Phantom's Revenge

Phantom's Revenge
Previously known as Steel Phantom (1991-2000)
Kennywood
Coordinates	40°23′20″N 79°51′58″W / 40.388992°N 79.865978°W / 40.388992; -79.865978Coordinates: 40°23′20″N 79°51′58″W / 40.388992°N 79.865978°W / 40.388992; -79.865978
Status	Operating
Opening date	May 10, 1991 May 19, 2001Renovation
Closing date	September 4, 2000 (2000-09-04) as Steel Phantom
Cost	$4.6 million
Replaced	Laser Loop
General statistics
Type	Steel
Manufacturer	D. H. Morgan Manufacturing
Designer	Henry Henninger
Model	Hypercoaster
Track layout	Terrain
Lift/launch system	Chain lift hill
Height	160 ft (49 m)
Drop	228 ft (69 m)
Length	3,200 ft (980 m)
Speed	85 mph (137 km/h)
Inversions	0
Duration	1:57
Max vertical angle	52°
Capacity	1400 riders per hour
G-force	3.5
Height restriction	48 in (122 cm)
Trains	2 trains with 7 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 28 riders per train.
Phantom's Revenge at RCDB Pictures of Phantom's Revenge at RCDB

Phantom's Revenge (formerly known as Steel Phantom) is a steel roller coaster at Kennywood in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, United States. When it opened in 1991, it was the fastest roller coaster and had the longest drop of any roller coaster in the world. The ride is a hypercoaster that was originally manufactured by Arrow Dynamics. After the 2000 season, D.H. Morgan Manufacturing was brought in to renovate the ride, most notably to remove the four inversions. Unlike most roller coasters, the ride's second drop through Thunderbolt's structure is longer than its first drop.

As of 2012, Phantom's Revenge is in a three-way tie for 10th place of the world's fastest steel coasters, along with Goliath at Six Flags Magic Mountain, and Titan at Six Flags Over Texas. The ride has been ranked in the Golden Ticket Awards every year since 2000. It has been ranked in the top 10 every year since 2002. In addition, it has been ranked in the top 25 of Mitch Hawker's Best Steel Roller Coaster Poll every year since 2001 and in the top 5 of the National Amusement Park Historical Association Favorite Steel Roller Coaster poll every year except 2008.

History

Henry Henniger, the president of Kennywood Entertainment Company, wanted a large steel coaster in the late 1980s. The park had only built wooden roller coasts in the past. The park also had a very tight layout and they were not sure how to fit it into the park. On July 27, 1990, Kennywood announced the name of their new roller coaster would be Steel Phantom and it would use the same station as Laser Loop, which it replaced.^[2] The ride opened on May 10, 1991^[3] as the fastest and steepest steel roller coaster in the world. It was also the first hypercoaster in the world to feature inversions. The inversions were a vertical loop, a "batwing" double-inversion, and a corkscrew. As a result of the inversions, riders experienced more-than-usual head banging. Shortly after its debut, a trim brake was added because the coaster was going faster than it should through the inversions and riders were experiencing pain in their necks.^[4][5]

In March 2000, Kennywood announced that they would dismantle Steel Phantom. A replacement for Steel Phantom was not announced at the time. "Just about anything is on the table" said Kennywood spokeswoman, Mary Lou Rosemeyer.^[6] After the decision to remove Steel Phantom was announced, the park started receiving complaints and emails about the decision. Kennywood ultimately decided to keep the roller coaster but make modifications to it.^[7][8] After the ride closed on Labor Day weekend in 2000,^[9] Steel Phantom underwent extensive changes by D. H. Morgan Manufacturing, most notably the removal of all of its inversions.^[8] According to Kennywood, this was done because of many riders' complaints of how rough the coaster was on their heads and necks. The modified coaster reopened on May 19, 2001 as the Phantom's Revenge.^[10] The coaster only operated with one train in its first season. In 2002, magnetic brakes were added to the ride so a second train could be used.^[5] Phantom's Revenge now has a top speed of 85 mph (137 km/h),^[7] putting it in a three-way tie for 10th place of the world's fastest steel coasters, along with Goliath at Six Flags Magic Mountain, and Titan at Six Flags Over Texas.^[11] Due to the modifications, both Morgan style and Arrow style track are used on the coaster.^[7]

Ride experience

The ride is considered to be a terrain roller coaster, meaning the ride experiences various elevation changes. Unlike most roller coasters, Steel Phantom's second drop is longer than the first. It drops through Thunderbolt's structure, which is located at the bottom of a hill in a ravine. Also unlike most hyper coasters, Steel Phantom originally opened with four inversions. These inversions were removed after the 2000 season.

Layout

The notable second drop of Phantom's Revenge.

Phantom's Revenge

After leaving the station, the train makes a slight turn to the right before climbing the 160-foot (49 m) chain lift hill. After ascending the lift hill, the train drops to the right, reaching a speed of 60 miles per hour (97 km/h). Riders then enter a straightaway before climbing a second hill which drops them 228 feet (69 m) under the Thunderbolt's structure, reaching a top speed of 85 miles per hour (137 km/h). The train then makes a 360 degree turn, passing back under the Thunderbolt's structure. Next, the train circles around the Turtle ride before traveling back under the second drop through a bunny-hop. Riders then make a turn to the left, passing under the ride's brake run and entering a second bunny-hop. The train then enters a 180 degree curve, going through the last bunny-hop and entering the brake run. One cycle of the ride takes approximately 1 minute and 57 seconds.^[10][12][13]

Steel Phantom

After leaving the station, the train made a slight turn to the right, climbing the 160-foot (49 m) chain lift hill. After ascending the lift hill, the ride went down a banked drop to the right. After a straight section, the ride went up a second hill that turned slightly to the right. The train then dropped 225 feet (69 m) through the Thunderbolt's structure, reaching a top speed of 80 miles per hour (130 km/h). The train then turned to the left, entering a pair of trim brakes before heading into a vertical loop. After the loop, the train immediately went into a "batwing", an element which turned riders upside down twice. The train then made a right turn into a corkscrew, the fourth and final inversion. After this, riders went through a right turn that passed under the corkscrew. After this, the ride ascended into the brake run. One cycle of the ride took approximately 2 minutes and 15 seconds.^[10][14]

Trains

One of Phantom's Revenge's trains

Phantom's Revenge operates with two trains. Each train has seven cars that seat two riders in two rows for a total of 28 riders per train.^[15] After the ride was renovated, the trains were also renovated. Steel Phantom's chassis, that was built by Arrow remained but Morgan built new, aerodynamic fiberglass bodies. Morgan also replaced the over-shoulder-restraints with lap bars and seatbelts.^[5][8]

Track

Phantom's Revenge's steel track is approximately 3,200 feet (980 m) in length and the height of the lift is approximately 160 feet (49 m). Before the renovation, the length was 3,000 feet (910 m) and the lift remained unchanged. The track was originally manufactured by Arrow Dynamics and painted black with white rails and white supports. After the renovation, D.H. Morgan Manufacturing replaced the majority of the track and it was painted green with black supports.^[10] The only Arrow Dynamics track that remains is the lift hill and the station/transfer track.^[15]

Comparison

Awards and rankings

*At the time, the roller coaster was Steel Phantom.

Notes

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Phantom's Revenge (Kennywood).

• Phantom's Revenge at the Roller Coaster DataBase
• Phantom's Revenge Article and Photos on Ultimate Rollercoaster.com
• America Coasters review of Phantom's Revenge

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