A family trip to Knoebels had been in the works for well over a month. Tracdc, Satan and his girl (gosh - what's her trail name, certainly not Spawn of Satan) planned on meeting Maga11, Toolman Luke and us there in the afternoon. The weather was chilly but we decided to go ahead with our plans because it's rare when our schedules allow us all to get together.We all saw the nearly completed Flying Turns as we entered the park. We are very excited that the next time we visit we might get to try them out. We all met for lunch at the international food court where family hilarity quickly ensued.
As we munched on our burritos, Tracdc suggested that we all ride the haunted mansion next. It was then I realized that I had enough people with me that I might be able to talk a couple of them into achieving a long time goal.
I first visited Knoebels Grove in the late spring of 1974. The flood, Agnes, had ruined our great local park just two years prior so the annual field trip to reward grade school traffic patrols changed from Kish Park to Knoebels Grove. It was a big deal and I was instantly in awe of the huge amusement resort the moment I saw it. One of the rides that impressed me the most was the haunted mansion. Riders sat in carts that wheels through musty rooms of a very spooky mansion. One room was a vast cavernous area just filled with floating skulls. Farther along the ride corded strings hung down to just suggest something tickling you like a spider. A shocking finalé of a near set of oncoming head lights and and air horn blast made even my preteen non-driver's heart race with the suggested impending doom.
I suggested my family make the trip to check out the park and it became an almost yearly favorite. Each year, the trip was not complete without a ride through the haunted mansion. During my teen years, I mentally plotted how I might jump out and cut loose one of the floating skulls that seems to be energized with light just before my cart busted through the double doors into that chamber. I never could figure out how to do it quickly enough and my aversion to harming the dark ride just left me imagining perfect plots rather than acting on it.
Time twisted on and I shared my love of the park and all of its many wonders with RGBisMe and eventually Ravenboy. As a
three year old, he was scared out of his wits by the Haunted Mansion and would not consent to ride it again for years. We found other traditions in the park to take its place, like taking black and white photos in the arcade. Eventually he learned to love it too and as a young High School homeschooler, we arranged a walking tour through the Haunted Mansion given by Dick Knoebel, the owner, himself.We got to see so many cool secrets about the spooks. I got to look, close up, at the many things that had aways made me shriek in fright. I won't give away any of the secrets but a cool bit of trivia was that the grand ticket booth that stands in front of the mansion was from our dear old Kish Park in Burnham. I also got to see the floating skull room in the light, not nearly as vast and quite dull but filled with mirrors.
Over the past 6 years, RGBisMe and I have gone at least once a year. Sometimes with Ravenboy, sometimes just ourselves. The past few years the mansion rooms have been showing a lot of wear and are looking pretty shabby. Sometimes the light in the floating skull room has been out of sync and come on well before our cart has exited the chamber. Many of the spooks are looking broken and almost taped together; it's scary on a different level.
As we sat around our pre Cinco de Mayo luncheon, I had this idea solidify and whispered it to RGBisMe. He was game and I ran it by Tracdc. She wasn't so sure and was afraid we would get kicked out of the park. I was certain I could pull it off but my plot was foiled in that I needed her to ride after RGBisMe and myself, alone. Satan's daughter, latched onto Tracdc and said, "I am riding with you!" She had no idea what we had been planning but it seemed it was not to be. Tracdc came to the rescue as we approached the Haunted Mansion. She generously bought all of our tickets and said, "T, you ride with Satan." I looked at RGBisMe and he agreed to ride alone after us.As our cart pulled up, I don't think Satan quite knew what I was plotting but he suspected something was up. I told him to get in first since there was only one way to enter/exit the cart. I needed to be on the outside. As Tracdc and Satan's daughter (trailname TBA) busted through the doors and into the mansion, Satan and I took our seats in our cart. I looked back at RGBisMe and reminded him, "Slide way over to your right." Maga11 and Toolman Luke took up the rear and just before we vanished into the mansion I saw RGBisMe sliding to the far right side of his cart.
Everything was so scary this time and as the skull room came closer, I was almost shaking. Finally, I saw the lights blazing between a crack in the chamber's double doors energizing the skulls. Tracdc's cart must have already exited the chamber. Off the lights went and "bang" our cart busted into the room of eerie glowing and dancing skulls. I couldn't see him but I shouted to Satan over the Spooky music, "Abyssinia!" and exited the cart to my left!
I heard him exclaim something as I sensed rather than saw my cart disappearing in the distance and the spooky skulls danced all around me. I could feel the wooden boards under my feet were a little uneven but I knew to stay clear not only of the track but the greased wheel marks we had to avoid during the entirety of our walking tour years before. I dare not back up too far so I stood in a ballet first position just as I heard my cart depart the chamber with Satan.
The lights blasted on! I felt like I was caught, naked and being very naughty. I cringed a bit to hide myself from any cameras but knew it was fruitless. I was in the skull chamber, out of a cart and in the middle of the ride's operation. I was so in the wrong yet I was being very careful and thinking out my every move. Just as the light snapped off, I knew I would have to stay still but have my hand out to be able to feel where RGBisMe's cart's handle was before it passed by me. I couldn't move my feet because I had determined when the lights were on that they were away from the greased wheel marks. "Bang!" RGbisMe's cart had entered the chamber! Like a frantic Who in Whoville, I quickly shouted over the blaring spooky music, "I am here! I am here!" Immediately I heard coming toward me the voice of RGBisMe repeating back to me, "I am hear! I am here!" My hand touched the cart's bar just at the level I remembered the bar's being and jumped in as RGBisMe pulled me in!!
"I did it! I did it!!" I shouted with glee. I kissed RGBisMe over and over again thanking him. I was thrilled in realizing I had been plotting this moment, in one way or another, for over 30 years. A silly, relatively moderate, calculated risk but it gave me such a thrill. It hurt no one and did no harm to the ride. It was a great moment. As our cart slid past the spooks, ran head long into the oncoming truck and was yelled at by an angry jungleman I hugged my RGBisMe so happily. We came through the final double doors to a small group of very expectant family. Tracdc, Satan and his daughter all gave a little cheer when they saw us emerge together. I shouted in victory with my hands over my head. Maga11 and Toolman Luke's cart soon came out and they were glad to hear how it went too. Maga11 knew that a plan was hatched and very pleased I pulled it off.
I was riding high as we floated from ride to game to ride. It was still chilly and I looked like the uni-bomber with my hood up but it was a good time. The arcade was fun as I embarrassed everyone with my DDR actions but I needed to release some energy. Sadly, the photo booth was out of order.
Beleive it or not the most exciting part of the day was yet to come. - to be continued soon!
