The History of Wicked Twister

For nearly twenty years, two purple towers twisted riders up over the Cedar Point beach. Wicked Twister was the park's signature beachfront thrill from 2002 until it was retired in 2021.

The beachfront impulse

Wicked Twister was an Intamin impulse coaster, a launched shuttle ride rather than a full circuit. A magnetic launch shot a single train back and forth along a straight course, building speed with each pass, until it climbed two 215-foot spikes that each ended in a 450-degree vertical corkscrew twist. Standing on the Boardwalk right by the lake, it opened in 2002 as the tallest and fastest inverted coaster of its kind in the world, and it held both of those records for close to two decades.

The end of the towers

In 2021 Cedar Point announced that Wicked Twister had reached the end of its service life and would close to make way for future improvements. Its final day was in September 2021, and the towers came down the following winter. The beachfront spot it left behind became the Grand Pavilion, a lakeside dining and gathering space that opened in 2023.

Sister coasters

Wicked Twister was the largest of Intamin's impulse coasters. Its relatives included Possessed at Dorney Park and Steel Venom at Valleyfair, both sister parks, along with The Flash: Vertical Velocity at Six Flags Great America. It was, in effect, the supersized version of that family.

One thing to know

Despite standing 215 feet tall, Wicked Twister had no inversions in the usual sense. The 450-degree twists in its two spikes rolled riders over, but the ride never passed through a traditional loop.

Wicked Twister is one chapter in the history of Cedar Point.

Wicked Twister at a glance