Phantom's Revenge

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 coasters 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. The ride opened on May 10, 1991 as the fastest and steepest steel roller coaster in the world. The inversions were a vertical loop, a Boomerang, 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.

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. 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. After the ride closed on Labor Day weekend in 2000, Steel Phantom underwent extensive changes by D. H. Morgan Manufacturing, most notably the removal of all of its inversions. 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. 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, modifying its top speed to 85 mph (137 km/h). Because of the modifications, both Morgan style and Arrow style track have been utilized.

Ride experience

The ride is considered to be a terrain roller coaster, meaning the ride experiences various elevation changes. Unlike most roller coasters, the ride'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.

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 280 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.

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 Boomerang, 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.

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. 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.

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 silver/grey rails and grey supports. After the renovation, D.H. Morgan Manufacturing replaced the majority of the track and it was painted green with black supports. The only Arrow Dynamics track that remains is the lift hill, the station and the brake run/transfer track.

Awards and rankings

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