Dollywood Discussion Thread

[thrillseeker4552]

While colorful RMCs like Twisted Colossus and Wicked Cyclone are cool, there's something to be said about the natural wood color of Outlaw Run as well, which I think would look great in Dollywood's atmosphere, just like how it fit Silver Dollar City's.

 

I look forward to Dollywood's announcement. I find it impressive that they will have installed 3 roller coasters since 2012 as of 2016.

[ASE]

Alright...here's the latest info added to http://www.pigeonforgetnguide.com/things-to-do/new-dollywood-roller-coaster-in-2016/

 

-------

After a couple of weeks of practically nothing happening on the hill and sources going “dark” on us, we swung by Dollywood today and got some new info along with some pics of the action! First off, it looks as if surveyors have been hired because there are new markers lining the middle of the paths going up the hill…PLUS, an excavator was working the top of the hill today (as shown in the pic below)! Yes, work has officially continued on the hill (more info on that below).

 

Alright, let’s get to the juicy stuff. I spoke with a couple of people today that I’ll keep anonymous, but they are more-in-the-know than most. I am, however, the tiniest bit reserved on the accuracy of the info only because they aren’t directly “working” on the coaster itself. With that said, here’s the new info I received.

 

*Let’s get this out of the way first off…work has continued on the hill! The pic to the right shows an excavator at the very top of the hill and it was busy moving dirt all day today. As mentioned before, new survey markers are lined up the middle of the cleared paths, which leads us to assume RMC has their surveyors and work has been able to move forward, which means we’ll see MAJOR changes within the next month on the hill!

 

*I saw some blueprints…and good GRIEF is it a set of blueprints. Let’s just say that when they were rolled up, it looked like a roll of carpet that the foreman had to throw on his shoulder to carry. My grandfather owned a construction company that built many of the buildings in Pigeon Forge and I have never seen a set of blueprints like this. Soooooo many details…this new attraction is going to be incredible.

 

*The new coaster will be a HYBRID…a mix of steel and wood. I’m told there is a bunch of wood (and other materials) already on-site with RMC info on it. I couldn’t get more details about the construction other than “hybrid” and a smile…so I’m holding off “confirming” the track type and such, but if there is a “bunch of wood” onsite, my assumption is a wood construction with a steel track such as RMC’s IBox track…but we’ll find out for sure on August 7…if not sooner. When I asked if it was indeed RMC, the reply was "Well, that's who is back there right now!"

 

*It was mentioned that the employee building you see to the right of the hill will be removed and the track will use more of the front of that hill than what is currently cleared. Personally, I’m skeptical on this simply because I can’t see Dollywood putting riders so close to employee roads, parking, etc. They like to keep everything within a theme and it’s just hard to see them putting people “behind the scenes” so to speak. BUT, I’m adding this simply because of the confidence of the person that told me.

 

*I can confirm that there is a lot more clearing and work done that what you can see from most pictures posted of the “front” of the hill. I’m not posting pics simply because it’s not something that can be seen by the general public and pics such as that have historically gotten people into hot water for sharing, which is not something I care to deal with over this…so you’re just going to have to trust me as I can 100% confirm that what you see from the 50’s section is just a fraction of the work that has been done so far on “the hill”. Let’s just say it will be a fun layout!

Finally, here’s a pano of the construction today on July 7. There were a lot of workers incredibly busy on numerous aspects of the project. Needless to say, we’re going to see a LOT of changes between now and the announcement!

--------------

 

That's as much as I could squeeze out of them today...too many people are scared to lose their jobs! lol

[glouthan]

Wow, things are getting *really* interesting. Why can't it already be august 7?

[chickenbowl]

I'm sure that this will be Topper Track and not IBox.

[Shavethewhales]

Very cool. Now they're really getting to work. I like your write up on all the clues.

 

August 7 is only a month away... remember when it was normal to have to wait until the park closed for the next year? I swear at some point they'll be announcing next year's attraction on opening day.

