WorldWide Drilling Resource

33 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® NOVEMBER 2019 Constructing the Gatlinburg SkyBridge Compiled by Editorial Staff, WorldWide Drilling Resource ® The 2016 Gatlinburg, Tennessee, wildfires destroyed its iconic SkyLift and shop. Both have since been rebuilt and renovated, now boasting an expansive observation area, new snack shop and bar, gift shop, and plenty of seating. The chairlift runs from the downtown area to the top of Crockett Mountain. The newest attraction at Gatlinburg SkyLift Park is the SkyBridge, a 680-foot simple sus- pension pedestrian bridge. The SkyBridge was designed and constructed by Experiential Resources (ERi), with help from Hayward Baker, Inc. on the micropile foundation design and installation. The first order of business was to install a sacrificial micropile. This micropile’s entire purpose was for testing to be sure all the other micropiles would perform as expected. When tested at maxi- mum load, the micropile deflected only .387 inches, and when increased to 200% of design load capacity, the deflection was still less than an inch, which was within acceptable tolerances. Each end of the SkyBridge ultimately had ten micropiles installed - eight in the main bridge foundations and one for each of the two wind guy anchors. The total feet of micropiles in all foundations was 1480 feet - the shortest was 45 feet, while the longest was 94 feet. More than one million pounds of concrete was used. From the mountaintop SkyDeck, the SkyBridge literally crosses the sky in a single span, which is a five-foot-wide walking path made of 129 cedar panels. Its 140-foot-high midpoint features a 15-foot section of glass floor panels for an incredible experience you’ll remember for a lifetime. Editor’s Note: In between our print issues, the WWDR Team prepares an electronic newsletter called E-News Flash . Based on readership, this was the most pop ular E-News Flash article of the month. Get in on the action and subscribe today at: www.worldwidedrillingresource.com C&G Photos courtesy of ERi.