Top Thrill 2 is a launched roller coaster located at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, United States. The ride originally opened as Top Thrill Dragster in 2003, becoming the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world, as well as the first ever strata coaster. The original was an Accelerator Coaster model from Intamin designed by Werner Stengel, featuring a height of and a drop distance of . It could accelerate from 0 to in 3.8 seconds and was themed to Top Fuel drag racing, with a launch track designed to resemble a dragstrip. Although its height and speed records were surpassed by Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure in 2005, the ride consistently ranked as one of the world's top steel coasters.
Following a serious incident in 2021, in which a guest was severely injured while standing in line, Top Thrill Dragster was abruptly shut down and remained closed with an uncertain future. Nearly two years later, Zamperla was hired to create a new version of the ride, adding a second tower and replacing Intamin's hydraulic launch in favor of a linear synchronous motor (LSM) launch system. Though less powerful, the LSM launch propels the train three times in a new launch sequence – forward, backward, and forward again – to reach the same maximum speed as the original design.
The coaster reemerged as Top Thrill 2 on May 4, 2024, featuring a new, longer riding experience. However, its inaugural season was cut short after only a week of operation, when an issue with its trains required modifications. The ride eventually reopened the following season in 2025, at which point it recaptured the title as the tallest operating roller coaster in the world, as Kingda Ka had been demolished a few months prior. Falcons Flight claimed the title from Top Thrill 2 when it opened at the end of 2025.
History
According to Rob Decker, Vice President of Planning and Design, the park began working on a new project shortly after the debut of Millennium Force in 2000. The goal, as he stated to Intamin, "was to set another world record, and our parameters were the tallest, fastest roller coaster".
Construction
After the 2001 season ended, one of the park's Dodgem rides, which was located across from Magnum XL-200's entrance, was relocated to Michigan's Adventure to clear the way for the new ride. In April 2002, work began on the concrete foundation. The concrete footings were kept hidden behind a fence when the park opened for the 2002 season. In August, an informal announcement from Cedar Point confirmed the park was building a new ride for the 2003 season. Vertical construction by Martin & Vleminckx began in the fall season, months before the formal announcement. By October, the roller coaster had reached in height, and the highest peak was topped off in December. The construction of the record-breaking top hat element, which stands , required the use of two cranes that could extend up to in height. The large investment tied it with Millennium Force as being the most expensive in park history. In March, Cedar Fair registered a trademark for the name "Top Thrill Dragster".
Operation as Top Thrill Dragster (2003–2021)
Top Thrill Dragster's media day was held on May 1, 2003, and it officially opened to the public three days later. It became the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world, surpassing Superman: The Escape at Six Flags Magic Mountain in height, which had opened in 1997, Shortly after it opened, a faulty valve on the hydraulic system caused a short-term closure. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, timed boarding passes called "Access Passes" were used temporarily to comply with social distancing guidelines.
Closure
On August 15, 2021, a guest waiting in line to ride Top Thrill Dragster was struck in the head by a small metal piece that dislodged from a train,
At the time of its closure, Top Thrill Dragster had accommodated 18 million riders over 19 seasons. An update was released on social media in September 2022 stating, "Top Thrill Dragster, as you know it, is being retired." A portion of the roller coaster's track near the station was dismantled in late 2022. In January 2023, the park released the tagline "A New Formula For Thrills" on social media to describe the planned modifications.
Reemergence as Top Thrill 2
thumb|295x295px|The closed entrance to Top Thrill 2
There was speculation that Top Thrill Dragster's hydraulic launch system would be replaced. In August 2023, the speculation was confirmed after Cedar Point announced plans to transform Top Thrill Dragster into a triple-launched roller coaster using a linear synchronous motor (LSM) launch system, hiring Zamperla to redesign the ride. Tony Clark, director of communications at Cedar Point, stated that the goal of the transformation was to "enhance the experience, make it more reliable".
