RECAP:  ZOMBIE PAINTBALL WAGON RIDE  is a family friendly event lasting approximately 13 minutes, and consisting of several different scenes all staffed by the living dead.  Mounted paintball guns are utilized to fire at the zombie targets that emerge from hiding as the tractor-drawn wagon makes its way through an isolated cornfield that connects the various scenes.  This unique event is fun for all ages, and extra paintballs can be purchased for an additional $5 if you get a little too trigger happy!   13 minutes, 25+ zombies, $18.

THE HOMESTEAD (W/Touch Pass):  The adventure begins walking through an isolated cornfield that leads up to an old house occupied by crazed jesters!  Altercations include an immediate attack by Squiggles the clown, and potentially being burned alive prior to even entering the Homestead as “gasoline” is poured around a trespasser, while a crazed lady repeatedly encourages, “Burn Him, Burn Him!”  Inside the house, a meeting with grandma awaits, as does a spooky living room, and a dining area where guests are seized and restrained, have their mouths silenced and their wrists taped together with duct tape, and “blood” splattered on them, before learning they’re about to become the main course for dinner!  The funsters play games and jokes, spray water (shower), and even tie up unwanted visitors to chairs, put clown make-up on their faces, and subject them to a variety of other shenanigans!  Other scenes and activities include a short, dark maze, a slithering crawl beneath a bed, a gory laboratory, an encounter with Dr. Stitches and his giant syringe, and an exam room complete with an MRI machine, where the technician places one of the intruders on the table and pushes him into the device for a scan, while wickedly laughing and warning, “Watch out for the Knives!”  Still to come is a wicked confrontation with a maniacal ghoul disemboweling a deceased, pregnant girl!  Escaping the mad doctor and his psychotic cohorts leads back into the corn and safely back to the Big Top area concluding The Homestead segment of The Hammer Brothers Haunted Circus!  13 minutes, 22 actors, $12.

THE CORNFIELD:  The scares begin early on along this lengthy adventure when a horn-honking, pig-faced monster goes on the assault prior to an encounter with Bubbles the Clown outside an old barn where trespassers are grabbed and bound with rope by a snorting, pig-masked butcher happily welcoming his captives to the slaughterhouse!  Eventual escape leads back out into the field, then into another building occupied by a tall goon wearing white overalls and armed with a gigantic axe anxious to chop intruders up into small pieces!  Sidestepping the skirmish directs the course down a hidden staircase into the cellar only to have the trap door slammed shut from above locking everyone inside!  Squeezing through a tight crawl space empties into a sewer pipe that finally spills back out into the cornfield.  Violations continue at The Church of Hell that finds an unholy nun smearing blood on parishioners’ faces, and proclaiming, “You’re all sinners!  You’re all staying here forever!”  Elusion back into the cornfield finds the path littered with dead bodies, avoidance of which accesses another structure, where crazed jokers zip-tie hands and drag detainees along coaxing, “Come on, little puppy!”  A hysterically laughing jester waits in the distance eagerly prepared to embalm hostages in plastic wrap from head to toe!  A vicious chainsaw chase-out waits in the wings bringing the curtain down on The Cornfield attraction at The Hammer Brothers Haunted Circus!  25 minutes, 27 actors, $12.

* THE HUNT is a walk-through participation event in which customers attempt to track down and shoot walkers before becoming victims themselves!  Open select dates ONLY!

ANALYSIS:  The event is a full-contact attraction.  The Homestead and Cornfield take it to the extreme with the optional $5 touch passes as guests are involved in the scares by being bound with duct tape, rope, zip ties, etc., sprayed with water, possibly even Saran Wrapped, or dabbled with “blood” and clown makeup!  The course involves crawling in a few places, but bypasses are provided for those with physical limitations, or perhaps not wanting to get dirty.  If you don’t like living on the edge, then the family friendly Wagon Ride might be a better option.  And it’s a lot of fun!

Best actors include Squiggles, gas-can ghouls threatening to set you on fire, Dr. Stitches, Pig-faced slaughterhouse butcher and the Unholy Nun!  The best scares were being tied up in the slaughterhouse, put in the MRI machine, and the trap door slamming shut making crawling out of the cellar a necessity.  This attraction may not be for the light of heart as it pushes scares to the extreme, but keep in mind that the touch pass is optional!

VIP tickets are available for $25 for The Homestead and Cornfield.  OVH recommends visiting on a Friday as lines can get long and Hammer Brother's is usually more crowded on Saturday nights.  The Circus has 3 center-ring attractions to enjoy, so arrive early!  The Hunt wasn't open when we visited, but is scheduled for select Saturdays in October!