TRENDING # staff_complacency # opening_prep # diversity # adventure_camp # decision_making # and_more
Adventure Park Insider Drawing Board Operators pushed ahead with noteworthy projects despite the challenges of the past year.
THE FUTURE IS LOOKING UP
SPRING 2021
Making It Work Key takeaways from 2020 that will shape our new normal.
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The Next Chapter
A year later, the outlook is improving daily, and the amount of good news is growing. It’s time to ramp up our businesses and prepare for a busy summer. There’s a lot of pent-up demand to get outdoors. As part of this reopening, we are once again delivering Adventure Park Insider in its beautiful print format, so you can enjoy the content as you did pre-Covid. Our digital magazine format continues, too, so you have options for reading going forward. The return to producing a print magazine is a welcome bit of normalcy that we know you, our readers and advertising partners, have looked forward to. We’ve enjoyed hearing how so many of you value the magazine, read it cover-to-cover, have API reference libraries, and keep copies around for staff of all levels to read and learn from, and also reference during team meetings. For example, here is what some fellow operators said about our return to print: “So glad Adventure Park Insider is coming back in print. Over the last few years, Adventure Park Insider has become a must-read for me. I get one to my house and one to my office and I read it cover-to-cover.” —John Hines, The Adventure Park at Sandy Springs “I always put at least one copy in our ready room. The guides get a better idea of the scope of what’s out there in the zip line world.” —Bruce “Coach” Brown, Royal Gorge Zip Line Tours “I use Adventure Park Insider as a resource for new ideas. I am constantly going back to past print issues to reference articles as I operate my business.” —Lee Kerfoot, Kerfoot Canopy Tours “I am so excited Adventure Park Insider is coming back in print!! I saw this and subscribed immediately! One for me
and a couple issues to put out at our tour. This is HUGE and a great deal!!” —Lori Pingle, ZipZone The Value of Print The “great deal” Lori is referring to is a paid subscription that is chock full of value. To make it cost effective for us to produce the print magazine, we’re now offering a subscription that includes the rest of 2021 (three issues) and all four issues in 2022 for just $25. Plus, a subscription includes a copy of the 2021 State of the Industry Report (valued at $59) and a Yeti tumbler from Adventure Suppliers LLC (while supplies last). This was not a decision we made lightly. We know that paying for something you used to get for free can sometimes taste funny. When that something is worth paying for, though, it tastes just as good as ever. We believe you’ll find a subscription is well worth the cost. Your support allows us to continue doing what we do. Visit www.adventureparkinsider.com/subscribe for more details and to take advantage of the limited time offer. A New Partnership The pandemic has brought a lot of challenges and misery, but there have also been silver linings. One example is the connection we’ve developed with our European counterparts. When the pandemic hit, we had several Huddles with operators from European countries, and the sharing of information was super beneficial to all. This connection will outlast the pandemic. We are partnering with Vertex in the UK to add news and information about the European adventure park industry to the magazine. Look for stories of innovation, trends, case studies, and more from our European operator and supplier friends in the near future. The pandemic has been an enormous, almost unprecedented challenge, one that has highlighted our industry’s ability to adapt. As we begin to emerge from its worst moments, a new chapter is beginning for all of us. The Editors
3 Spring 2021
Early in the pandemic, Adventure Park Insider made the temporary shift to a digital magazine format. Our aim was to reach you, our readers, wherever you were during work-from-home times. This accessibility was important to help keep everyone connected and informed while many of you weren’t necessarily where you normally receive the print magazine.
VOL. 7 | NO. 2 |
CONTENTS
SPRING 2021
ON THE COVER Looking up through the Skyscraper Tower at The Forge: Lemont Quarries in Lemont, Ill., built by Bonsai Design. The massive adventure park opened in July 2020, one of a handful of projects across the country that moved forward despite challenges brought about by the pandemic. See “Drawing Board,” p. 46, for more on this and other recent and soon-to-be projects. Photo by Corey Dobos, Bonsai Design
3 The Next Chapter Subscription news, and a new partnership. 6 Park Briefs Accredited operations, ICYMI, and more. A Staff Report 10 New Products Three new items for operators to consider. By Sarah Borodaeff 12 Beware of Complacency! How to identify and mitigate the lurking monster of staff complacency. By Bee Lacy 20 Checklist? Check. Employ clear systems and checklists to effectively manage risk. By Katie Brinton
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26 Park Spy “Do you have Wi-Fi so I can work while my family plays?” EDITORIAL OFFICE P.O. Box 644 • Woodbury, CT 06798 Tel. 203.263.0888 / Fax 203.266.0452 Website: www.adventureparkinsider.com Publisher Olivia Rowan—olivia@adventureparkinsider.com Editor Rick Kahl—rick@adventureparkinsider.com Senior Editor Dave Meeker—dave@adventureparkinsider.com Associate Editor Sarah Borodaeff—sarah@adventureparkinsider.com Digital Editor Sarah Borodaeff—sarah@adventureparkinsider.com Design Director Sarah Wojcik—sarahw@adventureparkinsider.com Graphic Design Consultant Joerg Dressler—joerg@dressler-design.com Production Manager Donna Jacobs—donna@adventureparkinsider.com
Making It Work
Camp at the Park
By Rohan Shahani
By Gina DeCaprio Vercesi
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28 Laws & Rules & Standards, Oh My! Pay attention to the details as you find your way through the regulatory forest. By Scott Andrews
52 I s the Juice Worth the Squeeze? A decision-making mantra that can benefit all operators. By Lee Kerfoot
34 G oing Contactless Touch-free transactions can improve the guest experience, streamline operations, and boost the bottom line. By TJ Fink
56 Zippy Communications On-course staff communication requires the right tools, established protocols, and proper execution to avoid accidents. By Peter Oliver
Key takeaways from 2020 that help form our “new normal” moving forward.
Adventure parks are finding success in hosting summer day camps for kids.
44 7 Steps Toward a Successful Season Things you should do now to ensure smooth operations when busy season arrives. By Don Stock 46 Drawing Board New installations that moved forward despite the challenges of 2020. By Sarah Borodaeff 50 So Now What? Steps to put diversity efforts into practice, now. By Rachel Maestri-Hailey CONTRIBUTORS Cameron Annas Scott D. Baker Katie Brinton Bob Curley April Darrow
Skip King Moira McCarthy Peter Oliver Paul Thallner Gina DeCaprio Vercesi
SPECIAL CONTRIBUTOR Paul Cummings CIRCULATION / SUBSCRIPTIONS 70 Pond Street • Natick, MA 01760 Tel. 508.655.6409 / Fax 508.655.6409 subscriptions@adventureparkinsider.com Circulation Manager Sarah Borodaeff—sarah@adventureparkinsider.com Circulation / Marketing Manager Cole Lelli —cole@adventureparkinsider.com To subscribe to Adventure Park Insider magazine visit our website, www.adventureparkinsider.com/subscribe/.
WAIT, THERE’S MORE!
For the latest adventure park industry news, special online reports, digital magazine archives, and more, visit www.adventureparkinsider.com.
ADVERTISING/MARKETING OFFICE 70 Pond Street • Natick, MA 01760 Tel. 508.655.6408 / Fax 508.655.6409 Advertising Director Sharon Walsh—sharon@adventureparkinsider.com Marketing Manager Sarah Borodaeff—sarah@adventureparkinsider.com ADVENTURE PARK INSIDER — Vol. 7, No. 2, Spring 2021, is published quarterly: Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall, by Beardsley Publishing Corp., 70 Pond Street, Natick, MA 01760-4438. Periodicals Postage pending at Framingham, MA 01701-9998. POSTMASTER: send address changes to Beardsley Publishing, P.O. Box 644, Woodbury, CT 06798. Copyright 2021 Beardsley Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.
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French Broad and Quarry Park Complete Operation Accreditation
collected over time, and more programs need to become accredited to build data for insurers to reference. She estimated this may take 3–5 years.
After more than six years of planning, the Association for Challenge Course Technology (ACCT) Operation Accreditation program launched July 15, 2020. On Dec. 23, 2020, French Broad Adventures in North Carolina and Quarry Park Adventures in California became the first two ACCT Accredited Operations after completing the lengthy, yet beneficial, process. “This accreditation, along with our professional vendor member accreditation, represent the gold standard for the challenge course industry,” said ACCT executive director Shawn Tierney in a statement on the ACCT website, in which he congratulated French Broad and Quarry Park. “Accreditation confirms that the company operates at the highest level of performance, abides by ACCT standards, and is well equipped
PRCA Hosts Hybrid Conference
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The Professional Ropes Course Association (PRCA) held a hybrid conference Feb. 25-28, with in-person meetings at the Lake Aurora Christian Camp and Retreat Center in Lake Wells, Fla., augmented by streamed and pre-recorded online sessions. Certification seminars Feb. 24-25 preceded the conference itself. Roughly 15 to 20 persons braved Covid restrictions and limitations to show up for the onsite presentations, and another 50 or so attended virtually. PRCA founding member and board vice president Steve Gustafson of EBL Zip Line Tours termed the overall result a success. The in-person and online sessions covered a range of subjects, from Covid
to manage the risks associated with adventure experiences. “Equally as important, accreditation provides the general public, insurers, and authorities having jurisdiction assurance that the program has been ‘vetted’ and thoroughly reviewed by an outside credentialing body,” added Tierney. The Operation Accreditation program was a hot topic during the 2021 ACCT Conference. French Broad Adventures owner Korey Hampton—who is board liaison on the ACCT Accreditation and Certification Committee, and also sits on the Operation Accreditation Panel—called the accreditation process “a growth opportunity” during the Open Discussion for Owners/Operators session. She hailed how valuable it was to conduct such a thorough review of operations. The program may also produce other benefits, such as decreased insurance rates. Hampton said that may take a while, though, because data needs to be
gear cleaning and social distancing practices and ANSI/PRCA training standards to some less typical topics, including land leases and agreements and the use of service animals at ropes courses. A Kong factory tour was also on the agenda, along with ample time to sample the camp’s facilities—including the Kong Coudou Pro continuous belay system. Gustafson said the conference took several steps to make it possible to hold the in-person sessions. For one, attendees spent as much time outdoors as possible, to enable social distancing and provide hands-on experiences. When indoors, attendees were widely separated, and doors and windows were kept open to enhance air circulation. PRCA plans to hold its annual conference in person next year, once again in Florida.
