The Magnum XL 200 roller coaster changed Cedar Point and Sandusky, Ohio. It was the ride that defined the 80s and 90s. I can remember the line for the Magnum XL 200 when I was a kid.
I heard the loud music and saw the mullets and tank tops in line.
While I remember the Magnum and how intimidating it was to see, I can also remember how long the line was and the excitement that surrounded the new kid on the block.
History of Magnum XL 200
By the mid-1980s, Cedar Point had grown into a successful collection of roller coasters and other smaller rides on the shores of Lake Erie.
Dick Kinzel took over as president and CEO of Cedar Fair, the company that operates the park, in 1986. In 1988, Kinzel saw a report on CNN about the opening of a new coaster in Japan called Bandit at Yomiuriland that emphasized height and speed but had no inversions.
Kinzel wanted to introduce a similar coaster that emphasized steep drops and negative g-forces over inversions and spins, which were common at the time. It had been 10 years since the last major addition, Gemini, was introduced.
Cedar Point asked for proposals from TOGO, Dinn Corporation, Intamin, and Arrow Dynamics to build a roller coaster without inversions or over-the-shoulder restraints.
They chose Arrow due to the weakness of the dollar at the time, which eliminated overseas production. Arrow was also working on the new Iron Dragon at the time.
Arrow and Ron Toomer proposed a 187-foot-tall coaster to best the then-largest roller coaster drop on Shockwave at Six Flags Great America. That got Cedar Point's management interested in breaking the 200-foot barrier, partly because of the publicity to be gained from building the first roller coaster to do so.
The name Magnum XL-200 was chosen because Magnum P.I. was popular at the time. "XL" and "200" were added for "extra-long" and standing at least 200 feet tall, respectively.
The original proposal was to cost $7.5 million but was raised to $8 million after the height was extended to 200 feet. Funds from Cedar Fair going public on the New York Stock Exchange in April 1987 were used to fund the ride
Conclusion
The first time I rode the Magnum was in the late 90s, 1996, I believe. We skipped school to go to the point, and every ride was a walk-on, including the Magnum.
I rode that sucker five times and loved every minute of it. I can remember funny pictures of my friends while we were speeding through the tunnels.
So, the ride is pretty basic. It is a large hill that towers over 200 feet and gets to speeds over 60 mph. It is a steel coaster, so the ride is smooth, and the back end is full of tunnels.
Crazy to think that the Magnum’s setup is similar to the Blue Streak except much taller and faster.