This week, Coaster101 writers Kyle and Larry had the privilege of attending media day for Cedar Point’s new coaster Steel Vengeance! This coaster has driven the coaster community bonkers over the past year and now it is just days away from opening to the public. Let us assure you, it is well worth the wait! But, is it the best coaster ever? Here’s our Steel Vengeance review.
Steel Vengeance Review: Our Thoughts
What was your initial reaction to seeing Steel Vengeance in person?
Larry: Having known Mean Streak for years, even working on it for a short period of time, I knew it inside and out. Seeing the transformation first hand, and how much was added and subtracted onto the structure, it’s amazing that this is still over 300 ft longer than Mean Streak ever was.
Kyle: As I drove along Perimeter Road and turned the corner and saw Steel Vengeance, my first reaction was “holy cow this thing is huge!” Mean Streak had a massive structure, but now with the added height to the lift hill it appears so much larger.
How did you feel after your first ride?
Kyle: Speechless. When we got off the ride Larry and I were trying to put out a tweet and we couldn’t come up with anything that would properly express what we had just experienced. We had a unique situation where our first ride was actually a night ride, right around the 5:20 AM mark.
Larry: As Kyle said, it was unreal. No words could describe how this coaster was. Knowing that it was a chilly morning and not quite fully up to speed, I can’t imagine how this is going to be once the summer temperatures hit.
What did you think of the theme of Steel Vengeance?
Larry: It fits extremely well with the area and a resurgence in Frontiertown that has not been seen since Maverick was built. The little pieces and parts in the queue with the character signs help not only give guests something to read and give a bit of background to the ride, but also give you a feeling that this is no ordinary coaster. The theming department went all out giving the coaster a story and characters to go with it.
Kyle: Yeah I can second what Larry said; Cedar Point went beyond what you expect a typical regional park might put out in regards to theming. I particularly enjoyed all of the flickering lanterns along the lift hill, especially at night. The Steel Vengenace entrance sign is also a sight to see in itself.
Favorite element?
Kyle: The overbanked turn during the second half of the ride (from the back row). Not only are you completely engulfed by the structure at this point, but it feels like you are launched out of this turn as you come down from it.
Larry: The large outward banked hill after the first airtime hill. It was the longest sustained airtime out of the entire coaster.
What was something that really surprised you about the ride?
Larry: Just how indescribable the coaster is. It was for the first time I’ve ridden a coaster and could not explain how it is. There’s so much airtime, the pacing is very quick, didn’t have what I call “lull zones” where the train sort of just crawls to finish the course, but instead it was hauling from start to finish.
Kyle: The intensity. It’s not that I thought it wouldn’t be intense, but it was a lot more than I expected. It was a pleasant surprise. I think the excellent pacing and smoothness of Steel Vengeance allow for it to be more intense than a lot of other coasters. I think the best way to explain the ride is like it’s a cross between Millennium Force and Maverick.
Final Verdict?
Kyle: Cedar Point hit it out of the park with Steel Vengeance. They were able to take a coaster that was past its prime and with the help of RMC, turn it into a world-class coaster. It has everything coaster enthusiasts love: height, speed, tight turns, airtime, airtime, airtime, and did I mention airtime? And it does all of this with butter-smooth transitions. I’m not exactly where this coaster sits yet, but it is definitely in my top 3.
Larry: This has been the answer the park has needed since Maverick was built. Don’t get me wrong, Gatekeeper, Rougarou, Valravn, and the many improvements done to the park since 2007 has brought the park up to a much higher standard than it was previously. They not only replaced the least popular coaster in Cedar Point lineup with a RMC hyper-hybrid, they brought with it possibly the newest #1 coaster in the entire park.
So where does Steel Vengeance rank among all coasters? We believe it will easily find itself among the top of many lists, but for gaining that #1 spot, I think it has a chance. In the end it will be up to what the voters like in a coaster. This coaster has a bit of everything enthusiasts love; the only thing I think that might hinder its chances is the level of intensity it has. As for both of us though, it is definitely knocking on the door of our #1 spots.
Now take a ride with us!
We’d like to give a big shout out to Tony Clark for extending us an invitation, we had a blast previewing Steel Vengeance! Make sure you get to Cedar Point this summer to check out this incredible new coaster!
More footage of Steel Vengeance in action:
I hope you enjoyed reading our Steel Vengeance review. Have you ridden Steel Vengeance yet? Share your thoughts about Cedar Point’s newest coaster in the comments section below.
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