Swansea City striker Lee Trundle grabbed a hat-trick in a rollercoaster of a game at Whaddon Road to leave his team with a 100 per cent record after two matches.
The Swans trailed by a two-goal margin on two occasions during an extraordinary 90 minutes, the game having kicked off 30 minutes late as Cheltenham manager Bobby Gould and five of his players were caught in traffic on the motorway following an accident.
Despite their rather frantic preparations the home side began the game much the brighter side and raced into a 2-0 lead inside the first half-hour.
Frenchman Bertrand Cozic put the Robins ahead on 16 minutes with a measured shot from the edge of the area after an effort from striker Kayode Odejayi had been saved.
Midfielder Grant McCann increased the advantage with a curling left-foot 18-yarder on 30 minutes and at that point the Robins were well in control.
Roberto Martinez set up James Thomas for the first Swansea goal four minutes later and the visitors applied heavy pressure to the Cheltenham goal at the start of the second half.
A needless handball by defender Kristian O'Leary gave McCann the chance to score from the penalty spot and Cheltenham should have wrapped the game up when Odejayi found himself clean through but hit his shot straight at goalkeeper Brian Murphy.
His striking partner Damian Spencer went close with a hooked shot then Odejayi smashed one into the stand behind the goal as the Robins threatened to add a fourth.
But Swansea stuck to their task and the fightback began when Jonathan Coates supplied Trundle for his first goal in the 62nd minute, a low angled shot into the corner of the net.
The equaliser arrived 11 minutes from time when Trundle was on hand to tap-in the rebound after goalkeeper Steve Book had saved a shot from Kevin Nugent, and the 1,300 travelling fans could really celebrate in the 90th minute.
Nugent met a right-wing corner with a firm header, Trundle trapped it just short of the goal-line before turning to fire past Book and send Swansea third in the fledgling league table.
Delighted manager Brian Flynn, who masterminded the Swans' battle against relegation last season, said: "This time it's a different type of rollercoaster ride and we're not hanging on at the other end of the league, we're at the front and seeing what's ahead.
"We've set our standards and were gaining a reputation but we've only won two games." Dejected Cheltenham boss Bobby Gould said: "The dressing room is a little bit down at this moment but there are a lot of plusses for us.
"It was a magnificent game. We've created a new team here in the last few months but they still have some lessons to learn. Hopefully they have learned a few today."