I stayed in Robbinsville the night before and hit the tail at 8 in the morning. Robbinsville is only 90 miles west of Asheville. I plan on going again next year on my way back from Charlotte. I'll be attending the Mach 1 track attack and hit the trail again on my way home, but this time I'll drive the mach 1 on the tail.
Try to hit the tail early, once the weather gets nice, the tail is pretty busy from around 10 am until about 5 or 6 pm, especially on weekends.