•
A separate Operation Accreditation seminar focused on how the process works, with an emphasis on how to successfully navigate it. In brief form, the message was, “read every word of Chapter 2” of the ANSI/ACCT Standards and make sure you meet every requirement. Compliance includes documenting everything you have done to meet the standards. Address any shortcomings before applying for accreditation, several panelists said, and consult with outside expertise (such as an accreditation program reviewer) to address questions you might have prior to submitting an application. A question arose during the Dialogue with ACCT Leadership session about if accredited operations would have votes similar to those of ACCT Professional Vendor Members within the association. That is yet to be determined.
•
Experiential Systems Opens West Coast Office Experiential Systems Incorporated (ESI) has opened an office in Bend, Ore., to better serve West Coast clients of the Illinois-based company. ESI named Jonathan Lumb its West Coast regional services director. Lumb has more than a decade of industry experience, most recently as lead inspector for Adventure Development Team. “I am very pleased that Jonathan will be joining our team,” said ESI president Keith Jacobs. “Joining Experiential Systems is a perfect transition for me, as their team shares my dedication to design, experience, and safety,” said Lumb. Visit www.experientialsystems.com for more information. >> continued
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ICYMI At the onset of the pandemic, the world was changing quickly, and we all had to make adjustments. For Adventure Park Insider, it meant changing our editorial plans to meet the industry’s needs, and switching to a digital format to reach readers wherever Covid led them. We know your attention has been pulled in many different directions over the past year. So, just in case you missed it, here’s a sampling of articles from the last four issues of Adventure Park Insider that are well worth hopping online to read.
Don’t Waver with Waivers by Cameron Annas When crafted properly, waivers can be a valuable tool for adventure operations.
SUMMER 2020:
TRENDING # online_training # digital_advertising # business_planning # new_products # park_spy # and_more
Adventure Park Insider Operations and Insurance in the COVID Era Key considerations and advice for managing staff and risks.
SUMMER 2020
A Path to Diversity Jumpstart efforts to increase equity and inclusion by following this road map for discussion.
Creating Diversity in the Outdoor Industry by Rachel Maestri-Hailey A NEW NORMAL A six-step program can help you bring diversity, equity, and inclusion to your operation. Take Your Training Online by Katie Brinton Cyber-training options are expanding fast.
TRENDING # rescue_devices # waiver_advice # digital_advertising # park_spy # media_relations # and_more
SPRING 2020:
Adventure Park Insider Tree Health How to recognize signs of trouble, plus simple tools and advice to help nip it in the bud.
SPRING 2020
Challenge by Choice Adventure-based counseling offers a novel perspective on aerial trekking courses.
Happy Guides, Happy Guests
Keeping Employees Happy by Paul Thallner Genuine concern for employees’ well-being can keep them smiling and productive. Inside: Expanded New Products
Your Digital Audience by Gregg Blanchard Where and how should you spend your
Alternate Plans by Paul Cummings The pandemic proves the value of financial planning and forward thinking.
FALL 2020: Guiding Lights by Katie Brinton Profiles of seven up-andcoming leaders.
TRENDING # accessible_websites # tree_health # telling_your_story # new_products # standards_revisions # and_more
Adventure Park Insider Taking Care of Employees In times of crisis, it’s essential to stay in communication with and develop your staff. Here’s how.
Lessons Learned Looking Ahead to 2021
FALL 2020
Guiding Lights Profiles of 7 individuals who are having an impact on their parks and the wider industry.
One Eye on the Trees by Timothy Slape Monitor signs of stress in your trees to catch problems early. Website Accessibility by David Gibson What you need to know about making your website ADA accessible.
WINTER 2021:
TRENDING # business_models # belay_systems # augmented_reality # kids_stuff # inspection_prep # and_more
Adventure Park Insider Guide Training in Covid Times Combine digital and in-person sessions to get the job done.
WINTER 2021
Opinion: Next Big Steps on DEI Introspection and culture change needed to broaden the industry.
State of the Industry Report by Sarah Borodaeff Aerial adventure operations fared surprisingly well in 2020, as our State of the Industry Report demonstrates.
WHAT DOES 2021 HAVE IN STORE FOR US?
The Shape of 2021 by The Editors A roundtable discussion ponders lessons learned and trends that will endure. Inspection Prep by Corey Wall Take these steps to help wring the greatest benefit from your annual inspection. Catch up on all the the content from the past year at adventureparkinsider.com
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sps filets little monsters SPS Filets aims to add some fun to adventure
park wooden bridge elements with its Little Monsters series of themed island boards. The 40 in. x 37 in. elements are made of ¾-inch Okoumé-faced plywood. They are designed to attach to two parallel wire ropes with 15.75 in. spacing. Attachment accessories are included. There are six Little Monsters designs in the collection, which can be purchased in pairs or as the entire collection. The Little Monsters can be printed on a single side or on both sides of the element. SPS Filets can also produce custom designs. www.spsfilets.com
Petzl swan easyfit steel The Swan Easyfit Steel from Petzl is a full-body harness designed specifical-
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ly for use in adventure parks. It features color-coded shoulder straps to make gear-up simpler, and is equipped with a Fast LT Pin-Lock automatic waistbelt buckle, which can only be unlocked with a special tool, so the user cannot inadvertently open the buckle. The high ventral attachment point is designed to limit the risk of the wearer inverting. The harness comes in a single size, which adapts to most body types and—along with an identification panel for marking—makes for easy gear management. The Swan Easyfit Steel is certified to CE EN 12277 type A, UIAA standards. www.petzl.com
kong zaza2 switch The Zaza2 Switch for the Coudou Pro continuous belay system is a
stainless-steel bifurcation plate that allows participants to overtake, divert to various courses, or exit an aerial adventure course. The Switch can also be manually operated using a special key. Using the key, it is possible to unlock the plate, allowing for ultra-rapid evacuations in the case of injury, storm, fire, or other incidents. www.kongusa.com
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It takes constant vigilance to avoid becoming lax in our routines.
BEWARE OF COMPLACENCY! It creeps in slowly and gradually at the start, gaining momentum when little or no resistance is met. It slithers into our well-worn routines and procedures without a sound, catching us unaware and vulnerable at the worst possible moments. It tenderly whispers, “Don’t worry, we’ve done this a hundred times. Nothing is going to happen. You just relax.” It shifts our awareness elsewhere, and our attention is leached away from the task at hand, leaving us obliviated and heedless of the ongoing risks of our surroundings. Each and every one of us falls prey to it at some point in our aerial adventure career, sometimes without even recognizing it. This brutish, invasive force is not some malicious, spooky creature out of a Scooby Doo cartoon. The monster of this story is complacency. THE EVIL MONSTER
By Bee Lacy, Ropes Park Manager, The Forge: Lemont Quarries
Despite all the warnings, we still find ourselves snagged in its slippery claws. So, what lies behind the mask? And what can we do as professionals to foil complacency’s nefarious plot? It looks like we’ve got another mystery on our hands. Let’s get that mask off the monster—figuratively speaking during Covid times, of course—and see what lies behind it. DEFINING COMPLACENCY
We can all agree that complacency is bad—but what does it actually mean? The definition of complacency includes the phrases “self-satisfaction” and “unawareness of actual dangers.” What it refers to are habits or behaviors that are developed based on past experiences and are used to complete present tasks. These behaviors generally are not aligned with dictated procedures and involve an individual’s failure to recognize the risks or consequences.
To further clarify complacent behavior and for the purpose of this article, complacent habits or acts can be separated into two categories: conscious and unconscious. Conscious complacency involves a decision on the part of the individual (e.g., a staff member chooses not to wear the appropriate PPE). These acts are intentional, and the staff member is aware that what he or she is doing is incorrect. Unconscious complacency happens without the individual’s awareness (e.g., a staff member “zones out” on the job and is no longer paying attention to his or her surroundings). In these situations, there is no active decision being made, it just happens. Both categories pose risks to practitioners and guests alike. Conscious complacency often proves easier to identify and address.
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IDENTIFYING COMPLACENCY The concept of complacency is a hot-button topic in the challenge course industry. Often the cause of shifty eyes and whispers of blame when incidents occur, complacency is the invisible evil that we all fear. Like the Chupacabra, we warn our staff about how scary complacent behavior is, and how it sneaks up on us when we are alone and vulnerable. “You better watch out, or it will get you, too!” we say in an endless playback loop.
Applying this interpretation to our industry, complacent behaviors are habits or acts that have been developed based on the assumption that because nothing negative has occurred, nothing negative will occur. This often leads us to become bored, let our guard down, and/or diminish the perceived risk of the activity. It can result in aerial adventure professionals mentally “checking out,” or devaluing and/or altogether ignoring operational procedures or guidelines in order to make the task at hand easier or more interesting.
