Trailblazer is a steel mine train roller coaster that opened at Hersheypark on May 18, 1974, becoming the Pennsylvania park’s second roller coaster behind the classic wooden Comet. Built by Arrow Development for roughly $975,000, it launched the park’s western-themed Pioneer Frontier area and helped anchor Hersheypark’s shift into a modern, themed amusement destination.
More than five decades later, Trailblazer remains a staple family coaster, winding through a helix that circles four times before settling into a brake run alongside the launch track of the park’s modern Storm Runner. Its easygoing mine-train layout and low height requirement have made it a gateway coaster for generations of young Hersheypark visitors.
Stats at a Glance
- Park: Hersheypark
- Manufacturer: Arrow Development
- Opened: May 18, 1974
- Height: about 43 feet
- Top speed: about 35 mph
- Length: about 1,600 feet
- Inversions: 0
The Ride Experience
Trailblazer follows the classic mine train format: a single lift hill leads into a flowing, mostly ground-level circuit rather than steep drops or airtime hills. The signature element is a helix that circles riders around four times before the train brakes in a run that sits level with the launch section of Storm Runner, a juxtaposition of Hersheypark’s oldest and newer coaster technology in one shared stretch of track.
The ride runs two trains of five cars each, carrying 30 riders per train seated two across in three rows. In 2003, Hersheypark replaced the original cars with new trains built by Premier Rides, switching from shared lap bars to individual restraints for each seat while preserving the coaster’s original 1974 layout.
A Frontier Original
Trailblazer was designed to anchor Hersheypark’s new Pioneer Frontier section during the park’s early-1970s transformation from a free-admission picnic grove into a themed, pay-one-price amusement park. Its western setting was later reinforced by the addition of the Trailblazer Theater and Saloon nearby, cementing the frontier identity of that corner of the park.
As Hersheypark’s second-oldest standing coaster after Comet, Trailblazer offers a direct link to the park’s formative themed-park era, even as taller, faster rides like Storm Runner and Candymonium have risen around it.
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Trailblazer FAQs
When did Trailblazer open at Hersheypark?
Trailblazer opened on May 18, 1974, making it the second roller coaster built at Hersheypark after the wooden Comet.
Who manufactured Trailblazer?
Trailblazer was built by Arrow Development, the California-based manufacturer known for pioneering steel mine train and tubular steel coasters.
Does Trailblazer have any loops or inversions?
No. Trailblazer is a family-friendly mine train coaster with no inversions, featuring a lift hill, a four-circle helix, and gentle terrain-following curves.
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Photo: Son / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.