Special Features: Destination Spotlight: Kennywood

Posted at 10:55 AM EST (1555 GMT)

Feb. 22nd, 2007 -- ThrillNetwork.com is proud to bring you in the coming weeks and months spotlights on parks as well as the cities they call home.
Continuing in our series the Editor in Chief, Katie, shows you how to conquer Kennywood park and the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Kennywood is a true traditional amusement park by every standard. It opened in 1898 as a small trolley park-stop. The park was started by the Monongahela Street Railway which at the time was controlled by Andrew Mellon. Two major buildings still stand in the park since its operations began back in 1898- the carousel pavilion and a restaurant.

The park has continued tradition and has stayed open every year since. Adding more rides, roller coasters and fun for the family, Kennywood has since become one of the region’s most popular amusement parks.

The park has a total of six operating roller coasters in the park today, but back throughout the parks history they gambled on many other roller coasters. Kennywood has had eleven past roller coasters. This is incredible for a park of its size.

The major attractions that you can find at Kennywood are great for the entire family. With a height limit of 48 inches on almost every attraction it lets everyone in the family ride together.

You can find rides, such as a classical carousel, thrilling roller coasters or the ever popular railroad and kiddie land. The roller coasters today are a marvel of what they had back in the roaring 20’s. Kennywood still has three wooden roller coasters in operation that were built by the famous roller coaster designer John Miller.

Phantom’s Revenge was originally built back in 1991 by Arrow Dynamics, as one of the largest looping roller coasters in the country. With four inversions, this was sure to quench the thirsts of a thrill seeker. However, less then 10 years later the inversions were taken out to make room for a new exciting ride. With the largest drop extended three feet into a ravine and the massive amounts of airtime added this still remains the most popular ride in the park today.

The Exterminator is one of the newest additions to the park. It is an interesting roller coaster because it is the only themed roller coaster in the park. It is called a “spinning mouse” coaster by a company called Reverchon. The entire ride is enclosed in a building. While riding you are going through an underground journey to find out what happened underneath the park.

Next up is the ever popular Thunderbolt. This ride was originally built in 1924 by John Miller. The original name was The Pippin. In 1968, Kennywood decided to re-vamp the ride and made it what it was today. Including a double “spaghetti bowl” and a double “out and back” it is one of the more classic rides in the park. The height requirement however is a bit higher then the other rides due to the gravitational forces that it provides. The height requirement on this ride is 52 inches.

The Racer is a racing wooden coaster. However, it is one very special racing roller coaster. It is only one of three in the entire world to be called a “moebius” coaster. A moebius coaster is a racing roller coaster that is entirely run on one continuous track. If you ride on the right side, you will return on the left. This is a great ride for children to start off with. It’s not too scary and just right for younger and older patrons alike. This roller coaster was also built by John Miller in 1927. It has gone through many face changes, but the ride still remains unchanged today.

The Jack Rabbit is one of the best rides in the park for little children wanting to try their first big roller coaster ride. Built back in 1921, the John Miller creation features a double-down that will bring anyone out of their seats for a “hare-raising” ride. This ride is considered a one-trick pony (which means it only offers one thing for the ride), but what a trick it is. The coaster car originally had one small leather strap to hold you in. In 2003, the trains were modified to have seatbelts for all the little tykes to feel more secure. The height requirement for the Jack Rabbit is only 36 inches.

The last and final roller coaster you can find in the park is just for the kids or the kids at heart. The Lil’ Phantom is back in kiddie land and for the new roller coaster lovers. Built in 1996 by Molina, it gives kids the little tiny thrill they need to quench their thirsts for the bigger rides that they can conquer in the park.

The park offers many thrilling and non-thrilling rides. You can find some really hard to find rides that are amazingly well maintained and a lot of fun. Some of the older rides at the park include The Auto Race (The only one in the world still operating), The Turtles (Travel model), Noah’s Ark (A walk-through dark ride), Kennywood Railroad and Kangaroo (a Norman Bartlett Flying Coaster).

Mix in some newer more thrilling rides such as: SwingShot (An S&S Screamin’ Swing), Aero360 (A Zamperela Hawk), Pittfall (Intamin drop tower), and four water rides (a log flume, river raft ride, a plunge drop and King Kahuna a top spin, when the water is turned on). And you have one spectacular line up rides and roller coasters. Kennywood also offers a paddleboat excursions on the man-made lagoon. If you are really into thrills and want to spend a few extra bucks you should try the Sky Coaster. At 180 feet high, the bungee-swing will give you one huge adrenaline rush!

