This bird doesn't exactly soar above one's expectations.
Despite a snazzy name, Dorney Park's only wooden roller coaster (the ill-fated Hercules was demolished in 2003) doesn't have much to offer in the thrill department. With a height of 80ft and a top speed of 45mph, T-Hawk has the potential for some good moments but squanders them on a lousy layout that's laden with trim brakes.
Originally built as the not-so-cleverly-named 'Coaster' in 1924, it began as a straightforward out & back model. In 1930, the layout was reconfigured to a 'figure 8' style that exists to this day. 1988 saw a name change to Thunderhawk and the 2016 season witnessed a new coat of paint and shiny new trains from Philadelphia Toboggan Company. That's where the good news ends, however.
With a runtime of only 1 minute 46 seconds, it's a noticeably short ride that features some unpleasantly brutal lateral G's and surprisingly minimal negative G's. Wooden coasters are supposed to have abundant airtime, and this one, well, doesn't.
There wasn't much difference in airtime between the first and last rows, although the front delivered a distinctly rougher experience. After two full laps, I had no desire to ride it a third time (wait a sec, Eric S doesn't want a re-ride?? That should tell you something).
To add insult to injury, when I visited on a Saturday in mid-May, they were running a single train operation. This is likely due to the lack of a block brake section, which comes standard on coasters made in the modern era. But for a complete circuit coaster to have only 1 train leaves me scratching my head, as I'm stuck standing in a considerably longer line.
I dunno. I had high(er) hopes from this ride and walked away disappointed. To me, Thunderhawk was marginally more than a rumble. read more