Complacency can be overt or subtle, depending on the individual, and presents itself in a variety of ways, from general “too cool for school” attitudes to thoughtless acts without regard for consequence or a semblance of catatonic day-dreaming. Overconfidence. Oftentimes complacency is first seen during training once a trainee starts to feel confident in his or her newfound abilities. Like
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BEWARE OF COMPLACENCY! any young’un, trainees begin to test boundaries to see where the hard lines actually lie. Generally, this confidence is shaken once a mistake is made and the trainee has a reality check moment. This event brings the trainee back into a mental space where his or her full attention is on the task at hand. Once out of training, the next brush with the beast may come weeks or months down the line, depending on the individual’s vigilance. Make no mistake, though, for the vast majority of staff, there’s a direct relationship between confidence level and the likelihood of complacency.
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External influences can also have an enormous effect on an individual’s susceptibility to the complacency trap. When staff are tired, hungry, hot, cold, etc., their attention may be diverted from procedure to the fulfillment of those needs first and foremost. Boredom due to repetitive action can also lull people into a lack of proper caution.
Design
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“There’s a direct relationship between confidence level and the likelihood of complacency.” Lastly, complacency tends to be HIGHLY contagious. One of my very favorite (not) ways that this contagion manifests is in veteran staff interactions with new practitioners. Like upperclassmen in 1980s coming-of-age rom-coms, seasoned guides may feel that “freshman” guides need to learn the rules of the school as soon as possible. I once had the immense pleasure of overhearing a too-cool second year guide tell one of the freshly graduated trainees to just “forget everything” they learned in training because doing it “that way” made the job “way harder.” While the right way may in fact make the job more difficult, that’s not a reason to ignore established procedures. Often, when behaviors outside of
Commissioning
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defined procedures are touted as “tips” they are not recognized for what they truly are: dangerous. COMBATING COMPLACENCY
We all know that complacency kills. There are countless instances that prove it, so I will not bemoan its specific dangers and consequences here. Let us instead discuss what can be done to de-mask the monster. Acknowledge it. First and foremost, acknowledging the thing that is dangerous can help prevent the thing that is dangerous. Acknowledge complacency, inform staff, describe when and how it happens. Make its consequences
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BEWARE OF COMPLACENCY! painfully obvious by answering the hard “what’s the worst that could happen?” questions and set clear behavioral expectations. Be aware. Encourage employees to perform self-assessments at regular intervals. Self-awareness and reflection allow for practitioners to identify when they are heading down a bad road and stop the behavior before it takes hold. Encourage staff to ask themselves questions centered on their needs and mental state. Have them evaluate how their decisions align with organizational guidelines and rules. These steps address both the conscious and unconscious forms of complacent behavior. The leadership staff must act as motivators and mentors in these practices. They need to be prepared to make good on promises of support or guidance for staff when necessary.
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Maintain a learning culture. Employers should also provide periodic opportu-
nities for continuous improvement and staff learning. Reliance on self-assessment, while admirable, is not always enough or may fall short, depending upon the audience. Leadership within organizations should create real and tangible goals for employees to strive for, regularly ask employees to perform duties in an assessment environment, and encourage employees to seek higher training levels. The practice and evaluation of rarely used skills and procedures keep them fresh in the minds of staff. These steps remind them regularly of their potentially wide range of responsibilities. Provide feedback. Feedback in this scenario needs to be provided in a concise, constructive, and direct fashion to ensure expectations are understood. Weekly or daily meetings in which staff debrief recent trends, incidents, or potentially inappropriate behavioral patterns can also stop the complacency monster in its tracks by highlighting areas of concern and pointing to more suitable actions. >> continued
Maintaining a learning culture is key to avoiding complacency among guides. Photo courtesy of The Forge: Lemont Quarries
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BEWARE OF COMPLACENCY! Conducting thorough and detailed training is also of vital importance in preventing staff complacency. Training should not just be used to give practitioners the bare-minimum skills required to fulfill job roles. Training can be used to construct solid foundations and company culture, on which good habits are built. Trainers must explain the “why” behind certain procedural requirements or practices, and provide appropriate time for practitioners to grasp conceptual topics. Trainees should be given multiple opportunities to circle to the why behind topics and connect the dots throughout training.
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Time to acclimate. This application of new concepts and the development of critical thinking can take time, oftentimes multiple days. Practitioners need appropriate space for reflection and analysis. Trainers can facilitate trainees’ application of previously discussed concepts to new learning through leading
“Complacency awareness and avoidance starts at the top.” questions, group discussions, review, and training techniques such as wholepart-whole teaching. These steps create the foundation and opportunities for trainees to fully understand the magnitude of their responsibilities—for themselves and others. They also provide trainees with the tools to fall back on when guidance is not readily available. Otherwise, staff and teams will be set up for failure due to lack of deeper understanding. The role of leadership. Lastly, organizational leadership must be willing and able to appropriately identify and correct unsafe or complacent behaviors in staff and themselves. Complacency awareness and avoidance starts at the top. Managers must review and reflect upon incidents and near misses within their
staff and ask what needs to happen to prevent similar situations in the future. Staff often become complacent due to repetitive or mundane roles. To address this, leadership may choose to move individuals to new positions periodically. Managers must also hold themselves to the same or higher standards, and should be present both mentally and physically during working hours. Attempting to defeat such a challenging foe can, at times, feel like an impossible feat. Through constant recognition and awareness, we shine a light into the haunted corners, forcing the monster into the spotlight to be exposed and repelled. It is worth fighting to ensure that the bad guy, complacency, doesn’t wreak havoc. So, keep the Scooby Snacks close at hand and the Mystery Machine running. We’ve got work to do, gang.
CHECKLIST? CHECK. How can adventure park operators stay rigorous when it comes to managing risk? Checklists help
by Katie Brinton
tick the right boxes. Back in 2019, six months before the pandemic would keep operators occupied with an ever-shifting slew of health and safety protocols, the Association for Challenge Course Technology (ACCT) released the latest revision of its Challenge Courses and Canopy/Zip Line Tours Standards. Those standards (ANSI/ ACCT 03-2019), which are law in some states, require that operators employ clear systems and checklists for course management. So, what’s so vital about checklists? In a word, documentation. PREVENTION AND PROTECTION
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Erik Marter, co-owner and CEO of Synergo, a full-service aerial adventure vendor, points out that an effective risk management plan addresses two issues: incident prevention and lawsuit protection. Checklists can help operators tackle both, by documenting compliance with any applicable standards. “Most of our accidents happen where guides and guests don’t connect very well, or in that weird space where the course does not quite match what the operator was thinking,” says Marter. “In either situation, checklists can help bridge the gaps.” Orientation checklists. Marter cites orientation checklists as an important expectation-setting tool to help guides
and guests get on the same page. When the checklist is shared out loud between the two, it allows for public accountability and helps mitigate misunderstandings down the line. Should there be an incident, a written orientation checklist makes it easier for an operator to argue in court that information was properly communicated to guests. “Clean, tidy checklists make it much simpler to help clients,” says Marter. “Checklists are a way of helping guides do their job and helping operators stay protected.” Pre-opening checklists. From a risk management standpoint, the pre-use check is one of the most important things a park can do, says ACCT policy director Scott Andrews. “The use of a documentable pre-use checklist is a way of setting up to reduce risk,” he says. “Without these documents, you can’t prove that you did nothing wrong,” adds Cameron Annas, CEO of Granite Insurance, which serves adventure park clients. Practice what you preach. Of course, checklists only prevent accidents or hold up legally when they are actually utilized. “Operating procedures, manuals, and checklists are wonderful, but only if they are followed,” says Annas. “Having them on the shelf for documentation’s sake but not following them probably hurts rather than helps.”
Stay on track. An effective checklist can help keep the brain on task during crucial safety processes, which is often hard to do. “The brain starts going on how to manage other issues,” says Marter. He notes that, as a pilot in training, flying really solidified his belief in the need for checklists. “With pre-flight checklists, you start in the same way and go in the exact same order. The consistency of the routine helps ensure nothing gets skipped.” List it out. The most effective checklists are itemized. “If you just check that you’ve done a pre-use inspection, there are often gaps,” says Marter. “If you have an itemized checklist, the person conducting the check is more likely to actually do the individual pieces. A signature at the bottom is great, too— people follow through.” Checks in the checklist. Building actions into your checklists is another way to encourage staff to follow through. “We put things on that checklist that require people to slow down and look around,” says Andrews regarding the ACCT standards. IMPLEMENTING CHECKLISTS When it comes to implementing checklists and systems, Marter says there are three categories operators should look at: the structure, the operations, and the training. >> continued
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CHECKLIST? CHECK. Structural checklists include daily preuse checks and periodic inspections. These are the checklists that absolutely must be written down, according to the ACCT standards. Annas suggests that, additionally, before those morning inspections, employees should get in the habit of cross-checking each other’s equipment. “There have been several incidents in the last few years where an employee has gone out to do an inspection having not been inspected themselves, and an accident has occurred,” he cautions. On the operations end, in addition to orientation checklists and standard operating procedures such as utilizing “on belay” commands, Marter suggests adding an end-of-day report to your process.
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“When you fill out [an end-of-day report] every day, it provides a helpful
cross-reference for guest claims, and such reports are a good tool to help us track what is working and what isn’t,” says Marter. “It’s a report, but also a checklist.” Document competencies. Training staff is key to accident prevention (and good customer service). From a legal perspective, documenting staff competencies is a must. Marter recommends checklists for those who conduct trainings, as well as practical skills/skills verification checklists for participants to comprehensively document what training your staff receives. Follow up. Furthermore, an ongoing supervisory checklist will help operators audit staff throughout the season to make sure those competencies stay up to date. “At the end of a supervisory check, you can pull people aside and let them know what they are doing well in and provide additional training if they need it,” suggests Marter.
