Ask Dolly about conversations she remembers between her father and grandfather, and she’ll tell you stories she heard about daring aerialists and stunt pilots of the 1920s. It intrigued and inspired her imagination. She even recalls sky shows she witnessed. Dolly said,
"When we were kids, we were absolutely amazed when we saw an airplane do stunts in the sky. Their tricks would entertain us for hours on end, and I just know that my new Barnstormer ride is going to be every bit as exciting to folks today. I can’t wait to see the looks on folks’ faces as they dip and soar!"
Dollywood invested $5.5 million into this family thrill ride which features two pendulum arms accommodating 32 riders. Seated back to back, riders travel progressively higher on each swing of the Barnstormer’s massive arms, reaching a maximum speed of 45 miles per hour and 230 degrees of rotation.
Dolly accepted the Liseberg Applause Award, the amusement park industry’s most prestigious honor, at the Amusement Park International Expo in Orlando, Florida, in November 2010 for her Dollywood theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tenn.
The Applause Award is given out every other year (since 1980) and is designed to honor a park whose “management, operations and creative accomplishments have inspired the industry with their foresight, originality and sound business development," according to a statement from Liseberg park in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Mats Widen who was in charge of the selection committee explained why Dollywood received the amusement park equivalent of the Oscar,
"It's probably the friendliest park in the world... The thing that stands out the most are the people."
In addition to recognizing her partners, Jack and Pete Herschend of Herschend Family Entertainment, and the region where Dollywood is located, the Great Smoky Mountains, in her acceptance speech, Dolly also included one of her classic ‘Dollyisms’ referencing her famous bustline,
“Of course, Walt Disney became successful because he had Mickey Mouse who has two big ears... So I figured I could be successful with Dollywood with my two big partners.”
Dollywood's newest attraction celebrates the great outdoors and the natural beauty of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, a place close to Dolly’s heart. Dolly said,
"My new Adventure Mountain is just one of the many fun and exciting additions I have in store for folks during Dollywood’s 25th anniversary season."
Adventure Mountain covers two acres of mountainside terrain in Dollywood’s Wilderness Pass area. It boasts more than 140 obstacles located a few inches above ground to some obstacles more than 36 feet in the air.
Wilderness Pass is home to Dollywood’s award-winning coasters Thunderhead and Mystery Mine.
Dollywood took home its first trophy for Best Shows and claimed a second consecutive win for Best Christmas Event at the 2009 Golden Ticket Awards. The ceremony was held on Sept. 10, 2009, at LEGOLAND California in Carlsbad, Ca.
Dollywood was a finalist in four additional categories, taking third place honors for Friendliest Park and Cleanest Park. It earned fourth place honors for Best Food and Best Water Ride for the Mountain Slidewinder. Dollywood’s Thunderhead, twice named the number one wooden coaster in the world, placed fifth in the rankings of Top 50 Wooden Roller Coasters in the World.
Girl Scouts of Tanasi council, along with Dolly's help, recently created the Coat of Many Colors patch. The troop wanted to honor the message of Dolly’s song, "Coat of Many Colors."
In a special ceremony at Dollywood, Dolly made a surprise appearance. She gave out the first 400 Coat of Many Colors patches to a group of area girl scouts.
The Lifetime Girl Scout member sang "Coat of Many Colors" and took pictures with the girls wearing her own Girl Scout uniform. In a Girl Scout video message about the patch Dolly said,
"There's no one in this world quite like you. Earn my patch. Be proud of who you are and be kind to everyone you meet. That's what Girl Scouting's all about."
