SkyRush

Skyrush
Skyrush's logo
Statistics
Park	Hersheypark
Location	Hershey, Pennsylvania, USA
Opened	May 26, 2012
Manufacturer	Intamin AG
Type	Wing Coaster
Riders per train	32
Riders per hour	1,350
Height	200 feet (61 meters)
Top speed	75 mph (120.7 km/h)
Length	3,600 feet (1097.3 meters)
Duration	1:03
Inversions	0
Steepest drop	85°

Skyrush is an Intamin prototype Wing Coaster at Hersheypark in Hershey, Pennsylvania. It opened to the general public on May 26, 2012. Skyrush is Hersheypark's 12th roller coaster, and its third coaster made by Intamin. Skyrush features a 200-foot (61 m) cable lift that raises the train at 26 feet per second (480 m/min). The roller coaster is located in the Hollow section of Hersheypark, next to the Comet wooden coaster; Skyrush itself is mainly set above Spring Creek.

History

The concept for what is now Skyrush dates to 2007, when Hershey Entertainment and Resorts Company, operator of Hersheypark in Derry Township, Pennsylvania, solicited designs from five roller coaster manufacturers. Although Hershey executives preferred a proposal by Swiss manufacturer Intamin, the plan would cost twice as much as Fahrenheit, a $12 million coaster that opened in 2008. Intamin influenced Hersheypark officials to build another attraction in the low-lying Hollow section of the park. On August 17, 2010, Hershey Entertainment presented plans to Derry Township officials for a new attraction reaching 212 ft (65 m) tall. The ride's construction required a zoning variance because it exceeded the township's 200 ft (61 m) height limit. Hersheypark officials also proposed erecting 32 supports inside an artificial pond and removing two dining structures in the Hollow, although they refused to provide further details about the new ride.

Hersheypark launched a marketing campaign, Attraction 2012, to promote what eventually became Skyrush. The Patriot-News wrote that the campaign included "fake Web pages, hidden messages, foreign languages and symbolism". Although Hersheypark publicly divulged little about the new ride, Attraction 2012 prompted extensive discussion on social media. Park officials submitted blueprints to Derry Township officials in April 2011, indicating that a roller coaster with a winding layout would be built in the Hollow section of Hersheypark. Work on the coaster had begun in early 2011, when workers began diverting Spring Creek, allowing the ride's concrete supports to be constructed. By June 2011, pieces for the as-yet-unnamed attraction had arrived on site. In conjunction with the Attraction 2012 campaign, Hershey Entertainment filed a trademark for the name "Skyrush" by July 2011.

The ride was officially announced on August 2, 2011. Skyrush was to be the first new roller coaster at Hersheypark since Fahrenheit in 2008. Skyrush was built on the site of the Sunken Gardens, a portion of Hersheypark that had not been open to the public since 1972. The Sunken Gardens was redesigned when Skyrush was constructed. The site was flooded in September 2011 during Tropical Storm Lee, which forced workers to remove and reinstall all of the concrete footings; this delayed construction by three weeks. The retaining walls along Spring Creek were rebuilt in conjunction with the Skyrush project, and the area received new landscaping. Because of a relatively mild winter in late 2011 and early 2012, construction crews were able to complete the ride before its scheduled opening on Memorial Day in 2012. The ride's construction employed up to 160 workers simultaneously.

Skyrush opened to the general public on May 26, 2012. The ride cost $25 million and was the 12th roller coaster at Hersheypark, as well as the third coaster that Intamin built at the park (after Storm Runner and Fahrenheit). With Skyrush's completion, Hersheypark rebranded the surrounding section of the park from "Comet Hollow" to "The Hollow". Park officials anticipated that the ride's opening would cause the park's attendance to increase. Skyrush was one of three Wing Coasters to open in the United States in 2012, the others being Wild Eagle at Dollywood and X-Flight at Six Flags Great America. The three Wing Coasters were featured on a Good Morning America segment in June 2012. Skyrush was also Intamin's only Wing Coaster installation until 2016, when Flying Aces opened at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi.

In 2024, Hersheypark announced via their Instagram account that Skyrush would be receiving an updated logo, new seats, and new restraints for the 2024 season. In addition to the train upgrades, the station was "reimagined" with new lighting and sound effects.

Ride Experience

Immediately after leaving the station, a cable lift carries the train to the top of the lift hill. The train then drops at an 85-degree angle, traveling through a large right hand turn and into a large airtime hill. The train next traverses a 270-degree helix before entering another airtime hill. After this, the train enters a right-hand turn that transitions into an overbanked turn. The ride drops and enters a quick transition into a highly-banked right turn, which transitions into a twisted airtime hill. After that, the train enters another airtime hill and a highly-banked turn to the left, crossing over Comet. The train enters the final brake run, then makes a right hand turn and returns to the station.

Design

Gallery