“You see guides who have been there for five or six years, they get comfortable and can get complacent,” agrees Annas. “It’s always good to continually evaluate and coach them.” ATVS, UTVS, AND VEHICLES Not all areas of operation connect directly to aerial activity—in fact, there’s a range of non-aerial components that should be addressed with checklists. “Two years ago, 52 percent of all injuries in the aerial industry were from ATVs, UTVs, and vehicles,” says Annas, who recommends that operators not only build maintenance checklists for the vehicles, but have an operator training program for the vehicles and a checklist for that, too. >> continued
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CHECKLIST? CHECK. “We have all these standards for transporting one person over a zip line, but we have zero standards for transporting 10 people up a rocky road to the top of the line,” says Annas. “We focus a lot on the high perceived risk and not on the areas around that, and that’s where we see a lot of the claims.” HOW AND WHEN TO DOCUMENT To checklist or not to checklist? When it comes to figuring out where checklists are needed and where they are not, Marter draws relatively simple lines. “If it’s an operational thing and the checklist is bogging you down, lose the checklist. If it’s a safety thing, you need a checklist, even if it is a mental checklist. When we clip people in, we do it the same way each time—that’s a mental checklist.” For the checklists and procedures that need to be documented, the next question is: paper or digital?
Paper documents. Marter thinks people do a better job with paper. In addition to having a filing system for paper checklists, he recommends keeping an ongoing log or journal. “It’s a great tool if you need to look up an incident, but it’s equally important for reviewing your processes and making changes,” he says. Digital records. On the flip side, Annas prefers digital: “I’m a big fan of having those documents stored electronically for ease of access, legibility, and because they don’t get misplaced.” Sorting through physical paper can be laborious if you have an incident that’s being litigated. “If I wanted to see every training record for a particular employee, it’d be hard to pull from chronologically stored paper,” says Annas. For operators that want to go the digital route with their documents, there are a number of tools available to choose from. PARKUPKEEP, Papertrail, and
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Connecteam are some of the companies offering inspection management software. Whether an operator sticks to old fashioned paper or opts to store records digitally, they should remember that building a culture around checklists and processes is key to turning the documents into effective tools. “Framing the value of checklists matters,” says Andrews. “Staff will ask, ‘Is this just a liability thing, or am I doing work that is necessary to make today successful?’” For Annas, the answer to that question is simple: “Checklists provide accountability, and they help people do their jobs better.”
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PARK SPY THE QUESTION: Do you have Wi-Fi so I can work while my family plays? Over the past year, work-from-home (WFH) and remote schooling have become more common than ever before. The struggle is real for parents whose homes are now both a classroom and an office. Many are looking for options where they can get the family out of the house for some physical activity and still manage to get a few emails in or be available for a Zoom meeting. We wanted to see if parks were prepared to welcome these folks.
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Send us a question for the Spy to ask! Seriously, do it. We won’t tell anyone the question came from you. If we use your question, your park will be immune for that issue! Send questions to sarah@adventureparkinsider.com.
PARK #1, WI
PARK #2, KY
PARK #3, NY
First contact: Female. API: Stated question. Staff: Yeah! So, first question I have is how old your kids are. We don’t allow kids under the age of 14 to climb alone. API: No worries! They’re 15 and 16. Staff: OK, cool. In that case, you could definitely hang out and do some work. We don’t have a specific place, like no tables or anything, but if you bring a camp chair or something you could watch them on the course and work. API: Cool! Do you have Wi-Fi that reaches to the course? Staff: Oh shoot, no, but I guess you could use your cell phone? We do get good service here. API: That would be fine. Staff: Cool! Any other questions I can answer for you? API: Nope, thanks!
First contact: Female. API: Stated question. Staff: Ummm, I’m not really sure. We weren’t letting people hang out in our visitors center because of Covid, but I think that’s changing soon. API: OK, do you know when you might have updated information? Or do you have picnic tables or something outside? Staff: I don’t, unfortunately. I know we’re hoping we can change up some of the rules come summer. Do you know when you were planning to come? API: Probably in the next couple of weeks while the kids are off for spring break. Staff: Yeah, unfortunately, until we change up the Covid rules, I don’t think we really have what you’re looking for. But once we do, we hope to see you! API: OK, thanks!
First contact: Male. API: Stated question. Staff: Ummm, you mean you don’t want to participate? API: Well, as much as I would love to, I’m really looking for something my family can do even though I still have to work. Staff: (shocked tone) But, it’s really fun! API: Totally, that’s why I want to bring my family. Staff: Right. Ummm, we do have Wi-Fi but it’s not a super strong signal. I mean, you could work from your car, I guess? API: OK, you don’t have picnic tables or somewhere I could post up? Staff: Not really. API: OK, thank you.
Score: 9 Comment: Super friendly and provided options to make it work.
Score: 7 Comment: The rules and regulations around Covid are changing and it was clear that she honestly felt bad that she couldn’t accommodate me right now, which is OK. Bonus points for the invitation to come back another time.
Score: 3 Comment: Yes, I understand that it’s fun, but maybe don’t be so offended that not everyone can/wants to participate.
First contact: Male. API: Stated question. Staff: Good question! I totally understand the desire to do that. Unfortunately, with the Covid protocols we have in place, we aren’t letting people just hang out if they aren’t here to participate. I mean, you’re welcome to hang in your car and wait, but that’s a lot less fun. API: Completely understand. Staff: There are some places close by, though (describes options), but if you’re bringing kids we really ask that you climb with them. API: Got it. Maybe I’ll have to do that! Staff: It’s super fun! API: I bet. Thanks so much. Score: 9 Comment: Not every park is set up to have places for non-climbers to wait. If that’s you, take a note from this guy— because when you say “no,” this is how to say it.
PARK #5, CA First contact: Female. API: Stated question. Staff: Ummm, the only place would be up at the gas station, on top of the hill. There is very slim and limited-service down here at the base. We don’t have any Wi-Fi at this time. API: OK. Is there cell service? I could work off my phone. Staff: Not really, like I said, it’s spotty at best. API: Gotcha, I misunderstood. Staff: Anything else? API: Nope, have a good one. Score: 5 Comment: Nice gal, but lacked empathy for my fairly common plight. I can’t be too disappointed though—it’s an adventure park, not a co-working space.
PARK #6, OR First contact: Female. API: Stated question. Staff: Yes, we do have a spot. However, we are not currently open today, we are still in winter hours until this Friday. When were you planning on coming up?
API: No worries. It would be in a couple weeks. Staff: OK, cool. We do have Wi-Fi, and we have picnic tables and a deck where you can watch the climbers up top. Everything is outside. We don’t have much inside—that is just for getting climbers checked in—so you’d have to be outside. (describes area in more detail) API: OK, great. That will work well for me. Staff: Awesome. We would ask you to wear a mask while you are on the deck, though. Just so you know. API: Not a problem at all. Staff: Great. Anything else I can help with? API: Nope, that will do it. Thank you! Score: 9 Comment: Super friendly and explained the limitations of being outside only, the rules about mask wearing, and overall provided me with clear expectations. Nicely done.
PARK #7, TX
Staff: (provides more information about the park) API: Thank you. Staff: You’re welcome! Score: 10 Comment: Awesome. Not only was he super friendly, but I appreciated the upsell for the additional activity we could all do together after I finish “adulting.” The upsell edged this call into the winning spot. Identity revealed: The Swamp Park
Debrief: This question is a tough one—not every park is equipped with an outdoor space for people to hang out, and with Covid rules and regulations, not every park is set up to allow people to hang out on site right now if they aren’t participating.
First contact: Male. API: Stated question. Staff: Ummmm, not really, no. API: No picnic tables or places I can hang out and be out of the way? Staff: Nope. API: OK, then. Bye.
While schools will hopefully return to inperson sometime this year, work-from-home is a trend that will continue in some capacity indefinitely. So, there will still be a population of adventure seekers that only needs Wi-Fi and a place to sit to perform their jobs. Parks that can provide both will be in a good position to capitalize on nine-to-fivers who are no longer tethered to an office.
Score: 1 Comment: He gets a point for answering the phone, but that’s generous. It’s OK to say no—just don’t do it like this guy.
Providing an outdoor space for guests to work has multiple benefits, including attracting midweek business and boosting ancillary revenue in F&B sales.
PARK #8, NC First contact: Male. API: Stated question. Staff: Yeah, so we have the back porch area, where you don’t have to pay. This back porch area has rocking chairs, free Wi-Fi, music going. That’s the spot to be able to chill. If you want, when your group goes out on the 65-acre canopy tour, on the back half of the course they are very close to our walking trail and you can watch them go over the swamp. That walking trail and the gator sanctuary is just $10, plus you have to sign a waiver. So that’s also an option. So, if you want to come and chill, and then when they make their way coming back you can go out on the trail. Lots of options for you. API: Great, that is awesome.
For parks that can’t offer a place for folks to work remotely, this is a good chance to practice that tricky “No, but” upsell. “No, we don’t have Wi-Fi/picnic tables/etc., because of XYZ reason. However, we do offer a special deal for afternoon climbs after 3 p.m., so you could bring the family to climb for less if you can sneak out of work early. There’s more info on our website www.xyzpark.com.” With this kind of approach, saying “no” might just convert a whole family into paying guests. WAIT, THERE’S MORE! Park Spy is a great tool to help train your customer service staff for the season. Check out past Spys at www.adventureparkinsider.com.
27 Spring 2021
PARK #4, TN
LAWS & RULES & STANDARDS,
OH MY! Like Dorothy, the Tinman, and the Scarecrow starting into the forest on the yellow brick road, terrified of what beasts they may encounter, adventure park owners and operators may be looking into a frightening forest of regulation. The profusion of regulatory language and systems can be daunting and a bit scary. Knowing what to pay attention to—and how those rules can impact your business —is key to smoothly meeting the legal requirements in your area.
the jurisdiction have created structures to direct authority into specific areas of public life. Many of the specific processes and requirements vary for each jurisdiction. But, fortunately, much of the language is the same, or at least similar.
