The Boys and Girls Club of Airdrie (BGCA) has adjusted its signature Halloween attraction because of COVID-19. This year, AIRSCARES will take to the rails for two weekends of thrilling rides.
Kathy Ritcher, BGCA's manager of Events and Volunteers, said Airdrie’s scariest Halloween event will be held at Iron Horse Park Oct. 16 and 17 and 23 and 24.
“Things are obviously looking different all around this year, due to COVID,” she said. “We just want to bring something to the community that will be a little fun, keep Halloween alive and AIRSCARES alive. We’ll make things work with what we [have].”
This year, Ritcher said, the event’s theme is "The Haunting of Mayhem Bridge: Witch's Curse." Taking advantage of the new venue, she said the 2020 event will include seven-minute "haunted" rides on Iron Horse Park’s miniature trains.
“There will be tour guides and they’ll tell the tale about the haunting of Mayhem Bridge,” she said. “There will be a few props we’re going to use, but it’s mostly theatrical along the way. Because it’ll be dark out, you won’t see what’s coming at you.”
The event runs from 7 to 10 p.m., with ticket sales ending at 9:30 p.m., Ritcher said.
Started in 2013, AIRSCARES is one of BGCA’s largest fundraisers of the year, with proceeds funding the club's programming and services. Normally, the event features a haunted house that has attracted hundreds of attendees over a period of 10 days leading up to Halloween each year. Typically, more than 100 volunteers help run the event and do their best to scare visitors.
In recent years, the haunted house was located in the old fire hall on Main Street. Before that, the attraction was hosted at either the Blue Grass Ltd. Nursery, Sod and Garden Centre in Balzac or the old RCMP detachment office on Edmonton Trail.
The old fire hall is currently being used for COVID-19 testing, Ritcher said, which made it ineligible for this year’s AIRSCARES.
“We had to be creative and look for other venues we could host it at,” she said. “It was mentioned about Iron Horse Park, and we approached them, with the City of Airdrie’s help, and they were completely on board to help us along with anything we need.”
Due to COVID-19, Ritcher said the 2020 iteration will include many modifications to comply with Alberta Health Services’ public health orders. She said only 100 people will be allowed on-site at a time, and the capacity will be strictly enforced.
“Therefore, if the lineup gets too long, we’ll ask people to remain in their cars and we’ll have a system in place to ensure people who are asked to remain in their vehicles will be given first priority, once a certain amount clears out of the venue and we can have more people come in,” she said.
AIRSCARES is meant to be scary, according to Ritcher, meaning it might not be the best option for young children. It’s up to parents’ discretion if their child is old enough to attend, she said, adding anyone nine years old or younger must be accompanied by an adult.
For more information, visit airdrie.bgccan.com
Scott Strasser, AirdrieToday.com
Follow me on Twitter @scottstrasser19
