SOUTH WHITEHALL TWP, Pa. — Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom is closer than ever to the opening of Iron Menace.
The highly anticipated dive coaster made its first successful test run on Wednesday, making a slow ascent before the ride plummeted 95-degrees from 160 feet.
Watch the moment below:
“We cheered. It was a special moment,” Dorney Communications and Public Relations Manager Ryan Eldredge said in a release.
“This park is a huge part of our lives and this community and we are beyond grateful to be a part of history. Based on that test run, this ride is going to be an absolute hit.”
Park meets construction timeline
Ride crews have spent eight months laying the groundwork and constructing the coaster, which pays homage to the Lehigh Valley’s industrial heritage.
The first piece of the coaster arrived in October 2023, with staff marking each milestone along the way. That included the connection of the ride’s titled loop in February.
Now, Dorney Park will officially start the countdown to May 10, when the park is scheduled to open to the public.
But some “dynamic, ride-related events” are expected to happen during the month of April.
Crews also continue work on ride theming around the new coaster, including a new restaurant and gift shop.
A story-driven adventure
Iron Menace will be the first coaster constructed at the park in nearly two decades, and the park’s first story-driven ride. The entire area around the entrance will be designed to make visitors feel like they’re at an abandoned steel mill.
The ride has been erected on the site of the former Stinger roller coaster, north of Dorney Park Road and Lincoln Avenue.
Dorney Park General Manager Jessica Naderman previously told LehighValleyNews.com the new coaster would be a multi-million-dollar investment and one of the most expensive projects the park has ever done.
“Steel Force was our largest investment ever,” Naderman said last summer. “And right now with projections, we're gonna be right on that.”