[glouthan]

I'm sure that this will be Topper Track and not IBox.

 

That's kind of what I'm thinking right now because:

 

A) The Herschend company has worked with RMC and this track before, so they know what to expect with this track

 

B) They can market it as the first launching woodie, and nowadays, a marketing appeal is key for a major attraction

 

C) Dollywood seems to be the type of park that would want to keep a coaster wooden if that makes sense. The Herschend company makes rides that fit into the natural feel of the park and IBox just screams out of place for Dollywood in my mind. They don't seem like the company that's going to ruin the coaster's wooden title by using the IBox when they are making a wood structure already.

 

I guess the rumors are for the IBox, though. We will have to wait and see what happens. By the way, thanks ASE for constantly updating that page of clues - it's really helpful and gets me more excited for this project!

[moneygrabber]

My hype train is plowing full steam ahead right now. I can't wait to start seeing wood get put up!!!

[Woodie Warrior]

I am hoping for a launched Topper Track, as the title of "world's first launched wooden coaster" would be awesome.

 

However, at the end of the day, it really doesn't make a huge difference, as (since it's an RMC) it'll be an awesome ride no matter what, and I doubt I-Box coasters ride that much differently that Topper Track ones.

[Dollywoodlover20]

For anyone (if anyone) wants to see the big difference in a topper and Ibox I have pictures down below because I was once and still am in certain areas as this question here. With the topper track such as in Outlaw Run, what are the holes in the track for? This will be my first RMC so either way I am excited but just thought I'd post a few pictures for comparisons.

[Comeagain?]

The holes are for access to the bolts that secure the top layer of steel to the wooden stack below it. The holes are then covered by another strip of steel that the cars actually run on.

[ZeroGravity55]

^ Beat me to it. They also pump that steel box full with a concrete grout to make the track very strong.

 

Notice the steel plate is the top layer.

 

Notice how the steel plate sits on top of the steel box now.

 

 

http://www.rockymtnconstruction.com/topper-track.php

[ASE]

The *only* reason I leaned toward IBox was when the person I was talking to said it would be a hybrid, and knowing Alan Schilke's explanation of hybrid vs wooden when talking about IBox vs Topper in this video:

 

I completely agree with those of you hoping for a topper track as well simply for the hope of having the first wooden launched coaster!

 

Again, the info I received was from people "around" the project...not directly involved, so I'm holding off on confirming anything just yet.

[zdub]

I could see this being a hybrid IF it indeed does have a launch. Simply just thinking about the stress involved, I feel that the iBox design would be able to hold a launch more and allow more to work with with adding the mechanisms required.

[kcurry11]

If it is indead I-Box, do we really consider this the first "Launched Wooden Coaster". I mean think about it. We consider all other I-Box tracks steel coasters. Wouldn't this then be a steel coaster as well, taking away the Launched Wooden marketing push?

[glouthan]

I could see this being a hybrid IF it indeed does have a launch. Simply just thinking about the stress involved, I feel that the iBox design would be able to hold a launch more and allow more to work with with adding the mechanisms required.

If it is indead I-Box, do we really consider this the first "Launched Wooden Coaster". I mean think about it. We consider all other I-Box tracks steel coasters. Wouldn't this then be a steel coaster as well, taking away the Launched Wooden marketing push?

 

If they do use the IBox, then yes, it would take away the marketing edge of having the first launched wooden coaster.

 

However, maybe they could get around that by only using IBox for the launch section and have it be topper track for the rest of the ride. I know they did this for Goliath - the brake run track is topper, but the station track is all steel and would be classified as IBox. So if they wanted to they could theoretically switch tracks to hybrid during the launch section and then go back the topper. I guess with that they could market it as wooden, but they might get a bit of controversy.

[kcurry11]

"The first steel and wooden coaster in the world!"

[Shavethewhales]

Of course they could still call it a wooden coaster. It's marketing. How many parks refer to their log flumes and super loops as coasters?

