Millennium Force
Template:Short description Template:Featured article Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox roller coaster
Millennium Force is a steel roller coaster located at Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, United States. Manufactured by Intamin, it was the park's fourteenth roller coaster when it opened in 2000, dating back to the opening of Blue Streak in 1964. Upon completion, Millennium Force broke five world records and was the world's first giga coaster, a term coined by Intamin and Cedar Point to represent a roller coaster that exceeds Template:Convert in height. It was briefly the tallest and fastest in the world until Steel Dragon 2000 opened later the same year. The ride is also the third-longest roller coaster in North America following The Beast at Kings Island and Fury 325 at Carowinds.
Millennium Force features a Template:Convert cable lift hill with a Template:Convert drop, two tunnels, three overbanked turns, and three hills. The coaster also has a top speed of Template:Convert. Since its debut, Millennium Force has been voted the number one steel roller coaster ten times in Amusement Today's annual Golden Ticket Awards. Although Millennium Force has been surpassed in height and speed, it remains one of the tallest and fastest coasters in the world.<ref name="Height">Template:Cite RCDB</ref><ref name="Speed">Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
HistoryEdit
The planning, design and development phases of Millennium Force took place over five years, from 1996 to 2000.<ref name="Construction facts">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The first rumors that a new record-breaking roller coaster would be built at Cedar Point, which included speculation about a ten-inversion roller coaster from Bolliger & Mabillard and an Arrow Dynamics MegaLooper, began circulating in early 1998.<ref name="First B&M rumors">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Arrow rumor">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> A roller coaster from D. H. Morgan Manufacturing was also rumored.<ref name="Millennium rumor control">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> On July 2, 1999, Cedar Fair Entertainment Company filed a trademark for the name Millennium Force,<ref name="trademark">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> which raised more speculation about what the ride would be like.<ref name="Millennium Force rumors and more'">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> About a week later, the first track pieces were seen at the park, and it was confirmed that the ride would be manufactured by Intamin. Cedar Point officials also confirmed that it would not have inversions.<ref name="New coaster track confirmed!">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Announcement and constructionEdit
Millennium Force was announced on July 22, 1999.<ref name="Bryan Times announcement" /><ref name="n109208731">Template:Cite news</ref> It would be the tallest roller coaster in the world, taking the record from Fujiyama at Fuji-Q Highland in Japan.<ref name="Bryan Times announcement">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n109208625">Template:Cite news</ref> The ride cost $25 million to design and build.<ref name="Blade, fulfills expectations">Template:Cite news</ref> Cedar Point, Intamin, and Werner Stengel designed the layout of the ride. After the ride was announced, several disputes about whether Millennium Force or Superman: The Escape was the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world arose between Cedar Point and Six Flags Magic Mountain. Superman: The Escape is Template:Convert high and its speed is Template:Convert; however, it is a shuttle roller coaster, not a complete-circuit roller coaster.<ref name="CP, SFMM dispute">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Superman stands up to Millennium Force">Template:Cite news</ref>
Construction started in August 1999 when the site was cleared.<ref name="MF nears end of construction">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Millennium Force was built in the Frontier Trail section of the park.<ref name="Toledo Blade announcement">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Vindicator announcement">Template:Cite news</ref> The ride involved the relocation of the Giant Wheel and the Cedar Point and Lake Erie Railroad.<ref name="n109208731" /> The removal and relocation of the Giant Wheel began in October on closing day; the first of 226 supports was installed on October 11, starting at the brake run.<ref name="Construction facts" /><ref name="First supports erected">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Two hundred twenty-six footers, each about Template:Convert deep were dug; the largest ones were Template:Convert.<ref name="Construction facts" /> The concrete construction was done by Mosser Construction.<ref name="Mosser construction">Template:Cite news</ref> The lift hill was topped off in early January 2000.<ref name="Lift hill topped">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The ride's construction took seven months, and 120 construction workers and project managers participated. Testing took two months.<ref name="Construction facts" /> The park conducted a "pull-through" by pulling a train along the course to ensure proper clearance. The ride was inspected and tested with water-dummies on the trains.<ref name="MF nears end of construction" />
