Dollywood Discussion Thread

[SharkTums]

And the Adventure Mountain Ropes Course. You are required to use a pay lock.er or leave stuff with someone not participating.

[convtang]

Quick question because i don't remember. Backpacks, does dollywood have a bin for each ride? I remember that TT does but cant remember if TH does and does Wild Eagle have a place as well?

 

The only rides that do not have bins are the water rides. You will have to get fluffy, fluffy bunnies filled with medicine and goo or have someone hold your bags for you.

 

Has this changed? It's been a few years but the last time I was at Dollywood, Daredevil Falls had bins and IIRC they allowed you to take your backpack/bag with you on River Rampage and Slidewinder as long as you didn't mind it getting wet.

[ernierocker]

^I actually think you are correct on Daredevil Falls, it has been a couple of years since I've been on it. Also, Slidewinder does have bins but they are at the bottom of the hill/exit of the ride. There are no bins in the loading station as it is not a full-circuit ride. And yes, if you don't mind getting your bag wet, you may take it on Rampage.

[Real]

Park was empty today! Great day. Bringing home two loaves of cinnamon bread. Great day i must say.

[ernierocker]

^Awesome! Pretty odd about the crowds being so low the last couple of Saturdays.

 

Edit: Just remembered it is race weekend up in Bristol. Everyone is drunk right now watching cars go around in circles.

Edited August 25, 2012 by ernierocker

[CoasterGuy06]

Daredevil Falls does not have bins. They make you take the bags with you. Only place my group experienced rude employees last Monday (fist time in ANY visit ever, actually).

[Guy T. Koepp]

^Hmmmmmm. Last time I was there, they would let you leave your bags off on the unload side of the station, but they said they couldn't be responsible for them. But they were never rude about it.

[convtang]

Also, Slidewinder does have bins but they are at the bottom of the hill/exit of the ride. There are no bins in the loading station as it is not a full-circuit ride.

 

Oh yeah, that's right. I remember seeing them now; just have never used them.

 

 

Daredevil Falls does not have bins. They make you take the bags with you. Only place my group experienced rude employees last Monday (fist time in ANY visit ever, actually).

 

Yeah, you're right. It's just a shelf but they always allowed you to place your drinks and sundries there. Don't know about bags.

[thrillerman1]

Can we look forward to Dollywood making any kind of 2013 announcement at Knoxville's Boomsday this year? I know last year was really fun (despite the technical difficulties) watching Wild Eagle be revealed.

[ernierocker]

^Probably not. The attention for 2013 is going to be on the new Splash Country water coaster and some minor upkeeping/rehabbing to the park's infrastructure. Look for 2014 for the next big thrill ride.

[ytterbiumanalyst]

I am very interested to see how Dollywood's water coaster turns out. The last time HFE attempted one (BuzzSaw Falls, SDC, 1999) was a disaster. It broke down constantly, the roller coaster part was way too short, and they had these odd shields that prevented you from actually getting wet. I went on it once, and then decided to go back to the (then) 30-year old American Plunge log flume, as it was more fun.

 

Now, since then, HFE have built some killer rides--Wildfire and Powder Keg are great, and by all accounts, Thunderhead and Wild Eagle are similarly outstanding. So it seems that HFE have learned quite a bit in the last dozen years, and I'm really hoping this water coaster is much closer to Divertical. I saw the TPR video of that one, and my first thought was "Why wasn't BuzzSaw Falls something like this?"

[coasterfreaky]

I am very interested to see how Dollywood's water coaster turns out. The last time HFE attempted one (BuzzSaw Falls, SDC, 1999) was a disaster. It broke down constantly, the roller coaster part was way too short, and they had these odd shields that prevented you from actually getting wet. I went on it once, and then decided to go back to the (then) 30-year old American Plunge log flume, as it was more fun.

 

Now, since then, HFE have built some killer rides--Wildfire and Powder Keg are great, and by all accounts, Thunderhead and Wild Eagle are similarly outstanding. So it seems that HFE have learned quite a bit in the last dozen years, and I'm really hoping this water coaster is much closer to Divertical. I saw the TPR video of that one, and my first thought was "Why wasn't BuzzSaw Falls something like this?"

 

River Blast is being built by ProSlide, and its not the first model ever made, so it should operate as reliably as the other ProSlide water coasters do, Wildebeast at Holiday World is one example. Divertical, is made by Intamin, so the Dollywood water coaster will be nothing like Divertical in any way. If anything, River Blast will share more similarities with Mountain Slidewinder than it would Divertical.

[ernierocker]

^Yeah, I was about to post something similar. Not sure where he was thinking this was an actually ride like Divertical is.

[ytterbiumanalyst]

I am very interested to see how Dollywood's water coaster turns out. The last time HFE attempted one (BuzzSaw Falls, SDC, 1999) was a disaster. It broke down constantly, the roller coaster part was way too short, and they had these odd shields that prevented you from actually getting wet. I went on it once, and then decided to go back to the (then) 30-year old American Plunge log flume, as it was more fun.

 

Now, since then, HFE have built some killer rides--Wildfire and Powder Keg are great, and by all accounts, Thunderhead and Wild Eagle are similarly outstanding. So it seems that HFE have learned quite a bit in the last dozen years, and I'm really hoping this water coaster is much closer to Divertical. I saw the TPR video of that one, and my first thought was "Why wasn't BuzzSaw Falls something like this?"

