The Exterminator is a
steel roller coaster
A steel roller coaster is a roller coaster that is defined by having a track made of steel. Steel coasters have earned immense popularity in the past 50 years throughout the world. Incorporating tubular steel track and polyurethane-coated whee ...
located at
Kennywood
Kennywood is an amusement park located in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, just southeast of Pittsburgh. The park opened on May 30, 1899, as a trolley park attraction at the end of the Mellon family's Monongahela Street Railway. It was purchased in 1 ...
amusement park in
West Mifflin, Pennsylvania
West Mifflin is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, located southeast of downtown Pittsburgh. The population was 20,313 at the 2010 census. It is named after Thomas Mifflin, 1st Governor of Pennsylvania, signer of the Un ...
, near
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
. The ride was developed by
Reverchon Industries
Reverchon Industries was a developer, designer and manufacturer of amusement park attractions that were sold all over the world. The company went into liquidation in September 2008, filing for bankruptcy and closing down their manufacturing and ope ...
.
The ride is heavily themed around the concept of the rider as a rat attempting to escape from Kennywood exterminators. The concept is a pun of the phrase "
Wild Mouse roller coaster
A wild mouse is a type of roller coaster consisting of single or spinning cars traversing a tight-winding track with an emphasis on sharp, unbanked turns. The upper portion of the track usually features multiple 180-degree turns, known as flat ...
", which describes this type of coaster, characterized by small cars (4 people/car for Exterminator) and sharp turns. Much of the theming takes place in the line for the ride, which includes such elaborate media as fake news broadcasts, and is usually the park's longest, being usually or beyond a 2 hour wait. The ride is very dark and unique, as the introduction says "unlike any ride you've rode before". The tracks are fast, rough, include a few sudden falls, and end with a fast finale that includes flashing lights, and the car seemingly spinning out of control.
Like other spinning wild mouse coasters, the cars face forwards for the first half of the ride, but are free to spin during the second half.
External links
Exterminator at Ultimate Roller CoasterExterminator at Kennywood.comExterminator fact sheet at Kennywood.com
{{Pittsburgh Metro Area
Kennywood
Wild Mouse roller coasters
Roller coasters introduced in 1999