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DOLLYWOOD & Splash Country
Pigeon Forge, Tenn.
Herschend Family Entertainment
---- THE LATEST BUZZ ----
(1/30/12) As when any major new coaster design opens, I know there are larger thrill seeking fans out there who always have to wonder if they will fit on the latest restraint system or not, which has led to a few e-mails sent in about Wild Eagle at Dollywood. (MORE...)
(1/27/12) A huge construction update for Wild Eagle has been posted to Theme Park Review this week, where we finally get to see the finished trains, station details, and views (MORE...)
(1/17/12) Scroll down towards the bottom of this page to catch a peek at the Wild Eagle train pieces now on site at Dollywood.
(1/6/12) The local news reports that HUSS Park and Attractions and HUSS Parts & Service are requesting that Dollywood’s lawsuit against them over the flawed Timber Tower (MORE...)
General Park News - (1/6/12) The local news reports that HUSS Park and Attractions and HUSS Parts & Service are requesting that Dollywood’s lawsuit against them over the flawed Timber Tower ride be dismissed. Despite the fact that the ride has not functioned properly since it opened for the 2006 season. After numerous repair and upgrade attempts Dollywood opted to simply leave it closed and seek legal action for the lemon of a ride.
The one kink in it all is that technically they purchased the ride from HUSS Maschinefabrik which filed for insolvency in October 2006. From that moment HPA and HPS began to market, sell and service Huss product line, but as separate companies who purchased the former’s assets, they are not liable for the obligations by default.
In other news, when Wild Eagle opens the park will have another surprise in the form of a giant steel eagle sculpture. The statue will be the largest flying eagle sculpture in the country and have a 48 foot wingspan. The eagle’s head, which will hover about 20 feet above the entrance to the Wild Eagle coaster. You can find a picture showing off the head and wicked talons of this mighty Eagle here.
(10/11/11) Dollywood will host the first ever Light the Way 5K Walk/Run at 11pm on November 18th, which will include a one of a kind run through Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Christmas festival and its 4 million Christmas lights. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Share It Forward program, a non-profit charity established to actually help out Dollywood’s own employees and their families in times of need. “The program is funded through employee donations which are matched dollar for dollar by The Dollywood Company and, up to specified limits, by the shareholders of Herschend Family Entertainment, the park’s operating partner.” Click here for all the official information on how to sign up.
(10/5/11) According to The Mountain Press, Dollywood has now filed a lawsuit over their Timber Tower ride from HUSS. They had nothing but problems with it from the first season, had it rebuilt, replaced most of the parts, and still is not reliable enough to run. According to Dollywood spokesman Pete Owens Timber Tower will likely remain closed for the foreseeable future and, “will remain closed pending the outcome of the lawsuit.”
(9/28/11) Dollywood will host their National Soutthern Gospel & Harvest Celebration from today through to October 29th, which will feature more than 350 concert performances for the park guests. Click here for the official details.
(8/2/11) A huge review and photo trip report from Dollywood has been posted over at the new DestinationSouth.Net website. Check it out.
(6/17/11) In an interesting story, the operators of the Sky Zip at Dollywood have filed a lawsuit against the park, claiming that the construction of the 2012 project is preventing them from operating the attraction. Sky Zip has been closed since a storm blew a tree down onto part of the attraction in late May however, though they claim that they believe the excavation work for the new ride may have been involved as well. Read on here.
(5/30/11) Good news for anyone with a Dollywood Season Pass looking to save on future trips to Pigeon Forge this year. The Resort and Governor’s Crossing is now offering special discount rates to 2011 Dollywood Season Passholders.
(3/17/11) Screamscape has received an official confirmation from Dollywood regarding the status of Timber Tower. “The Timber Tower ride at Dollywood will not be in operation during the 2011 season. We are currently in contractual reviews concerning the ride manufacturer Huss.” So there you have it… and it’s been no secret that Timber Tower has seem to have had about as much downtime as operational time, or so it would seem.
(2/3/11) According to a mailer sent to passholders, Dollywood’s new Christmas season show this year will be called Dollywood on Ice. There are also plans to improve Red’s Diner, as well as increase capacity.
 2012 - Wild Eagle - (1/30/12) As when any major new coaster design opens, I know there are larger thrill seeking fans out there who always have to wonder if they will fit on the latest restraint system or not, which has led to a few e-mails sent in about Wild Eagle at Dollywood.
From what I’ve heard about the prototype (Raptor) that opened in Italy last year, there were some size issues with people not being able to ride, though not from the normal problem area, but instead due to a reported narrow spacing between the seat and restraint where it clamps down on the upper thighs.
I brought this issue to the attention of Pete Owens who reported back that, “the seats on the trains we received are larger than those on the original trains at Gardaland”. However, larger riders may want to keep in mind that currently B&M does not offer “Big Boy seats” (aka: double-belt seats) on their Wing train design. According to Pete, “These seats slope backward to lift the legs up higher and are a different configuration than any I had been on previously.”
