Cedar Point announces its ‘reimagined’ Top Thrill Dragster will not open until 2024
Roller coaster fans will have to wait another year to ride what was once the tallest roller coaster in the world.
Cedar Point announced Monday that its famed Top Thrill Dragster will not reopen until 2024.
Workers have been dismantling sections of track and the coaster's loading platform for months since the park announced in the fall that the attraction was being "reimagined" after an accident in August 2021 severely injured a park customer.
The woman, 44-year-old Michigan resident Rachel Hawes, was standing in line Aug. 15 when she was struck by a piece of the coaster.
State investigators spent months looking into the cause of the accident and found loose bolts, signs of wear, deformation, and impact marks on train cars and sections of track over the spot where a metal plate broke from the ride and fell.
Investigators concluded a piece of metal described as about the size of "a man's hand" struck Hawes.
Top Thrill Dragster investigation
The Ohio Department of Agriculture — charged with the inspection of amusement rides — found in its final report that Cedar Point had no knowledge the ride was in an unsafe condition the day of the accident.
State investigation:Cedar Point had no knowledge Top Thrill Dragster 'was in an unsafe condition,' state says
The plate that dislodged was attached by bolts and was supposed to hover just over the track and a series of sensors that kept tabs on the ride as it made its way at breakneck speed up and over a 420-foot-tall hill in 17 seconds.
Some 18 million people rode the coaster, which sent riders in the air at 120 miles per hour in just 3.8 seconds, before its abrupt closure.
When it opened in 2003, Top Thrill Dragster was the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world, but those records were surpassed in 2005 by the Kingda Ka coaster at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey.
The original coaster cars that resembled a dragster even boasted faux Goodyear Tires when it first opened.
What the former Top Thrill Dragster might look like
The construction work on the former Top Thrill Dragster has focused so far on the loading platform and the removal of track that leads up to the 420-foot-tall hill.
It appears the tall hill that dominates the Cedar Point skyline will remain intact. But park officials have promised a new ride experience when the coaster reopens.
From the start, Top Thrill Dragster was plagued by issues that led to its frequent closings as the park grappled with its original temperamental hydraulic system.
Riders were injured in a pair of previous mishaps on the coaster. In July 2004, four passengers were struck by flying debris from a frayed metal cable, and in 2016 two riders were injured when a launch cable detached from the coaster.
What's new in 2023 at Cedar Point?
Work on Top Thrill Dragster is not the only off-season construction in the park.
Cedar Point is bringing back a Wild Mouse coaster to its new Boardwalk area along the eastern beach side of the park.
Cedar Point's summer 2023 plans:New Wild Mouse coaster and lakefront restaurant to be part of revamped Boardwalk area at Cedar Point.
The new Wild Mouse roller coaster will reach a height of 52 feet and boast six mouse-themed cars and one that is cheese-themed. The coaster will feature cars that spin 360 degrees as it navigates 1,312 feet of dipping and twisting orange track.
The park's old Wild Mouse coaster — the Wildcat — was removed in 2011 to make way for an outdoor stage near the Valravn roller coaster.
Craig Webb, who once experienced a rare rollback on the Dragster, can be reached at cwebb@thebeaconjournal.com.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point to be reimagined, open in 2024
