Crossing Deals Gap at the Tennessee/North Carolina state line is the Tail of the Dragon. It is considered by many as one of the world's foremost motorcycling and sports car roads. Anyone looking for an exciting highway will enjoy this 11-mile stretch of US129. The road is desolate and can be a real adventure in the winter months. We've had to deal with bears, turkeys, deer, and wild boars in the road, trees down, ice/snow, and tractor-trailers taking-up both lanes in the curves. It is not a road for the squeamish, but if you're looking for a lot of excitement, don't miss this one. We've been driving the Tail of the Dragon since 1975. At first it was in the family car, then in our 1976 Corvette for many years. Now we have graduated to motorcycles and our new Mustang GT. We have always loved this piece of asphalt, finding it a thrill in whatever we happen to be riding or driving. One of the most exciting runs was on icy roads in the Expedition with 4-wheel drive engaged. One day we crossed in a snow storm riding two-up on our FJR in freezing temperatures. That was tense. In the summers we ride/drive the Dragon several days a week. It's better than any roller coaster we've ever been on. Our favorite sections are the Hump and the Esses just before Cattail Straight. Be ready to scrape your footpegs in some of these wild curves. Beware .... it is not a road to sightsee on. The attraction is the road itself, not the scenery. No need to look at the wooded roadside when the curves are coming at rapid fire. And that is what you should be concerned with. To some the Dragon begins on the North Carolina side at Fugitive Bridge with a view of the Cheoah Dam where Harrison Ford jumped from in the movie The Fugitive. The dam and old single lane bridge were also in the 1974 movie Two Lane Blacktop. The Dragon ends 14 miles across the mountain in Tennessee at the Tabcat Creek Bridge. Take a break and stop at our Tail of the Dragon store. Just look for the big Dragon Tail. We are at the intersection of US 129 and NC 28. Next comes Deals Gap and the Tennessee State Line where the real action begins. We'll leave the rest for you to describe after you ride it. Many just remember curve after curve after curve and surviving the run of their lives with a hoot and a big smile on their face. The North Carolina locals call it that damn road to Tennessee. This is a very special and unique highway. There are no intersecting roads, no houses with driveways and no businesses. Each and every curve is different. There is very little elevation change. And many of the curves are banked like a race track. After riding many other twisty roads, we always come home to the Dragon and rate it the best of them all. |
| FATALITIES: VIEW MAP with death location since 2000 Many people confuse deaths from as far away as 100 miles as being "on the Dragon". The Tail of the Dragon is only 11 miles long and the following facts pertain only to those 11 miles. There are more motorcycle deaths on other roads in Blount County Tennessee than there are on the Dragon each year. 2011 - One death: August 3 Tennessee sportbike rider run over by 18 wheeler at mm 5. 2010 - One death: August 28 South bound sportbike rider off road and hit tree. Another death at Wheelie Hell in August technically not on Dragon. 2009 - Five deaths: HD rider from Miami went off road, reason unknown (possible heart attack). Friends and LEOs searched several hour before finding body. A female HD rider died at mm 5.0 when she went off the road. Another female died a month later in the same area. A 66 year old Goldwing rider died near mm 8. A 49 year old died two months after crashing at the Hump. 2008 - Four deaths: One sportbike went off road and hit tree near Thunder Road Bend. One cruiser went off road in Ron's Run with rider suffering heart attack. One trike went off road and struck tree. One sportbike death in head-on near Parsons Branch. 2007 - Three deaths: One low side at Guadrail Cliff. Trike versus a vehicle near the Wall claimed the lives of an older rider and his passenger. Both accidents in July. 2006 - Two deaths: One rider went off road and hit tree another low sided into an oncoming vehicle. 2005 - Three deaths: All three deaths involved failing to negociate corners - two went off the mountain and one slid into an oncoming vehicle. 2004 - Two deaths: Both deaths apparently caused by speed and then overbraking. 2003 - No deaths: There were several deaths in the surrounding area of the Dragon, but none that we know of on the 11 miles of the Dragon itself. 2002 - Two deaths: On June 16 a 29 year-old Dale Bently a Valkyrie rider from Michigan died on the Dragon. The rider was passing a car near the Horns of the Dragon when he wrecked and suffered fatal head injuries. The second death occurred on Sunday August 4 when Lendry R. Obanna Jr., 24, of Jacksonville, Florida, lost control of his 2000 Yamaha R6. 2001 - Two deaths: The entire Blount County (home of the Dragon) saw a total of four motorycle fatalities in 2001. The total includes the deaths of a 27-year-old Knoxville man who died March 10 in a collision on Old Knoxville Highway in Rockford, the May 5th death on the Dragon, the July 5th death of a 43-year-old Maryville man in an accident on Happy Valley Road, and the October 27th death on the Dragon. 2000 - One death: Blount County had four motorcycle deaths in 2000 including one fatality on the Dragon. 1999 - One death: Only one motorcycle death in 1999 1998 - No deaths: No fatal motorcycle crashes in 1998. 1997 - One death: A single motorcycle fatality is listed in 1997. 1996 - One death: A single motorcycle fatality in 1996. 1995 - Two deaths: In 1995, two men died in separate July 3 motorcycle crashes on the Dragon during the holiday weekend. |
 You never know who or what will show-up at the Dragon |
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FACTS ABOUT THE DRAGON HIGHEST ELEVATION: SPEED LIMITS: The 1971 cult classic movie Two-Lane Blacktop was filmed on the Dragon. There are scenes of the state line sign, some of the curves, and the original single lane bridge at Tapoco Dam. There are also scenes along 129 on the Little Tennessee River. We were amazed to see the original Crafton's Motel, Restaurant and Esso gas station in the film too. These scenes are at the end of the movie. In Dreams (1998) Starring Annette Bening and Robert Downey, Jr. had scenes at Cheoah and Calderwood Dams. There was also a chase scene filmed on Moonshiner 28 between the Dragon and Fontana. In 2011 the Discovery Channel filmed a segment that appeared on their Hell Roads Show. Here is the segment on YouTube. CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE Tail of the Dragon has made 5 documentary style videos of the Dragon from 2000 to 2010. These action packed DVDs can be purchased at our Tail of the Dragon store and online HERE. PLANNED IMPROVEMENTS: |
Here he lies with pistons and crank |
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