 

Honestly though I don't think it's that great of a gimmick anyway. 'New Launched Coaster' is probably more exciting to most people than 'First Ever Launched Wooden Coaster'. They'll still probably try to push it, but I'm sure they'll also be pushing stuff about the track technology as well to offset any negative reaction that people have against wooden coasters.

 

Sounds like just another thing for enthusiasts to fuss over (not that that's a bad thing, it's part who we are. ) Personally though, I just put all RMC coasters into their own category.

[dstephe9]

I could see this being a hybrid IF it indeed does have a launch. Simply just thinking about the stress involved, I feel that the iBox design would be able to hold a launch more and allow more to work with with adding the mechanisms required.

If it is indead I-Box, do we really consider this the first "Launched Wooden Coaster". I mean think about it. We consider all other I-Box tracks steel coasters. Wouldn't this then be a steel coaster as well, taking away the Launched Wooden marketing push?

 

If they do use the IBox, then yes, it would take away the marketing edge of having the first launched wooden coaster.

 

However, maybe they could get around that by only using IBox for the launch section and have it be topper track for the rest of the ride. I know they did this for Goliath - the brake run track is topper, but the station track is all steel and would be classified as IBox. So if they wanted to they could theoretically switch tracks to hybrid during the launch section and then go back the topper. I guess with that they could market it as wooden, but they might get a bit of controversy.

The controversy would only be from people on here i bet. The GP would still see it as wooden or so I assume

[glouthan]

^That's probably true, lol.

 

"The first steel and wooden coaster in the world!"

 

I know someone said this before, but honestly, the whole experience will still mostly feel the same. With a full topper track coaster, they can use steel wheels to make it feel like a wooden coaster, which might be important given most of their coasters are steel at Dollywood. However, with the Hybrid track, they can only use the poly wheels, which really make it feel like a steel ride. While I would prefer topper track, it wont really make too much of a difference either way.

 

I still feel like the topper would give it an extra marketing push over the hybrid. I mean, the GP probably wont care really which track it uses, but in their mind the launched wooden coater that is the FIRST of it's kind will probably stand out more than just another launched ride at Dollywood. For the enthusiasts, it doesn't make a whole lot of difference, but I would definitely get more excited if it's the topper track thing because that's something truly innovative and special.

[Dollywoodlover20]

The general public would see it as wooden if they used Ibox or topper. I showed 3 of my friends earlier the pictures of Outlaw, and Twisted Colossus and they said they were all wooden. So there you have the publics view. These friends aren't coaster lovers either, I mean that ride them but they don't thrive off of them.

[chargersmichael]

I honestly don't care what type of track they use. If RMC is involved...I'm sure it will be a kick-ass ride! Can't wait until next year at Dollywood!

[glouthan]

The general public would see it as wooden if they used Ibox or topper. I showed 3 of my friends earlier the pictures of Outlaw, and Twisted Colossus and they said they were all wooden. So there you have the publics view. These friends aren't coaster lovers either, I mean that ride them but they don't thrive off of them.

 

True, but if they use IBox, they can't really market it as a wooden ride. To the GP it may seem wooden, but Dollywood could run into some problems if they market it as wood - the same thing happened with the New Texas Giant (this type of track does not classify as a wood ride). But yes, it won't really matter in the grand scheme of things. I just think it would be smart for Dollywood to use topper track so they can actually market it as the first launched woodie.

[DJeXeL]

The park can market it however they see fit.

 

The whole "wood vs steel" debate:

 

[glouthan]

The park can market it however they see fit.

 

The whole "wood vs steel" debate:

 

 

I'm sorry, it's just that I'm pretty sure we're all trying to speculate on which track is the best for Dollywood. It's all part of the geeky coaster enthusiast process

Edited July 8, 2015 by glouthan

[Dollywoodlover20]

Yea I mean we have to have something to speculate and talk about now that things are actually going on again up on the hill and more rumors are swirling. Other than the hill all that we can see from Jukebox Junction is the foundation beginning of a building where Cas' was. Which oddly is seeming to go in the same outline the original building did.