TrippinBillie

Yeah, if I lived that close I'd buy a Season Pass for sure (then again... I love 12 hours away and have a Season Pass so maybe I'm not one to comment). It pays for itself in less than 2 visits and then you can go back for Christmas (which I HIGHLY recommend). Maybe you'll ride it this trip but if not you'll ride it eventually. Of course, but I stand behind that comment because it's always directed at people who come to the forums and act as if their entire day at Dollywood is a waste because Lightning Rod is closed. I completely understand being disappointed but you're still at a great theme park with great rides. I don't mind if people go to the park and have a great day but are a little disappointed that it's closed, I direct those comments at people like this and I think that's completely justified. When someone/an entity says something is open and you plan a trip to experience said thing.....it should work and be operational more than not. Thanks for the highlight....buy yes, terrible handling/investment on DW's part. Not reliable and it's plunging their guest satisfaction ratings. To drive several hours to experience something that is 2 years operating and "you **MIGHT** get lucky to ride it, but you probably won't" is all around just wrong.

I've noticed the app isn't exactly real time on the LR front. Said it was open when I was in line and it was literally not working last week.

I rode the front..."butter" is not an adjective I'd give this ride. My home park has The Boss, and I'd rather ride it than TH.

I got a couple rides in this morning. Then it went down again and has t been up the rest of the day. Hopefully it is for those coming in this weekend! I'm lucky between Monday and today I got 6 or so rides in. Fantastic coaster if it worked. It's a real bummer that a $20+ million investment is not delivering as it should....even 14 months after it was supposed to be fully functioning. The park is such a beautiful landscape. Love every second of being there! Saw a lot of "TC" over the past few days. Side note - Thunderhead needs some love. Even on the busier times,it never had a wait and I saw a ton of people pass it and some come off (like me) with a headache or shaking their heads. Even people younger than I passed on staying on LOL I know LR isn't RMC's fault,but RMC should redo Thunderhead at a discount in good faith. That coaster lineup would be INSANE.

It is probably feeding off your negative energy and refusing to work... Haha - probably. It's burnt me a few times the last couple years,so I do have bad feelings toward it. Got 3 in. 1 front right,one back left and one back middle right. Really really good. Surprisingly busy for a Wednesday in May today. End of year school field trips.. They keep the park fairly busy this time of year. My school always went in May and took 8 - 9 bus loads and I am from a small school district Several schools usually visit a day so they can add up quickly Sent from my MHA-L29 using Tapatalk Yea,now that you say it....seeing lots of younger folks. Thought a Wednesday in early May would be good for a 31 year old and wife for some marathon riding PS - LR down for hour plus. Glad I got a few in. What a temperamental biotch

It is probably feeding off your negative energy and refusing to work... Haha - probably. It's burnt me a few times the last couple years,so I do have bad feelings toward it. Got 3 in. 1 front right,one back left and one back middle right. Really really good. Surprisingly busy for a Wednesday in May today.

Wow. Just road back left. Unreal coaster. Definitely in my top couple. Shame it's such horrid reliability. 10 mins into park opening and down 45+ mins. Great ride! Just needs to,you know, WORK.

Not listed as down yet. Then they're not updating. I'm in the station. It's down.

LOL - 13 mins into the day: broken.

Giving it a try once more tomorrow. Do they do breakfast there?....aside from cinnamon bread lol....like a real breakfast? Pregnant wife needs some real breakfast food

Great day here...

This rollercoaster is super retarded. Came from St Louis. Never works. What a terrible investment...

Thanks everyone!

Going to DW in 2 weeks....whats the magic seats on all the coasters, especially LR. Thanks!

Anyone hear/know of any soft opening for the Drop Line?

I don't believe so. They have a HUGE station building that's taking shape. If it were this model, I'm not sure I would see a station needing to be so big. Also, the footers look to be a little more spaced out. But I could be wrong...

