Thunderhead (roller coaster)

Thunderhead
Thunderhead's logo and two Golden Tickets for the Best Wooden Roller Coaster
Dollywood
Park section	Timber Canyon
Coordinates	35°47′48″N 83°31′55″W / 35.79667°N 83.53194°WCoordinates: 35°47′48″N 83°31′55″W / 35.79667°N 83.53194°W
Status	Operating
Opening date	April 3, 2004
Cost	$7,000,000 ($8.77 million in 2016 dollars[1])
General statistics
Type	Wood
Manufacturer	Great Coasters International
Designer	Mike Boodley
Track layout	Twister roller coaster
Lift/launch system	Chain lift hill
Height	100.4 ft (30.6 m)
Drop	100 ft (30 m)
Length	3,230 ft (980 m)
Speed	55 mph (89 km/h)
Inversions	0
Duration	2:30
Max vertical angle	60°
Height restriction	48 in (122 cm)
Trains	2 trains with 12 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in a single row for a total of 24 riders per train.
Q2Q available
Must transfer from wheelchair
Thunderhead at RCDB Pictures of Thunderhead at RCDB

Thunderhead is a wooden roller coaster located at Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The coaster, which was the anchor attraction of the new "Thunderhead Gap" section, opened on April 3, 2004, to much critical acclaim. Thunderhead boasts 22 turns and 32 crossovers , and utilizes GCI's Millennium Flyer trains, used on all GCI coasters since 1999. Thunderhead is also the first roller coaster to feature a station flyby.

History

The ride was named after Thunderhead Mountain, a peak within the nearby Great Smoky Mountains National Park that was heavily logged during the early 19th century. The mountain itself was named "Thunderhead" after a slang term in the American South for Cumulonimbus clouds.

Construction Data

• 700,000 board feet of Southern Yellow Pine
• 3600 yards of concrete
• 250,000 bolts
• 2,000,000 screws
• 185,000 feet of steel rebar^[2]

Rankings

Golden Ticket Awards: Top wood Roller Coasters
Year	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015
Ranking	6[3]	1[4]	1[5]	2[6]	2[7]	5[8]	5[9]	5[10]	4[11]	5[12]	5[13]	5[14]

Mitch Hawker's Best Roller Coaster Poll: Best wood-Tracked Roller Coaster[15]
Year	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013
Ranking	5	2	7	3	11	11	14	12	15	15

NAPHA Survey: Favorite Wood Roller Coaster[16]
Year	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009
Ranking	-	4	4	3	3	3

Gallery

• 

  Thunderhead's second drop

• 

  Thunderhead's first airtime hill

• 

  Thunderhead's station fly-through

• 

  Thunderhead's drop after its station fly-through

External links

• Dollywood's Official Page for Thunderhead

References

1. Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
2. Thunderhead (Dollywood) :: ThrillNetwork.com
3. "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 14–15B. September 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 3, 2007. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
4. "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 22–23B. September 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
5. "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today: 30–31B. September 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
6. "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 11 (6.2): 42–43. September 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
7. "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 12 (6.2): 42–43. September 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
8. "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 13 (6.2): 38–39. September 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
9. "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 14 (6.2): 38–39. September 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
10. "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 15 (6.2): 46–47. September 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
11. "Top 50 wood roller coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 16 (6.2): 46–47. September 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 2, 2015. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
12. "2013 Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 17 (6.2): 40–41. September 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
13. "2014 Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 18 (6.2): 38–39. September 2014. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
14. "2015 Top 50 wood Roller Coasters" (PDF). Amusement Today 19 (6.2): 45–46. September 2015. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
15. Hawker, Mitch. "Wooden Roller Coaster Poll 20 Year Results Table (1994–2013)". Best Roller Coaster Poll. Retrieved March 2, 2014.
16. Surveys - National Amusement Park Historical Association