The modified coaster was set to reopen as Top Thrill 2. Zamperla reused the existing top hat element and added an equally-sized vertical spike at the opposite end of the track. While the maximum height and speed remained the same, the track length increased from . The vertical spike was topped out during construction in early December 2023, and testing began in early 2024.
Cedar Point held a soft opening media day event on April 25, 2024. The ride officially opened on May 4, 2024. A short time later on May 12, Cedar Point closed Top Thrill 2 unexpectedly, describing it as an "extended closure" while Zamperla worked to make mechanical modifications to the coaster trains.
The ride remained closed indefinitely through months of speculation and sporadic testing. On August 23, 2024, the park announced that Top Thrill 2 would not reopen for the remainder of the season, but that work would continue with the goal of reopening the ride in 2025. The issue with the trains was fixed in the offseason, and Top Thrill 2 reopened with the park for the 2025 season. It also reopened as the tallest roller coaster in the world following the closure of Kingda Ka in late 2024, but its record was eventually surpassed by Falcons Flight as it opened on December 31, 2025.
Station, theme, and trains
As Top Thrill Dragster (2003–2021)
thumb|left|upright=1.0|Top Thrill Dragster's launch area with the "[[Christmas tree (drag racing)|Christmas tree"]]
The roller coaster was themed to Top Fuel drag racing, a category of motor racing that involves the world's fastest accelerating cars. An actual Top Fuel dragster weighs approximately one ton, while each train on the coaster weighed 15 tons.<!-- Each train was painted in a different color: red, blue, purple, orange, maroon, or green. The ride area, as well as the trains, are decorated with a stylized logo of "CP Racing". The redesigned ride runs three 5-car trains supplied by Zamperla, holding 20 people per train. For safety, riders can not bring loose items onto the ride, and metal detectors are used to enforce this at the beginning of the queue.
As part of the refurbishment, the ride was repainted to have white track and dark grey supports, with the highest points on both the spike and top hat towers being accented with red and white alternating sections. As Top Thrill 2, if the train does not crest over the top after the third launch, the LSM fins also function as braking fins to slow the train down.
On very rare occasions, a combination of the weight distribution of the train, the force of the launch, and the wind can stall a train on top of the tower. When this happens, a mechanic will take the elevator to the top and push the train down the hill.
Records and rankings
thumb|200px|Side view of Top Thrill Dragster
When Top Thrill Dragster debuted in 2003, it set three world records:
- World's tallest roller coaster
- World's longest roller coaster drop
- World's fastest roller coaster
Top Thrill Dragster opened as the tallest roller coaster ever built with the longest drop, standing and featuring a drop length of . Top Thrill Dragster also became the fastest roller coaster in the world with a maximum speed of , surpassing Dodonpa at Fuji-Q Highland, which reached a top speed of .
The records were short-lived, however, because in May 2005, Kingda Ka opened at Six Flags Great Adventure. It became the new record holder in all three categories, with a height of , a drop height of , and a top speed of .
In the last operational year of the Top Thrill Dragster in 2021, the roller coaster had the second tallest height, the third fastest speed, and the second-highest drop among steel roller coasters in the world. Top Thrill Dragster was the second hydraulically launched roller coaster from Intamin following Xcelerator at Knott's Berry Farm, and along with Kingda Ka, it is one of two strata coasters ever built. Its marketing tagline was "Race for the Sky". Another issue involving the launch cable occurred on August 7, 2016, where it became detached, leading to the shutdown of the ride. Two guests were evaluated at Cedar Point's first aid center and later returned to the park, Top Thrill Dragster was closed for the remainder of the season.
An investigation by the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) was completed in February 2022 and found that half of the bolts securing the flag plate had dislodged. The report confirmed that the ride underwent regular maintenance, including an inspection the night before the accident, which determined the metal plate to be in "normal, working condition". Instead of repairing the ride, Cedar Point opted to hire Zamperla to create a new version of the ride, which became in 2024. A settlement with confidential terms was reached on April 13, 2024.