Kennywood's New Steel Curtain Coaster Running Again

PITTSBURGH, PA - Kennywood announced Wednesday that Pennsylvania's tallest roller coaster was out of commission indefinitely then reopened the Steel Curtain just hours later.

"Being a unique prototype ride, it's not unusual to have periodic downtime as we have seen over The Steel Curtain's first month of operations," a post on the West Mifflin amusement park's Facebook page stated.

"While our team is making progress to get Steel Curtain back en as soon as possible, it will be hard to pinpoint exactly when the ride will reopen as it is a fluid situation. Please know that our primary focus throughout this process is on the safety of the ride for you, our guests."

The ride reopened later in the day, but Kennywood warned it still could shut down periodically.

"When Steel Curtain does reopen, it's also possible that it will have stoppages and periodic closures in the future. This is normal for any amusement ride, especially so given the newness, complexity and record-breaking nature of the Steel Curtain."

Not only is the Steel Curtain the state's tallest coaster at 220 feet, it has the world's tallest inversion, 197 feet. Its nine inversions are the most of any coaster in North America. With a
top speed of 75 mph, the 24-passenger cars complete the 4,000-foot ride in just two minutes.

Construction of the ride's 152 foundations began last year. There were 113 separate pieces of track
assembled, with the largest piece being 39 feet long and weighing more an 12,000 pounds. More than 21,000 bolts were used for the project.