Dollywood's FireChaser Express Layout

Dollywood recently released the full layout of their new family roller coaster debuting in 2014, FireChaser Express. The layout includes a foward launch, a chain lift, and a backwards launch out of an exploding fireworks factory. Here's the complete ride animation:



The very cool and unique Adventure Mountain climbing structure and ropes course had to be partially removed but it looks like a lot of the towers are going to be reused in the theming for FireChaser. I've taken a overhead image of the site and drew the layout on it based on the renderings available and the POV video.

 

I think FireChaser Express looks like a fun little ride and and a great addition to Dollywood. Dare I say it might even be better than Wild Eagle (due to potentially more airtime)?! What say you?

 

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Dollywood 2013 Preview

Dolly Parton was at Dollywood on Friday, March 22nd to preview the upcoming 2013 season. Embedded below is a video shot during the media preview in which she tells us what to expect from Dollywood in 2013.

One of the highlights I'm most looking forward to is the park staying open later allowing us to ride Thunderhead and Wild Eagle roller coasters in the dark!

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Wing Coaster Design

We're just now seeing an onslaught of new wing coaster designs opening this year with four of them from B&M (including the fabulous Wild Eagle at Dollywood). There have been wing coaster design concepts around for a long time. Check out this airplane concept from 2007. This design is a literal wing coaster as the seats are on the sings of an airplane.

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2012 Amusement Park Ticket Price Per Coaster

There are a lot of variables that go into amusement park entrance ticket pricing but from the viewpoint of a roller coaster enthusiast – someone only going to the park to ride the coasters – might look at the ticket price as cost per coaster. I decided to do a little quick research and proceeded to go to a few amusement park web sites to see what their one day ticket price at the gate is and then went to RCDB to confirm how many roller coasters they have. I charted out the results shown above (I use Excel spreadsheets a lot).

A few interesting notes from my research:

• Six Flags has an affiliate program with 5% commission for selling park tickets. Very smart. Why don’t more parks do this (or maybe they do and I've never heard about it before?)
• Six Flags has one of the harder websites to find out how to buy tickets while Kings Island was by far the easiest.
• Holiday World has the highest cost per coaster while Cedar Point has the lowest.
• I omitted the heavily themed parks such as Disney and Universal for obvious reasons (extremely high cost per coaster).
• Lagoon Park seems to be pretty good value as it's the same price as Holiday World but offers 5 more coasters. That is until you actually see the roller coasters that they do have to offer.

Of course this is just all fun and games as I stated to begin with there are many other factors which go into ticket prices like what other perks are included - water parks, parking, soft drinks, world class shows, etc. At the same time, those folks complaining about how expensive Cedar Point is need to realize that Cedar Point is very affordable compared to other parks as well as alternative forms of entertainment.

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Dollywood Vacations "Ladybug" Cabin Review

I enjoyed a short weekend vacation by heading to Tennesseeto check out America’s first wing coaster, Wild Eagle, at Dollywood. My full review of the new ride, with photo and video, will be posted on 101. Friday and Saturday night we stayed in one of Dollywood Vacation Cabins. Last year we stayed in One More Night which is in the Star Resort area. This time we were in Ladybug, a two story cabin with a nice view but a pain in the butt to get to.

Pictured below is a scan of the Dollywood Vacations resort map. The cabins Dollywood operates are mixed in with other cabins own by other resorts or individuals. The map is pretty deceiving because a lot of smaller roads are missing. Dollywood’s cabins look closer on the map then they actually are.

If you’re looking for cabins in the Gatlinburg vicinity, I highly recommend Dollywood Vacations. Cabin prices range from affordable to luxuriously expensive – but oh so worth it. Ladybug goes from $99 to $399 depending on the time of year. The Dollywood vacation package can include length of stay tickets to the theme park, including free parking in Lot B! Guests can take home free lanyards and plastic souvenir cups. Easily one of the best Pigeon Forge attractions!

One of my favorite features of the cabins, which you can see in the pictures and video I've added, is the hot tub on the back deck. This cabin also happened to have a Jacuzzi inside on the second story along with a pool table! Ladybug has two full baths and can sleep up to 6 people. We watched a thunderstorm roll in Friday night from the comfort of the hot tub.

Where is Dollywood you ask? Dollywood’s location is in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, land of the blue smoke, and the cabins for rent are located on the mountains behind the park. The main road to get to the park and the cabins is the second to last stoplight from the Smoky Mountainparkway leading to nearby Gatlinburg (a beautiful road to drive on). Once again, I highly recommend staying in these cabins, though I much prefer staying in the cabins closer to the park and the main roads. But trust me, you'll be able to hear the train whistle from any cabin in the area - it's loud!


FYI The address of the Dollywood Vacations Cabin "Ladybug" is: 2321 Foxberry Way.

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Wild Eagle Video

I visited Dollywood briefly over the weekend (due to rain and time crunch) but was able to take a few quick shots of Wild Eagle in flight. I compiled the off-ride footage into a short video montage. Enjoy!

You'll have to head over to Coaster101.com for my full review. Shortly I'll be posting some pictures and a review of my second stay at Dollywood Vacations cabins.

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Most Popular Amusement Posts of 2011

Everyone is doing it so I might as well too. We're taking a minute to review some of the highlights in the amusement industry from 2011 by linking to our most popular posts from 2011:

1. S&S Worldwide's new thrill ride
2. Roller Coaster Tycoon 4 Under Development 
3. Fun Facts: Disney Hollywood Studios Tower of Terror 
4. What are the mechanics of Mission: Space at EPCOT? 
5. EPCOT's Spaceship Earth Layout Ride Diagram 

Now let's look at some of my amusement park related videos I put together, including my winning K'nex Demon Drop model (in no particular order):

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Dollywood Slideshow

I visited Dollywood back in May and had a great time. We stayed in one of the Dollywood Vacations cabins and I think it just might be better than any other place I've stayed (including onsite at Disney and Universal). Way to go Dollywood!

Enjoy the slideshow (which also includes pictures from the national park and Gatlinburg area). Song is Thunderhead (acoustic) by the Elms.

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Dollywood Vacations Map

I scanned a picture of the map we received when my wife and I stayed at one of the Dollywood Vacation cabins. I couldn't find any online when I was making my reservation which was kind of frustrating. We spent three nights in one of the least inexpensive cabins, One More Night, and it was totally amazing.

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