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GateKeeper Media Day Daytime Photos
 
  As I said before, Media Day started at 4:00am and was set to run until around 7:00pm! I arrived at 5:00am and did several night photos which were already showcased on the previous page. Once the sun came up, lots of new photo opportunities opened up as well. Included here is a selection of photos taken during the rest of my time at Media Day. Cedar Point put on an incredible show for the media for this new ride! Among the other events during Media Day were speeches by several dignitaries from Cedar Point along with the president of Bolliger & Mabillard which is the manufacturer of GateKeeper and is the company that also created 2 other incredible coasters at CP, those being Raptor which opened in 1994 and Mantis which opened in 1996.
  GateKeeper features some incredible numbers! Special thanks to Cedar Point for the information listed here about the ride: This world class winged coaster features a 170ft lift hill with a 164ft drop at a 40 degree angle and features a total of 4164ft of steel tubular track. The ride features a total of 4 inversions and flies over the main entrance through two keyhole towers. To minimize noise from the ride, the track is filled with sand. The ride features 3 32-passenger trains, occupies 3.5 acres of land and cost approximately $30 million to build.
  I would ride this coaster a total of 7 times during Media Day, all in daylight. Everyone will have a different opinion on this but I think riding it on the right side is a more intense experience. The coaster has 2 seats on each side of the train with a total of 8 rows of seats per train. Basically, picture yourself in a plane, but not sitting inside your cramped tiny seat eating a bag of peanuts, rather you're outside of the plane and strapped to one of the wings! This is the intense experience you will get when you ride GateKeeper. I highly recommend you ride this coaster if you ever get a chance to visit Cedar Point. I hope you enjoy these photos as the weather that day couldn't have been better! Opening Day however was a different story as it felt more like November than May, but nonetheless, it was still a great time! So without further delay, here are some great photos of Cedar Point's GateKeeper from Media Day and Opening Day, enjoy...
Here's a photo you'll only get to take on Media Day, the sun rising off Lake Erie near GateKeeper!!!
 
Taken shortly after sunrise, GateKeeper descends down its first drop! The TV antenna in the foreground was from one of many TV
stations there to cover the Media Day events!
 
This is how you are welcomed to the best amusement park in the known universe!!! GateKeeper runs through 2 keyhole towers over
the newly constructed front entrance gates. This is something you really have to experience for yourself!
 
This is the far west end of the ride after passing over the front entrance gates. The coaster in the background is Blue Streak which
opened in 1964 and is the oldest coaster in the park!
 
 
LEFT: GateKeeper's train twisting its way through the first of two keyhole towers. RIGHT: The same train on the way back!
 
A view from the parking lot of this incredible coaster!
 
A closer view of the keyhole towers!
 
GateKeeper's awesome signage near the ride's entrance.
 
I decided to take a walk out to the Cedar Point Beach on Lake Erie for some photos. Here we have the lift hill.
 
Another view of the lift hill with double-impulse coaster "Wicked Twister" in the background along with Giant Wheel and Windseeker
in this super wide-angle view. A polarizer filter on the camera lens was a must today with this beautiful blue sky!!!
 
One of GateKeeper's four inversions as seen from the beach.
 
This coaster truly is in a class by itself!
 
Fast-forward to Saturday, May 11th, Opening Day. This is the first "revenue run" to put a passenger railroad term in this description.
Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate much with temps a good 30 degrees cooler and light rain, but that wouldn't dampen the
spirits of the thousands of people who came to ride this incredible coaster on Opening Day!
 
On the Cedar Point & Lake Erie Railroad, this "New" steam locomotive was in their yard. The railroad will celebrate its 50th Anniversary
this year and the identity of this new locomotive will be revealed...in a future travelogue!!!
 
 
LEFT: GateKeeper passing through the second of two keyhole towers. RIGHT: Are you ready to ride???
 
  I hope you enjoyed these photos as this was an event that I'm still trying to find the words to describe! One coaster buff I talked to said this was "Bucket List Quality" and I have to agree! Well, in between Media Day and Opening Day, I went to do some railfanning of the "lower-speed rail" variety. I would make the drive out to Deshler, OH to go railfanning on CSX as well as take another side trip to Lima, OH as well to see the beautiful former Pennsylvania Railroad passenger depot that was a station stop on the Pennsylvania's (and later Amtrak's) Broadway Limited. So let's take a drive out to Deshler for the next set of photos from this awesome trip!