Tennessee Tornado

Tennessee Tornado

Tennessee Tornado's logo
Dollywood
Park section Craftsmen's Valley
Coordinates 35°47′35″N 83°31′40″W / 35.79298°N 83.52791°WCoordinates: 35°47′35″N 83°31′40″W / 35.79298°N 83.52791°W
Status Operating
Opening date April 17, 1999
Cost $8,000,000 USD
($11.3 million in 2015 dollars[1])
Replaced Thunder Express
General statistics
Type Steel
Manufacturer Arrow Dynamics
Designer Alan Schilke
Model Custom Looping
Track layout Terrain
Lift/launch system Chain lift hill
Height 163 ft (50 m)
Drop 128 ft (39 m)
Length 2,682 ft (817 m)
Speed 63 mph (101 km/h)
Inversions 3
Duration 1:48
Max vertical angle 54°
Capacity 1,360 riders per hour
G-force 4.0
Height restriction 48 in (122 cm)
Trains 2 trains with 7 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 28 riders per train.
Must transfer from wheelchair
Tennessee Tornado at RCDB
Pictures of Tennessee Tornado at RCDB

The Tennessee Tornado is a roller coaster at Dollywood, in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee in the United States. It debuted April 17, 1999, and was Dollywood's first major coaster expansion as well as one of Arrow Dynamics' last major coasters. The ride opened in a valley location previously occupied by Thunder Express, an Arrow Dynamics Runaway Mine Train roller coaster relocated from Six Flags St. Louis in 1989 and opened in 2002 at Magic Springs and Crystal Falls.

Tennessee Tornado has several unique features not found on other Arrow Dynamics looping coasters. At the time of the coaster's construction it had been several years since the company had last built a sit-down looping coaster, so the designers created new elements and track designs for the ride, including two overbanked curves and a 110-foot-tall (34 m) "Spiro loop", the largest inversion on any Arrow Dynamics coaster.

Tennessee Tornado is also unique in that it uses a tubular steel beam support structure similar to that of Bolliger & Mabillard roller coasters, rather than the more typical Arrow Dynamics scaffolding-style supports found on rides such as Carolina Cyclone at Carowinds. This kind of support structure was first used on the defunct Drachen Fire at Busch Gardens Williamsburg.

During the 2008 operating season, Dollywood added video cameras to the first three seats of the trains. During the ride, cameras record the riders. At the ride's exit, riders are able to view their video and upload it to YouTube.

Ride elements

Gallery

References

  1. ↑ Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–2014. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved February 27, 2014.

External links