The Kennywood Trio Ride History

Sources:
Video:
WQED Pittsburgh • Kennywood Memories: Th...
DwighttFrye • Kennywood Park
KennywoodMe • Jack Rabbit POV Kennyw...
Kennywood Amusement Park • Kennywood Racer POV Video
davidjellies • Jack Rabbit (HD POV) -...
Kennywood Amusement Park • Kennywood Thunderbolt ...
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[@zachmars5022]

Whos all from Pittsburgh

[@TrexDino-gm2oi]

meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[@jennaratica4116]

Me

[@TrexDino-gm2oi]

me

[@mrhead6856]

uhhhh me too

[@SgtCooligan]

Hi

[@stevenjennings5160]

In all my years of living in Pittsburgh I've never heard anybody butcher the word "Monongahela" like you did. Wow!!

[@jimmaloney1121]

My hometown park!! These three coasters are a testament to Kennywood's commitment to preserving their history. Most amusement parks tear down rides after 20-30 years (Cedar Point, Kings Island), but Kennywood has numerous rides that are decades old (Whip, Turtle, Old Mill, Carousel, Noah's Ark) that are still going strong. That's why I love Kennywood!!

[@OhGeeItsJen]

Had to immediately pause the video because of how you pronounced Monongahela 😂😂😂

[@RevRobertHarvey]

Once you get past the mispronunciation of the the Monongahela River (yeah, I'm from Pittsburgh) this is a really fun video of my favorite coasters at Kennywood.

[@bobwetzler]

Right, I cringed every time she said it wrong.

[@triangulism]

same, that pronunciation of Monongahela pisses me off

[@warmerparty3862]

Just some corrections: First off, Racer was just based off a 1910 coaster, but they were almost completely different. Thunderbolt, despite what everyone will tell you, first opened in 1967. Only Racer’s Facade was changed. Racer wasn’t ever changed, despite what you think. Jackrabbit was the FIRST coaster with upstops. Jackrabbit still uses modified versions of the first trains from National Amusement Device Company. Pippin opened with the National Amusement Device trains.

[@benrothlisbergeryoungsport2741]

I remember when I was scared of all of those now I’m like it’s fun

[@dantefaraci5847]

I live close to kennywood and I love it

[@brianharrison1055]

Did anyone else almost immediately close the video upon hearing the Monongahela River mispronounced so badly?

[@hugh2hoob668]

Best 3 wooden classic coasters if theres better they came after

[@knowhereman1]

I knew yinz was gonna get on 'er abaht the Mon, 'n nat.

[@wendysuecapps5114]

My mom was from Victory Hill -Mongahela...I got to spend summers there with my Grandparents...and there was always one day each summer that we spent the day at Kennywood...precious memories

[@JakeWerkmeister]

Should be noted that all of the video posted here only shows the 1927 Racer. Pics of the 1910 version are extremely hard to come by, and I don't know of any video in existence. Some of the older shots show the current Racer's original train cars. You have some of the only video of the Pippin I've seen. (Double dip behind the Turtle) Kinda cool to think that Kennywood once had 2 coasters that had 2 double dips.

[@sportsygirl8]

Those 3 coasters are amazing! Not a huge fan of Jack Rabbit though, just mostly because I'm small and those ejector airtime scares me each time. It seems like Kennywood has some insane ejector airtime on their coasters. Jack Rabbit and Phantom's Revenge are insane airtime machines!!! I love Thunderbolt so much though! It's unique and fast, the very first time I rode Thunderbolt I ended up riding it twice during that trip to Kennywood and if I had time I'd have ridden it a 3rd time. I was almost successful in talking my best friend into riding. I told him how much fun this was and if he can handle Comet (Hersheypark) and SooperDooperLooper that he could handle Thunderbolt. Well, we were just about to get in our seats and he sees the drop right out of the station and that scared him because he couldn't tell how far down we would drop after leaving the station and he took off so fast. I was bummed because no single riders on it, but thankfully some guy asked the ride operator if he could ride with me, so I wouldn't have to go to the exit and miss out on riding. So, i was thankful I rode with this guy who split from his friends to ride with me.

[@kalamazoo293]

I love Kennywood! It's one of my favorite amusment parks to visit and it was the first amusment park I ever been to. It's where I rode my first rollercoaster, the Sky Rocket. Kennywood holds a special place in my heart and it always will.

[@joeyd1404]

as a Pittsburgh native, i can only say that Kennywood has always been an integral part of my life.

[@TerribleGamer-101]

Same

[@Mikeywil0003]

I am curious about the last hill of the Racer she spoke about, removed by Andy Vettel. I have never heard of this before. The last drop of the ride is right before you shoot up into the loading station. I cant even picture where another hill would've been. Not to mention, since that is the part of the ride that is built underneath itself, it seems like it would be a huge operation to add/remove any significant elements in that area. I also wish the Thunderbolt tunnel was still there. I dont think it would've made a difference in being able to see the Phantom. You still would get a huge head-chopper effect from either ride if the tunnel was still there.