Opening and modificationsEdit
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The first media event was held on May 11, 2000, and the ride opened to the public two days later on May 13. When it opened, it broke six world records. It was the first Giga Coaster and was the world's fastest complete-circuit roller coaster, but was later overtaken by other rides.<ref name="PointBuzz">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Press Release" /> The ride was so popular that guests consistently waited three to four hours to board.<ref name="n109208464">Template:Cite news</ref> About a month after Millennium's debut, Cedar Point introduced a virtual queue system, "Ticket to Ride", which allowed visitors to buy a ticket then return later and wait in a shorter line.<ref name="Ticket to Ride begins">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="14 hours, one coaster">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n109208464" /> In August, Cedar Point engaged John Hancock and Associates and Stalker Radar of Indianapolis to measure the height and speed of Millennium Force. The height was measured at Template:Convert, and the speed was measured at Template:Convert, slightly faster than what the park had been advertising (Template:Cvt).<ref name="Official stats revealed">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Before the start of the 2004 season, Millennium Force's seat belts were modified because of an incident that occurred on Superman the Ride, a similar roller coaster at Six Flags New England.<ref name="TNN seat belts"/> The new seat belts were shorter and some riders had difficulties with them.<ref name="TNN seat belts">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="NewsNet 5 seat belts">Template:Cite news</ref> Audio played during the ascent up the cable lift hill, but it is believed to have been removed sometime between 2004-2010.<ref>Template:Cite AV media
(23:45 - 24:14)</ref> While it is rumored that other audio may have been featured in the past, it is unknown. The roller coaster's layout was repainted over a three-year period, before the 2011, 2012 and 2013 seasons.<ref name="Repainted">Template:Cite news</ref> In 2012, the park added a new LED lighting system.<ref name="New 2012 lighting" />
For the 2020 season, following the COVID-19 pandemic, timed boarding passes called "Access Passes" were used temporarily to comply with social distancing guidelines in effect at the time.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
To celebrate its 25th anniversary, Millennium Force is receiving a refresh for 2025. This includes a repaint of the coaster, with the colors remaining the same, as well as a new control system that was installed, featuring a new lift drive motor.<ref name="What's new at Cedar Point in 2025?">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Ride experienceEdit
QueueEdit
Millennium Force's entrance is located behind the Cedar Point & Lake Erie Railroad's Millennium Midway station. The queue is situated between the ride's last overbanked turn and the station. A DJ booth was originally provided to entertain waiting visitors; the park's "Jamming DJ's" took requests for family friendly songs from people in the queue.<ref name="DJ">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The concrete base of the booth can still be seen as of 2024.
About a month after Millennium's debut, Cedar Point introduced a new queue system known as "Ticket to Ride" (later Fast Lane) to reduce the wait time. Visitors could buy tickets then return later and wait in a shorter line.<ref name="Ticket to Ride begins" /><ref name="14 hours, one coaster" /> This system was discontinued in 2004 after several people complained it was unfair that others were going ahead of them in line.<ref name="Amusement parks offer different ways of letting people skip long lines">Template:Cite news</ref> In 2012, Cedar Point introduced its Fast Lane queue system on the ride; visitors can buy a wristband which enables them to wait in a shorter line.<ref name="Fast Lane">Template:Cite news</ref> The system was tested at Kings Island the previous year, where it received positive reviews.<ref name="Amusement parks offer different ways of letting people skip long lines" />
LayoutEdit
Millennium Force covers Template:Convert; it runs parallel to the shoreline of Sandusky Bay, then travels to an island located inside the park. There are two tunnels, three overbanked turns and three hills.<ref name="Press Release"/><ref name="Facts"/> One cycle of the ride takes approximately 2 minutes and 20 seconds.<ref name=RCDB />
While the train is being loaded with passengers, the catch car for the cable lift descends the lift hill and latches onto the middle car underneath the train. Once the train is cleared, the cable lift immediately pulls the train up the 45-degree lift hill at Template:Convert to a height of Template:Convert. The train then drops Template:Convert at an 80-degree angle and reaches a maximum speed of Template:Convert at the bottom of the hill. This is followed by a climb of Template:Convert through a right overbanked turn at 122 degrees from the horizontal axis, of which the train then travels through a tunnel as it passes over the Frontier Trail. The train proceeds over a Template:Convert parabolic hill, which provides a moment of zero gravity as it passes over a lagoon and down onto Adventure Island.
