Post by Okwes on Mar 4, 2007 22:06:14 GMT -5
Glass Skywalk to offer unprecedented views of Grand Canyon By GREG
LAVINE
January 1, 2007
www.knoxnews.com/kns/music/article/0,1406,KNS_349_5252155,00.html
<http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/music/article/0,1406,KNS_349_5252155,00.htm\
l> One of the world's largest natural wonders will soon be home to
an engineering marvel. In late March, the Hualapai Nation plans to open
the $30 million Skywalk, a glass-bottomed bridge that will jut 70 feet
over the Grand Canyon's edge.
<http://adsremote.scripps.com/event.ng/Type=click&FlightID=2038365&AdID=\
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rtisersite.com>
<http://adsremote.scripps.com/event.ng/Type=click&FlightID=2038365&AdID=\
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rtisersite.com> The massive U-shaped steel structure now sits 20 feet
from the cliff's edge. It will take up to 18 hours to ease the
million-pound, horseshoe-shaped walkway into place, said Mark Johnson,
Skywalk's architect. Skywalk, located at Grand Canyon West, will allow
visitors to peer 4,000 feet straight down through the floor to the
canyon's bottom. The attraction is part of the Hualapai tribe's effort
to become a tourist destination. Going on the Skywalk will be a $25
add-on to all Grand Canyon West tour packages. The cost is included in
some of the premium tour options. "This will feed our tribe," said
Robert Bravo, a member of the Hualapai tribe and part of Grand Canyon
West. "This will support our children." Visitors to the reservation,
which is about a three-hour drive from Las Vegas, must take a 14-mile,
winding, unpaved desert road. Grand Canyon West now relies on generator
power, must truck in all water and has limited phone services. While
other Arizona tribes rely on gaming income, the Hualapai, a tribe of
about 1,500, were not successful in this venture. Most of the 250,000
visitors to Grand Canyon West each year come from Las Vegas, where they
are able to take care of all their gambling needs. The few slot
machines that once sat in the Hualapai Reservation's airport were no
match for the nearby natural beauty of the Grand Canyon. Las Vegas
businessman David Jin, founder of Grand Canyon Skywalk Development, came
up with the idea of the Skywalk nearly a decade ago. Jin and the
Hualapai have worked jointly over the past several years to refine the
design of the structure, Johnson said. Bravo said tribal members
consulted with their elders before proceeding with the Skywalk plan.
"We're creating a new way of looking at something," Johnson said, "where
you feel like you're almost floating." Original drawings called for a
glass structure with a wisp of steel supporting the bridge, but
engineering realities forced the base to become thicker. The base of
the bridge is made up of two, 5-foot-tall U-shaped steel walls, made by
Mark Steel, a Salt Lake City firm. A series of support beams connects
the inner and outer walls of the bridge, leaving many open areas for
visitors to look down through. "This is the most exciting thing we've
ever done as far as I'm concerned," said Fred Elmen, director of
projects for Mark Steel. The company shipped the 40- to 60-foot-long
steel segments to the site, on the Hualapai reservation, which covers
about 1 million acres. Another company welded the pieces into the
massive horse-shoe-shape that will become Skywalk. Once in place, the
bridge will have no visible means of support; it will appear to emerge
from the cliff. But only half of the structure's total mass will be
visible, Johnson said. The bulk of the support system will be hidden
under a gift shop/restaurant. A series of eight box beams, each anchored
40 feet vertically into the cliff, will hold most of the bridge's load.
Once Skywalk is in place, a team will weld the structure to the eight
box beams. These connections will bear the brunt of the bridge's support
needs. Johnson said engineers have studied the wind patterns of the
canyon and have altered the design as necessary. The bridge is also
designed to withstand a magnitude 8 earthquake within 50 miles. All
Skywalkers will have to wear booties to protect the 4.5-inch-thick glass
floor. A thin top layer of glass will be replaceable to maintain
scuff-free views. The glass is a special high-strength material from
Germany made by Saint-Gobain. Five-foot-tall glass walls will line the
sides of the bridge, allowing full view of the Grand Canyon and its
surroundings. When Skywalk opens in the spring, the Hualapai hope more
curiosity seekers will trek out to northern Arizona to see the Grand
Canyon from a new perspective. While some visitors may not dare to tread
on the engineering feat, thrill seekers will take in a view that once
required wings to see.
