page_title: Cedar Point
section_title: Dick Kinzel era
hierarchical_section_title: Cedar Point / History / Dick Kinzel era
caption_attribution_description: Millennium Force , montagnes russes à Cedar Point
context_page_description: Cedar Point is a 364-acre amusement park located on a Lake Erie peninsula in Sandusky, Ohio. Opened in 1870, it is considered the second-oldest operating amusement park in the United States behind only Lake Compounce. Cedar Point is owned and operated by Cedar Fair and is considered the flagship of the amusement park chain. Known as "America's Roller Coast", the park features a world-record 71 rides, including 17 roller coasters – the second-most in the world behind Six Flags Magic Mountain. Its newest roller coaster, Steel Vengeance, opened to the public on May 5, 2018.
  Cedar Point's normal operating season runs from early May until Labor Day in September. The park then reopens only on weekends until the end of October or early November for a Halloween-themed event known as HalloWeekends. Other attractions near the park include a one-mile-long white-sand beach, an outdoor water park called Cedar Point Shores, an indoor water park called Castaway Bay, two marinas, an outdoor sports complex called Cedar Point Sports Center, and several nearby resorts.
  The park has reached several milestones.
context_section_description: In 1986, Robert L. Munger Jr, the president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Cedar Fair, stepped down due to health issues and was replaced by Richard "Dick" Kinzel. Thunder Canyon, a river rafting ride manufactured by Intamin, also opened in 1986. In 1987, Iron Dragon, a suspended roller coaster, debuted on the Million Dollar Midway near the Cedar Point & Lake Erie Railroad station. In 1988, Soak City (now known as Cedar Point Shores), Cedar Point's outdoor water park, was constructed near Hotel Breakers. It featured speed slides, more than 10 body and tube slides, a family raft ride, a water playhouse and two lazy rivers.
  Several new rides and roller coasters opened at Cedar Point from 1989 to 2011 that were record-breakers. Magnum XL-200 debuted in 1989, breaking the world height and speed records. It was the first roller coaster to exceed a height of 200 feet (61 m) and speeds over 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) and was the first hypercoaster in the world. For the 1990 season, Avalanche Run was transformed into Disaster Transport; the ride was fully enclosed and special effects were added. In subsequent years, the special effects and theming were removed, leaving the ride almost completely dark. Mean Streak opened in 1991 as the northernmost attraction in the park. It broke records for the fastest and tallest wooden roller coaster in the world, reaching speeds of 65 miles per hour (105 km/h) and a height of 161 feet (49 m). Challenge Park was built between Hotel Breakers and Soak City in 1992. Challenge Park included RipCord, Skyscraper, and two eighteen-hole mini-golf courses.
  Snake River Falls was constructed in 1993 because of the popularity of Soak City. The 82-foot (25 m)-tall structure sends riders plunging down 40 mph (64 km/h) at a 50-degree angle. At the bottom of the hill, the ride ends with a splash landing in which the boat creates a large wave, splashing spectators on an overlooking bridge. When it opened, it was the tallest and fastest water ride in the world. In 1994, Cedar Point installed Raptor. The Mill Race log flume was removed from the park, and the circular Calypso was relocated to make room for Raptor, the first inverted roller coaster to feature a cobra roll. In December 1994, the park held its only Christmas in the Park. The Midway Carousel was open, a horse-drawn carriage gave behind-the-scenes tours of the park and the midway held many Christmas festivals, including a Christmas tree. In 1996, Cedar Point opened Mantis, then the tallest, steepest, and fastest stand-up roller coaster in the world. Originally, the ride was to be called "Banshee", but it was later changed after negative public reaction. The discarded name would later be reused for Banshee at Kings Island in 2014. In 1997, the park added HalloWeekends, a Halloween event with haunted houses and mazes that typically operates from September through late October. Camp Snoopy debuted in 1999; it features eight Snoopy-themed attractions, with the exception of a Tilt-A-Whirl. The area also features a junior roller coaster built by Vekoma, Woodstock Express.
  Cedar Point built the first giga coaster, Millennium Force, in 2000. When it debuted, it was the tallest and fastest complete-circuit roller coaster in the world, climbing 310 ft (94 m) and reaching a maximum speed of 93 mph (150 km/h). In 2002, Wicked Twister opened as the tallest, fastest, and longest inverted impulse roller coaster of its kind. In the midst of a highly-competitive industry with other parks, Cedar Point again set new records the following year with the debut of Top Thrill Dragster, which opened as the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world in 2003. It reached a height of 420 ft (130 m) and a maximum speed of 120 mph (190 km/h). Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure broke both records two years later. maXair debuted in 2005 as only the second HUSS Giant Frisbee ride in the United States. Dan Keller also retired in 2005 as vice president and general manager. He was replaced by John Hildebrandt, who had been the vice president and general manager of Dorne
caption: Millennium Force, added in 2000, is Cedar Point's signature roller coaster.
exif: {"Image Make": "CASIO COMPUTER CO.,LTD.", "Image Model": "EX-Z1000", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "1.02", "Image DateTime": "2007:06:12 09:41:06", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "282", "Image PrintIM": "[80, 114, 105, 110, 116, 73, 77, 0, 48, 51, 48, 48, 0, 0, 0, 5, 0, 1, 0, 22, 0, 22, 0, 2, 1, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0, 5, 0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 1, 0, 0, 0, 1, 16, 128, 0, 0, 0]", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "25598", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "7784", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/200", "EXIF FNumber": "43/5", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0221", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2007:06:12 09:41:06", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2007:06:12 09:41:06", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "22400/9747", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "3", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "163/10", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "3648", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2736", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "25474", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "0/0", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "78", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF GainControl": "None", "EXIF Contrast": "Normal", "EXIF Saturation": "Normal", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal"}