A lot of bikes in the area this time of year so I thought I would post this.
Big cracks near 'Dragon;' TDOT to rush repairs before cold weather
By Iva Butler
of The Daily Times Staff
Large cracks have developed on a section of U.S. 129 near Chilhowee Dam that carries heavy motorcycle traffic to The Dragon.
Blount County Highway Superintendent Bill Dunlap. who visited the site Tuesday afternoon, said that the 200-foot area of the larger cracks "definitely needs attention now. There has been a good three inches of settling."
"It can be dangerous," he warned. "The depression in the travel lane could definitely throw a motorcycle or cause a four-wheel vehicle to swerve."
The Calderwood Highway (U.S. 129) portion that borders Chilhowee Lake leads to Tabcat Creek where the section known as The Dragon is located. The 11.1-miles has 318 curves and is internationally known as a motorcycle rider destination.
Tennessee Department of Transportation, which is responsible for the U.S. highway maintenance, conducted a geotechnical inspection of the area and determined the best course of action is to take a crack sealer and fill in the cracks and then patch the area with hot mix asphalt, said Tommy "Bud" Slaton of the TDOT Regional Maintenance Office.
"We will rush to do it before we get freezing weather," said Slaton on a site inspection Tuesday afternoon. Rain and freezing temperatures would make the situation worse.
He expects the work, once it gets started, to take a week to 10 days.
Slaton said TDOT employees will first first blow out the cracks to get them clean and then use the crack sealer. Immediately afterward, the hot asphalt will be laid.
The cracks in the worst area 1.4 miles south of the dam were estimated at being several feet deep by Dunlap. The cracks run along the fill dirt outside of the asphalt, and along the outside white line and into the middle of the roadway.
The lake was recently lowered 25 feet in order to allow repairs to the south embankment of the dam on the Monroe County side. The drawdown started Sept. 2 and the lake was drained one to two feet a day until the weekend of Sept. 20-21.
The problem at the dam became evident when a depression, or sinkhole-like area, was discovered in 2000 on the south embankment. A crane is being used to remove the embankment material.
Ray Barham, Tapoco Technical Manager of ALCOA Power Generating Inc., said earlier that the embankment will be excavated down to bedrock. The bedrock will then be regrouted and the clay core will be built back.
Barham said the embankment problem could have resulted from construction used at the time the dam was built in 1957.
Hopes are to complete the repairs and have the water back up to full pool by early 2009.
Tony Abbott, Blount County Highway director of engineering, theorized that the problem with the large cracks could have come from the reduction in the pressure exerted as the water was lowered or from the lowered water table in the area, which may have caused the area to dry out.
Originally published: October 08. 2008 3:01AM
Last modified: October 08. 2008 12:00AM
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Topic: Caution ! Raod Damage Warning Near The Dragon (HWY 129) (Read 689 times)