To help you find your way, let’s untangle the terminology, examine the roots of the processes, and get to know the persons who make up the forest. Like Dorothy, aerial adventure operators can befriend the lion of regulation, make it your ally, and walk safely in the regulation forest.
When jurisdictions create regulations for an activity, the first step is giving someone in government the authority to impose rules on a segment of society. This is done by elected officials who write a law.
There are two things to remember when looking at regulation:
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1 ALL regulation is local. It only applies in a specific jurisdiction, which is always a defined geographical space, like a state, province, county, city, or district. A law from another state or province has no authority in your location.
If you focus on the details, you can become comfortable on your journeys through the regulatory forest and keep the lion of regulation from eating Toto. GEOGRAPHY IS IMPORTANT
The law or statute sets out the goals of the new authority, the structure of the authority, and who will implement the new structure. This can be as simple as stating that authority exists and outlining broad goals, or it can be as complex as stating specific procedures, practices, and objectives. The law must go through the legal process and become part of the state Statutes or Code. The Statutes or Code make up all of the laws for a jurisdiction.
2 Regulators reflect the community interest. In North America and most commonwealth countries, governments derive their power from the consent of the governed. They have authority because the elected representatives in
For example, Maryland’s Amusement Device code states:
b) ”The purpose of this title is to ensure, as far as possible, the safety of the public
The regulatory landscape can be daunting, but you can survive—and even thrive—through your encounters there.
By Scott Andrews, ACCT Policy Director
in the use of amusement attractions at carnivals, fairs, and amusement parks in the State by providing for: adoption of safety regulations; an effective enforcement and compliance program; and 3 reporting procedures on the safety of amusement attractions…” (Maryland Statutes § 3-102, found in Laws - Statute Text (maryland.gov) ) 1
2
This simple text outlines the reasoning behind Maryland’s law, and also states some of the goals of the law. The remainder of this roughly 2,200-word statute goes on to describe in broad terms how this will be accomplished. In contrast, the Massachusetts Amusement Code is more than 43,000 words long, and has a lot more specifics. CULTIVATE RELATIONSHIPS In the U.S. and Canada, legislation is enacted by elected officials. They have staffs who help write the bills they put before the legislature or parliament to create new laws or to amend laws. As a person represented by lawmakers, you can have influence on the language in a bill and the support that bill receives. To convey this influence, you can write letters, make phone calls, or protest. All of these may get the attention of your lawmaker. >> continued
LAWS & RULES & STANDARDS, OH MY! Make yourself known. However, your voice will have the most impact if you already have a relationship with your elected representative. It takes time and attention to develop this relationship, though. You can get to know your representative by attending events, through regular correspondence, and meeting their legislative staff. This is what lobbyists get paid to do—and you can do it, too, as a constituent in a representative government.
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Giving attention to this relationship before you need or want a change in the law is important. Just like in the relationships in your work world, the people you know get your attention sooner than people you do not know. Yes, you will be cultivating a relationship with someone whom you may never need to ask to help your industry. But if and when you need to ask, your existing relationship will matter.
ROPES COURSE
WAREHOUSE
HOW LAWS COME TO BE Once a bill passes the legislature and is enacted, the specific detailed processes of putting the law to work is delegated to staff. Specific sections of the code empower a department, a committee, or a board to be formed and undertake rule-making and enforcement of the law. Generally, the people who maintain the day-to-day regulatory process are paid state staff. They often work with volunteer boards, commissions, or committees who make the specific decisions about what rules should be used. For example, in Wisconsin, the Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection is responsible for the rules governing camps. Those rules lead to a permit, which is required to run a camp and a camp challenge course. Let’s take a look at how the rules are created. How rules are set. Within the appropriate state agency, someone is tasked with writing a set of rules to meet a spe-
cific need—such as, say, a safer summer camp or an inspection program to ensure amusement devices don’t fall apart at the county fair. There is often a set of rules the department must follow in creating regulation. The rules about how to write rules are often called the “administrative code,” and apply to all parts of the authorities’ government. Administrative codes state who must be consulted and how much public or stakeholder input must be gathered. You are the “stakeholder” if the rules would affect you. The public comment period is often the place where people in the industry have the greatest opportunity to shape the regulation they will operate under. The rules are the specific details each person or entity covered by the legislation and permit system will have to follow. Regulations state the details of the permit system, including what information will be collected on forms, who will review permits, and to what criteria. Rules often lay out the fee structure for a permit system. >>
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LAWS & RULES & STANDARDS, OH MY! Standards can become rules. The people writing the rules will sometimes use industry standards like the ANSI/ACCT Standards to help define the specifics of a permit or inspection system. This is an easy way for the state staff and advisory board members to adopt industry-specific information without the need to be experts in a field.
When this happens, the state may have rules about how standards are adopted. For example, some states require a review of the standard before it is adopted. By law, these states must adopt a specific published standard, and not the “current ACCT standard.” Changes to the standard in the future would cause a change to the permit requirements, and that would not fit in the state’s rules. After the state reviews the changes and decides to adopt them,
they become the new regulation. There are, however, states that allow the adoption of the newest version of a standard without further review. This is true in some Canadian provinces like Ontario. Again, forging a relationship with the advisory board or commission is often the most effective way to impact the regulation in your state. If you regularly attend meetings and take a few minutes to meet the board members, they are likely to be much more receptive when you ask them to adjust the specific language of a regulation. This has been very effective in Tennessee and Massachusetts, for example, where the relationships developed by owners who regularly attend meetings made addressing change possible. Industry influence through standards. Standards are, by definition, voluntary until adopted into regulation. They are also the way the industry can have a significant impact on the specific requirements in regulation. By writing clear, simple, efficient, and effective standards, the industry can shape the specifics adopted in regulation. When an authority adopts a standard or part of a standard, they are using the language and requirements created, at least in part, by the industry.
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For example, the ANSI/ACCT Standard states that a course will do a pre-use inspection of each activity. If the standard is adopted, this language is the rule— and a practice the industry is already using is enacted into law. Further, the practice detailed in the standard is not subject to reconsideration in the public comment process of the rulemaking. That streamlines the regulatory process and allows greater industry input. Standards adoption also allows for more uniformity across jurisdictions. GET INVOLVED Standards writing is one of the easiest ways to be involved in the regulatory development process. Written by people in the industry at their own pace and not subject to external timetables, >> continued on page 61
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Once the initial quarantine lifted last summer, so did our collective cabin fever, and Zoom-weary Americans started exploring the great outdoors in record numbers. This was good news for adventure parks that were able to open, even with reduced capacities and Covid safety protocols in place. While some of these new operational changes were limiting, one of those that emerged as a lasting improvement was contactless transactions.
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A contactless transaction can be high tech—online booking, digital waiver, tap to pay, wearable media—or low tech, such as a telephone booking. All were available and used to varying degrees at adventure parks pre-pandemic, of course. But to combat the spread of Covid cooties, contactless options became much more commonplace. Utilizing available technology, especially, that allows for touch-free transactions is beneficial in several other ways, too. Done well, it can streamline the guest experience, streamline operations, and increase revenue. The adventure park industry has maintained a unique foothold in the outdoor economy, and many properties unexpectedly enjoyed a banner year in 2020. After all, the core business model requires paying customers to remain outside throughout (most of) their visit, which is organically conducive to rec-
By TJ Fink
ommended social distancing guidelines. All it takes for the optimum guest experience, then, is the proper software, messaging, and highly flexible staff.
Here to Stay “Contactless transactions are here to stay,” says Checkfront senior director of operations Stephanie Brachat. “In 2021, we will see increasing consumer expectations for every piece of the guest journey to be contactless. It’s no longer just contactless payments, but now bookings, signing waivers, check-in, and beyond. The shift may have come from the need to overcome the challenges of Covid-19, but this change in consumer behavior will be our new normal moving forward.” Brachat isn’t alone in that belief. “We predict that consumers will continue to prefer online bookings moving forward, and the [demand for] online booking platforms will continue to increase,” says Adventure Office marketing and sales staffer Liz Kratz. “Having software that can handle your business in its entirety will be key to thriving in the future.” Flagstaff Extreme, which has adventure park locations in Arizona, Florida, and a new park in New Jersey, exemplifies the shift. Flagstaff has always aimed to minimize guests’ transactional time in order to “maximize fun time,” says owner Paul Kent. In 2020, the company
began requiring advance reservations online or by phone, and it only accepts credit cards or touchless payment on site. “We have been working toward contactless transactions for years, so Covid has actually helped the process along,” says Kent. A better guest experience. As adventure parks adjusted to safety guidelines that will likely remain for at least some of this summer (depending on the state or province), an unexpected trend continues to ripple across the industry: the guest experience is getting better overall. Much better, in fact, thanks in part to smaller crowds and more start time options. It helps that guests have adapted, too. Most are willing to abide by social distancing rules, which allows park operators to spend less time policing guest behavior and more time enhancing their aerial adventures. Brachat sees an excellent synergy between this trending behavior and the implementation of contactless pay. “Speeding up transactions means that you serve customers quicker, especially during peak hours,” she says. “This results in a better customer experience, and allows operators to devote their human resources to other areas of the business.” What’s more, consumers have already embraced the exclusivity factor of
GOING CONTACTLESS socially distant activities. “Guests are willing to make advance reservations— and pay extra for them—in order to get this premium experience,” says The Flybook co-founder Megan Langer. “When capacity restrictions lift, this might continue in the form of an upsell during times when capacity is limited. Disney’s Magic Hour has mastered this strategy. Or guests could buy a specific VIP timeframe for popular adventure park attractions.”
