Tail of The Dragon US 129

Nabo

Nabo

Southeast Region Director-Retired
We are in FL on vacation and guess who's coming over to see us - the Dragon Slayer. I'll say HI to him from all of ya'll :).
 
I

iawoody2

Well-known member
porthole

porthole

Retired
Tail of the Dragon - part deux

So, for all you potential Dragon Slayers, be advised Tennessee has finally joined Carolina in the truck & trailer ban, if you are over 30' in overall length.

http://abcnews.go.com/Travel/wireStory/tennessee-ban-big-trucks-dragon-27359064

Although aimed at OTR truckers, I'm sure the 30' limit will be applied to everyone the LEO feel like policing.
NC has allowed "permitted" trucks only on their side.

So if you plan on traveling on the lower side of the Smoky Mountain National Park, be aware of the gnarly stretch of US129 - it'll bite ya

https://heartlandowners.org/showthread.php/41689-Tail-of-The-Dragon-US-129
(ignore the last comment)
 
porthole

porthole

Retired
Note to MODs - since closed threads can't be reopened, I had a discussion with MK. Something to try, take the closed thread and merge it with this one to keep the subject going.

So, what's worse then a big 5th wheeler unknowingly taking a less then ideal route over the mountain?

How about a tractor trailer?
How about a tractor trailer at night?
How about a tractor trailer at night on a heavy snow covered road?
How about a tractor trailer at night on a heavy snow covered US 129 - aka Tail of the Dragon :cool:

Wonder what this guy's bill was, and if he was "permitted" to travel this road.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=EvKhKCdLyRc&app=desktop
 
SilverRhino

SilverRhino

Well-known member
This road is tough on two wheels in daylight with dry conditions! Cannot believe people are still so ignorant as to blingly follow a GPS when driving anything bigger than a VW! Great video!
 
mmomega

mmomega

AnyTimer
I've been down this road a few times and I have the t-shirt.

The turns are tight.... I mean TIGHT.

Any kind of RV you're pulling, even a little MPG, when turning you're going to cross over into the other lane and a full size 5th wheel you'll be taking up both lanes completely and most are blind corners and you never know what the person coming head on is doing.

I've seen motorcycle riders have to help semi's and very large trucks through the road by being their spotters, riding ahead and warning oncoming traffic to slow down or try to pull over on what there is of a shoulder so the trucks can get by.
 
olcoon

olcoon

Well-known member
That's one reason when on the road I like to stay to the main roads, instead of the "less traveled" roads like some folks do. Yep, we may be missing out on scenery, neat small towns, but I'm not constantly worrying about roads like that, low bridges, etc. A GPS is a wonderful tool, and I use it a lot, but my co-pilot is sitting next to me with a road map on her lap.
 
porthole

porthole

Retired
JohnD said:
I'm surprised that this road is not closed in the winter.
Click to expand...


It is a state highway, and there just are not many options if you are traveling in that area. A truck route detour is probably close to 200 miles

add - edit: the "Parkways" are closed during snow and ice season.
 
D

DocFather

Well-known member
As of January 1st, vehicles over 30' in length were banned from the "Tail." The 11 mile stretch of U.S. 129 in Blount County - Tennessee D.O.T. North Carolina had already had this restriction in place.

The articles I read say "vehicles" but I think the new aw targets commercial vehicles.
 
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porthole

porthole

Retired
jbeletti said:
Mergus Completeus
Click to expand...


This verifies the conversation I had with MK about resurrecting an old thread. Closed thread (cannot be reopened) - start new thread with same topic, merge old and new, old thread is now a reply-able thread.

JMHO, but this is better then starting duplicate threads.
 
J

jbeletti

Well-known member
porthole said:
This verifies the conversation I had with MK about resurrecting an old thread. Closed thread (cannot be reopened) - start new thread with same topic, merge old and new, old thread is now a reply-able thread.

JMHO, but this is better then starting duplicate threads.
Click to expand...

Duane - we can reopen a closed thread that has been auto-closed or closed by a moderator/admin. We can merge threads when it makes sense to do so. I have no issue opening an old thread or merging threads based on requests that make sense to do so.

There are thousands of opportunities on this forum to merge threads but honestly, it's a HUGE effort and it just doesn't get done to any large degree. New users, until they get the hang of where to post something, how to use the search function and quite honestly, any of us who just don't have or take the time to search - we begin new threads. Pretty soon, we end up with common information fragmented all over the place. Just the nature of it.
 
JohnD

JohnD

Moved on to the next thing...
Maybe so . . .

But the merge means nothing as the two topic threads have totally different meanings!
 
J

jbeletti

Well-known member
porthole said:
I was just going by what I was told by moderators and the "Kidd" himself.
Click to expand...

No worries - if anyone desires to have a thread merged, just contact a myself or a moderator - include the links to both threads and it will be considered. Same for opening a closed thread that you want to contribute too - give us the link to it and we can open it back up.
 
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