Tail of the Dragon

It's a fun road, but for the most part a radar detector isn't going to be necessary. It's a major through-way that's often congested, and does see a lot of truck traffic. You'll get to make good use of all that low end torque, though.

Believe this picture is of my latest trip to the Dragon. You'll see most everything on US-129 which is probably the best road but there are lots of roads in the area that may be better because they don't have as much traffic or attention from law enforcement.

Overload on pictures at: http://www.killboy.com which is where I found (and purchased) these pictures of myself:

Charging will be an issue with the dragon. Until Tesla drops a supercharger in Chattanooga or Knoxville, you might not even be able to get there. Things are a little different if you have a Chademo adapter, though, as there are chargers at the Cracker Barrel in Athens, in range for a nice loop through the dragon. I live close enough that I routinely ran up there with my previous car, crossing over from Tellico Plains TN to Robbinsville NC on the dragon, and then returning on the Cherohala skyway, a road built for the express purpose of attracting road trippers. A radar detector is not needed for the dragon, as nobody is going to significantly exceed the speed limit unless they are on a motorcycle, it is truly a tortuous road. The skyway, on the other hand, is made to fly. If you do make it there, try to avoid the summer weekends, as Gizmotoy says they can be a traffic jam. Weekdays are usually wide open.

Gizmotoy said:

... You'll get to make good use of all that low end torque, though.

Click to expand...

Low-end torque?!?!

I believe it's just "pure" torque... at any end!

Well it does taper as the motor revs higher, but it was mainly referencing the fact that you're not going to be going very fast due to all the traffic. Unless on a day trip during the week, as was mentioned.

So you'll get to maybe accelerate out of the turns and that's about it.

We took the Tail of the Dragon from Knoxville to Asheville over July 4th and it was an awesome drive in the Model S. Now i try to drive it once a month, its a great early morning drive!

FYI, there is a HPWC at the Tail of the Dragon across from Deal's Gap. The location is on plugshare. I drove through the Tail twice this year in my Chevy Volt. Can't wait to do it in a Tesla.

There is a Tesla charger at Tail of the Dragon in Deals Gap. I have driven the Dragon 2times in my Model S. I would suggest going on a week day, week ends are too many motorcycles.

LOL, now both of the forums on which I hang out most have a "Tail of the Dragon" thread!

You all have some catching up to do though, in the other forum it is at page 2225 ... and over 8,000,000 clicks.

Lots of interesting stuff in it, too: Killboy failure Dragon Fest - Page 2214 - ADVrider

I just want you guys to know you are killing me with talking about driving the Tesla on the "Tail of the Dragon".

I hope my sobbing sounds don't drown out the rest of your day.

Finally got to drive this recently - needed a CHAdeMO adapter to get there. Great fun - there was a Porsche club event there while I was there. Does anyone else think that T is Tesla-esque?
And yes, that's a HPWC I'm using - a full 80A for 60MPH charging.

Ok, I flew from Orlando Fl to Nashville Tennessee to pick up my new 2019 sleeper Model 3 (m3p-) and a good friend told me to swing through the Tail of the Dragon on my way home. I’m so glad I did, I was solo, and my wife would have gotten out and walked home before taking that route. I did use track mode and it was insane, particularly the ability to gun coming out of a tight curve going up steep. It was like being shot out of a cannon... I was laughing like a kid at first, I lucked out there was no traffic in front for the first 70+% of my run. I was getting car sick though about 1/2 way, it was just so fast. Also, with track mode I was able to roast the back tires a few times. I imagine your results & satisfaction will vary WILDLY based on traffic conditions. I was having a blast, because there was only traffic going the opposite direction for the first 70%. It was a weekday, a Wednesday. There is NO spot to pass unless someone slower is kind enough to use the many pull offs to let you pass.

irradiator said:

Charging will be an issue with the dragon. Until Tesla drops a supercharger in Chattanooga or Knoxville, you might not even be able to get there.

Click to expand...

Really? You've been joined to this forum since 2013 and you make this statement?

There has been a Supercharger in Chattanooga at the airport for a LONG time. The one in Knoxville at Turkey Creek has also been there for a number of years.

And there should be no problem going from Knoxville to the Atlanta chargers with a LR, and possibly a SR range car.

Gizmotoy said:

It's a fun road, but for the most part a radar detector isn't going to be necessary. It's a major through-way that's often congested, and does see a lot of truck traffic. You'll get to make good use of all that low end torque, though.

Click to expand...

Radar detector isn't necessary, because in the summer you are guaranteed that it's going to be littered with Highway Patrol.
There are places that have speed limits at something like 35 mph, and for most people, it's a pipe dream that you could go that fast.

It's full of hairpin turns, where you could basically slap hands with vehicles on the other side of the turn, except that they are already 50 feet higher than you are.

ewoodrick said:

Really? You've been joined to this forum since 2013 and you make this statement?

There has been a Supercharger in Chattanooga at the airport for a LONG time. The one in Knoxville at Turkey Creek has also been there for a number of years.

And there should be no problem going from Knoxville to the Atlanta chargers with a LR, and possibly a SR range car.

Click to expand...

He made the post in 2013, and it was probably accurate at the time. Thanks for providing updated info.

GlenF said:

He made the post in 2013, and it was probably accurate at the time. Thanks for providing updated info.

Click to expand...

Crap, I hate when people resurrect really hold threads.

Cottonwood said:

After following all of the winter driving discussions, its time to think about some summer driving.

A friend of mine sent me this, and the road looks like a lot of fun in a Tesla with summer performance tires (and maybe a good radar detector, and/or someone riding shotgun watching Trapster).

Has anyone taken a Tesla on the "Tail of the Dragon", US-129 from North Carolina to Tennessee? The List #0011: Drive the Tail of the Dragon - Autoblog. Maybe, we can get an HPWC put in at the Tail of the Dragon Store, or maybe a Supercharger one day?

Click to expand...

It's a lot of fun. Arrive with as much as you can in the tank. There is only one charger out there and it can be taken sometimes