It completes an Template:Convert, 360-degree right-handed helix,<ref name="Newsmagazines" /> followed by a Template:Convert 122-degree left overbanked turn.<ref name="Newsmagazines">Template:Cite news</ref> This is followed by a small right-hand turn and another hill that leaves the island. The train then travels left through a second tunnel where the on-ride photo is taken, followed by a left turn and a small hill, passing by the queue. Finally, the train travels Template:Convert high through another right overbanked turn over the queue and is stopped by magnetic brakes. Passengers disembark the ride at an unloading station and the train moves to a second station where it is reloaded with passengers.<ref name="Press Release">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name=RCDB /><ref name="POV">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
CharacteristicsEdit
ManufacturerEdit
Millennium Force is a Giga Coaster model designed by Werner Stengel and built by Swiss manufacturer Intamin.<ref name=RCDB /> It was the first of a series of roller coasters, including Top Thrill DragsterTemplate:Mdashthe tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world in 2003Template:Mdashthat Intamin built at Cedar Point.<ref name="Dragster announcement">Template:Cite news</ref> Template:As of, Millennium Force is one of two Giga Coasters built by Intamin, the other being Pantherian at Kings Dominion.<ref name="Giga Coaster RCDB search">Template:Cite RCDB</ref>
TrainsEdit
Millennium Force operates with three fiberglass, stadium-style seating trains colored red, yellow, and blue.<ref name="Facts">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Each train has nine cars that seat four passengers, allowing a maximum capacity of 36 people per train and 1,300 riders an hour.<ref name=RCDB /> Each seat has an individual, hydraulic, T-shaped lap bar and seat belt which rests across the rider's lap.<ref name="RCDB">Template:Cite RCDB</ref> Each train weighs 19 tons.<ref name="Construction facts" />
StationEdit
The station has two separate platforms, one for unloading and another for loading. Two trains are loaded and unloaded while the third train is running the course. There is also a separate line in the station where riders can wait for the first seat.<ref name="Policies" /> The loading platform has red overhead lights, which are located above the train.<ref name="Red station lights">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Millennium Force's theme song is played in the station while riders are boarding.<ref name="Station music">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Cbignore</ref> In 2024, 4 confirmed sets of dispatch audio were added for when a train exits the station.<ref>Template:Cite AV media
"Go Full Force", "Greatest Thrill Ride Ever", and "At the Turn of the Millennium, There Were Signs" are featured.</ref><ref>Template:Cite AV media
"At the Turn of the Millennium, There Were Signs" is featured.</ref><ref>Template:Cite AV media
"Greatest Thrill Ride Ever" is featured</ref> It is also unknown whether these audio sets had previously been featured before its current installment. Two projectors in the station were deactivated sometime in the 2000's, before being reintroduced in a new but limited fashion in 2024.<ref>Template:Cite AV media</ref>
TrackEdit
The steel tubular track is Template:Convert long and the lift is approximately Template:Convert high.<ref name=RCDB/> The track is blue and the supports are silver. The track consists of 229 pieces, each weighing between Template:Convert.<ref name="Construction facts" /> Intamin supplied the track with hollow structural sections (HSS), which is used in all the track pieces, supports and towers. Millennium Force uses three different track shapes. The simplest sections are two-pipe track, made with two running rails connected by Template:Convert square HSS cross-members. The ride also uses three-pipe track, which has two running rails with a backbone of round HSS, which forms a triangle. The third type of track forms a square and is considered the strongest. It has two running rails with two backbone tubes.<ref name="HSS">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> As both a high altitude and high velocity ride, Millennium Force is affected by unfavorable weather conditions such as rain, lightning or strong winds; under these conditions the ride is closed, but in light rain it can remain open.<ref name="Policies">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
LightingEdit
When the ride opened in 2000, Cedar Point chose High End Systems, headquartered in Austin, Texas, to light the ride. Rob Decker, Cedar Point's Corporate Director of Planning & Design, said that they thought they would have to mount multiple floodlights on the tower. However, they were able to install thirty EC-1 floodlights at the base of the lift hill structure which provided lighting throughout the ride's structure. Of the six main support towers, three had six EC-1s, and three towers had four EC-1s. The three tallest towers had another unit in the middle.<ref name="High End Systems lighting">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Over the years, the lights were not maintained and grew noticeably dimmer. In 2012, Cedar Point introduced a nighttime show, Luminosity — Ignite the Night!, to "re-energize" the park at the end of the day. New LED lights from Sunrise, Florida-based Chauvet Professional were installed to illuminate the ride. Twenty COLORado Range and ten COLORado Ridge wash lights were installed at the base of the lift hill structure.<ref name="New 2012 lighting">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
