When Scott Udy gets ready for Halloween, it’s all hands on deck. He gathers his mateys and hearties, all ready for the big show for all the buckaroos.
On October 24 and 25, Udy will put on his annual Pirate Yard at his Spanish Fork home, which for the past seven years, has brought countless visitors to see what pirate-technics will be unveiled. Udy said that it all began as a way to bring some fun to his kids and their friends during Halloween, and it’s gotten bigger and bigger every year.
“It started when our kids would do a Halloween party when they were in high school, and a few years ago, we decided to do it for the neighborhood kids,” Udy said. “It wasn’t really that big at the time, but it’s just gotten bigger and bigger and bigger every year. Every year, I build something different and new, and, and it’s just gotten pretty big. And now we get thousands of people a year that come through in just the two days that we’re open.”
For Udy, putting together his Pirate Yard is something that satisfies his love for special effects and his long-held love of pirates.
“I’ve always been really interested in props and special effects and pirates,” he said. “And I always wanted to be a special effects artist. When my wife and I were married and had our first house, I really did up the front yard and sound and lighting and everything, and it scared the kids away to the point where my wife’s like, ‘yeah, we’re not doing that anymore.’ So we kind of toned it down a little bit. Our very first full-size prop was a pirate skeleton, which we still use today.”
Being interested in pirates may have been pre-destined, or at least pre-determined by his father, who named him after a pirate.
“My mom wanted my middle name after her father, which was Edwin, and my dad didn’t like that,” Udy said. “So my dad’s like, ‘Well, let’s get something closer,’ and he gave me the middle name Edward. He did this without my mom knowing what he wanted Edward to actually mean. And he actually named me after Edward Teach, who is Blackbeard. And so I’ve always been into pirates since then. My favorite book growing up was Treasure Island. I have quite a few copies of rare Treasure Island books that I’ve just kept over the years and, and collected. I’ve always liked pirates.”
Aside from his affinity for pirates, Udy has extensive background in pyrotechnics, sounds and large-scale events.
“When I was 16 years old, a friend and I decided to create our own DJ company, and that’s really where I got started in sound,” he said. “I ran DJ stuff for about 20 to 25 years. I also used to do a lot of concert promotions and huge events, and so I was really big into sound and lighting and special effects lighting for large events. I’ve worked with quite a few big names as far as putting concerts together, setting up sound. I was on the board of directors with the SCERA Theatre here in Utah County for about six years and did a lot of concert promotion and set up with them.”
With all his background and love for pirates, his Pirate Yard is an unforgettable experience. Udy said that from start to finish, those who come visit, will be wowed.
“We try to make it as authentic as possible,” he said. “We start at one side of the house where we do some lighting and special effects and a lot of sound. It’s almost like in Disneyland when you turn a corner, you hear a different song, you turn a corner, you hear a different song. That’s, that’s kind of how I’ve got this set up as well. You hear music when you’re walking up through the house. As soon as you get into the backyard, there’s a fisherman’s wharf. There’s some video effects as well, like a band playing, and that’s where this music’s coming from. Then it kind of goes into a graveyard. And then the backyard itself is a dock where the pirate ship is, and then also a small island with where all of the treasure is. We’ve got a water feature that helps make it look like an island. We also have an interactive treasure map and my wife and daughter hand out candy.”
Udy said that putting it all together is really a family affair, and something they look forward to every year. In fact, as his family has grown, the Pirate Yard has become a prerequisite to joining the family.
“Yeah, and you know, it was kind of funny,” he said. “It was a prerequisite for my daughter when she got married. We told our son-in-law, ‘Look, every October, you’ve got to put these dates aside.’ He was good with it, and so he helps out as well. We all help put it all together the day before and the day of, and then we all dress up for the two days that we have it up and running.
“It doesn’t cost anything,” he continued. “My daughter has a photo booth for people to take pictures. A lot of people use that as their yearly events or yearly Halloween photo. We also have a taco truck that shows up every year. It’s Tia’s Texas Tacos, and they park out in front of our house and serve great food.”
The Pirate Yard is open October 24 and 25 from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. each night. It is located at 2208 E 1480 S in Spanish Fork.