Contactless Pay “‘Contactless pay’ is the newest buzzword, thanks to Covid, and rightly so,” says Langer. “There are two main ideas when it comes to contactless pay. First, there is the actual payment process [i.e., tapping a card to a terminal rather than requiring guests to touch it]. Second is the concept of removing a credit card altogether and instead storing it on a wristband to be scanned throughout your location or experience.”
Done well, it can streamline the guest experience, streamline operations, and increase revenue. The future is now. The Flybook is one of many booking and management software companies to offer contactless pay, which can be as profitable as it is practical. And while such tech used to be accessible only to large-scale theme parks (think Six Flags and Disney), it’s destined to become the new standard for mid-sized properties, and sooner than you might think.
contactless pay into their existing booking software, and Langer anticipates the demand for such technology to mushroom in coming years. “This is a very new feature in The Flybook—one we recognized as an important feature during Covid,” she says. “While our entire industry was shut down, we got to work on this feature to be ready for reopening.”
Plus, Brachat reminds us that it’s all about the younger generation. “For [Gen Z], it’s much more natural to pull out a phone than a wallet,” she notes.
Cashless. At Flagstaff Extreme locations, going contactless includes no longer taking cash. Kent says it’s been an easy transition, but admits he isn’t sure if they’re leaving money on the table, so to speak. “We’ve had no pushback from guests, but we don’t know what sales
Indeed, The Flybook has several clients who already plan on implementing
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would have been if we also took cash,” he says. Another consideration: once it’s safe for youth groups to return, those kids don’t carry credit cards. “I’m concerned about youth groups [post Covid], since most group kids buy their snacks and merchandise with cash.”
Upsell Opportunities According to Langer, the hidden value of contactless pay for adventure park operators is how easy it makes upselling. “Contactless pay allows guests to decide—while they’re already enjoying a given experience—to do more and spend more,” she says. “If they jump off the freefall or take a turn on the zip line, contactless pay allows them to make that decision, in real time, to immediately take another turn.” This organic opportunity to upsell is key. “Can your guests purchase food or drink onsite? Do you have multiple elements that people might want to experience more of? If the answer to
either of these questions is ‘yes,’ there’s a great argument to implement contactless pay,” says Langer. For example, an adventure park might sell a three-hour ticket that also includes one jump off the freefall, or one ride on the zip line or giant swing. “People often love these features, and would purchase an extra if it were easy,” says Langer. “Contactless pay removes almost all layers of friction from your guests’ desire to do more with you,” a benefit not only for revenue, but for the guest experience, she adds. Add-on sales. Flagstaff Extreme has found opportunities, as others have, to upsell during the booking process. Using Rezdy booking software, the parks added options to the purchase flow. “We added the ability to pre-buy our gloves, water, and mini carabiner package,” says Kent. “We also added our branded face masks, since we require masks for check in and any time we’re close together. We’ve seen good uptake of these add-on sales.”
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Kent says they also added a “voluntary Covid contribution to our checkout process—if our guests wanted to help offset the extra costs incurred or the reduction in profitability. We did not want to raise prices or make it a mandatory thing, but people have been good to us and participate.”
Low(ish)-Tech Touchless While many adventure operations will gladly push guests to book online, phone bookings won’t just stop happening. Many guests still prefer to call. According to the 2021 Adventure Park Insider State of the Industry Report, 26 percent of bookings were made via phone or email in 2020—second only behind bookings made via company website or app (50 percent). That’s not much changed from the 2020 Report, which showed a majority of bookings in the pre-Covid 2019 season were made by phone or email for traditional operations (43 percent); recreational operators reported 25 percent of bookings came via phone or email, the third most
GOING CONTACTLESS
ing that likely loses bookings for them.
common method behind company website (36 percent) and in person (28 percent).
Email and text messaging are becoming popular modes of communication for guests to use—and for adventure parks to utilize—especially for a younger generation that prefers text over talking.
This underscores the importance of training staff who answer the phone to be knowledgeable and guest service-savvy. As this magazine’s Park Spy has revealed many times over, this sort of training does not appear to be a priority for some operations—a shortcom-
In response to this diversity of booking modes, Flagstaff Extreme uses all forms of communication. “We try to continuously reduce the need for calls—we really encourage and respond quickest
The hidden value of contactless pay for adventure park operators is how easy it makes upselling. to emails and texts,” says Kent.
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Still, phone callers get the attention they need. “The team that handles calls works remotely,” Kent says. “This allows them to focus 100 percent on the guests’ calls without being distracted by course activity. These staff have all been a customer-facing person for us at some point, so they understand what we do and how we do it.” Like many industries, the adventure park world is moving toward contactless transactions to make the purchasing experience as friction-free as possible. And that’s a win-win for both guests and staff.
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MAKING
What worked in 2020, what didn’t, and what
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we should keep doing in 2021. Just over a year ago, in late winter 2020, most of the world started asking a lot of questions about SARSCoV-2, aka Covid-19. How do I get it? How do I protect my family? How do I go to work or run my business? After a few months of sweeping upheaval to life as we know it, we all started asking the same question: When can we get back to normal? In the outdoor recreation and aerial adventure community, this question loomed especially large. Many of our methods and business models were suddenly unsafe at any speed. When presented with a world where everything is six feet apart and behind a mask, we all started asking a new question: Can we really do this at all?
By Rohan Shahani, Challenge Works
Without specific guidance from regulators, we relied as an industry on our collective exercise in a broad range of acceptable practices, methods, and interpretations of standards. Through hard work and collaboration, our industry came up with solutions for training and operations that were new and different for most of us, and we didn’t know how it would go. There’s a risk to changing practices under any circumstances, but the pandemic left us with no choice. So, we aimed to carefully and minimally modify existing practices, or make new ones that were both effective and scalable. Here are some of the things we tried, and the key takeaways that will help form our “new normal” in 2021 and beyond.
TEACHING FACILITATION SKILLS In a world of conflicting information, the methods we use to inform our trainees, staff, and clients have become even more important. “Facilitation” played a large role. While it can be a fuzzy concept at times, facilitation can be defined as the ways in which we engage our trainees, staff, and guests in discovering and applying learning insights. Facilitation is a cornerstone of the aerial adventure industry. However, there’s debate as to whether this “soft skill” is important at high-throughput adventure parks, or as important as the tactile “hard skills” on which we spend the bulk of our training time.
IT WORK As a trainer, I now start every session with a guided discussion around Covid-19, and the ways we’ll navigate our protocols during training and with the public—when and where we can take off masks, how and when to wash and sanitize hands, and most importantly, how to facilitate discussions
with staff and the public about the precautions we’re asking them to take. This skill has obvious extensions past navigating discussions about masks and handwashing. Most supervisors and managers have memories of negative customer service situations that could have been avoided if the staff member had a few more discussion or conflict resolution tools. Spending more time teaching others to facilitate these discussions has been very beneficial. Plus, this skill will provide added value in many other areas of operation after Covid-19 is a distant memory.
BETTER (AND DIGITAL) MATERIALS It was either Aristotle or a boss I had at a college telemarketing job that said: “Tell ‘em what you’re going to tell ‘em; then tell ‘em again; then tell ’em what you told ‘em.” Easier and less expensive digital resources have allowed us to get written and video training materials, waivers, and Covid policies in front of trainees and guests early and often. Whether delivering a training or dealing with guests at your adventure park, a document or video outlining what your policies and expectations are is key to
Above, left to right: A guide radios her teammate at Royal Gorge Zip Lines in Colorado; enjoying a rappel at The Gorge in North Carolina; Facilitating gear-up at Royal Gorge; A guide zips (pre-pandemic) at Zoar Outdoor in Massachusetts. While masks may be widely required for only a limited time, they will have utility in some situations post-pandemic.
41 Spring 2021
The pandemic proved that facilitation skills are vital for staff at all types of operations. Nowadays, a sneeze or runny nose can create an immediate atmosphere of concern within a group, so the ability of all trainers and staff to facilitate conversations about health is mandatory. And it goes well beyond that.
A hand-sanitizing station at WildPlay Nanaimo in British Columbia. for many of us who are used to close, face-to-face interactions. Though I’m used to projecting my voice when I speak, doing so across a space that is now much larger was surprisingly difficult. Another issue: Participants in training and aerial course operations tend to become comfortable with each other quickly, so it’s easy to forget that we need to keep our distance.
success. Many trainers updated their materials or created new ones to reflect the “new normal.” This applies to adventure operations, too. It never hurts to review and/or update pre-course information and training materials anyway, so this was a great opportunity to update these and create new ones aimed at helping trainers and clients navigate the fluid environment of the pandemic. Increased use of digital waiver systems, “live documents” that can be updated with new information in real time, and easier-to-distribute video platforms have helped to minimize in-person time spent. This allows us to spend our now riskier in-person sessions on things that can’t be replaced by a digital document or virtual classroom.
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“Using pre-training Zoom meetings to manage client expectations around training outcomes worked really well,” says Experiential Systems training director Andrea Vogt. “Setting the expectation early and in multiple formats makes facilitating conversations easier for trainers and staff alike.” The inherent efficiency in this makes for another strategy we’ll continue to employ as we move forward.
