Its Halloween Everybody!

My first gwar show I bought a white suit from a thrift store and wore that. Very colourful night

Happy October everyone! I can't take it anymore, I think I'm gonna head up to my home park SFGAmerica tonight. They are open until 11, that's very impressive. Some cold and dark night rides on Swamp Thing (Whizzer) and Demon are desperately needed! Long underwear time! I love Halloween *jumps* :)

2 parks down, 2 parks to go on my Halloween tour. So far it has been a mixed bag:

Cedar Point 9/24:

I have always enjoyed their Halloweekends, and it seemed like every year this event just got better and better. Until this year that is, they destroyed one of the best haunts this year.

The new Scream Works is just terrible. Most people do not get the theme, and the costumes are just not all that scary looking; not to mention there is way too much light back there. I heard very few screams on the Frontier Trail this year, and it was very disappointing.

Blood on the Bayou was OK, but as much as I hate lines, they really need to pulse people through this attraction. The Conga Line just does not work because the walkway is too narrow and not enough Screamsters were placed in the maze.

That said, Terror Island and Happy Jack were still their excellent selves and I had a great time. It is just for the first year I wish CP would not have changed their Halloweekend Event from last year.

Valleyfair!: 10/1

I went to this park for the Haunt 2 years ago and remember having a blast. It blew away my expectations for such a small park, and made me decide that I should visit some of the other smaller Cedar Fair parks around the midwest for Halloween to change things up. Worlds of Fun last year was a major disappointment, so this year my brother and I decided to hit up Valleyfair! again.

Thankfully, this park somehow managed again to exceed my expectations. I can not appaud the Valleyfair management and workers enough. You can tell that this park and all of their employees take pride in putting together an amazing Halloween Event. I think the entire night I maybe saw 2-3 screamsters loafing around, far fewer then any park Ive been to. Everyone was out for a scare, which made every maze enjoyable. The grounds crew had fog machines throughout so that the entire park was covered in a layer of fog, so much so that I think they may have caused Renegade to malfunction at the end of the night (but it was worth it.)

Their new maze this year Camp Wekilou (We-Kill-You) was fantastic. They expanded the parks border into the picnic site on the other side of High Roller, which allowed for a very secluded tree filled location. Inside of the various free standing pavilions they set up a activity shed, bunkroom, showers and dining hall. All of which were full of fog so thick you could barely see 2 feet in front of you. All around fantastic outdoor haunt, right up there with some of CP and KI's best.

However, the highlight of the night for me was the park's performance of Thriller. Twice a night they have an fantastic MJ impersonator (who can moon walk sideways and really moves like MJ) come out in a black cape as the Thriller music starts and right after the lightning crashes reveal himself in the red jacket. Halfway through the song (during the Vincent Price rap) 1-2 monsters from all of the parks mazes who have been mingling in the crowd near by join in and the cast of 15-20 then do the entire dance sequence. At the end of the song the Screamsters then sprint towards the crowd snarling and yelling at the top of their lungs on the way to going back to their respective mazes. We had to see it twice, it was great.

What this park lacks in quantity and production value it makes up with spirit. I will be coming back here again next year, I just had too much fun. Also on a non Halloween note, CF mechanics has done it again; the High Roller this year was running smooth, and fast. I got a load of ejector air on my ride this year that I have never gotten before. As such this ride is jumping up a lot on my wooden coaster list.

Next up: My trip to PA and Kennywood and Hersheypark. I am really looking forward to Phantom Fright Nights, Im going on a Friday so I really hope I can get all the haunts, coasters, Noah's Ark, and the Kangaroo in. If anyone has any advice on how best to "do" this park I would very much appreciate it.

We went to Kings Island this weekend for the first time during 'The Haunt'. Was suprised how well done it was compared to Halloweekends at Cedar Point. The entire park just felt like Halloween! The midways were great, the houses were really good and we just had such a great time. Cedar Point has been getting better, but just have so far to go sadly. Of course, it is hard to come close to something like HHN, but KI's really reminded me of the old Six Flags Ohio era Fright Fest. It felt like "home" in a way. It was our favorite time of year at SFO/SFWoA, and it was great to go to another park that reminded us of it. It was by far my best trip to KI ever. Saturday was completely PACKED and luckily we hit 8/10 houses/walkthroughs before it got really busy by dark. Once the crowds came in we just enjoyed the park and took photos all night. The following day the park was dead. Walkon just about everything in the park, including Diamondback. Was simply awesome.

Next weekend we may be off to Canada's Wonderland for the first time as well. Looking forward to that event. Anybody know how that Halloween event is? Compared to say Kings Island or something? I find it interesting they close the entire park down before re-entry for the event, much like HHN.

Fun weekend :)

Happy Halloween :) Anyone get on a coaster today!? I drove up to Six Flags Great America yesterday, but it didn't stop raining. Didn't feel like getting wet AND cold (it was in the 40s)... so went back home. Cool thing though, for those there - everything was running! I could even see Eagle racing from the highway.

Great day today, and sad too. For most of us, coasters are down until next spring...