Recent Entries from Challenge Course Management
How long does it take to get the Boston Bruins over a 12-foot Initiative Wall?
One of the most important skills of an effective experiential educator is flexibility because we know the group you planned for rarely looks like the group that showed up. This could not have been more perfectly demonstrated then when the Boston Bruins arrived at High 5 two years ago.
Extraordinary places: The inspiring dedication of great camp directors
Summer Camps are not ordinary places. Some might say they are the most extraordinary places on earth. Over the years I have had the privilege of visiting a lot of camps and meeting even more camp professionals. Camp counselors are a unique breed who are willing to give their all to a younger generation, but behind each camp staff is the camps leadership.
Massachusetts DPS Update: State Inspector Visits
We're reaching out to our friends in the state of Massachusetts to let you know of a few developments from the MA Department of Public Safety (DPS). While the DPS has not exercised the right to perform their inspections in the nearly 5 years since the legislation was past, we have recently been informed via the Association for Challenge Course Technology (ACCT) that state inspectors from the Massachusetts DPS has visited and performed inspections at two or more high schools in the past month. These inspections included a review of all paperwork, a cursory look at equipment and a visual inspection of the challenge course. All 6 state inspectors were present at both inspections. What does this mean for you?
Sharpen those Skills!
Last spring Chris Ortiz posted an article entitled Wake Up that outlined several important steps in preparing your challenge course for the busy programming season ahead. Well, it's that time of year again and it's time to start waking...
Personal equipment on the course?
Can staff use their own personal equipment while facilitating on the challenge course? This question comes up a lot and it most recently came up on the ropes list serve so I wanted to give it some attention. There probably as many opinions on this question as there is challenge course managers. The main point of this question is whether you, as a challenge course manager/director, allow the staff on your course to use their own harnesses while facilitating. The first question I always ask in these situations is why? What is the outcome you hope to achieve by having this local operating procedure? Some of the typical answers heard to that return question usually list as follows: more comfort while hanging in the harness; availability of gear loops; instilling confidence in the participants by seeing facilitators with more advanced equipment. Before I dig into these points, I am not going to bury the lead here. I am
Wake up!
Here in New England, it is not often that the first day of spring and the look out my window match up but it appears that Mother Nature and the Calendar have synchronized for us in 2010. While I may...