SUMMERTOWN, Tenn. — A haunted house that promises an extreme experience that can last up to 10 hours requires participants be medically cleared by a doctor and sign a 40-page waiver. This is NOT for the kids, faint of heart or anyone with a medical condition.
The McKamey Manor experiences in Summertown, Tennessee, and Huntsville, Alabama, also require visitors be at least 18, insured, and pass a background check and drug test, create a safe word, do a Facebook screening, and furnish proof of a recent physical before the possibility of snagging a coveted entry slot. (According to one report, as of 2015, the owner claimed there was a waiting list of 27,000 people hoping for the opportunity.)
WFLA-TV reports that owner Russ McKamey offers $20,000 to anyone who completes the eight-hour “tour,” but says no one ever has. He records each tour on video — for his own protection he says — and then posts them online, showing them quitting in humiliation.
It’s costs nearly nothing to enter: Just a bag of dog food for McKamey’s canine pals (though the official website does say voluntary donations are “accepted to fund a particular event.” It also warns “do NOT enter our haunt if you are prone to seizures or if you have ANY kind of respiratory conditions, especially asthma, or heart conditions. Do not enter if you have broken bones, casts or are pregnant.”
The website warns of physically demanding environments, but McKamey says the manor is a mental game.
The house of terrors has been featured on Netflix’s documentary “Haunters” and an episode of David Farrier’s Netflix series “Dark Tourist.”
