Following the opening of the Wild Eagle steel wing coaster in 2012 and Splash Country’s water coaster RiverRush this year, Parton also highlighted plans for a new attraction, the FireChaser Express, set to open in March 2014 where Adventure Mountain used to be located.
The company said it will be the nation’s first dual-launch family coaster that launches twice, traveling forward and backward on a winding 2,427-foot track. It will catapult from zero to 16 mph in just 1.1 second going forward and then launch backward from zero to 20 mph in 2 seconds.
The FireChaser Express is meant to celebrate the volunteer-based fire departments of the 1940s who protected the neighboring Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Located 12 stories above the park’s Wilderness Pass area Express, the coaster will feature three 14-passenger trains with an hourly capacity of 750 riders. The 39-inch minimum height requirement allows many 4-year-olds to ride.
“FireChaser Express is truly special to me because families can ride this coaster together,” Parton said in the news release.