(1/27/12) A huge construction update for Wild Eagle has been posted to Theme Park Review this week, where we finally get to see the finished trains, station details, and views of the layout from all over the mountainside.
(1/17/12) Scroll down towards the bottom of this page to catch a peek at the Wild Eagle train pieces now on site at Dollywood.
(12/22/11) Take a new look at Wild Eagle this week, with photos posted to Theme Park Review.
(12/19/11) Dollywood has posted a new Egg to Eagle blog video… which involves a letter response from Santa about the park’s request for a new roller coaster for Christmas that is kind of amusing. Though in the video they use the phrase “Coasters for Christmas” a few times… and I can help but notice the constant use of the plural word. Could Dollywood have yet another special project up their sleeve? I doubt it… but you never know.
(12/16/11) Take a close up Hard-Hat tour of Wild Eagle as seen in photos posted to Park-Logic.
(12/15/11) A reader sent in some great new pictur
es of Wild Eagle, sitting all pretty up on it’s mountain location. I can’t wait to try this one out.
(11/14/11) A new Wild Eagle construction photo update has been posted to Theme Park Review this week.
(11/3/11) Dollywood has finally released not one, but two fully animated videos showing off their new Wild Eagle coaster. I’ve embedded both below… the first showing off a more dramatic edited version while the second is a complete POV shot from the right wing.
Meanwhile check out the latest construction pictures sent in by one of our readers who was on hand as the last piece of track was installed.
(11/2/11) Dollywood has posted a new Wild Eagle update this week, featuring a brief teaser of animation showing off the ride. They promise at the full video should be ready in the next 48 hours. Scroll down to see a few more spectacular construction images.
(10/24/11) Dollywood has posted some great new views of Wild Eagle to their Facebook page this week.
(10/21/11) The latest construction update for Wild Eagle has been posted by Dollywood here, featuring the third video installment of “Under the Wing”.
(10/14/11) Dollywood has announced that they have finished installing the giant loop on Wild Eagle and has send out pictures to celebrate the event. Enjoy!
(10/12/11) One of our readers posted a quick construction update video showing off Wild Eagle’s first drop which was just completed on Monday. Meanwhile Dollywood has posted their own new video about Wild Eagle called “Egg to Eagle”.
(10/5/11) Dollywood has posted a great “Making Of” video for Wild Eagle, showing off the current progress on the coaster as well some background on how the ride was developed. You also get a sneek peek at the concept artwork for Wild Eagle’s themed trains.
(9/21/11) A Screamscape reader stopped by Dollywood to check out Wild Eagle and sent in a couple of new pictures showing off both the ride under construction as well as a new booth put up nearby where you can record what you think of the ride.
(9/14/11) A reader stopped by Dollywood the other day to check on the progress of Wild Eagle. Check it out here.
(9/6/11) Theme Park Review was on hand at Dollywood to take a quick construction site tour of Wild Eagle, in the soggy mud no less. Check it out.
(9/5/11) Dollywood has confirmed all the details about Wild Eagle, North America’s first B&M Wing Coaster that will open in March 2012 at the Dollywood2012.com website. Soaring at 61mph on this new coaster style, hanging on the edge on the wingtips of this giant eagle, you will soar over Dollywood on 3127 feet of track and through 4 inversions. The lift hill will climb 190 feet from the station up and over the hillside, peaking out at the top with a view 210 feet above the grade before dropping down 135 feet into a series of inversions and unique elements that will include a Giant Loop, Zero-G Roll, Incline Immelmann, Giant Flat Spin, Camel Back, a Spiral and something called the Eight Curve. Looks like a blast and a huge new addition to Dollywood that is sure to be a hit.
(8/26/11) A special message from Dolly herself was delivered today, promising that all the juicy details about the 2012 project would be released to us an hour before the public announcement. She also sent along some fun code to embed here to give us all a nice countdown clock to watch while we wait for the big news. I’ve got to admit, this may be my more anticipated project for all of 2012.
(8/18/11) Dollywood says to get ready for their big Boomsday announcement on Sunday, Sept. 4th where they will reveal the name of their 2012 coaster project. The event will also stream live on the Dollywood2012.com website. Even better, they will kick off an incredible contest as well, asking those to text the name of the attraction in the sky to 87654, and if you submit the correct answer your entered for a chance to win the grand prize pack: A Meet & Greet with Dolly herself, the chance to be the first to ride the new coaster in March 2012 and a set of LIFETIME passes for you and your immediate family living in your household (up to 7). Talk about a Mega Ultra Grand Prize Pack!
(6/22/11) CoasterFusion has posted a huge Dollywood 2012 construction update and even managed to get a couple of look clear pics of the blue track in the process.
6/20/11) A few new track and support pics for Dollywood’s 2012 ride has been posted to ThrillNetwork this week.
