Cedar Point announces world's longest winged roller coaster

SANDUSKY, Ohio - Flying you through the air at Cedar Point in 2013 will be GateKeeper, the longest winged roller coaster in the world.

"GateKeeper will be unlike any other ride in the park," said Cedar Point GM John Hildebrandt in a Monday ceremony announcing the Sandusky, Ohio, park's addition.

GateKeeper will be the longest winged roller coaster in the world, boasting the longest drop, Hildebrandt said.

"We believe GateKeeper will maximize thrills," said another Cedar Point official at Monday's big reveal.

Officials at the amusement also park said taking flight on GateKeeper will feel like "you're riding on the wing of an airplane."

"Your feet dangling free, your body moving as though it were one with the train. I have ridden a winged roller coaster and it is a unique thrill. It is a thrill," said Hildebrant.

To see a demonstration of what the roller coaster will be like, click on the video player below. (Note to mobile and tablet users: Open story in a web browser to view video.)

GateKeeper will change the entrance of the park, with guests walking underneath it to get inside.

"GateKeeper won't have the roar of Raptor, but will generate a few screams as it flies by," Hildebrant said. "GateKeeper will make a bold statement."

The ride will be 4,164 feet long and fly guests through twists and turns and upside-down at speeds of 67 mph. And don't forget about the 164-foot vertical drop on the blue-steeled tubular coaster that will have riders on seats that extend sideways from the track, with nothing above or below them.

The GateKeeper will be the first new coaster since Maverick opened in 2007.

GateKeeper is part of a roughly $30 million project overhauling the park's entrance. Construction is already under way. Parts are set to arrive in mid-October. Steel erection is slated to begin in November. The ride will be ready to roar in May 2013.

The Swiss company, Bollinger and Mabillard, is constructing GateKeeper. It's the third ride in the amusement park built by the company. Raptor and Mantis were the first two.

GateKeeper will be built where Disaster Transport and the Space Spiral are located.

Earlier this year, Cedar Point announced they would cease operation of Disaster Transport to make way for a new attraction. Disaster Transport has already been shutdown and is in the process of being demolished. Space Spiral will continue to operate through Labor Day.

GateKeeper resembles a ride that debuted earlier this year at Six Flags Great America outside of Chicago.

For more information about Cedar Point, go to http://www.cedarpoint.com/ . Both Cedar Point and Kings Island are owned by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company.