[@georgeoberdorf274]

My hometown park. Anytime I go back to the ‘Burgh, I have to visit. The Jackrabbit is always my first ride of the day. Looking forward to the new “Steel Curtain” and making a trip back home from Dallas once again’

[@kevin-727]

Love Kennywood! It's my home park and the history is amazing.

[@trishg2885]

The movie Adventureland was filmed at kennywood..it was a good movie

[@apis1156]

Thunderbolt: King of Migraines

[@lindaclark1406]

I was from Pittsburgh.

[@Joypyf]

LOVED this! Thunderbolt is my #30 and Jack Rabbit is my #36! So two of these classic woodies fall into my top fifth of coasters I've ridden! Great park with a wonderful selection of coasters!

[@sportsygirl8]

I'm at 50 now and. Phantom's Revenge made it my 50th!

[@Joypyf]

@@sportsygirl8 Phantom’s Revenge is AMAZING!!! Night rides in June moved it up to my #4 out of 200! Perfect!

[@sportsygirl8]

@@Joypyf WOW!!! I'll have to get a night ride on it sometime, I'm sure it's INSANE!!!! In total darkness. WOW 200 coasters congrats!

[@Joypyf]

@@sportsygirl8 YESSS!!! Insane is an understatement!👌🏼🤯🖤💜 it’s a must!!

[@sportsygirl8]

@@Joypyf I bet! Def will have to once hours are adjusted back to what it used to be and it's fully dark. Kennywood's crowds really die off by sunset, so one of these days I'll go at night and ride all coasters including phantom at night.

[@daviddimascio2338]

My hometown park as well!

[@Madi-yx1qc]

I’m from Pittsburgh

[@hannahparacca100]

I go to Kenny wood every other day

[@Pittsburghborn95]

First roller coaster I ever went on was the Jack Rabbit. I did so when I was 6 years old. Terrified me, but turned me into a rollercoaster phanatic! Have to visit Kennywood everytime I'm back in the Burgh!

[@infamousplrr]

My homepark :)

[@stevenblunt-canosa9131]

My ears are bleeding. It’s Monongahela. Mon-on-ga-hay-la.

[@denniszellers1854]

Mo-non-ga-hay-lah thanks

[@denniszellers1854]

Great video btw not being rude

[@planetsimply54]

Everyone saying Twisted Colossus is a Möbius, look up “is Twisted Colossus a Möbius racing coaster” it says it WAS a Möbius, but it is not anymore. It has 1 station and 1 track, you go on both Green and Blue tracks. First Blue, then after blue without stoping into a station you go on green, get it right and research before leaving a comment

[@bunja9101]

Yes! A video on the history of my home park! I love this one!

[@bobwetzler]

Mon-ga-hay-la

[@bjtgaming]

I don't want to be that guy but you said racer at Kennywood is the only Mobius Loop coaster in America but what about Twisted Colossus?

[@judiplaz]

Nope

[@dailylifewithsteve4460]

Mon-onga-hay-la is the pronunciation of Monongahela

[@StamfordBridge]

Thank you for another wonderful installment in this series! Nowhere else will you find three really old woodie classics in one park, let alone three really old woodie classics that are still great rides today. I love the footage you include for this history series. I find myself freezing the screen a lot and looking at the details. Some of the footage at the beginning of this made me wonder about integration at Kennywood in the early years. So many parks banned blacks or only allowed them on special days. Several shots here showed mixed crowds, so that made me curious and I had a quick search online. I was hopeful that maybe Kennywood was different. Sigh. Apparently, they had a whites-only swimming pool, and when some people sued successfully for blacks to have the right to swim, the park tore up the pool entirely rather than letting it happen.

[@therealZThaDon]

True Too me the next closet with 3 woodies is my homepark...Kings Island

[@judiplaz]

The pool was old, large and losing so much water it didn't make sense to keep it open. I went there since the early 70s. It was def a mixed crowd when we went. We always packed for the pool but never used it and just rode instead. The pool was removed when I was young.

[@StamfordBridge]

@@judiplaz Thanks for the reply.

[@judiplaz]

@@StamfordBridge sure! I'm a passholder at KW so I enjoy it's history.

[@Mck499]

Monongalia? Its Monon-ga-hela

[@Bradatoullie]

@7:10 that caterpillar ride (the giant rotating tube), its so cool to see the original location before it got relocated to Idlewild

[@mattmelis762]

Haha... Ma-non-ga-hey-la

[@joehung1552]

I miss the Cadillac's from kiddieland when I was a kid

[@andrewneedham5469]

Great video, always nice to see content about my home park!

[@forrestbratton5025]

Isn't Twisted Colossus a mobius coaster as well?

[@kaydub0623]

No, it's different. You do both sides in one circuit while on Racer you only do one side per circuit.

[@dailylifewithsteve4460]

I love this place

[@jazzythings4307]

Who loves the thunderbolt???

[@ME-cl2qf]

I’m from Maryland but this is the first amusement park I went to because my dads side of the family is from Pennsylvania 🙂

[@NWNKTADGAF]

muh·naang·guh·hee·luh

[@thepflare6050]

You missed one of the coolest facts of Kennywood. George Washington was there with Braddock just before they crossed the river and then got ambushed. There is a statue of a young GW in the park.

