Coney Island Cyclone

Coney Island Cyclone
Seen from Surf Avenue in 2013
Luna Park, Coney Island
LocationLuna Park, Coney Island
Coordinates40°34′27″N 73°58′40″W / 40.57417°N 73.97778°W / 40.57417; -73.97778
StatusOperating
Opening dateJune 26, 1927; 97 years ago (June 26, 1927)[1]
Cost$175,000
ReplacedGiant Racer
DesignatedJune 25, 1991[2]
Reference no.91000907
DesignatedJune 12, 1988[3]
Reference no.1636
General statistics
DesignerVernon Keenan
Track layoutCompact Twister
Lift/launch systemChain-lift
Height85 ft (26 m)
Length2,640 ft (800 m)
Speed60 mph (97 km/h)
Inversions0
Duration2:30
Max vertical angle58.1°
Capacity1440 riders per hour
G-force3.75
Height restriction54 in (137 cm)
Coney Island Cyclone at RCDB

The Cyclone, also called the Coney Island Cyclone, is a wooden roller coaster at Luna Park in the Coney Island neighborhood of Brooklyn in New York City. Designed by Vernon Keenan, it opened to the public on June 26, 1927. The roller coaster is on a plot of land at the intersection of Surf Avenue and West 10th Street. The Cyclone reaches a maximum speed of 60 miles per hour (97 km/h) and has a total track length of 2,640 feet (800 m), with a maximum height of 85 feet (26 m).

The roller coaster operated for more than four decades before it began to deteriorate, and by the early 1970s the city planned to scrap the ride. On June 18, 1975, Dewey and Jerome Albert, owners of the adjacent Astroland amusement park, entered an agreement with New York City to operate the ride. The roller coaster was refurbished in the 1974 off-season and reopened on July 3, 1975. Astroland Park continued to invest millions of dollars in the Cyclone's upkeep. The roller coaster was declared a New York City designated landmark in 1988 and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. After Astroland closed in 2008, Cyclone Coasters president Carol Hill Albert continued to operate it under a lease agreement with the city. In 2011, Luna Park took over the Cyclone.

  1. ^ Denson, Charles (2002). Coney Island: Lost and Found. Berkeley, Calif.: Ten Speed Press. ISBN 9781580084550.
  2. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYCL was invoked but never defined (see the help page).