Have you been to Escape Theme Park? Sherm had a voucher and its the holiday promo now - $8.80 per adult. Link
here.
Being a wet morning, we made the right decision to set off the instant the rain lightened, reaching the place in dry weather, with no glaring sun overhead though it was about 1-2pm by the time we started on the rides.
So the date was on, and Sherm and I set spent over 2 hours exploring the rides. I was immediately reminded of the old East Coast amusement park and various UK funfairs I attended in the years before. There were attempts to dress it up a little, and I liked how they tied the old-favourite Viking ride with the new Log-boat ride.
The Haunted II mansion was our first stop, and what a scare it was! Animatronics and lights and a particularly expressive group we entered with, made it all the more fun. I think the RCC Haunted House could pick up some tips from this. The walk-through was quite long, they made use of every space well, tight corners, dark corridors, surprises here and there, with some really creepy displays of ghastliness about. Only 3 staff were deployed at any one time, the greeter, a house-stalker, and a ghost (pontianak). Motion detectors, hydraulics and air sprays made up the rest of the scares.
The other highlight was the Go-Karts, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Having drove one a couple of laps when I was younger, I learnt then to use body weight to help the karts go around the corners faster, and this allowed me to go from 5th position to 2nd, having started in the 2nd group that was flagged off about 5 secs after the 1st 4. I'd recommend going earlier to have more chances at this when the queues are short, or go in 1s or 2s so as to be able to slip in between larger groups when the wardens ask for you, thus legally jumping the queue. Oh, and using engine brake down the long slope would probably help your position too. Another bit of advice - always anticipate idiots rear-ending you when stationary, so don't relax in your seat or you might need a neck brace.
We later tried the Viking - something that I was so afraid of when younger, that I hardly ever got on it. This was my second time on it, and I can proudly say I wasn't afraid! Unless you count knuckle-white death-grip and a reluctance to speak mid-air..
And then the double-karts - I decided that in order to really enjoy this ride, that we let Sherm take the wheel. Afterall, I drive her around everywhere all the time, so why not let her take the wheel and give me a real thrill?
In the driver's seat - Shermy!
While Sherm was cautious on the individual go-karts earlier, she really let loose on this one.. We took off quick as lightning and had a huge crash at the top of the first corner! As there was no reverse gear, we had to wait for a marshall to pull us out.
Me wanting to get out of the passenger seat after 1/2 a lap and a huge crash on the 1st uphill turn..
Because we made a clever observation regarding our choice of kart, we managed to avoid a car that stalled just after the first turn due to a mechanical failure. So after the "safety car" (read the assistants) came out to push the wreckage (the broken down kart) away, we had about 5 mins sitting under the sun to take some pics.. which we did, and the kind marshall helped us to take a lovely shot too. When the laps recommenced, Sherm then went for another 2+ laps with a maniacal grin on her face..
Worst ride was right at the door.. some space tea-cups ride. Take my advice, its really really boring..
A lovely place to go to for some old-school fun!
