originally posted on 11/11/2022 1:05:00 AM
Photo: Marie Ruby. View full-sized image.
KennyKon in October during Kennywood’s Phantom Fall Fest? Why not? Since Kennywood was one of the Coaster Con host parks
in June, it didn’t make sense to schedule KennyKon in its usual July slot, but it wouldn’t have been a popular move to skip it either. Finding a time during the Phantom Fall Fest was a win-win for attendees, who were able not only to celebrate ACE
Western Pennsylvania’s flagship event but also to experience the chills and excitement of the “dark” side of Kennywood, when the Phantom is in control. The KennyKon XXXIII logo reflected the dual personality of the event, with a bright orange pumpkin
face on top and a dark bottom.
Beautiful weather (and The Steel Curtain) greeted attendees at KennyKon.
Photo: Bill Linkenheimer III. View full-sized image.
Event check-in began on October 15 at 10 a.m. on a sunny, 50-degree day at the park in West Mifflin, where the 87 attendees picked up their registration material and greeted friends. An unexpected benefit was that complimentary Speedy Passes (cutting
wait times for rides and haunts in half) were available to the first 100 season passholders to arrive, which included all of the passholders attending KennyKon. Attendees’ first stop was Thunderbolt, the ACE Roller Coaster Landmark, for ERT
from 11 to noon. Modified from John Miller’s Pippin by Andy Vettel in 1968, Thunderbolt was looking spiffy after its preseason paint job. Also open early for event attendees and season passholders were some of Kennywood’s classic rides:
Jack Rabbit, another ACE Roller Coaster Landmark; Sky Rocket; Kangaroo (60 years); Old Mill (the oldest ride in the park, 1901); Merry-Go-Round (95 years); and the Thomas Town rides.
Photo: Bill Linkenheimer III. View full-sized image.
Phantom Fall Fest is an all-day event, but all rides are not open all day, so attendees had to pay attention to ride opening and closing hours. Some of the family rides operated only until 6 p.m., when the park enters its haunt mode. Kennywood officially
opened to the public at noon, which was also the time of the group photo in front of Thunderbolt.
Informal takeover times (ITOTs) were scheduled throughout the day, and attendees did their best to follow the schedule. During the afternoon, ITOTs were enjoyed on the trackless interactive dark ride Ghostwood Estate, Merry-Go-Round, Jack Rabbit and Whip.
Attendees tour the new mALICE in Wonderland haunt.
Photo: Bill Linkenheimer III. View full-sized image.
Photo: Bill Linkenheimer III. View full-sized image.
2022 was an anniversary year for the haunts at Kennywood: 20 years! Before the haunts opened in the evening, however, attendees lined up at 2 p.m. for an exclusive behind-the-scenes, lights-on tour of mALICE in Wonderland, Kennywood’s new-for-2022 haunt
and one of two upcharge attractions during Phantom Fall Fest (the other being Ark in the Dark). Based loosely on the story of Alice in Wonderland, adventurers choose one of two paths through the haunt: Looking Glass or Rabbit Hole. Whichever path
was chosen, visitors saw rooms full of detail, vibrant colors and extraordinary visual effects — and some dramatic scare actors too! In addition to the afternoon tour, attendees were given a complimentary ticket to visit the attraction when it officially
opened at night and skip the main line as well.
Photo: Bill Linkenheimer III. View full-sized image.
Unlimited soft drinks were available to attendees at Pavilion 1 beginning at 4 p.m., but the picnic dinner consisting of chicken tenders, smoked beef brisket, vegetarian penne pasta and many sides began at 5. Regional Rep Bill Linkenheimer III welcomed
everyone and thanked his Kennywood contacts for helping to organize KennyKon. Director of Ride Operations Marie Ruby was on hand to thank attendees as well and to encourage them to check out the haunts. Linkenheimer provided a special welcome to ACE
Pacific Southwest Assistant Regional Rep Greg Fleming of Las Vegas. Originally from nearby McKeesport, the last time Fleming attended KennyKon was in 2007, when Linkenheimer acknowledged his recent return from a tour of Iraq while serving in the U.S.
Army. Linkenheimer also recognized all the volunteers and reminded everyone of Western Pennsylvania’s upcoming events: ACE Holiday Magic at Kennywood on November 26 and the region’s midwinter event, CoasterBash! at Salvatore’s, on March 4, 2023.
Dinner was appetizing, even if some of the later haunts were not.
Photos: Bill Linkenheimer III. View full-sized image.
View full-sized image.
Dinner was literally the dividing point between the family-friendly “Fall Fest” and the ominous “Phantom Fest.” As the fog machines began creating a world of mystery, attendees gathered for another behind-the-scenes, lights-on trip through a haunt — this
time Shady Grove, a “hospital” to be avoided at all costs. After the lights-on tour, attendees were first in line to navigate the hospital in its haunted state, during which they were instructed to help find an evil doctor who is looking for additional
specimens for his collection of eyes. Yuck.
Evening ITOTs included mALICE in Wonderland, the Kennyville Cemetery (20 years), Kangaroo, Dark Shadows and Turtle (95 years). In addition to the haunts included in ITOTs, attendees were encouraged to experience the remaining two — Villa of the Vampires
and Voodoo Bayou — as well as the four scare zones. Also open was Kennywood’s only indoor coaster, the Reverchon spinning coaster, The Exterminator.
The last ITOT of the event at 10:30 p.m. was appropriately on The Phantom’s Revenge, the Arrow/Morgan hypercoaster, with its second drop plunging 228 feet at 85 mph through the fog in the ravine. Could there be a better ending to a night that combined
the fun and tradition of KennyKon with a celebration of the spirits of the night? And it didn’t rain!
Fog over the lagoon obscures many details but not the Jack Rabbit, outlined in lights.
Photo: Bill Linkenheimer III. View full-sized image.
Attendees were grateful to all the ACE Western Pennsylvania volunteers and to the Kennywood staff, particularly Ruby, Julie Chandler and Chris Johnson, for a fun fall event with friends.
— Lee Ann Draud, ACE Publications Director
#ACENews