the lift hill is in the middle of the ride.

Most of the ride was left intact except for the double dip, station, and station turn-around to the first hill which were removed in 1968 for the addition of the new front helix hills necessary for the transformation of The Pippin into the new Thunderbolt roller coaster. The four drops down a ravine were incorporated in the Andy Vettel-designed Thunderbolt coaster. The Thunderbolt was rated the #1 roller coaster by the New York Times in 1974, and it still is the most popular ride at Kennywood. The Thunderbolt still uses the 1950s Pippin trains manufactured by the National Amusement Device Company, known as "flyers."

[edit] Timeline

In 1968, the Pippin roller coaster was rebuilt and the Thunderbolt was born.

In 1969, a small hill was removed from the front of the coaster near the loading station.

In 1998, for Kennywood's 100th anniversary, the headlights on the front of the trains were restored when the trains themselves were refurbished.

In 1999, there was an accident on the Thunderbolt when the operators failed to brake the car coming into the station and it collided with the car being loaded. Thirty people were injured in the crash. [1] After the accident the headlights on the cars were removed partially due to the fact that the electrical system did not hold up well to the vibration of the cars.

In 2006, the trains could be seen sporting the famous T-bolt logo on the fronts of the cars where the center headlights formerly were.

[edit] Awards and rankings

Thunderbolt is an ACE Coaster Classic.^[1]

Golden Ticket Awards: Top Wooden Roller Coasters[2][3][4]
Year	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007
Ranking	11	14	14	15	19	18	22[5]	19	21

Mitch Hawker's Internet Poll: Best Wooden-Tracked Roller Coaster
Year	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007
Ranking	34	40	50	42	48	44	48	49	45

NAPHA Survey: Favorite Wood Roller Coaster[6]
Year	2005	2006	2007
Ranking	4

[edit] References

v • d • e Roller coasters at Kennywood Exterminator · Jack Rabbit · Racer · Phantom's Revenge · Thunderbolt · Little Phantom

Coordinates: 40°23′20″N 79°51′54″W / 40.38889, -79.865