Introduction

Since 1870 Americans have traveled to Sandusky, Ohio for thrills and excitement. Sandusky is home to the worlds greatest Amusement park, Cedar Point. Cedar Point has 17 roller coasters, more than any other park in the world, and three of the of the top ten rated steel coasters. We are lucky to be northern Ohioans and live near a true American icon, Cedar Point (The History of Fun).

The First Roller Coaster

In 1892 Switchback Railway was added to Cedar Point. It was the first roller coaster at Cedar Point and the second roller coaster in North America. The Switchback Railway was 25 feet tall and traveled ten miles per hour. The new ride thrilled guests of Cedar Point and it mapped out the coarse of Cedar Point's future. The old roller coaster had two side by side tracks one was for the down hill decent and the other was for the car to be hauled to the top. The car had to be hauled by man power, today cables or chains pull the cars back to the top (History of Cedar Point).
The success of Cedar Point brought competition to other islands in Sandusky. Cedar Point became the oldest and least attractive beach on Lake Erie, sales and profits plummeted and the Point was in trouble. This was when a new owner, George A. Beockling, took over the Point. He added a new roller coaster, The Three - Way Figure Eight Roller Toboggan, and the White House Hotel. These new additions made Cedar Point the place to be again, things where looking up (History of Cedar Point).

Cedar Point inspires Knute Rockne

Notre Dame football greats, Knute Rockne and Gus Dorias, perfected the forward pass on the beaches of Lake Erie at while working as a life guard at Cedar Point. In the early 1900's it was a tradition for Notre Dame students to work at Cedar Point, in the offseason Rockne and Dorias worked on their pass and took it back to Notre Dame that next season (Tour the Point).

Cedar Point and Society

Americans have an obsession with taking risks, enjoying thrills, and experiencing fear. Roller coasters like Top Thrill Dragster give passengers the opportunity to go to new heights and speeds. Top Thrill accelerates to 120 miles per hour in four seconds, and its maximum height is 420 feet. For some people this is the maximum rush they will ever experience in there lives. Maverick has a hill that is 95 degrees. The hill goes past vertical and is the only roller coaster that offers this rush. Maverick has two inversions, eight hills, and a second launch in a dark tunnel. These and many other attractions entice Americans to take the ride of their lives, and experience new twists turns and thrills that make them obsessed with roller coasters and thrill rides (The History of Fun).

Cedar Point and the Arts

Landscaping has played a large part in the rising popularity since the 1800s. Every summer the landscapers create an American flag out of flowers. The flag is 32 feet by 50 feet. The red stripes and white stars and stripes are begonias, the blue background is created using blue ageratums. This patriotic symbol is a favorite of many who ride the Sky Ride or Space Spiral. Every year twenty five thousand flowers are planted to create a beautiful canvas of horticultural art. The design is drawn on a computer with a grid background. Then ropes are stretched across the flower beds and the drawing is used to decide which plant goes where. The head artist, or landscaper is Tom Roberts. He and his crew of about twenty other landscapers work through early spring to get the flower beds ready for the season opener. It is months of hard work and is flawless every year (The History of Fun.).

Techology

Roller coasters are made of wood or steel. Steel coasters are more popular, they can go faster, higher, and tend to have more inversions. Wood coasters offer a different type of thrill. Wood coasters are designed to shake and creek, the rider has fear that the ride will fail and it seems more dangerous (Roller Coasters). Most popular roller coasters have inversions, where the passengers flip upside down in the car, such as a loop or a twist. So how do you stay in your seat? The law of centripetal force is a physics concept that keeps you in your seat. When you spin fast in a circle the centripetal force pushes you to the outside of the circle which pushes you up into your seat when you are upside down. This happens when a bucket is filled with water and spun over your head, the water stays in the bottom of the bucket (Roller Coaster).

Geography

Cedar Point is located on a small peninsula in Sandusky, Ohio. Originally named for the vast groves of cedar trees on the peninsula, it was turned into a bathing beach in 1870. The beach was white and sandy and always crowded with people (History of Cedar Point)

Cedar Point Biography

Cedar Point was originally opened in 1870 by Louis Zistel. He took passengers by steamboat to the island for 25 cents. The passengers were treated to a bathing beach and picnic area.
The park became popular when George A. Beockling became the owner of the park. He added new roller coasters and invested money into making it a great park. Cedar Point is famous for it's award winning rides, shows, dining, and entertainment (The History of Fun). Over three million thrill seekers travel to Cedar Point each summer (Tour the Point).

Best In The World

On September 9, 2009, Cedar Point was named Amusement Today's Best Amusement Park in the World for a record eleventh straight year. This truly amazing accomplishment was accompanied with five of Cedar Point's 17 coasters making the top 25 list of steel coasters in the world. Millennium Force was voted the second best roller coaster, Magnum XL 200 was voted seventh, Top Thrill Dragster was ninth, Maverick twelfth, and Raptor made the list as the twenty second greatest roller coaster in the world. Since the year 2000 Millenium has been voted first or second every year (The History of fun).

Cedar Point Facts

- Opened as a bathing beach in 1870

- Opened the second roller coaster in North America in 1892

- Has been named the best amusement park in the world 11 years in a row

- Has 17 roller coasters more than any other amusement park

- Hosts more than 3 million visitors per summer

- Original guest payed 25 cents for a visit

- Knute Rockne perfected the forward pass on Cedar Point's Lake Erie beach

Cedar Point Pics

Works Cited

“History of Cedar Point.” Cedar Point on Lake Erie. 2009. Cedar point. 28 Feb. 2009 .
“The History of Fun: Cedar Point Celebrates Its Past.” Cedar Point. 2009. 28 Feb. 2009 .
“Roller Coaster.” Roller Coaster. Grolier’s Encyclopedia. 9 Mar. 2009 .
“Roller Coasters.” Think Quest. 9 Mar. 2009 .
“Tour the Point.” The Cedar Point Virtual Tour. 2 Jan. 2009. Harpo. 4 Mar. 2009 .