Exclusive: Behind The Walls Construction Update of RailBlazer at California's Great America10/12/2017
Today we've got a bit of an exclusive behind the scenes look at RailBlazer construction at California's Great America. We aren't going to try and guess what's going where but we figured you'd all like to see the progress that's been made so far. And more progress has already been made in the past few days. Written by Gregg Condon Lots and lots of walls up around RailBlazer Normally this is all we'd be able to show you in a construction update But exclusively for you Park Journey readers ... we have dirt!!! And Rocks!! And piles of dirt!! And trees!! Thanks to the amazing PR staff at California's Great America for allowing us the chance to get a look at construction, we can't wait to see more very very soon!! Be sure to come back tomorrow as we'll have our Haunt update from last weekend!! Related Updates:
Well, it's official- California's Great America has elevated their special offerings yet again with the introduction of Demon: Ignited, a special reinvention of their classic looping coaster for Halloween Haunt. Much like Disney, who has made a successful model off of holiday overlays, Great America has taken the opportunity to elevate The Demon for a limited engagement. While most of the ride takes place out of site from the midway, the park was kind enough to walk us back for a special look into the reinvention of this classic attraction. By Andrew Cunningham So- first thing to know- there is fire. I'm not talking about a little torch in the queue or something, I mean a full on fireball. You'll feel the heat as a fireball erupts just to the left of the train just before you dive into the Demon's cave. Second thing to know- there's blood, and lots of it. Just like the park didn't hold back on the fire, they certainly didn't hold back on the blood. The Demon's waterfall has returned, but this time with some sinister red coloring. The combination of the fire, lighting effects, and blood red water makes for a colorful, spooky ride through the Demon's wooded area. The fog and lighting really elevate the atmosphere. Aside from maybe The Matterhorn, is there a better looking Arrow coaster out there? I can't think of any. The tunnel that immediately follows the double loops also got decked out with some eerie interior lighting. A train whizzes through the Demon's cave, with a bloody waterfall just above the rider's heads. So spooky and awesome. Another train flying through the corkscrews in the dark. The Demon cave also features projection mapping, but it was hard to capture a picture that did it justice in the dark. But fire... did we mention fire? Yeah, it's pretty rad. It's dark, it's spooky, it's bloody, it's fiery, it's The Demon: Re-Ignited. Check it out during Haunt at California's Great America. Huge thank you to the wonderful team at Great America who made this update possible. You guys are doing so many exciting things, and it's always a pleasure to come down and check them out! Related Updates:
Hey there, Park Journey readers! 2017 marks the 10th year of Haunt at California's Great America, and ParkJourney was on had to check out the opening night festivities! This was my second year attending Haunt at Great America, and I really enjoyed it. It's amazing how much this park has changed in the last couple of years, and the 2017 Haunt additions seem to indicate a continuation of that upward trend. Written by Andrew Cunningham Photos by Stephen Harrington and Andrew Cunningham We start the evening by checking out Backwoods, this year's big new maze, which took over the Imax building previously occupied by Dia de los Meurtos. While Backwoods was noticeably shorter than its predecessor, the production value was far above any other maze that Great America has done. Backwoods takes us to an old southern Bayou that is, unfortunately, overrun by Werewolves. The maze was unique in that it is built over a shallow water tank, and you walk from scare to scare over a set of wooden bridges that cross the water. The sets themselves were large, impressive, and void of any cheap plywood walls. The park was kind enough to treat us to a lights-on tour of Backwoods. You can see from the pictures that the level of detail and production value was definitely heightened for this maze. It looked amazing with the lights off and actors in place! Aes night began to creep in, the Haunt opening show took place over the Celebration Plaza fountains. The cloaked figure in the middle of the water is none other that The Demon! It was cool to see a live Demon character in the park, as the other marquee addition for 2017 was Demon: Re-Ignited The Demon is a true classic at California's Great America, the this year's Haunt brought fire, tunnel projections, and the return of the water features to the beloved coaster. I have to say that a night ride on Demon Ignited was incredibly enjoyable. The park has also been hyping a re-recording of the classic Demon theme song by Tony Award winner James Monroe Iglehart. The new theme song was not ready to roll on opening night, but we will back next week to check it out again. Great America has done a tremendous job with increasing their entertainment offerings over the last few years. This year for Haunt, Ed Alonzo's Psycho Circus of Magic & Mayhem returns to the park to take center stage. We got to see the first trial run of the show, which was a lot of fun. I'm not a huge theme park show person, but I did find Ed's show to be an overall good time. He packed in several impressive magic tricks along with some PG-13 humor. I'd recommend seeing it if you have a full night to spend at Haunt. While I didn't have time to take in every other maze or Skeleton Key room tonight (damn you, Caltrain schedule!), it did seem like the houses that I did were mostly the same from last year. However, the couple Skeleton Key rooms I experienced were different from 2016, which was fun. Thanks for joining us for a look at the 2017 new hotness for California's Great America's 10th anniversary Haunt. Halloween Haunt runs Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights from now until October 29th. We definitely recommend coming to check it our if you're in the Bay Area! We'll actually be back at California's Great America for Haunt the next two weekends, so look for lots more from this amazing event soon. Related Updates:
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