Fly over Cedar Point's main entrance on the park's gate guardian rollercoaster...
Fly over Cedar Point's main entrance on the park's gate guardian rollercoaster...
| Theme Park | Cedar Point |
|---|---|
| Park Area | Lakeside Midway |
| Type | Rollercoaster |
| Audience | Thrillseekers |
| Opened | 11 May 2013 |
| Manufacturer | Bolliger & Mabillard |
| Model | Wing Coaster |
| Height | 170 ft |
| Length | 4164 ft |
| Inversions | 6 |
| Max Speed | 67 mph |
| Duration | 2¾ minutes |
GateKeeper flies over Cedar Point's main entrance
GateKeeper is the first rollercoaster visitors get to see up close upon arrival at Cedar Point, with its track curving gracefully over the amusement park's main entrance.
The rollercoaster is a Bolliger and Mabillard Wing Coaster, and when it opened in 2013 it was the largest of the B&M model to be built to date.
GateKeeper's name comes from both its frontal position within the park, acting as gatekeeper to all that lies along the Cedar Point peninsula beyond the entrance, and also the two narrow slit "keyholes" through which the trains pass.
Unfortunately, compared to the slow (but sort of) gracefulness of The Swarm at Thorpe Park or the sheer magnificence of Thunderbird at Holiday World, GateKeeper is a much more forceful and somewhat uncomfortable affair. Its very much a positive-G fest and means you spend most of the ride pinned into your restraints. Generally Wing Coasters are built and themed to give the impression of flight, but sadly GateKeeper feels more like being crumpled up in a tiny seat on a regional airline rather than soaring through the skies like a bird.
GateKeeper is, though, a great looking ride and there perhaps couldn't be a more appropriate way to welcome guests into a park that has one of the largest collections of rollercoasters on earth. The two keyhole elements are among the best headchopper moments to be found on a wing coaster to date, and riders can't help but brace for impact as the train squeezes through the seemingly impossibly small slits.
GateKeeper's keyholes over Cedar Point's entrance plaza
GateKeeper entrance sign
GateKeeper's 170ft lift hill
First drop
Giant inversion
Hill
Dropping down
Passing beside the keyhole
GateKeeper's station
Riders boarded and ready to go
Wing Over Drop off the lift hill
Loop
Visitors get a first glimpse of GateKeeper before they even enter the park
GateKeeper's layout as seen from off shore
Passing through the keyholes and over the entrance
GateKeeper at night
