Crowds still driving from afar for scary attractions despite unpleasant weather

By Grace King, Mt. Pleasant News

Lauryn Weiss and Jami Tebockhorst walked out of Thrashers House of Terror on Friday, Oct. 13, in a daze. As they felt the cool night air, their heart rates began to slow.

?It?s definitely a lot scarier than I thought it would be,? Weiss said as a compliment. ?I kept thinking it was going to be the end, but there was always something around the corner,? she added.

Thrashers House of Terror and The Midwest Haunted Rails had a rough opening weekend Oct. 6 and 7, and again Saturday, Oct. 14, with thunderstorms forcing them to close the park early. Linda McShane, who was selling tickets Friday night, said that she doesn?t think bad weather keeps people away too long. They just come back another night.

?There were some refunds for tickets lost (Oct. 6), but it didn?t seem to hamper anything,? McShane said.

?Weather plays a big key factor,? said Grant Davidson, Marketing and Public Relations for Midwest Old Threshers Association. Davidson said that last year, they recorded 56 counties represented from Iowa, and had a visitor drive from Chicago and back just to go to the haunted house for a night. He said when the weather is good, they expect 600 to 700 customers a night.

Standing intimidatingly at the entrance of the haunted house, Trevor McElhinney said his costume was voodoo inspired. His face was painted white, with black around his eyes like a raccoon and his jawline darkened. A noose hung from around his neck.

McElhinney, who has been a volunteer since 2009, said he spends all year creating costumes, one for each night of the haunted house.

?We get a sick thrill out of scaring people,? McElhinney said, standing with Michael Dovspike, who was dressed as a vampire.

?I?m a movie watcher,? Dovspike said. ?I bring characters to life.?

If anyone needs a costume idea for Halloween, McElhinney said look to history for inspiration.

?And look to the horror genre in general,? he said, adding that he?s an aspiring horror writer.

Seven-year-old Kinnick McVay bounded over to the entrance of the haunted house with his friend Sheldon Myatt and Sheldon?s mother Marla Myatt, posing for a picture with Dovspike and McElhinney.

?It ain?t scary,? McVay said, practically begging to go inside.

Marla said that she thought the boys were a little too young and that her husband and Sheldon?s aunt were inside the haunted house at the moment. McVay and Myatt continued to insist that they would in fact not be scared inside Thrashers House of Terror even as the rest of the family walked out of the haunted house ensuring the boys they were not prepared for the thrills inside.

Behind them, exited Sydney Scott and Abbi Christianson.

?I kind of peed my pants,? Christianson admitted. It was her first time experiencing the haunted house and she said it took a lot of courage.

?I didn?t open my eyes once,? Scott said.

Taking a school bus to the other side of the park, Tina Myers, who is a bus driver for the Mt. Pleasant Community School District, drives her bus as if she?s driving a roller coaster.

Dressed in all black, face contorted into a deadpan and a black-haired, wild looking wig, Myers greeted some of the children with a high-five and reassured others that it was safe to climb onboard.

As she drive slowly past a couple children, she shouted out the still-open door, ?Do you want to ride my bus?? To which they asked, ?Do you drive crazy??

?I drive your bus every day so you know I drive crazy,? Myers said, as the students hopped onboard to go to The Midwest Haunted Rails.

Myers peeled off, careening the bus one way and then the other. ?We are so doomed,? one little boy shouted with joy.

Pulling to a sudden stop, Myers opened the doors to the entrance of the Haunted Rails.

?You?re a pretty good driver,? a little boy complimented as he exited the bus.

Still early in the evening, The Midwest Haunted Rails weren?t as crowded as Thrashers House of Terror, but Heaven Kitner, who volunteers in the carnival part of the park on Fridays and Saturdays, said it gets busier as the night goes on.

Thrashers House of Terror is open during the month of October on Thursdays from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m., and Fridays and Saturdays beginning at 6 p.m. They are open Halloween Night, Tuesday, Oct. 31, from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tickets can be purchased on site.