News: Thunderhawk roars into Michigan's Adventure

Posted at 5:17 PM EDT (2117 GMT)

Oct. 2nd, 2007 -- via press release

Michigan’s Adventure Amusement Park announced plans today to build the first suspended looping roller coaster in the State of Michigan. The new steel coaster will open in the spring of 2008 bringing Michigan's Adventure’s roller coaster count to seven!

Named Thunderhawk, the new coaster will climb 105 feet in the air with an exhilarating 86-foot drop. Riders will soar through the air with their feet dangling below them along a winding course that will feature five inversions and a top speed of 50 mph!

“Thunderhawk will bring a new dimension of thrills to the park,” said Camille Jourden-Mark, the vice president and general manager of Michigan’s Adventure. “It will be an exciting ride that twists, turns and flips. A suspended coaster that loops will be an instant favorite with our guests.”

Located near RipCord and Adventure Falls, Thunderhawk will have a massive steel structure with tubular steel track. It will stretch 2,260 feet in length and will provide an electrifying ride time of approximately 2 minutes, 15 seconds. Riders will be seated in pairs in open seats that will be suspended below the track. Each rider will be secured with an over-the-shoulder harness and interlocking safety belt. A train will accommodate 20 riders. Riders must be between 52- and 80-inches tall to ride Thunderhawk. The ride was designed and manufactured by Vekoma International B.V., Vlodrop, The Netherlands.

Thunderhawk will represent the largest single ride expenditure in the history of the park. Michigan's Adventure has continued to add major capital improvements since joining the Cedar Fair Entertainment Company in 2001. Grand Rapids, a river-rafting ride, was introduced in 2006 while the Funnel of Fear water slide opened in 2005.

For next summer, Michigan’s Adventure will boast more than 60 rides and attractions, including seven roller coasters. Thunderhawk will be a steel complement to the park’s perennial favorite, Shivering Timbers, a 125-foot-tall wooden coaster. Since it opened in 1998, Shivering Timbers has been consistently ranked as one of the finest wooden roller coasters in the world by Amusement Today’s Golden Ticket Awards. Amusement Today is an international amusement and waterpark publication based in Arlington, Texas.

EDITORS NOTE: This ride is the Thunderhawk coaster being relocated from Geauga Lake.