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Not sure if anyone checks this thread anymore, but I found a nice little home video from 1989 while searching on YouTube. It shows some footage of things like Hastings, the Spider, Gladiators Gauntlet, etc. Being 13, I wasn't able to see these things myself so actually seeing footage of the things I've heard about is really cool. Don't know if anyone else has seen this, but it's a nice little video for people who haven't. http://youtu.be/_oFlGD0ARgY
 
It really was not that great a ride. Had they programed it to go upside down it would have been much better.
 
Zimmy said:
It really was not that great a ride.  Had they programed it to go upside down it would have been much better.

Some great memories in that video; thanks to Prismapaws for posting it. I never road Gladiator's Gauntlet and really do not remember this being in the park. A quick search revealed a closed attractions article on Wikipedia showing it was in the park from 1988 - 1993. This leads me to the question: What attraction (not show) holds the record for shortest stay in the park? I believe this may be the winner.
 
Six years... that is shorter than Drachen Fire (operated for seven years) and Wild Izzy/Maus (eight years).

Can't really count individual simulator incarnations, as the basic ride platforms (with or without their roof/wall structures intact) have been there the whole time. Otherwise I'd nominate King Arthur's Challenge.
 
Great find, Connor! At 4:56 you can see the mushrooms in Turvey Manor followed by the hall of mirrors. You can see how the tops of the mushrooms would move when you touched them and I still remember walking face first into a mirror in the hall of mirrors when I was a kid.
 
Just to see Busch Gardens Williamsburg in it's early days is always a treat to watch.
 
Notice, all of the asphalt was either not shown in the video, or was covered in straw such as in Hastings.

Aside from that, I always wanted to have a better understanding of how The Abbeystone Theatre functioned for the puppet shows. I know that contributed a lot to both space under the stage as well as the surprisingly large fly space (That's above the stage where things are "flown" in). Sadly that video just barely gives me enough perspective on the scale of things.

Turvey Manor is also something that I have never seen anywhere else. My mom recalls that and maybe three more of the trippy scenes within. She also attended a preview before the park officially opened. I wonder if the film shown still exists.
 
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Couldn't find this on YouTube or the threads here, so I transferred it from VHS today.

Official souvenir video from the park, mid-90's. Features overview of all hamlets, shows, and attractions, as well as in-depth looks at "Haunts of the Olde Country" 3D movie, and the newest coaster at the time, Drachen Fire.

 
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