RecordsEdit
When it opened in May 2000, Millennium Force broke five world records among roller coasters and utilized a relatively new magnetic braking system instead of the commonly used friction brakes.<ref name="Press Release" /><ref name="Facts"/> This system enabled the use of a shorter brake run, enabling the train to slow down from Template:Convert to a standstill in only six seconds.<ref name="Extreme Rides" />
Millennium Force's records as the tallest and fastest complete-circuit roller coaster were broken several months later in August when Steel Dragon 2000 opened.<ref name="Steel Dragon 200 takes records">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="n109208464" /> It remained the tallest and fastest at Cedar Point until 2003, when the park debuted Top Thrill Dragster, the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world.<ref name="Top Thrill Dragster announcement">Template:Cite news</ref>
Roller coaster recordsEdit
Millennium Force held the following records at the time of its debut:<ref name="n109208625" /><ref name=Facts />
- First ever complete-circuit roller coaster to top Template:Convert
- Tallest complete-circuit roller coaster (Template:Convert)
- Longest drop on a complete-circuit roller coaster (Template:Convert)
- Fastest complete-circuit roller coaster (Template:Convert)
- Steepest non-inversion banked turn on a roller coaster (122°) (Half Corkscrew)
Park recordsEdit
At the time of Millennium Force's debut, Cedar Point held records for the following:<ref name="n109208625" /><ref name=Facts />
- Most rides at an amusement park (68)
- Most roller coasters at an amusement park (14)
- Most steel roller coasters at an amusement park (12)
- Most feet of roller coaster track at an amusement park (44,013 ft)
ReceptionEdit
Millennium Force has one of the longest lines in the park, with passengers waiting over four hours when the ride debuted.<ref name="Riding high in Ohio">Template:Cite news</ref> The ride received positive reactions from visitors, many of whom said it was smooth and very comfortable. Others said, "It'll scare the daylights out of you".<ref name="Record setting track article">Template:Cite news</ref> In its first six years of operation, Millennium Force had over 10 million riders.<ref name="Ultimate Roller Coaster page">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> By August 2012, Millennium had given more than 21 million rides.<ref name="GTA2012" /> Several television shows, including the Travel Channel's Extreme Terror Rides,<ref name="Extreme Terror Rides">Template:Cite episode</ref> Bert the Conqueror,<ref name="Bert the Conqueror">Template:Cite episode</ref> Off Limits,<ref name="Off Limits episode">Template:Cite episode</ref> the Discovery Channel's Extreme Rides,<ref name="Extreme Rides">Template:Cite episode</ref> and the National Geographic Channel's Super Coasters<ref name="Super Coasters">Template:Cite episode</ref> have featured Millennium Force. Out of over 500 roller coasters that Werner Stengel has engineered, he stated that Millennium Force is his favorite.<ref name="GTA2005" /> Robb Alvey, a notable roller coaster enthusiast, called it a "milestone in roller coaster history".<ref name="The Top 10" />
RankingsEdit
Millennium Force has consistently ranked high in various polls and has won numerous awards. Millennium Force and Superman the Ride (formerly Bizarro) at Six Flags New England held the top two places in the Golden Ticket Awards from 2001 to 2015, and Millennium has continued to rank among the top three steel roller coasters since then. In the Travel Channel's Insane Coaster Wars, Millennium Force was voted the "fan favorite" in the Extreme Heights and The Top 10 categories.<ref name="The Top 10">Template:Cite episode</ref><ref name="Extreme Heights">Template:Cite episode</ref> In 2013, Time ranked Millennium Force as the top roller coaster in the United States.<ref name="The Top 10 Roller Coasters in the U.S.">Template:Cite magazine</ref>
| NAPHA Survey: Favorite Steel Roller Coaster | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | ||||||||||||||||
| Ranking | 1<ref name="napha.org">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> |
1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 1<ref name="napha.org"/> | 2<ref name="napha.org"/> | |||||||||||||||
IncidentsEdit
On September 2, 2001, the cable used to haul trains up the lift broke during a morning test run, resulting in the stranding of 30 park employees at the top of the coaster's lift hill 275 feet (84 m) above ground. It took about an hour for all employees to be brought down.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In July 2023, a duck flew into a moving train and reportedly became trapped between a seat and a portion of the ride train. The duck was removed by a guest, who turned it over to Guest Services, and the duck was later turned over to wildlife rehabilitation services.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
- Official Millennium Force page
- Template:RCDB
- Millennium Force at The Point Online
- Millennium Force at Coaster-Net
Template:S-start Template:S-bef Template:S-ttl Template:S-aft Template:S-bef Template:S-ttl Template:S-end