By Kate Bartlett
John Kent is the owner and founder of Nightmare Hayrides at 6319 Sommerville Street in Ellicottville. The Kent family has been running the Hayrides for 32 years, making each year a bit scarier than the last. The Kent family also runs the Ellicottville Championship Rodeo on their 214-acre property in the valleys of the Enchanted Mountains.
John imagined the idea for Nightmare Hayrides on their property just 2 years after starting the Rodeo and opening riding stables. He remembers sharing his idea with his family at the dinner table, while his children were less than enthused about his new ideas. “Don’t embarrass us Dad,” they said. 32 years later, John is still successful scaring the people of Western New York, and has been voted Buffalo’s Best Hayride.
His children knew that with their father’s idea, more work would be thrown their way. “I grew up on the farm, and my kids grew up on the farm. We instill the value of hard work and the satisfaction of a job well done. The farm life isn’t easy sometimes, but we all pitch in and do what needs to get done.” John’s wife, Karen Kent, has been the heartbeat of the business. Alongside the couple, are their children, Tammie and Johnny, who spent countless hours working the hayrides, rodeo and especially on the farm.
John built the main hayride attraction, the Haunted Wagon Ride, around their 25-acre field and borrowed tractors from neighbors until he built up a fleet of rustic Farmall M tractors. Their first year, he gathered about 30 people and taught them his ideas on ‘how to scare’ the riders the night before the hayrides first ran. He built platforms for the haunters to come off of and also buildings to come out of while the wagon riders set out on a 25-minute journey through the dark hayride.
The hayrides became popular in the community, and as John saw this positive response he added on more attractions. Within 5 years he added a haunted maze, consisting of 4-foot-wide lumber hallways with “just enough light to take you through the next turn.” In another 5 years, he converted the farm’s old cattle barn into a haunted barn, with claustrophobic walls, vortex tunnel, and gloomy hallways. You never know what might be around the next turn.
John and his family have had fun adding more to their haunted collections over the years, but still find the simplest pranks to be the most fun. “Once I had a small person hiding in a garbage can who would pop out when people walked by. It was the simplest thing but people would scream and laugh hysterically every time.”
And what’s more, John has never watched a scary movie in his life. Instead, he enjoys coming up with original ideas on his own. “I’ve had many people call over the years asking for certain attractions, like our ‘Outhouse Girl” who would lure visitors into an outhouse and the walls would collapse onto the ground.”
Who knew the business of scaring could be so fun? John’s favorite part of his job is watching people laugh, and seeing the smiles on their faces. “It’s hilarious to watch people; they’ll do the darndest things when they’re scared. My stomach muscles hurt from laughing by the second week of the Hayrides. It really brings me joy watching people and their reactions to good ‘ol fashioned pranks.”
Retirement may be on the horizon for John, as he begins to recognize the need to slow down and take it a bit easier. “My hope is that someone will love these Hayrides as much as we have and decide to take them on with the property. We’ve put our lives into it, and it’s been quite the journey. We’ve loved every minute of it, and hopefully someone else will too.”
Hayrides run weekend from September 29-October 29 with rides Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 7:30-9:30. Tickets are $30/person available onsite and include all attractions. All ages welcome, under 5 free, rain or shine, handicapped accessible. John loves a challenge and can accommodate large parties, busses and other types of events and gatherings. For more information visit http://www.nightmarehayride.com/.
Make sure to visit John and his family at 6139 Sommerville Street in Ellicottville for a night of spooks that you won’t forget. Find out why they’ve earned the term “the scariest haunted attraction in WNY.” “We named it Nightmare Hayrides because that’s what we aim to do. Stop down for a good scare, and some laughs too.”