Dollywood is giving coaster fans a chance to jump aboard Lightning Rod, its newest record-breaking offering, before the final pieces of track are even in place! Thanks to Los Angeles-based 3D Live, anyone with a smartphone can stream via YouTube 360 optimized, point-of-view footage of Dollywood’s Lightning Rod and take a virtual ride on the world’s fastest wooden coaster.
The pioneering 3D technology is new to the amusement park industry, and something 3D Live CEO Nathan Huber says will revolutionize the way guests visit a theme park. Huber said,
“This year has been crazy for us. We’re doing a bunch of great new stuff, and we said ‘let’s jump into this world (theme parks).’ This is something fun and we see a huge future of bringing people virtually to theme parks."
Huber went on to say,
“Imagine hospital patients that may never be able to go to a theme park. Now, this is at least the first step in bringing that experience to them. There is something about creating these immersive experiences; you can take something that would be difficult for them to experience and make it accessible. Now they can sit in their living room, put on a VR headset and be inside the park for a minute.”
The opportunity to work with Dollywood and its innovative new coaster was something Huber said was the perfect fit for his company’s groundbreaking technology. Huber said.
“We love the opportunity to be able to explore and find ways to deliver information to people. We’re excited to continue pushing boundaries.”
Due to working on the footage for Dollywood, Huber already has been able to make several circuits of Lightning Rod—albeit virtually. When asked about his thoughts on the thrilling new ride, Huber was quick to respond saying,
“It is scary. I like scary rides. It looks like it is going to be a ride to freak me out when I get a chance to come to Tennessee to ride it, which is going to be as soon as possible. Watching this ride, I’m just like, ‘wow!’”
Dollywood takes its location at the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains seriously in terms of preserving the natural beauty of the area, and that extends to its construction projects.
Last month, Dollywood announced the addition of Lightning Rod, both the world’s fastest wood coaster and the world’s first launching wood coaster. While the thrilling $22 million ride marks the single largest attraction investment in The Dollywood Company’s history that investment will extend to keeping the ride’s construction area clean as the first litter-free construction site in Pigeon Forge.
Dollywood, in conjunction with ride manufacturer Rocky Mountain Construction, has committed to being an initial partner with Keep Sevier Beautiful’s Litter-Free Construction Program. This unique program educates workers and supervisors on proper disposal of waste and encourages them to maintain the property of the entire construction site, including incidental litter and debris. Keep Sevier Beautiful (KSB) Board Chair Tom Leonard said,
“Any litter within the site reflects upon the company, and pride in the construction site and in the beauty of our Smoky Mountain area is the key to the success of this program.”
Gene Scherrer, Dollywood Vice-President and General Manager said,
“The natural beauty of this region is unparalleled and it is important for us to preserve that charm for visitors and residents of our community. As we continue to work on ensuring we leave a positive footprint on our environment, we knew the Litter-Free Construction Program was one in which we wanted to take part.
Scherrer went on to say,
Lightning Rod is a world-class attraction and we want the construction site to reflect the extraordinary quality we expect from the ride. We hope this program will educate construction site employees, as well as the general public, on the importance of maintaining orderly and clean work sites throughout Sevier County.”
As part of the Litter-Free Construction Program, the city of Pigeon Forge has provided a dumpster for the collection of garbage in the form of office/food wastes/litter and waives the associated hauling fee. Keep Sevier Beautiful will provide specifically marked individual litter collection containers for the construction site, and Dollywood is responsible for emptying these containers into the dumpster as well as providing litter pickup labor, making sure the policy is followed and workers are educated about the program. In addition, all waste leaving the construction site must be covered to prevent negligent litter.
Keep Sevier Beautiful will designate the Lightning Rod construction area as a participant in the Litter-Free Construction Program with a sign in front of the construction site. The site will be visited by a KSB representative regularly for the purpose of assessing the level of litter visible on the site and will continue for the length of the project, which opens in March 2016.
Keep Sevier Beautiful (KSB), an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful, is a volunteer-based organization which focuses on waste reduction/recycling, litter prevention and beautifying public spaces through education and community-based programs. KSB’s goal is to protect the natural beauty of the area that millions of visitors come to see each year.
Dollywood announced the addition of Lightning Rod, both the world’s fastest wood coaster and the world’s first launching wood coaster. Set to roll to the starting line in March 2016, Lightning Rod adds another groundbreaking roller coaster to the park’s already impressive portfolio of world-class attractions. The thrilling $22 million ride also marks the single largest attraction investment in The Dollywood Company’s history.
Dolly along with Dollywood president, Craig Ross, made the announcement from the stage of The Pines Theater in Jukebox Junction.
“Lightning Rod reminds me so much of those colorful cars cruisin’ up and down Main Street in downtown Sevierville back when I was in high school. I remember all those souped up cars; but what I remember most were those good lookin’ boys behind the wheel with those flat top and ducktail haircuts,”
Dolly said with a laugh.
“I’m truly excited about this ride because it will let our guests experience something just as fast as those hot rods I remember,”
she continued.
“Even better, it’s the fastest wooden roller coaster in the world, so I think we’re going to see a lot of people coming from all over to peel out on the Lightning Rod.”
Themed after a tricked out 1950s-era hot rod, Lightning Rod launches riders from zero to 45 mph more than 20 stories up its lift hill to one of the ride’s first airtime moments. At the crest of the hill, riders face twin summit airtime hills before tackling the daring first drop. Lightning Rod races down the 165-foot drop and propels guests along its 3,800-ft. track to a top speed of 73 mph, the fastest speed for a wood coaster in the world.
[masterslider id="21"]
Featured image courtesy of Curtis Hilbun - Dollywood