 

River Blast is being built by ProSlide, and its not the first model ever made, so it should operate as reliably as the other ProSlide water coasters do, Wildebeast at Holiday World is one example. Divertical, is made by Intamin, so the Dollywood water coaster will be nothing like Divertical in any way. If anything, River Blast will share more similarities with Mountain Slidewinder than it would Divertical.

Oh, wow. So it's one of those uphill water slides and not a roller coaster that splashes into water. All I've heard about Dollywood's new ride is "We're building a water coaster!" So naturally I thought it'd be like BuzzSaw Falls, Divertical, Journey to Atlantis, etc. It'd be nice if everyone used the same terminology....

[thrillerman1]

^The water coaster isn't a new ride for Dollywood. It's going to the waterpark next door, Dollywood's Splash Country: http://dw.dollywood.com/riverrush/

[ytterbiumanalyst]

The ride looks pretty awesome, really. I think that's the same kind as the one at Schlitterbahn, if I'm not mistaken. It's just confusing and frustrating to me to be calling it a coaster. I guess it's the same as the "skycoasters," but still, the term "water coaster" conjured up a very different kind of ride in my head. I can't be the only one, either.

 

Anyway, this and Wild Eagle will be two very compelling reasons to get out to Pigeon Forge soon, and a 50% discount is going to make it hard for us to say no.

[coasterfreaky]

So, Art Modell passed away. He was the second owner of Dollywood, he sold the park to the Herschends. Thank you for not shutting it down or moving it!! RIP

 

I haven't found any news articles today that talk about Goldrush Junction, as it was known then, but it should be noted!

[triggernel]

River Blast is being built by ProSlide, and its not the first model ever made, so it should operate as reliably as the other ProSlide water coasters do, Wildebeast at Holiday World is one example. Divertical, is made by Intamin, so the Dollywood water coaster will be nothing like Divertical in any way. If anything, River Blast will share more similarities with Mountain Slidewinder than it would Divertical.

 

While it won't be nearly as bad as Buzzsaw Falls or the downtime on a new Intamin, it's not rare for a boat to valley on one of the ProSlide HydroMagnetic Rockets. It's not a big deal as they can usually get the ride back up in about 10 minutes, but it won't have zero downtime like most water slides. You've got a lot of new fangled technology to blame for that.

 

Either way, it'll be an awesome addition and one I'm sure people will wait hours for.

[Apollo]

So Wild Eagle won the Golden Ticket for best new ride?

I mean, I know Dollywood hosted the Golden Ticket and everything... but really? It was fun and everything, but it wasn't even the best wingrider of 2012, let alone ride...

Edited September 8, 2012 by Apollo

[triggernel]

It's the Golden Tickets, are you surprised?

Edited September 9, 2012 by triggernel

[Apollo]

I mean, I always knew they were biased and everything, but now the parks are just bribing them to win awards...

Haha, it was probably always this bad though and I was just completely oblivious before now...

 

Oh well, I still love Dollywood with all my heart

[CoasterGuy06]

All you need to know about the Golden Tickets is Intimidator 305 isn't in the top 10 , but Intimidator and Diamondback are (and I am a HUGE fan of those two rides)

[cal1br3tto]

^Yeah, I've never been more unimpressed with the lists of winners, even as an outspoken fan of many of the rides. A lot of them just don't deserve to be that high. I used to enjoy looking at the results, so I'm not sure if they're even that much "worse" this year, or if it's just 'cause I've been on most of them now.

[triggernel]

Did Dollywood steal Friendliest park from Holiday World?

[texcoaster]

One thing you need to realize about the Golden Tickets is that they are an INDUSTRY award, not a fan award. While fans would choose a list of top coasters based on the ride experience, GT voters are encouraged to look at all aspects of the ride including things like placement in the park, throughput, maintenance, impact on the park, reaction from the guests to the ride, impact on the industry, etc etc etc.

 

So while I'm sure that having Dollywood hosting the GTs this year did have an effect on voting to some degree, the fact remains that the ride looks fantastic in that park, the GP loves the hell out of it, the ride experience is perfectly suited for that park and its target market (they really don't gun for the hardcore thrill seekers, after all), and it was a huge investment for a park that size that paid off in a big way.

Dollywood was mentioned in pretty much every news market when this thing opened and the reviews were almost all positive. By contrast, the opening of the other wing riders barely got a mention outside the local markets and in the big picture, didn't dramatically change those parks in the same way that WE changed Dollywood.

 

Taking all the industry factors into effect helps explain how the steel coaster list varies so much from Mitch Hawker's list. That fully HALF of the list is B&M coasters shows how much is weighed on stuff like maintenance, popularity with GP, throughput, etc. Yes, B&Ms have become basically forceless over the years, but they still look fantastic, the GP freaking LOVES them, they don't make a big dent in the upkeep budget, and those high-capacity trains make lines move.

 

I-305's issues and the subsequent need to reprofile it so early in its life probably knocked it off the list.

 

The one shocker is NTG being so far down the list. Perhaps some industry folks are hating on it because they're afraid it may be the beginning of the end for the traditional woodie. I don't see that being a problem, though, since the woodie has survived every single coaster innovation for more than 100 years and they're still getting built.