 Recently, I had the chance to visit Dollywood and experience their unique collection of roller coasters, including the Gerstlauer custom Eurofighter known as Mystery Mine. This is one ride at the park where I really had no idea what to expect, as I had heard pretty mixed things about it, but I was intrigued with the unique layout and great theming surrounding the ride going in, as well as being my first Gerstlauer I would experience. I'm going to go over the pros and cons in this video and discuss the many things that make this ride so unique and whether it's worth your time or not when you visit Dollywood. Mystery Mine opened in 2007 and was a huge investment for Dollywood at the time, who was just beginning to really build up and become the great destination theme park we know at Ask Today. Having just opened the stellar Thunderhead three years prior, the Gerstlauer Eurofighter would bring something totally unique to the United States for the time, featuring many crazy elements and quick transitions along a fairly short circuit that is basically half dark ride, half roller coaster. Mystery Mine reaches a max height of 85 feet, a top speed of 43 miles per hour, has a track length of 1,804 feet and two inversions. Now, before I get into what the ride offers, you may want to skip ahead a bit, as there are some surprises on this ride during the indoor portions that you may not want spoiled. As you depart the station in the two rows of four Gerstlauer Eurofighter cars, you will begin the ride by going down a small but quick drop, then go through a couple turns in complete darkness with some theming such as small lights and sound effects which are great. The first portion of the ride before the first lift hill makes up a significant part of the dark ride portion of this coaster. Once you get to the first lift hill, one of two vertical lift hills on this ride, you will see light pouring in from the top, which has an open roof, and you quickly ascend the lift through the roof followed by two very small dips bringing you outside for the first time. You then hit a quick block break and very abruptly dive down a small vertical drop into a sideways 90 degree banking turn to the left where you slow down a bit, then twist up to the right in a half helix and hit another block section followed by a descending helix to the left, then a small airtime hill providing a small pop of floater airtime, and then a quick turn to the right bringing you back into complete darkness. Here you will move forward a bit, then stop briefly as you can only see the bottom part of the second vertical lift hill, which is illuminated by flashing lights, and there is a very dark and ominous soundtrack playing, and then you begin the rise. This lift is the tallest point on the ride, and as you are looking straight up a screen on the ceiling plays a clip of objects falling towards you, when at the top you will stop for a few brief seconds, then see and feel some great flame effects before you are absolutely thrown down a large 95 degree drop. This drop again is just so snappy, and it will take you back outside for an awesome finale. You very quickly roll into an ascending heartline roll to the left, then you are hanging for a second upside down before you traverse the dive loop. Following the dive loop you hit the final breaks, ending the very long two minute ride on Mystery Mine. To just get the negative stuff about this ride out of the way, we need to first talk about these over the shoulder restraints. They are hard, and you will experience some headbanging. This is a common criticism I've heard with this ride, and it is not unfounded. Personally, this did not ruin the ride for me at all. I found it to be pretty bearable and not an overwhelming headbanging, but it is definitely there and it is noticeable. The worst section of the ride in regards to the headbanging is the first outdoor portion of the coaster after you send the first lift till. I remember the very fast paced finale with the two inversions being much better. The pacing of the ride is somewhat awkward, but that is definitely intentional, and I think it does work for the ride, seeing as basically half of the experience is a dark ride, but even the first outdoor section has the strange little small dips coming out of the building, which just take you to a drop break, and then you are abruptly flung down a vertical drop. Like, what the heck? I think that these out of nowhere bursts of speed are something that helped to make this ride so unique and fun, though. The biggest issue of all for me personally, though, was the capacity. This ride was just horrendous when it came to the throughput of people. These cars only hold eight people, and while the station was set up to load two cars at once, they were only loading one at a time during my visits. And the lines for this ride got so long. Due to this issue, I suggest getting right to this ride when the park opens so you don't have to wait in a huge line. As much as I enjoy this ride, it is not worth a really long wait. On my first ride, I waited about 55 minutes. The second time I rode it, however, was right at opening and I managed to get in line before many others jumped in line and only waited for about 20 minutes, versus the at least 40 minute wait that quickly built up behind us. As for the positives, this ride is just really fun in my opinion. I got two rides on this, and I had an absolute blast both times. Part of the fun for me was the reactions of my mom, niece, and nephew who were all riding with me the first time. I knew about some of the elements, such as the vertical lifts, but I didn't share this with them, so it was pretty awesome seeing their reactions when we were sitting there right in front of that first vertical lift for a few seconds, especially my mom. It was priceless. There were effects that really surprised me, too, though, such as the flames and screen on the second lift, and that was awesome. I found the track itself to be very smooth, too. I was pleasantly surprised by how smooth it ran, especially since it navigates some really sharp sudden changes in speed and direction throughout the course, and the ride is also 13 years old as well. Mystery Mind had a couple moments of pretty good positive Gs, too. The big 95 degree drop is very intense, especially being taken with such quick acceleration. The two inversions immediately following are also fantastic and full of great intensity as you whip through the heartline roll and get suspended upside down for a couple seconds before diving down into the brakes. The finale on Mystery Mind is probably one of my favorite finales I've experienced on any coaster. It's almost like the ride just saves all of its intensity for the end, and it is just thrown at you, then just like that, the ride is done. It's very quick and effective, and certainly left an impression for me, which is a huge plus in my opinion when it comes to this ride. One final thing I really want to make sure I cover is the effort put into the theming. The whole building that the ride is built in and around just looks stunning as you are approaching it coming from Thunderhead and as you walk underneath it. Standing in the queue line, there are sculpted rocks everywhere, and as you go up the stairs and approach the station, there are these cool signs and pieces of mining equipment laying around, and it really makes you feel like you're taking an off-the-rails adventure into an abandoned mine. And of course, the theming elements featured on the ride during the indoor portions is just a very nice touch that keeps you immersed in the experience the whole way through. I don't think this ride would have left quite the impression on me like it has were it not for all of these small elements added to the experience. As a standalone coaster, the layout doesn't really have a lot to offer. This is one case where the theming truly makes the ride experience a blast. All in all, I ended up walking away from my rides on Mystery Mind being very pleased with what was offered, and I would have loved to gotten a couple more rides if the lines were shorter. I don't think it is one of Dollywood's most elite coasters, but it is an absolute blast, has incredible theming and dark ride elements, and those things really help to set this ride apart. My final score for Mystery Mind is going to be a 7 out of 10. It really is a fantastic supporting coaster that would be great for many parks. I believe Dollywood really knocked it out of the park in terms of the theming elements and turning this fairly small coaster into a very exciting experience. Have you ridden Mystery Mind? What are your thoughts on it? Be sure to let me know, and also like this video if you found my review to be helpful. And check out many other coaster reviews and a playlist on my channel. 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