Hellishly scary.
I briefly contemplated if creating a page for an ancient drop tower ride was worth it, but given its uniqueness (and the fact that Wild Mouse was closed on my visit, thus denying me a coaster credit) I decided in favor of it.
Die-hard fans of Cedar Point will immediately recognize this attraction as having occupied the land on which now rests GateKeeper, their wing coaster. Demon Drop made the move to Dorney Park for the 2010 operating season and it's been thrilling guests ever since. The description on Demon Drop's wiki does a great job of summarizing the ride, which can be found here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demon_Drop
This style of drop ride is one of the oldest of its kind in the world......which doesn't inspire confidence. If you asked onlookers to describe this ride, they might use the terms "dangerous", "rickety", or "sketchy as hell". Ask someone getting off the ride and they'll add "jarring", "loud", and "totally fun" to the list.
Given the combination of the ride's aging status, its questionable safety mechanisms, and Dorney Park's overall lower attendance figures, it should come as no surprise that Demon Drop is a walk-on attraction. By that I mean, there's nobody in line, allowing you to directly 'walk on' the ride without waiting. In theory this makes re-rides possible, but you probably won't be itching to do so because......
.....it's noisy, jerky, and generally terrifying. To my knowledge, Demon Drop hasn't killed or brutally maimed anyone (yet), although it's been running regularly since it debuted in Ohio in 1983. So this hunk 'o' junk is 33 years old. Yikes. The restraints aren't comfy, the elevator lift isn't smooth, and the vertical drop itself is only 60ft, but I'll be damned if it doesn't still deliver a big ol' adrenaline rush.
While the drop zone gives you a few seconds of weightlessness and the run-out section is unique bit of fun, the transition back to the loading platform hasn't aged well and borders on painful (for both your shoulders and eardrums). All in all, though, this venerable attraction is 100% worth riding, so plan to make it a part of your day at Dorney Park. read more