[@Duffster115]

I love the park it's so much fun and so good

[@Cocomanvideo]

It's a real shame what the new management is done with this park it's really gone downhill

[@fncz]

Incorrect Pippin aka Thunderbolt. Two very different rides. Granted they used parts of the Pippin's four drops to varying degrees. Pippin has more design in common with the Jack Rabbit. I get how people can say aka but aka means also known as.

[@jakobnorman315]

Nice that you put Thomas town in the video

[@pittsburghthrills1281]

This video is mostly right, but with the trains, you made a mistake. Jackrabbit continues to use its original trains made by Andrew Vettal in 1920. I don’t know where you heard that they got new trains, since that is incorrect.

[@mnamusements9522]

Pretty cool video, Amusement Insiders. My parents grew up going to Kennywood. I've been there myself about three times. Going back again this year for The Steel Curtain

[@3000adidaskorn]

I cringed every time she tried to pronounce Monongahela.

[@3000adidaskorn]

Same.

[@anditsdunn6252]

BRUH she mispronounced monongahela river😂

[@seanmoffo]

It's pronounced : meh - non - guh - hey - la 😉

[@andyluce7871]

isnt twisted colossus a mobius

[@JasmineDreams]

Andy Luce yeah I’m gonna have to correct that bit in a later episode lol whoops!

[@OutdoorsWithShawn]

I don't think it is because it only has one station side. The train comes in and out of the station the same side it comes in on. Possibly call it a modified mobius loop seeing how the remainder of the track is.

[@pcallas66]

pronounced mon on ga hay la.

[@Cocomanvideo]

The mispronunciation of Monongahela iis quite jarring.

[@replaycraig]

Andy Vettle Jr at 9 27... son of the T Bolt designer, and the “voice” of Kennywood

[@HockeyGUY66871]

Have a season pass to kennywood and love the wooden coasters but Phantoms Revenge is my favorite as of now. It will probably change to Steel Curtain when it opens

[@mrhead6856]

HockeyGUY66871 steel curtain is gonna be amazing kennywood will be a world wide destination again.. of course cedar point will have to put something up with 10 inversions and an inversion 2 feet higher cause can't let kennywood win

[@donjohnson9688]

Phantoms Revenge is far superior to Steel Curtain, as I'm sure you know by now

[@HockeyGUY66871]

@@donjohnson9688 oh yeah. Phantom is better

[@coments101]

@@donjohnson9688 Not at all, just rode it today and the Steel Curtain is by far the best ride in the park. Fuck the Phantoms Revenge, Steel Phantom was better and they set themselves back 2 decades by replacing it with the inferior Phantom's Revenge. It literally went from 4 inversions to 0 and now you're trying to say that it's better than a taller and faster rollercoaster with 9 inversions, I like the Phantom's Revenge but it's nothing other than an inferior version of the 90's Phantom.

[@brandonmadar7586]

Steel Curtain update??

[@andrewneedham5469]

I live about 5 minutes away. I'm no expert, but I believe they were putting in the top gun stall this afternoon. That would make the final 3 inversions complete.

[@mrhead6856]

search construction updates steel curtain on KZbin it's looking real good man

[@TKDragon75]

MO-NON-GA-HEY-LAH!!! It's not that hard!

[@rmalus10297]

Do everyone a favor and make your high school report on something in your own town. It's insulting that you can't pronounce half of these names

[@donaldreisch9649]

Lost me at Mon-an-gay-lee-ah. It's pronounced Ma-nong-ga-hay-la.

[@yojoeits420]

U totally butchered the pronunciation of Monongahela...the correct way to say is....( ma nong a hay la)

[@bjtgaming]

Only mobius Loop coaster in the United States huh? *cough,cough*( Twisted Colossus)

[@JasmineDreams]

bjtgaming called out! I’m gonna have to do a special “thing I missed & mispronounced” episode at the end of this season 😂😂

[@JeremieKowalik]

The difference is that you only do one side on Racer per cycle, whereas Twisted Colossus, you have no choice but to do both sides in one cycle. So it's not seen as a mobious loop coaster even though it races with itself.

[@kaydub0623]

and that's where you're wrong

[@bjtgaming]

Kennywood Fanboy how am I wrong

[@kaydub0623]

@@bjtgaming the person before me explained it perfectly. This is a different type of mobius coaster, where you only do one side per ride where on TC you do both sides per ride, you don't get off halfway

[@carebeam1269]

Hello, learn how to pronounce Monongahela

[@maxshankland9463]

You forgot about twisted colossus

[@JasmineDreams]

Max Shankland oopsie!

[@megelizabeth9492]

Generally Möbius loop coasters have 2 stations, and the trains only travel half the track on each cycle.

[@markmccormick6628]

Twisted colossus is also in the USA

[@alaeriia01]

Twisted Colossus isn't a true Möbius racer. It's a self-dueler, sort of like how Olympia Looping works.

[@planetsimply54]

There are many racing coasters, Twisted Colossus does not end up on the other side. It isn’t a true Möbius, it just changes color and makes it look like you switched, Kennywoods Racer is all 1 track unlike Twisted Colossus