The goal: Have a ball tackling this Kennywood coaster

Review of Steel Curtain

For May’s “Rode It! Loved It!” (which is exclusively for paid subscribers), I’m turning my attention to the wonderful, classic amusement park, Kennywood, and its most recent coaster, Steel Curtain. Wait a sec. You’re not a paid subscriber? That’s easily remedied. Paid subscriptions are my only source of income here at the ad-free About Theme Parks, and your support would be greatly appreciated. Plus you get cool, free content like this review.

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The curtain has (temporarily) gone down on Steel Curtain, the roller coaster that opened in 2019 at Kennywood in Pennsylvania, but has been closed since July 2023. The ride, which was manufactured by S&S Worldwide, has experienced lots of downtime, and the park recently announced that it would remain closed this year. Kennywood says that it is working with S&S as well as third-party engineers to “determine a long-term solution that will allow the ride to run without interruption.” As you will read in my review, which I originally wrote the year that Steel Curtain debuted, it is a fine coaster that deserves to be experienced by visitors on a more consistent basis. Here’s hoping the park makes the necessary changes and reopens an improved coaster in 2025.

(Palace Entertainment)

4 (out of 5)

“People around here eat, breathe, and drink the Steelers,” says Jerome Gibas, general manager of Kennywood, a traditional amusement park just outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His statement may sound hyperbolic, but if anything, it just might understate the fanaticism that the franchise engenders in the football-crazy city.

“I’ll be honest,” Gibas adds. “People feel the same way about Kennywood.”

So what do you get when you combine two of Pittsburgh’s most beloved icons? You get Steel Curtain, a wild, record-breaking, Steelers-themed roller coaster. With nine upside-down inversions—more than any other coaster in North America—it’s safe to say you’ll flip for the ride.