- A diabolical new ride -
When Demon Drop was first announced in 1982, computers were a fairly new concept. Demon Drop featured a state-of-the-art computer system which was said to be the next big thing in thrill ride operation. Cedar Point even went as far as saying "the ride hosts will only be there to dispatch cars and make sure the guests are safely loaded and unloaded from the ride vehicles, everything else is run by the computer system."
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| A historic Picture of Demon Drop. It seems strange to not see Raptor in the background, and look at that line! |
Technology
There are 103 sensors that monitor the operation of the ride, ensuring one car completes an area of the track before allowing another car to be released. There are 40 sensors along the break run that determine how much brake pressure to apply based on the weight of the car and its passengers.
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| Gate prices were only $11.95 in 1983! |
Construction
Demon Drop has a steel structure build on top
of a concrete foundation and weighs 120 tons.
The ride was located on a 1 acre plot of land and
cost the park $2.5 million to have built. Before
starting work on the ride a portion of the picnic
shelter had to be removed and relocated to the otherpicnic area at the front of the park. Construction was done by Moser construction company and was ready to go on opening day. It gave its first ride on Sunday, May 15th, 1983 and became Cedar Point's 57th ride.
Ride Stats
Demon Drop is a first generation free fall ride and was manufactured by Intamin Company Inc, Switzerland. The ride was designed to feel like an unrestrained free fall from a 10 story building. It stands 131 feet tall, with a total drop length of 99 feet, 60 of which is completely vertical. The lift takes you up at 18 feet/second, and you reach the top in 6 seconds. Once at the top, it pushes you out onto the free fall track and lets you dangle there for about 3 seconds, building anticipation. The drop down only lasts 2.5 seconds and reaches speeds of 55 MPH.
The ride vehicles themselves hold 4 passengers each, and feature padded seats and headrests. The cars are 6 feet tall and open in the front and on the sides to give the rider an unrestrained feel. Passengers are secured by over the shoulder safety harnesses. Riders must be 48" or taller to ride.
Safety Concerns
There was an accident on a similar ride to Demon Drop called "The Edge" back in 1984, at Six Flags Great America. A supporting cable snapped and the rides anti-rollback system failed to stop the car from falling back down the tower. 3 teenagers were taken to the hospital, treated, and released. This accident resulted in a change in all first generation free fall rides. The number of anti-rollbacks were doubled, and a modification was made to the computer system so that one car can't go back into the tower until the car before it has completed it descent into the brake run. This change caused the ride to run 1 car less at all times, and lowered capacity slightly.
Current Operation
In 2005 Cedar Point listed Demon Drop for sale at a price of $250,000. The ride stayed up for sale for years before the decision was made to keep the ride in the company and relocate it to Knotts Berry Farm for the 2010 season. Plans were changed however, and it ended up finding a new home at Dorney park in 2010. So far nothing has replaced it at Cedar Point and the land that held Demon Drop for 26 years remains vacant.
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| The empty space where Demon Drop once stood. |
Reconstruction at Dorney Park.
Want to read more about Demon Drop? Check out these links..
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