Specific Type: Mine Train
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Cedar Creek Mine Ride, Cedar Point’s second oldest operating coaster behind Blue Streak was brought to life in the Frontier Town section of Cedar Point in 1969. Although it is now dwarfed by its bigger, faster neighbors, Cedar Creek Mine Ride remains a ride that the whole family can enjoy. Standing at fifty-five feet tall with a forty-eight foot drop and a top speed of forty-two miles per hour, Cedar Creek Mine Ride is by no means a highly thrilling coaster. Instead it fits into a niche of Cedar Point that is often overlooked; it is a family coaster that serves as a stepping stone as children progress from kiddie coasters like Cedar Point’s Jr. Gemini and Woodstock Express to bigger and faster rides like Gemini and Magnum XL-200. Cedar Creek Mine Ride’sability to fill this niche is one reason that it has enjoyed its long lifetime in today’s world of hyper, giga, and strata coasters.
Cedar Creek Mine Ride was the first coaster to establish the connection between Cedar Point and Arrow Dynamics that would later deliver several great coasters. Gemini, Magnum XL-200,Iron Dragon, and Corkscrew were all brought to Cedar Point by Arrow Dynamics. Both Gemini and Magnum XL-200 opened as the tallest coaster in the world but have since lost their titles. Both Cedar Creek Mine Ride and its larger sibling Gemini often get mistaken as wooden coasters because of their wooden support structures. However, both of these rides are technically steel coasters due to their use of tubular steel rails. When a coaster uses wooden supports with tubular steel rails it is classified as a steel mine train coaster, which gave rise to the name Cedar Creek Mine Ride. Cedar Creek Mine Ride begins with a gentle dip and a right turn into an old mining shack. After traveling on straight track through the shack the train then takes another small dip and heads into a long left turn that leads up to the lift hill. After traveling up to the top height of fifty-five feet the train takes a small drop into a long straight, flat section. Next the train heads into a diving left turn. After the train has reached the bottom of the drop it levels out and rises up into a small hill while still maintaining its banking. Following the hill the track is still banked for a bit longer as the turn as completed and the train slides into the first mid-course break run. Up next is another diving left turn that levels out a few feet above a body of water. The train travels in a flat section while still slightly banked while traversing over the water before heading into a rising left turn. Following the turn is another mid-course break run and yet another left turn that leads up to the coaster’s second lift hill. After completing the lift the train takes a small dive onto a long flat portion of track, similar to the ride’s first lift hill. Next up is another left turn which transitions into the coaster’s first right turn. And a powerful right turn it is as the train quickly banks and travels through a helix before hitting another mid-course break run. As soon as the break run ends the track banks hard to the left and the train enters a long helix. This helix is one of the signature moments of the whole ride. After completing the helix the train heads back into the station themed to be Cedar Creek Mining Co. |
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