LAVINE
January 1, 2007
www.knoxnews.com/kns/music/article/0,1406,KNS_349_5252155,00.html
<http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/music/article/0,1406,KNS_349_5252155,00.htm\
l> One of the world's largest natural wonders will soon be home to
an engineering marvel. In late March, the Hualapai Nation plans to open
the $30 million Skywalk, a glass-bottomed bridge that will jut 70 feet
over the Grand Canyon's edge.
<http://adsremote.scripps.com/event.ng/Type=click&FlightID=2038365&AdID=\
2047128&TargetID=2023564&Targets=2011020,2023507,2003385,2022424,2011448\
,2023035,2023564,2019991,2011669&RawValues=&Redirect=http:%2f%2fwww.adve\
rtisersite.com>
<http://adsremote.scripps.com/event.ng/Type=click&FlightID=2038365&AdID=\
2047128&TargetID=2023564&Targets=2011020,2023507,2003385,2022424,2011448\
,2023035,2023564,2019991,2011669&RawValues=&Redirect=http:%2f%2fwww.adve\
rtisersite.com> The massive U-shaped steel structure now sits 20 feet
from the cliff's edge. It will take up to 18 hours to ease the
million-pound, horseshoe-shaped walkway into place, said Mark Johnson,
Skywalk's architect. Skywalk, located at Grand Canyon West, will allow
visitors to peer 4,000 feet straight down through the floor to the
canyon's bottom. The attraction is part of the Hualapai tribe's effort
to become a tourist destination. Going on the Skywalk will be a $25
add-on to all Grand Canyon West tour packages. The cost is included in
some of the premium tour options. "This will feed our tribe," said
Robert Bravo, a member of the Hualapai tribe and part of Grand Canyon
West. "This will support our children." Visitors to the reservation,
which is about a three-hour drive from Las Vegas, must take a 14-mile,
winding, unpaved desert road. Grand Canyon West now relies on generator
power, must truck in all water and has limited phone services. While
other Arizona tribes rely on gaming income, the Hualapai, a tribe of
about 1,500, were not successful in this venture. Most of the 250,000
visitors to Grand Canyon West each year come from Las Vegas, where they
are able to take care of all their gambling needs. The few slot
machines that once sat in the Hualapai Reservation's airport were no
match for the nearby natural beauty of the Grand Canyon. Las Vegas
businessman David Jin, founder of Grand Canyon Skywalk Development, came
up with the idea of the Skywalk nearly a decade ago. Jin and the
Hualapai have worked jointly over the past several years to refine the
design of the structure, Johnson said. Bravo said tribal members
consulted with their elders before proceeding with the Skywalk plan.
"We're creating a new way of looking at something," Johnson said, "where
you feel like you're almost floating." Original drawings called for a
glass structure with a wisp of steel supporting the bridge, but
engineering realities forced the base to become thicker. The base of
the bridge is made up of two, 5-foot-tall U-shaped steel walls, made by
Mark Steel, a Salt Lake City firm. A series of support beams connects
the inner and outer walls of the bridge, leaving many open areas for
visitors to look down through. "This is the most exciting thing we've
ever done as far as I'm concerned," said Fred Elmen, director of
projects for Mark Steel. The company shipped the 40- to 60-foot-long
steel segments to the site, on the Hualapai reservation, which covers
about 1 million acres. Another company welded the pieces into the
massive horse-shoe-shape that will become Skywalk. Once in place, the
bridge will have no visible means of support; it will appear to emerge
from the cliff. But only half of the structure's total mass will be
visible, Johnson said. The bulk of the support system will be hidden
under a gift shop/restaurant. A series of eight box beams, each anchored
40 feet vertically into the cliff, will hold most of the bridge's load.
Once Skywalk is in place, a team will weld the structure to the eight
box beams. These connections will bear the brunt of the bridge's support
needs. Johnson said engineers have studied the wind patterns of the
canyon and have altered the design as necessary. The bridge is also
designed to withstand a magnitude 8 earthquake within 50 miles. All
Skywalkers will have to wear booties to protect the 4.5-inch-thick glass
floor. A thin top layer of glass will be replaceable to maintain
scuff-free views. The glass is a special high-strength material from
Germany made by Saint-Gobain. Five-foot-tall glass walls will line the
sides of the bridge, allowing full view of the Grand Canyon and its
surroundings. When Skywalk opens in the spring, the Hualapai hope more
curiosity seekers will trek out to northern Arizona to see the Grand
Canyon from a new perspective. While some visitors may not dare to tread
on the engineering feat, thrill seekers will take in a view that once
required wings to see.