page_title: GateKeeper (roller coaster)
section_title: Construction
hierarchical_section_title: GateKeeper (roller coaster) / History / Construction
caption_attribution_description: Banner at Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio announcing the August 13, 2012 reveal date for the new rollercoaster, GateKeeper, which officially debuted in May, 2013.
context_page_description: GateKeeper is a steel roller coaster located at Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio. Designed by Bolliger & Mabillard, it was the fifth Wing Coaster installation in the world. The ride opened on May 11, 2013, on the most successful opening weekend to date in the park's history. GateKeeper featured the highest inversion in the world when it opened, with its 170-foot Wing Over drop. It also broke several Wing Coaster records, including those for height, speed, track length, drop height and number of inversions. The coaster has a 170 ft, 40-degree inclined lift hill with a 164 ft drop and features two support towers with keyhole elements that the trains travel through. Its maximum speed is approximately 67 mph.
  Construction began in September 2012 and took roughly eight months to complete. Cedar Point built a new entrance plaza featuring the keyhole towers as the centerpiece. The roller coaster replaced Disaster Transport and Space Spiral, both demolished during mid-2012. It was Cedar Point's first new roller coaster since Maverick debuted in 2007, and the third B&M coaster in the park following Raptor and Mantis.
context_section_description: On July 13, 2012, Cedar Point announced the closure of Disaster Transport and Space Spiral. Disaster Transport closed on July 29, 2012 and dismantling began on August 6, starting in the back of the building. Space Spiral closed on August 14, 2012 and demolished on September 12 by imploding the base and letting the tower fall towards the beach. Construction of GateKeeper started in mid-September and the first footers were poured on October 2. Approximately 200 footers were dug, each about 6 feet (1.8 m) deep. The first pieces of track were delivered on October 23 and the installation of the track and supports, starting with the station, began on November 5. The lift hill was topped off on November 30. A construction update on January 7, 2013, said that approximately 40% of the ride's structure, including the Wing Over Drop, Immelmann and Camelback elements, had been completed. The first pieces of the two keyhole towers arrived on January 23, and the first keyhole tower was erected on January 29. On February 27, 2013, at approximately 2 pm, the final piece of GateKeeper was put in place about two weeks ahead of schedule.
  Building the coaster took about eight months and nearly 100 workers from four engineering companies worked on the project. Sherrod Brown, a United States Senator from Ohio, praised Cedar Point for using local companies for the job. A.A. Boos & Sons did the groundwork, including the footers and cement pouring. Tony Ravagnani Architects designed, engineered and installed the two keyhole towers. The electrical work, including the lighting, was done by Firelands Electric. The station and gift shop were built by Bert Witte Contractors, S.A. Comunal installed the plumbing and air systems and Lew’s Construction built the park's new entrance plaza. About 12 million pounds (5,400,000 kilograms) of concrete was used for the ride.
caption: Banner announcing the August 13, 2012 reveal date for GateKeeper
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