The food selections at Kennywood are extremely family friendly! From the famous potato patch fries to the sit down café there are many choices to choose from. You can find just about anything you are craving in the park. My recommendations include Patch fries (with gravy and cheese on the side), Deep Fried Oreos, fresh squeezed lemonade and anything offered in the ParkSide Cafe'. If you are on a tight budget, Kennywood even allows you to bring in your own food, grill and drinks. No park lets you do that anymore! You can set your food and belongings down in the many pavilions and head off for some fun.

If you are in town to do just more then Kennywood, may I suggest a water park for the entire family? Kennywood owns a water park just ten minutes down the road called Sandcastle. The water park is right off of the waterfront shops (The Waterfront includes many high end shops, restaurants and a 22 screen movie theater). It offers many water slides such as the Tuba-Luba and high speed slides, a wave pool, Jacuzzi and three play areas for the little tikes. You can also have some fun with the go-karts. Sandcastle also offers Patch Fries!

You can find many amusement parks within a three hour radius if you
are wanting to do more then just Kennywood. These parks can easily be reached within that time frame:

• Idewild- Less then one hour SouthEast, this park is great for the families with younger children. The park offers many smaller rides and a water park known as SoakZone. RolloCoaster, Wild Mouse and Paul Bunyan's Loggin Tobaggon are tons of fun. Kennywood also owns this park.
• Lakemont- About two hours East of Pittsburgh it is another smaller owned park with four roller coasters and many flat rides. This park has the oldest operating coaster in the United States called Leap the Dips.
• Conneaut Lake Park- Located about 90 minutes North of Pittsburgh on Lake Erie, this park offers a smaller country setting with craft fairs all year round. The famous Blue-Streak can be found here as well.
• Geauga Lake- This park is located about 2 hours Northwest of Pittsburgh in the Cleveland, Ohio suburbs. The park includes eight roller coasters for the thrill-seekers and a massive water park included in admission.
• Cedar Point- This famously known amusement park is only three hours away from Pittsburgh and has 16 fantastic roller coasters, soon to be 17 and many on-site hotels, a water-park, and restaurants.

The city of Pittsburgh is famous for many things. It was one of the largest producing areas to make steel. This is why the city has been nicknamed “the steel city”.

There are many things to do around the city including heading to the Carnegie Science Center located on the North Side. This center includes four floors of science creations, a planetarium, a submarine tour and a massive kids area. You can also find the Children's Museum and the Aviary in the area as well.

If sports are more you thing, then this city is for you. The city is home to three professional teams for you to enjoy. The Pittsburgh Steelers are part of the NFL and play in Heinz Field located just next door to the Carnegie Science Center. The Pittsburgh Pirates are part of the MLB (Major League Baseball) and play in PNC park right across the street from Heinz Field. The city is also home to the Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL). They play in the Mellon Arena in downtown Pittsburgh.

If fine dining is your fancy, Pittsburgh is home to many fancy and trademarked restaurants. From fast food to sit down elegance you can find it all. Station Square is really the place to be. You can find just about anything in this area. From amazing Italian cuisine to a casual pizza place you can find anything to fit your taste buds. This is really the place to be for nightlife as well. The Hard Rock Café is not that far away either.

You can also find our ever-popular Primanti-Brothers restaurant chain. This is the place to eat! Sandwiches are served with what you want on it, the trimmings, the french fries and the cole slaw!!!

Pittsburgh is also very close to the International airport. About a 30 minute drive from downtown Pittsburgh International can just about fly you anywhere in the country as well as many international destinations.

Lodging in the area is easy to find and very convenient in pricing. There are many choices that you can make from the bargain motels like Extended Stay and Comfort Inn to the four-star experience of the Hilton (Downtown). If you are really into the resort experience travel about 90 minutes Southeast of Pittsburgh and head to Seven Springs. Seven Springs is a year round resort that offers an indoor pool, indoor mini-golf, bowling and skiing facilities (during the winter months) and much more.

So, if you are coming to Pittsburgh for business or pleasure, you can find just about anything to do in whatever amount of time you are in the city.

For more information about places around Pittsburgh visit here.

For more information about Kennywood please see their official website. www.kennywood.com

To find out more information about the parks rides and roller coasters, please visit our Database.