Cedar Point to open for new season with Top Thrill 2 roller coaster

Zoom up (and down): The marquee debut this year is Top Thrill 2, a 420-foot, triple-launch roller coaster modified from the original Top Thrill Dragster.

Flashback: Cedar Point closed the Dragster in 2021 after a metal object flew off the ride and struck a 44-year-old Michigan woman in the head while she waited in line.

• The park permanently retired the Dragster in 2022 and settled a lawsuit with the woman's family in recent weeks.

How it works: The reimagined and rebranded ride now includes three propulsive launches.

• The first (74 mph) shoots riders up the original tower; the second (101 mph) is a reverse launch, propelling riders backward up a new rear spire; the third brings riders forward again, up the tower, over its apex and then hurtling down at max speeds of 120 mph.

If you go: Admission at the gate is $85, up $5 from last year. But season passes offer tremendous value and are available in three tiers.

• The popular Gold Pass, which includes unlimited visits and parking, is $145 (or a down payment of $35 and then five monthly payments of $22).
• It costs an extra $100 for an "All Park Passport" — formerly the Platinum Pass — which gets you entry into other Cedar Fair parks.

Zoom out: Sister park Kings Island is already open for the season in southwest Ohio.

The intrigue: The park is also debuting a coaster with a "rollback" feature — albeit hundreds of feet shorter than Top Thrill 2.

• Snoopy's Soap Box Racers, a family coaster taking riders through a 672-foot track forward and backward, with a max height of 74 feet, will open at the new Camp Snoopy section later this spring.
• There are still old favorites like The Racer and The Beast, a wooden giant celebrating 45 years at the park.
• Daily admission starts at $45; a Gold Pass costs $145.

Cedar Point schedule … Kings Island schedule.