PHYSICAL DISTANCING The best way to mitigate the spread of Covid-19 remains physical distance from other humans. This is a challenge
Using tools like cones, ropes, floor decals, and other props to help indicate where to stand is helpful, but isn’t a cure for this problem. For many elements, such as zip lines and big swings, “up close and personal” loading, unloading, and pre-flight check procedures require a certain proximity. Removing or changing these hands-on methods poses significant risk, so this is an area in which I now ask myself the following questions: Is this something I can model at a distance? Can participants be coached to perform this task? How do I ensure the operation is done correctly?
the person feels much more comfortable with the process. Some pieces of operating at a distance, like facilitated approaches to harnessing and checks, will become common practice post-Covid. But dispersing my group across a field during a lecture or demonstration is something I’ll be glad to see in the rearview. MASKS The benefits of wearing masks to mitigate the spread Covid-19 and other diseases is well documented. Proper use of masks remains a challenge, though we’re all getting better at facilitating conversations around it. When a simple, inexpensive item like a disposable surgical mask can be so effective, I’m looking to continue using these in the future. The time will come when universal masking will no longer be required. But I do plan on training my staff to always employ one when in very close contact, such as during a rescue. Trainers and operators alike all have memories of a “staff plague” taking down an entire operation. When something as simple as wearing a mask can reduce the spread of illnesses, it makes sense to have them on hand for all future operations. Some tips for operating with masks:
This facilitated approach to training and operations minimizes the time spent within an individual’s physical “bubble.” For example, putting someone in a harness can be just as efficient with little to no physical contact by modeling the operation, coaching the participant one step at a time, and having multiple methods for them to demonstrate that it’s correctly secured. There may still be a need to approach and physically interact with them, but hopefully for less time and with less contact than before. There are other benefits to lowering our frequency of physical contact with participants. If a person has issues with consent and touch, for example. By developing alternative methods of demonstration and creating new procedures that can be done at a distance,
Not all masks are created equal! Buff and other manufacturers of neck gaiters have specific recommendations and criteria for use. Be sure to verify you’re using these effectively. Fit is not universal. Most people who have trouble wearing masks just don’t have one that fits well. Have a variety of sizes available, and schedule time for people to fit them. Operating in a mask is a challenge—but it gets a lot easier with practice. Schedule time to practice your procedures in masks; otherwise, you may find yourself out of breath and sweaty. Reusable masks get gross fast and
CLEANING AND DISINFECTING EQUIPMENT “Whatever the jurisdictional requirement becomes, it’s been great to see more care shown to equipment in general,” says Rich Petteruti of The Adventure Guild. “A key risk-management philosophy is taking care of the things that care for you. When you can build that mindset in operators, they tend to take a little more care with everything they do on a course. “When I see an operator whose equipment is clean, organized, and well managed, it gives me the impression they’ll do a better job across the board.”
gear more often, but not trying to disinfect after each use. I am now reserving disinfection practices for times when I think something has been contaminated. I’ll keep this practice forever. After all, I’ve always preferred to use equipment that looks and feels clean. And I’m not alone. It’s much easier to convince most people to wear a helmet when it smells like soap, not like sweat and sunscreen. CLEANING COURSE COMPONENTS “Trying to scrub down wood surfaces that were already in the sun was frustrating and felt ineffective,” recalls Experiential Systems’ Vogt. When we knew less about surface transmission early in the pandemic, many of us were hand wiping or pressure-washing climbing surfaces and course components, which was hard to manage.
opposed to “is effective.” I’m moving away from this procedure in 2021, in favor of increased hand washing and regular use of hand sanitizer—practices that continue to be very effective at stopping the spread. KEEP IT GOING Given the circumstances, the aerial adventure industry fared pretty well in 2020. Many operations were able to open successfully and persevere. Although we now have a much better understanding of how Covid-19 spreads, one thing is abundantly clear: Our approaches to training and operating will need to continue evolving—and those changes can have lasting positive effects on the industry as a whole. “The thing I enjoyed seeing most last year was an increase in understand-
At the beginning of the pandemic, equipment care was a hot and controversial topic. How could we possibly sterilize everything we need between each use? As we move forward, we have more data that suggests contracting an illness from a harness or lanyard, while possible, is a lot less likely than we feared. While I’m still seeking to minimize sharing of equipment, I’m now less worried about using a harness with different people within the same day.
People understood that this was what it would take to do the things we loved.
This shift in thinking has allowed for a more balanced approach to equipment management, setting regular schedules for cleaning equipment in line with the manufacturer’s criteria. We’re cleaning
The CDC has since said that “Covid-19 spreads less commonly through contact with contaminated surfaces.” Rigorous cleaning practices now may fall more into the category of “feels effective” as
ing that the health and safety of us all relied on all of us doing our part,” says ERi CEO Mandy Stewart. “Things like pressure-washing climbing walls and wearing masks were hard, and it was great to see that people were still committed. People understood that this was what it would take for us to do the things we loved.” Many of the practices we adopted in 2020 actually help us provide better experiences for both customers and staff. I plan to continue brainstorming and re-imagining my approach to every facet of aerial adventure trainings and operations. The goal: a “new normal” that continues to promote the healthy and sustainable growth of the entire industry.
A masked guide at The Forge: Lemont Quarries demonstrates the belay system.
43 Spring 2021
need to be cleaned often. It’s helpful to have an extra for a midday change-up.
7 STEPS TOWARD A
SUCCESSFUL SEASON Get your operations ready now to ensure a smooth season ahead.
As spring starts to bloom, it’s time to get a jumpstart on the upcoming season. Even for year-round operations, it’s a great idea to hit pause for a short time now and do a full reset in preparation for the busy summer ahead. Operators should evaluate everything and make sure that what you’ve been doing is what you want to continue to do. It’s the perfect opportunity to make adjustments to your operations and implement new (and sometimes overdue) changes to your program. As you enter that process, attention to the following seven steps will go a long way toward preparing for a successful summer season.
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1.
DETERMINE YOUR APPROACH TO COVID
I’m completely over everything related to Covid. The masks, the distancing, the isolation, the public polarization, the need to change operations, all of it. Perhaps you feel the same. However, it’s still a reality that we have to take seriously. If predictions are accurate, Covid will be with us at least through summer, so we might as well embrace that and move forward—hoping for better days, while also making solid plans for navigating high season in a way that keeps our staff and patrons as safe as possible. Decisions regarding your Covid procedures will likely impact multiple areas of your operation, so sorting out the who,
when, how, and what of your Covid plan on the front end is a wise first step. Here are a few things to consider: Follow state and local Covid requirements when formulating your procedures. If you didn’t operate in 2020, or you’ve been closed for the off season, investigate updated requirements for your area. Depending on your location, requirements could be looser or stricter than what you last dealt with. These requirements could impact your capacity, among other things, and necessitate program or staffing changes. The sooner you know, the better. Research the most recent industry information about best practices and common procedures related to Covid. Early in the pandemic, organizations such as ACCT and The Alliance Collaborative scrambled to put together recommendations for dealing with Covid in an aerial adventure context, based on the best information we had at the time, which wasn’t a lot. We’ve learned a lot more about the virus since then, and about what’s important—and not as important. Find the most up-to-date information from reliable resources, such as ACCT and The Alliance. Both have Covid resources available on their websites: ACCT: acctinfo.org/page/coronavirus The Alliance: thealliancecollaborative. com/covid-19-resources (Ed. note: Adventure Park Insider has also pointed out many Covid best practices in recent issues as well as this issue.)
By Don Stock
Order anticipated necessary supplies now. There haven’t been supply issues for Covid-related supplies in some time, but as the weather warms and many organizations start spooling up for the summer, we could see shortages or delivery delays again. Avoid the stress of not having what you need to open by ordering sooner rather than later.
2.
PREPARE YOUR COURSES
Late winter/early spring is the time to start getting your courses ready for your professional and/or permit inspections, schedule needed repairs or additions, and verify inspection and permit renewal dates. Don’t forget those special inspections, such as those conducted by an arborist or engineer, that may be required for permit renewal. If you’re opening a course for the first time in 2021, or you’re not sure what inspections you may need, check out the aptly titled video, “What Challenge Course Inspections Do I Need,” from Challenge Course Pro Tips on The Adventure Guild YouTube channel. It answers many questions regarding inspections and can point you to additional resources. Finally, if you rely on a third party for course repairs, confirm with your service provider early in the season to get your work on their radar. All reputable providers get extremely busy in the spring, so it’s important to get on their schedule as soon as possible.
If you didn’t thoroughly go through your gear and equipment at the end of the busy season last year, do it now. Not only will it help in your professional inspections (hint: Inspectors do not appreciate trying to examine equipment that is not logged, is haphazardly stored, or is not taken care of!), you will also identify any gear that needs to be replaced to accommodate increased patron numbers come summer. Gear suppliers get inundated with orders in the spring, so the sooner you get yours in, it’s less likely that you’ll have to stress about equipment backorders. Bonus tip! Don’t neglect the non-course side of your operations. Verify that your card readers, cash drawers, photo printers and systems, tablets, and computers are in good working order. Are your ticketing and sales computer desktops cluttered with random files? Is there a software or printer driver glitch that hindered smooth operations last season? Now is the time to solve those issues. Check your radios. Buy batteries. Verify your glow stick supply. Order and restock your merch. Look at every aspect of your operation, and consider what you’ll wish you’d done when July gets here. And do it now.
4.
PREPARE YOUR GREATER FACILITIES
What’s true of your course and general operations is also true of your greater facilities. Things like trails, trees, decks, bathrooms, parking, vehicles, food service areas, merchandise sales locations, etc., all need attention. See if there’s something important that needs to be done while there is time to do it. Take a thorough look around. Take notes. Make a list and put those tasks on the calendar.
5.
REVIEW COURSE PAPERWORK Course paperwork and documentation is an important—yet
often overlooked and under-maintained—component of operations. Daily setup/teardown checklists, course and equipment logs, maintenance logs, operations manuals, employee manuals, near miss/incident reporting forms, and Covid procedures should be reviewed in a team meeting before the busy season starts. This review group should include company leadership, course manager(s), and any available staff/guides. This diverse group helps ensure that a broad spectrum of daily operations’ experience is represented, and that important issues and perspectives don’t fall through the cracks. Time to make changes. All documents should be reviewed and any discrepancies or inconsistencies in reporting discussed. If the form layout or way of inputting information needs to be changed, now is the time to get feedback and make those amendments. Maybe a move from paper forms to digital record keeping is in order. Make those adjustments now and allow early season staff to test drive the new system before the madness of high summer. Review and discuss near miss/incident report forms from last year and determine what contributed to each incident, and whether a pattern exists. Recurring incidents could be addressed through a change in policy, procedure, training, or course design. When making these types of changes, it’s always important to engage your installation, inspection, and training service providers to verify that they can support the changes you’re considering.
