"You ain't seen nothing yet." With
that declaration and a flash of pyrotechnics, Dollywood officials
unveiled the park's next addition on Friday: a rare $17.5 million
indoor/outdoor roller coaster.
Mystery
Mine is slated to open April 13, 2007. The ride will be the only one of
its kind in the country, Dollywood public relations director Pete Owens
said.
"The
thing I think a lot of ride enthusiasts will appreciate about this ride
is it is unique," Owens said. "There really won't be anything like it
in the United States."
The project, constructed by Gerstlauer Elektro of Munsterhausen, Germany,
will be the single largest capital investment in the park's history and
will incorporate the tallest building ever constructed at Dollywood,
Owens said.
While the ride will reach a top speed of 46 mph -
relatively tame compared to the neighboring Thunderhead, which reaches
70 mph - it will have plenty of thrills, Gerstlauer Elektro
representative Anthony Esparza said.
Constructed of steel with
seven sit-down cars carrying eight passengers in two rows, the ride
will feature 1,811 feet of track and will last 2.5 minutes. Since the
cars are smaller than those on most coasters, riders will face two
completely vertical inclines and several vertical drops, including an
85-foot drop at a 95-degree angle. The track will also include several
inversions and enough twists and turns to thrill any rider, Esparza
said.
The project will also include a detailed back story,
elements of which will be found throughout the more than one-acre
construction.
"There's much more to this experience than just
the ride," Owens said. "It will be the most highly-themed attraction
we've built to this date."
The ride will be located at the back of the new Timber Canyon
area. Its theme will begin in the line area, as riders wait in what
they're told is an abandoned mine company building. To keep them
entertained, the vulture that is now stationed in Timber Canyon will be moved inside. The building will also house mining relics, pictures and other items for riders to explore, he said.
Upon
reaching the front of the line, riders will board a car that resembles
a mine cart. They will then begin a journey into abandoned mine shaft
13, the Mystery Mine, Owens said. As they do, they will encounter
darkened mines, broken-down train trestles, ravens with glowing eyes
and old mountain legends, with the mining theme carried throughout the
ride, Owens said.
Dollywood officials had worked to keep the
plans secret, though they designed the Web site www.mysterymine.com to
heighten interest. The site now carries plans and information for the
ride, including a partial computer-generated fly-through of the ride.
It's nice to actually be able to talk about this ride now," Esparza said.
Dolly Parton, co-owner of Dollywood, agreed.
"I've
had to keep my big mouth shut about the Mystery Mine, but I can tell
you now, it's the most exciting thing to come out of these hills in a
long, long time," Parton said in prepared remarks. "I've got a few more
tricks up my sleeve that I'm still not telling you about until it opens
at Dollywood next year, but I can guarantee you it's well worth the
wait."
Even as they announced their plans for 2007's ride
addition, park officials are already considering their next projects,
Owens said.
"We have six or eight different options for what
we'll do in 2008 to continue building on the momentum we have going
from the projects in the last few years," Owens said. "We should make a
decision on that in the next few weeks."