TR: Phantom Fright Nights - 10.21.05

[CoasterFanatic]

Over the course of the day, Catrina and I kept going back and forth wondering if we would be going to Phantom Fright Nights. The weather forecast was disnal at best, but she wanted to take her sister. In the end, we braved the weather and headed over to West Mifflin for Kennywoods Annual Event.

 

After stopping in at Pizzeria Uno in Homestead, we got to the Kennywood gates around 8:00pm. Since the event runs till 1am, this would allow us plenty of time to do all the things that we wanted. Here is a short breakdown.

 

Terror Visions in 3D

Unknown to me, everybody in my party had an aversion to clowns. This started to become apparent before we even got in line while a clown at the beginning of the queue was making it a difficult task just to get everyone in. Once inside, it became apparent that this was not everyone's cup-of-tea. This particular house is a real sensory overload. Before you get in, you are handed a pair of prismatic glasses that over-exagerate the crazy effects inside. The house was very loud and featured a ton of long bangs, drop door scares, air jets, electric stunts, and more. It is a very concentrated house and probably features more scares than anything else.

 

Exterminator

The line for Exterminator wasn't too bad, clocking in at around 20 minutes. To get the Exterminator we had to walk through "Gory Park". Gory park is a real interesting zone that features spooks dressed as bums, park workers, and more. The characters are little more unique here than in any other area of the park. One was even panhandling in the Exterminator queue.

 

I have never rode Exterminator during PFNs and was quite suprised when we started going up the lift and it was Pitch Dark. When I say "Pitch Dark" ... I mean Pitch Dark! There was no light to be found at all!

 

Exterminator is total darkness has to be the most dissorienting experience I think that I have ever had. Even though I pretty much have the layout memorized, there was nothing to prepare me for how outrageous the ride got at the mid-course when the cars started to spin. Everyone agreed that it was the best ride we ever got.

 

PittFall

PittFall was only a cycle or two wait, so we rode it next. Catrina, who isn't a big fan on most towers, hopped on with us and as far as I could tell enjoyed the ride. We got the "River" side, so the view was especially nice. The river looked so interesting at night and smoke coming from the mill across the river only added to the effect.

 

King Kahuna

I usually don't ride this ride due to it's insane water effects, but during PFN they turn those off.

 

Wipeout

The crowds were real light on the flat-rides so we grabbed a ride on the Wipeout while we were in the area. I probably haven't been on one of these things in about 15 years, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect. The ride is pretty harmless in the beginning but kicks into overdrive about half-way through. It only spins one direction because, as the op notified me, the full program that spins both ways is 8 minutes long. He assured me that we didn't want to go that route.

 

Kennyville Cemetary

After Terror Visions, I wasn't sure that I would get the group into another scare zone, but the Kennyville Cemetary offered a nice chance. This particular scare zone is much "lighter" that the others because of it's "open" nature.

 

Jack Rabbit

The Jack Rabbit is one of my favorites rides during PFNs. The ravine becomes filled with fog and the ride really seems to fly. In the tunnel, they also add fog and put a couple of lights under the track that add a really nice effect.

 

Phantoms Revenge

We skipped this one earlier because the line was pretty long and it looked that they had no plans whatsoever to put on the second train. We came back before we left and managed to get on in about 30 minutes or so. Phantom, like every other coaster, runs great at night and the fog and darkness of PFNs only added to the effect.

 

After grabbing our Phantom Ride, we headed out of the park. We probably would have hung around a little longer, but the rain and cold were taking their toll. If you haven't got to sample Phantom Fight Nights, I would highly recommend it. It stands above most other amusement park halloween events.

 

Note: The rides were operating for 10.21.05 PFN

Exterminator

Jack Rabbit

Phantom's Revenge

Thunderbolt

Aero 360

Gran Prix

King Kahuna

Musik Express

Noah's Ark

Paratrooper

Pirate

Pitt Fall

Skycoaster

Volcano

Wave Swinger

Wipeout

[QuakerOaties]

My dad and I were going to stop by Kennywood last night on a drive home from Ohio but decided not to since we just wanted to go home.

 

I'm kind of dissapointed we didn't go! It seems like it was a fun event. I'm glad you guys had a good time.

 

Mark "too bad about one train on Phantom" Luskus