Steel Phantom

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Steel Phantom

Steel Phantom in 1996
Kennywood Location West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, USA Coordinates 40.389081°N 79.865981°W / 40.389081; -79.865981 Status Defunct Operated May 10, 1991 to September 4, 2000 Rider height 52 inch minimum Replaced by Phantom's Revenge
Statistics
Manufacturer	Arrow Dynamics
Product	Custom Looping Coaster
Designer / calculations	Ron Toomer
Type	Steel - Hyper - Terrain
Riders per train	28
Propulsion	Chain lift hill
Height	160 feet
Drop	225 feet
Top speed	80 mph
Length	3000 feet
Inversions	4
Duration	2:15
HELP

A postcard with Steel Phantom's first drop

Steel Phantom was a steel hyper terrain roller coaster located at Kennywood in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, USA. It opened on May 10, 1991. The ride received mixed reviews, as some guests praised the unique and thrilling experience, as it was a hyper coaster with inversions, but others disliked the rough ride and head banging on the ride's over-the-shoulder harnesses. Steel Phantom was closed on September 4, 2000. The attraction was then heavily modified by Morgan and reopened as Phantom's Revenge in 2001.

History

The idea for Steel Phantom came from Henry Henniger, president of Kennywood Entertainment Company, who wanted a record-breaking steel coaster. He was unsure how to fit the ride into the park, but a layout was worked out in conjunction with Arrow Dynamics. On July 27, 1990, Kennywood announced the name for their new steel roller coaster would be called Steel Phantom and that it would use the same station as the out-going Laser Loop. The ride opened on May 10, 1991 as the fastest and steepest roller coaster in the world. It was also the first hyper roller coaster to feature inversions. Steel Phantom also featured a second drop that was larger than the first one.

A few days after Steel Phantom's debut, the ride closed to allow a trim brake to be installed, as the train was traveling faster than it should through the inversions, causing riders to experience pain in their necks.

Despite adding the trim brake, the ride was still rough. Ride operators would not dispatch the train until they checked to see if riders had their earrings removed.

After years of declining popularity, on March 5, 2000, Kennywood announced that Steel Phantom would close at the end of the 2000 season. Following its closure, the roller coaster was heavily re-profiled by Morgan, which involved removal of the over-the-shoulder harnesses and the inversions, and the ride reopened in 2001 as Phantom's Revenge, a smoother and more critically acclaimed coaster than Steel Phantom.

Some pieces of scrap from Steel Phantom have been re-purposed as scenery for the Diesel Drivers ride. The track is the same color as Phantom's Revenge.

Design

Elements
Chain lift hill Hill Vertical loop Batwing Corkscrew

Color scheme

Black track with blue rails and blue supports.

Ride experience

Steel Phantom started its run by ascending a 160 foot lift hill that provided views of the surrounding Pennsylvania hills. The train entered a drop that turned to face the opposite direction, into a straight section of track where the train reached speeds of 66 mph. It then rose into a second hill, turning slightly to the right at the top before dropping 225 feet through Thunderbolt's support structure into a valley next to the Monongahela River. These first two hills were later reused by Morgan for Phantom's Revenge. After reaching the ride's top speed of 80 mph (faster than 80 mph prior to the trim brake's installation), riders roared into the vertical loop, followed immediately by the batwing, or boomerang. The train then made a left turn and flipped through a corkscrew, then made a series of tight turns surrounding the station and the Intamin drop tower ride Pitt Fall (now defunct) before hitting the brake run and returning to the loading area.

Trains

7 cars per train. In each car, riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows, for a total of 28 riders per train.

References

Tallest roller coaster drop tied with Desperado May 1991 - July 1996
Preceded by Magnum XL-200	Tallest roller coaster drop tied with Desperado May 1991 - July 1996	Succeeded by Fujiyama

Fastest roller coaster tied with Desperado May 1991 - July 1996
Preceded by Magnum XL-200	Fastest roller coaster tied with Desperado May 1991 - July 1996	Succeeded by Fujiyama

Articles on Kennywood
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