SCarowinds opens Friday. Beware of clowns, chainsaw guy and the Army of Darkness

Growing up, I went to SCarowinds every year for my birthday. It was a tradition. For some reason, young, naive Sarah loved getting the crap scared out of her.

Well, I guess I’m still young and naive because I still enjoy getting the crap scared out of me. I went to SCarowinds Social Media Preview Night Wednesday to see what frightening things were planned for its 16th season.

This year, there are six mazes, six scare zones, three live shows and apparently a lot of clowns.

That’s it. I’m done. Getting back in my car.

SCarowinds starts its hiring process in June/July, but is still hiring. More than 500 “monsters” are employed with the park, most of which are repeat hires, and they call themselves the Army of Darkness.

Nope. No way. No Army of Darkness for me.

Yet there I was, standing in the middle of the opening ceremony where the witch summoned all her monsters to scare the mortals who thought they were brave.

Me? Brave. Nope. Not me.

OK, I was a little brave. I ventured in front of the monsters lurking toward me for this picture, because #journalism.

Trust me, it was a lot more menacing than it looks.

The scariest part was the Dark Harvest maze, but I think the monsters need to work on their spelling.

Let’s all take a moment of silence for butt nuggets aka eggs.

I went in the Dark Harvest maze with three other people as two boys led the way. At first it wasn’t that scary, but beware of the monsters in the wooly booger costumes. They’re dressed in those camouflage, bush suits you see at Gander Mountain and Bass Pro Shops. Can you tell I’m from Union County?

Like I mentioned, it wasn’t that scary at first.

Then the chainsaw guy happened. I froze as he lunged toward me. There is nothing scarier than a chainsaw, not even clowns. When I realized I could move again, my group and I ran out of the closest exit. Turns out it was an emergency exit and we were only halfway through the maze. Security escorted us back in — this time we ran.

Overall, it was pretty darn scary. They start thinking of new scare tactics starts as soon as SCarowinds begins, so it’s a year-round planning process.

Our tour was during daylight hours, but as soon as the sun started to go down I knew it was time to leave. SCarowinds is 10 times scarier at night.

If you think you can handle the Army of Darkness, here’s what you need to know:

– SCarowinds is open to the public starting Friday, Sept. 16.

– Gates open at 6:30 p.m. and SCarowinds officially starts at 7 p.m.

– Buy your tickets online for $28.99 instead of $55.99 at the gate. Also, ticket prices will rise once Halloween gets closer.

– If you want to avoid crowds, go on a Sunday since it’s a school night.

– SCarowinds won’t be open for Halloween this year, but it will be open Oct. 30.

Feature photo: Corey Inscoe. Photos: Sarah Headley

This story was originally published September 14, 2016 at 9:00 PM with the headline "SCarowinds opens Friday. Beware of clowns, chainsaw guy and the Army of Darkness."