AH, totally makes sense. You're right with the footprint for the drop tower.

We'll also, it's a drop towers.. other than a crown and the station, not really much you can do with theming.. plus Dollywood is known to go with smaller, less known companies for rides.. The one they built is definitely not transportable and doesnt look anything like a cheap carnival ride in Dollywood. It's very nice looking.. it's beefy looking and looks like a permanent ride for years to come Also, Dollywood has limited space.. this ride has probably been planned for a while, even though they just now built it.. the location has been ready for a new ride for years, after the timber tower failure. Not much else could go in it's space and the fact that Dollywood kept it's space probably means they have been planning for a drop tower eventually but they really couldn't go with one of those larger drop towers from other makers. Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk I don't mean to cause a dispute or "correct you".......but it's my understanding Dollywood has a TON of unused land. I can't remember where or who I heard that from. I thought it had something to do with expanding the train route and building up another new area. I could be wrong. BUT, again, this is a discussion board Just talking about what I thought I remember hearing...I could be wrong.

He didn't volunteer anything. My guess is late April (hope so since I'll be in the area) My guess, too! Sweet...hope so! We're going down the second week of May and was hoping to get a ride on it. Our 2 trips last year rendered no success on the Lightning Rod Hoping we get to it this year

Perhaps it was a late decision and there wasn't time to design and build something custom? The tech I talked to Wednesday hinted at it being a late decision. They could always add to it later. Any idea on a soft opening? Or "Technical Rehearsal"?

To answer the diabetic questions: I'm a 24 year, Type 1 diabetic. I'm now 31. I've been doing amusement parks since I was a little kid; especially SFSTL. You'll want to take your insulin to First Aid, along with your meter (meters can overheat and not get a good blood sugar reading). They're SUPER nice and very helpful. If they're anything like usual, the diabetic and their guests with them are treated great in the back of First Aid. They have gatorade and cold water. It's ACd and they can keep good care of your stuff filling out a simple form upon arriving. It's a nice break in the heat of summer to go into their area as it's always cool and a nice break. In regards to food, it's definitely tough to eat at a park. I suggest a cooler of controlled food or a lunchbox - they'll keep that in there, too. I would avoid storing the insulin/meter in the car in the case that the ice melts/water gets into the vials of insulin and can ruin them. Sorry for the long post - I am happy to see people going out of their way to keep their blood sugar regulated. Best of luck!

That guy couldn't be any more annoying. Dayuuum.

I'll never forget being a high school kid following the construction of IoA. It seemed "too good to be true" as a theme park/coaster fan boy. Being from Missouri and traveling there seeing the Hulk peaking out of the tube on construction wondering "what is that place gonna be???" and seeing the mini-park model. All the thrills you could imagine while being immersed with such impressive queueing detail and execution to story lines. Spidy was the ONLY place you had 3d glasses and it was cutting edge mixing sets with 3d and then all the coasters and Dr Doom and the list goes on! Now, being 31, and seeing this historical and perfectly executed park be replaced with simulators, screens and glasses truly does make me sad. If Dueling Dragons (sorry, is and always will be) gets the boot...I'm not sure I could go back. I loved that old entrance, the old queue with the frozen knights, the incredible story line, the "Choose Thy Fait" and everything else that WAS DDs. I'm afraid that if it's replaced, it will be identical to a Kong type ride. And that's sad. I also loved that IoA had SO many cutting edge ideas back in the day; and espeically the unique Poseidon experience. Man, those were the days. I wish Jurassic Park could get a thrilling Jeep ride like rumored with no glasses....or that woodie I heard was supposed to happen and that the Dragons will get a newer aged, cutting edge coaster. BE INNOVATIVE like you used to be, Uni! STOP WITH THE FKING SCREENZZZZZZZZZ

And even with the delay and problems, STILL more reliable and "open" than Lightning Rod

When did Fireball open? I'd assume we could anticipate the same(ish) timeframe.