The new interactive dark ride by the Sally Corporation has opened at Lake compounce this past season. Sally has taken old fashion black light technology and combined it with modern computer game technology and they’ve come up with a terrific new family ride for Compounce.

From the installation to the execution, this ride is incredible. A two story Victorian, Gothic style building, with a Mansard roof, houses the ride and several concessions. It is built into the side of a hill with the dark ride being on the top floor and its entrance at the top of the hill. The que line weaves through a neglected garden. Along the pathways you’ll find gargoyles that follow your moves and spit water. The details on the building are quite good. Some of these include carved stone pillars and figures and iron railings. Once you get close to the entrance of the ride, there is a pre-ride video that prepares you for your adventure.

The house, known as Bleakstone Manor, is overrun with ghosts, and this seems to be bringing property values down in the area. The area residents have hired Professor Phearstruck, who has invented a boo-blaster, which sends ghosts out of the house when they are shot with it. Guests are to do their best at eliminating ghosts as they travel through the mansion in the boo-blaster vehicles. There are even several test ghosts to practice shooting at while you sit in your vehicle and wait your turn to go through the mansion. Once inside, the fun really begins.

The actual ride is quite long and has many rooms to travel through. Each room is beautifully designed and illuminated by remarkably well-hidden black lights. The stunts seem simple at first, but when you start shooting at them and eliminating them, more ghosts come to take their place. If your riding partner and you are good shots, then all Hell will break loose. The more targets you hit the wilder the targets become. You soon find yourself with hundreds of ghosts to shoot at. At a point about halfway through the ride you emerge outdoors briefly and re-enter the building through a misty thunderstorm. It is extremely well done. After traveling through several more rooms your car is blown up by a particularly mean ghost named Boocifer. At this point you re-emerge in the station.

In spite of its ghostly theme, this can definitely be considered a family ride. It is never gruesome and is often quite silly. The surprises are mild and the whole experience is very entertaining. The traveling system, though twisting and turning is very smooth and gentle. It is the perfect thing for grandparents to ride with their grandchildren and well worth the wait in line.

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This article ©1999 The Prince of Darkrides. Used with permission.
All photos this page ©1999 Joel Styer. Used with permission.