Top Thrill Dragster officially reopens as Top Thrill 2 at Cedar Point after years of closure

SANDUSKY, Ohio (WTVG/Gray News) – One of the most iconic roller coasters in the country is officially reopening with a new design after being closed for nearly three years.

Top Thrill 2 at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, will open to the public May 4 as the park’s season begins.

The coaster, originally known as the Top Thrill Dragster that opened in 2003, was closed in August 2021 after a metal piece fell off and hit a woman in the head who was waiting in line for the ride.

The woman suffered a traumatic brain injury and is permanently disabled. Her family reached a settlement with Cedar Point parent company Cedar Fair just earlier this month.

The ride remained closed after the accident, and in September 2022, park officials announced the ride would be retired “as you know it.”

Top Thrill Dragster was reworked and revamped as Top Thrill 2, now opening next week.

Top Thrill 2 will launch riders up a tower, roll backward at 100 mph, then launch again at 120 mph and take riders up and down a 420-foot hill.

Fans of the original Top Thrill Dragster said they are excited to have a new generation of roller coaster fanatics enjoy Top Thrill 2.

“We’ve been fans of the Top Thrill Dragster for years, but [my son] hasn’t had a chance to ride it yet. So, we feel really bad,” said Michele Rochester, who was visiting Cedar Point, in an interview last year. “So, we’re excited to see what’s coming because that way we can get him to feel the same love that we do.”

Top Thrill 2 is one of only two “Strata coasters” in the world – a roller coaster with a height between 400 and 499 feet tall. The other is Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey. Kinga Ka is the tallest roller coaster in the world at 456 feet tall, just 36 feet taller than Top Thrill 2.

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