(6/17/11) While names can change in a heart-beat, rumor has it that the Dollywood 2012 project may be given a name like Wild Eagle. I did a quick scan of the Trademark database and there is no filing from Dollywood for a Wild Eagle, nor any filing at all for a new attraction name, so it’s possible this may just be an internal project name only. As for Dollywood… they aren’t giving any hints. Even the new preview site for the ride is simply called Dollywood2012.com. Speaking of which… the park decorate another construction wall in the park to show off this new web address.
(6/16/11) While I mentioned it before, the job number on the blue B&M track spotted in Kentucky on a flat bed is the same as the grey track spotted at the Ohio fabricator back in May. It’s possible the grey track pieces were simply just a primer coat, waiting for the final blue coat to be applied. However, the bigger clue, which I mentioned at the time on the grey track is the “Part No” label, which gives this coaster a “WI” designation.
I’ve never seen a “WI” code before on B&M track, which would seem to imply that this could be another Wing Coaster, however we never did see a label on any of the Raptor track in Italy, so we can’t confirm this entirely just yet.
(6/15/11) Over the past week, I’ve been flooded with reports about mystery blue track sightings in back areas of the park, only glimpsed through the trees from Thunderhead or the Train. I’ve also see a picture of two showing off some grey coaster supports on the back of a truck headed in to the park. There is also a strange little prop wagon set up with a crate addressed to an Adventure Tours next to another crate labeled as Fireworks. A clue as to the theme perhaps?
(6/13/11) A reader sent in a few pictures of some mystery blue B&M track on the back of some trucks they spotted in Kentucky on I-71. Even better, they managed to find the driver at a gas station who told them he was on his way to Dollywood. Being on the ball, they snapped up a picture of the track sticker as well… and I noticed something very curious. The Job No seems to be the exact same number as seen on that grey track spotted at the Ohio fabrication plant last month, which I had assumed was for Thorpe Park. Very curious indeed.
Speaking of Dollywood… the sky blue construction wall has been enhanced this past week with some giant text stating that “The Sky Is Not The Limit”.
The Future - Resort Hotel - In Development - (4/5/10) Dollywood opened up this past week for their 2010 season with a special appearance by Dolly Parton. Dolly herself mentioned once again that in the future, when the economy recovers more, they are indeed planning on building “a couple of world class resorts.”
(5/15/09) While things are always subject to change, we’ve heard that Dollywood may make a decision about building a possible resort hotel before the end of the summer. You can read more about the possible resort project here.
(4/23/08) We’ve got another update about that Dollywood resort hotel survey. It seems they are asking questions about three different resort concepts called Chasing Rainbows, International and Southern Style. Unfortunately you need a valid e-mail address to take the actual survey having the link will get you no-where.
(4/22/08) While I don’t have a link, a reader tell us that Dollywood was taking another guest survey not long ago asking opinions about various lodging features and what people look for in choosing a hotel in the Pigeon Forge area. Sounds like they’re doing some research for that official Dollywood Resort project Dolly mentioned was in development.
(4/14/08) During the opening of River Battle, Dolly mentioned to the local news that she wants an on-site resort hotel to be added in the next two or three years. She said that they are working on it now, but not ready to announce anything yet.
???? - Future Concepts for Dollywood - (7/4/08) Dollywood has issued a new survey about possible future attraction concepts they are thinking of. The ideas mentioned in this survey include a new festival concept called the International Lantern Festival which would be Dollywood’s take on Chinese New Year Festival of Lanterns. Three new ride ideas were also thrown out there, including Barnstormer (S&S Screamin’ Swing themed in a giant barn with old fashioned barnstormer planes), Calamity Canyon (a Mondial Super Nova with themed disaster effects going off all around you) and Lost Treasure, an Interactive Sally Dark Ride experience through a dark mine ride. They all sound good to me… why not build all three?
(9/15/06) One month after the last guest survey about possible new attractions Dollywood launches a new one it seems that focuses more on three different thrill rides this time. Choice 1 sounds like the same highly themed Master Blaster style water-coaster ride/slide up and down hills through a scenic mountain setting that was in the last survey. Choice 2 was described as an “Alpine Mountain Coaster”, but Choice 3 is the one that may get people talking... a new Rock ‘n Roll themed wooden coaster in the 50’s area of the park.
(8/15/06) Dollywood is currently taking a survey pitching several different ideas under consideration for future attractions. The six ideas include: Henhouse Scramble (an comical interactive dark ride on the back of a tractor pulled cart through a henhouse), Smoky Mountain Wilderness Adventure: The Ride (kind of an aerial tramway over the rooftops and through the trees where you have to pedal to reach top speed), A unique highly themed Master Blaster style watercoaster slide up and down hills through a scenic mountain setting, an addition to Dolly’s Imagination Library where stories come to life in front of you, Dollywood’s Starmaker Studios (where kids are brought on stage to perform in front of a real TV studio full of cameras and production equipment), World Puppy Stadium (home to the Purina Puppy Challenge where dogs can show off their talents).
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