Steelers-Themed Coaster Even Beloved In Cleveland Browns Turf

PITTSBURGH, PA - As any football fan knows, there's no love lost between the Steelers and the Cleveland Browns. But there's plenty of love for the new Steelers-themed coaster at Kennywood coming from Browns territory.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer published a rave review of the Steel Curtain, named after the vaunted Steelers defense of the 1970s. It anchors the new Steelers County section of the West Mifflin amusement park.

This is the only Pittsburgh Steelers gear I can fully embrace: 4,000 feet of winding track, 220 feet in the air, nine flips upside down and all around," the Plain Dealer's Susan Glaser. "The color scheme (black and gold) didn’t excite me; the Roman numerals on display (IX, X, XIII and XIV) didn’t impress me. And the gift shop? Nothing to see here.

"But the coaster itself is so much fun that I’m willing to overlook the over-the-top theming (over-the-top, at least, for any self-respecting Clevelander)."

Glaser doesn't consider the Steel Curtain the park's scariest coaster.

"I’d give that honor to the Phantom’s Revenge, another steel coaster, built in 1991 and revamped in 2001," she wrote. "But Steel Curtain may be the most fun."

Not only is the Steel Curtain Pennsylvania'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 than 12,000 pounds. More than 21,000 bolts were used for the project.