{"id":1484,"date":"2013-08-19T11:01:09","date_gmt":"2013-08-19T11:01:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/?p=1484"},"modified":"2015-01-08T18:08:12","modified_gmt":"2015-01-08T23:08:12","slug":"kennywoods-rides-of-the-past","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2013\/08\/19\/kennywoods-rides-of-the-past\/","title":{"rendered":"Kennywood\u2019s rides of the past"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Steel <\/a>
Steel Phantom cars zoom through the boomerang, May 1991. (Darrell Sapp\/Post-Gazette) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Under <\/a>
Under the shadow of the Laser Loop rollercoaster, riders enter the park, June 1980. (Robert J. Pavuchak\/The Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Cinesphere <\/a>
Cinesphere at Kennywood is stealing roller coaster’s screams, May 1977. (Robert J. Pavuchak\/The Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Youths <\/a>
Youths enjoy a ride on the Monongahela Monster, despite temperatures in the 40s on Opening Day, April 26, 1981. (Anthony Kaminski\/The Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Riders <\/a>
Riders line up to try out the new Turnpike Ride, June 1966. (The Pittsburgh Press photo) <\/div> <\/div>
\"Flying <\/a>
Flying Carpet ride is the newest addition to the park. It takes passengers for a swing-like experience then up and over the top, July 1988. (The Pittsburgh Press photo) <\/div> <\/div>
\"Kids <\/a>
Kids and adults ride on the small boats through the darkness on the Old Mill ride. The ride lasts about 5 minutes, June 1984. (Mark Rightmire\/The Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Steel <\/a>
Steel Phantom car comes through the corkscrew, May 1991. (Darrell Sapp\/Post-Gazette) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

On May 10, 1991, Kennywood opened a new roller coaster\u00a0to the public.\u00a0The Steel Phantom was its name. It began with a 160-foot lift along the land once occupied by another coaster, The Laser Loop. Writing for The Pittsburgh Press, Ed Blank said, \u201cLife may have higher purposes, but\u00a0this<\/em>\u00a0is where coaster loves\u00a0live \u2014 <\/em>climbing steadily toward an apex that seems to be blowing in the wind. And knowing all the best is still to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

And it was. After the first 157-foot descent came the real thriller: A second dip, 225 feet into the valley toward the Monongahela River.<\/p>\n

But the Steel Phantom wasn\u2019t just tall. It was also fast \u2014 in fact, a little\u00a0too<\/em>\u00a0fast. Just days after it opened, it had to be closed for two weeks while park officials and the coaster\u2019s manufacturer investigated why it was traveling faster than the intended top speed of 80 mph through its inversions.<\/p>\n

The Phantom set records for speed for nearly a decade before Kennywood announced in March 2000 that it would be replaced after that season. A park spokesman was quoted in the Post-Gazette as saying, \u201cIn our quest for the best rides and the best use of our space, we have decided to pursue a new roller coaster.\u201d<\/p>\n

After receiving complaints about closing a rider favorite, the park decided instead to renovate the Steel Phantom rather than replace it. The modified coaster reopened in May 2001 as the Phantom\u2019s Revenge, which is still at the park today, following in the Steel Phantom\u2019s footsteps with speeds at just over 80 mph.<\/p>\n

Over the years, several other rides have come and gone. A popular attraction in the summer of 1977 was the Cinesphere, a cloth dome filled with church pews that was\u2026well, actually, not a ride at all. An article in the May 26, 1977 issue of The Pittsburgh Press explained: \u201cIt\u2019s a nine-minute movie made up of 16 scenes culled from three travelogues, in which \u201cfirst person\u201d camerawork gives viewers the illusion of movement.\u201d<\/p>\n

Included in the experience were a roller coaster ride, a helicopter liftoff from New York City\u2019s Pan-Am building, a trip around the Indianapolis 500 track, and more.<\/p>\n

Another favorite was the Turnpike, which opened in 1966 and greeted visitors just inside the park\u2019s entrance until it was decommissioned in 2010 and replaced with another roller coaster, the Sky Rocket. The antique car ride, where the price of gas was always \u201cFUN,\u201d will reportedly make a return to the park in the future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On May 10, 1991, Kennywood opened a new roller coaster to the public.<\/p>\n

Look at the picturesKennywood\u2019s rides of the past<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":1486,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[945],"tags":[1198,1001,1272,1016,1033,1222],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/08\/tumblr_mrn4gu5yIx1rr5swxo2_1280.jpg?fit=1280%2C843&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":419,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2014\/07\/28\/pittsburgh-ballet-theatre-takes-to-the-streets\/","url_meta":{"origin":1484,"position":0},"title":"Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre takes to the streets","date":"July 28, 2014","format":"gallery","excerpt":"These six photos stood out because of the settings.","rel":"","context":"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/tumblr_n9ci2dtIFK1rr5swxo6_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C935&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8579,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2018\/05\/04\/pittsburghs-favorite-time-capsule-you-know-it-as-kennywood-is-set-to-open-once-again\/","url_meta":{"origin":1484,"position":1},"title":"Pittsburgh’s favorite time capsule — you know it as Kennywood — is set to open once again","date":"May 4, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Emerge from the entrance to Kennywood Park. 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