6.
MAKE A PLAN FOR STAFFING
Like virtually everything else in the past 12 months, Covid turned staff acquisition on its head and made many traditional avenues for recruiting staff unreliable. In 2020, international students couldn’t travel to the United States—a serious roadblock for many camps and retreat centers that draw upwards of 85 percent of their staff from outside U.S. borders. Covid has disrupted college schedules and rearranged priorities and availability, too.
This means you should investigate traditional staff recruitment avenues to verify that they are still viable, and investigate other options if they are not. One source for potential staff that you may not have considered is your local climbing gym. There is likely some skill overlap, and the issue of being comfortable at height is usually already sorted out. You’ll have to do program-specific training, of course, and not everyone will be a fit, but that connection could mean the difference between a full staff and a lean one come high summer.
7.
CONSIDER YOUR MARKETING/ PR PLAN
Hammer out your PR and marketing plan for the year, and get a handle on what that schedule looks like. In many tourist locations, important publications like coupon books, hotel guidebooks, attractions magazines, etc., are only published every couple months, perhaps once a year. Know the deadlines for getting your ad in your preferred advertising vehicle, or risk missing the opportunity. Are you making news? Are you planning an expansion to your course? An added attraction to your operation? Or anything else that’s newsworthy? Get that information together and get it in the hands of all the relevant periodicals, papers, and local attractions websites, as well as TV and radio stations. Understand which media outlets are long lead and which are short lead, and plan delivery of your news accordingly. Finally, think through your website and social media marketing plan—including what promotions you want to do around holidays, for example—and start working on graphics and video during the slower months. This can make the crazy days of summer a little less crazy.
READY, SET… So, there you go! Seven steps you can take now that will go a long way toward making the upcoming season as productive, safe, and low-stress as possible. If you can take the time now to tackle them, you’ll thank yourself in July.
45 Spring 2021
3.
PREPARE YOUR GEAR AND EQUIPMENT
D RAWING B OARD Despite the challenges of 2020, enterprising operators are adding and expanding activities.
By Sarah Borodaeff
In the spring of 2020, uncertainty shrouded the landscape. Many of us were apprehensive about what the immediate future would look like. There were more questions than answers. Would adventure parks and challenge courses be able to open? Could installation projects move forward? Despite the uncertainty, committed operators and builders pressed on. As a result, several new or expanded parks opened, with other openings and expansions extending into the 2021 season. While some of these projects were planned before the pandemic struck, others were inspired by the interests of new guests who were lured into the outdoors as they sought to escape their homes amid Covid-19 restrictions. Together, these projects highlight several trends in park visitation and design. They provide food for thought for the broad spectrum of adventure operators and programs.
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THE FORGE: LEMONT QUARRIES Builder: Bonsai Design The Forge: Lemont Quarries, Ill., a multi-activity park built on an abandoned dolomite limestone quarry, celebrated its grand opening in July 2020, just in time to enjoy the challenges of operating in the middle of a pandemic. The extensive aerial adventures were designed and constructed by Bonsai Design. The aerial installation is based around eight adventure towers—five hex towers, two “X” towers, and the Skyscraper Tower, inspired by the Chicago skyline.
In all, The Forge is home to nearly 300 challenge elements, climbing walls, and rappel devices, plus dual-racing zip lines between two of the towers over the quarry pond.
co-founder and CEO Jeremie Bacon. So Bonsai came up with “modifications that could enhance throughput potential throughout the site,” says Bonsai’s John Nixon.
After operating the park for six months, The Forge noticed several trends in the programmatic flow of the course. “We wanted to give guests with different abilities more choice about how they experience the course,” says The Forge
The Bonsai team worked through the winter to make additions to the course, including the addition of TruBlue free fall devices to create additional (and thrilling) options for guests to exit the course. Bonsai also installed ladders as
entry points to the different challenge course nodes. According to Bacon, this improves staffing efficiency, as it allows staff to access different activities on the course quickly from the ground, rather than requiring them to be positioned throughout the course at-height to allow for quick response times. Additionally, guests showed a strong interest in participating in the zip line as a standalone activity. To satisfy this interest and create a new revenue source, Bonsai installed a ladder that
market need, and technological advancements, we are always able to add more,” says Bacon. “This gives us more flexibility in terms of the products and experiences we can offer our guests.” SKYLIFT PARK LOOKOUT TOWER Builder: ERi The Gatlinburg SkyLift Park originally opened in 1954, with a scenic chairlift taking guests up a mountainside above the town of Gatlinburg, Tenn.
seating and firepit, and restaurant at the adjacent SkyCenter building. Designed and built by Experiential Resources Inc. (ERi), the SkyBridge was part of phase one. Phase two, scheduled to open in spring 2021, is the SkyTrail scenic walkway. The SkyTrail consists of three sections: the Boardwalk, an elevated wooden walkway; the Pathway, a smooth walking path cut into the hillside; and the Lookout, a 72-foot-tall steel structure providing views of the SkyBridge and valley below.
provides direct access to the zip line launch on the East X tower. The ladder allows for up to four participants at a time to ascend on a wire rope cable grab system and access the zip line. “The course was designed to be modular, so that based on demand,
The park was renovated and expanded in 2019, and celebrated the grand opening of the SkyBridge, a 680-footlong simple suspension bridge that is 140 feet above the valley below. The scenic chairlift ride from downtown Gatlinburg brings guests up to the SkyDeck, a viewing deck with outdoor
Fabrication of the Lookout’s A588 weathering steel frame began in August 2020, with the foundation poured in November, and the structure and stairs “erected in one, very long crane day on the first of December,” says ERi CEO Mandy Stewart. >> continued
47 Spring 2021
Left: The Bonsai team worked through the winter to make additions and modifications to The Forge: Lemont Quarries, Ill., which opened in summer 2020. Rendering: ERi. Above: The Lookout tower at SkyLift Park in Gatlinburg, Tenn., prior to installation of the roof. The tower is a key element of the park’s new SkyTrail scenic walkway. Background renderings: Bonsai Design.
The SkyTrail makes both ends of the SkyBridge accessible by walking trail, allowing guests to enjoy more of the property. The Boardwalk connects to the tower via two suspension bridges, where guests can climb the curved staircase to access the three upper decks of the tower. The team at ERi angled the staircase railings out “to give guests the opportunity to experience the thrill of being up in the air and out in the open while being held securely on the Lookout—no special equipment required,” says Stewart.
prior to the start of the summer 2021 camp season. Mosholu Day Camp provides a nature-based experience for underprivileged children ages 5-16, primarily from urban environments. “A lot of these kids haven’t had the opportunity to experience the outdoors,” says Tree-Mendous CEO Gerhard Komenda. The Koala Course, a Tree-Mendous product, is typically designed for children ages 3-10 and placed 3-4 feet off the ground. For the Mosholu installa-
October 2020. The adventure park was constructed on an eight-acre property and offers a wide variety of activities for its guests. Located about 30 minutes north of Houston, the adventure park hopes to draw guests from around the greater Houston area to enjoy the outdoors. In addition to axe throwing, human bumper balls, fire pits, and groundbased family activities, the cornerstone attractions are its zip lines and aerial adventure course. Designed and built by Challenge Towers, the hybrid design
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Left: A child navigates a Koala Course built by Tree-Mendous, this one at Barton Orchards in N.Y. Right: The Challenge Towers team tests the features at the Geronimo Adventure Park in Spring, Texas, which opened in fall 2020.
The Lookout tower wasn’t part of the original plan. The project, as conceived in 2015, included a tree-based canopy walk. However, wildfires in 2016 severely damaged trees on the SkyLift Park property, making the tree-based plan moot. ERi re-worked the concept and developed plans for the Lookout tower, which is placed on the site of a tulip poplar tree that was well-loved by the SkyLift team prior to the fires.
tion, it was modified to suit a broader range of participants. Though still primarily intended for younger campers, the team wanted an adventure activity that campers of all ages would enjoy. Therefore, the Koala Course will feature seven elements set 7-8 feet off the ground, finishing in a zip-to-ground element. A Koala continuous belay system will keep campers connected through the entire course.
MOSHOLU DAY CAMP KOALA COURSE Builder: Tree-Mendous
The seven-element layout is only stage one. Komenda and his team have designed the course to allow for expansion so that the activity can evolve along with the camp.
When campers return to Mosholu Day Camp on the shores of Lake Cohasset in New York this year, they’ll be greeted by a new adventure. Tree-Mendous is scheduled to begin construction on the Koala aerial trekking course in early spring 2021, with a completion date
GERONIMO ADVENTURE PARK Builder: Challenge Towers Geronimo Adventure Park in Spring, Texas, celebrated its grand opening in
utilizes both poles and trees outfitted with the company’s Skylark platforms, which are specially designed to allow for elements to be connected directly to the platform frame, rather than above or below the deck, eliminating stepdowns and trip hazards. The course also includes custom-fabricated belay hubs where multiple elements converge at a platform and guests can easily and cleanly navigate through the various courses. The park’s three Skytrail courses—one easy, one high, and one long—feature zip lines and aerial adventure elements ranging in difficulty from novice to advanced. The long course ends with a 555-foot tandem mega zip, while the high course concludes with a Powerfan free fall to add more adrenaline to the adventure. Guests who prefer a more gentle descent can choose a slower rappel.
In August 2020, Taos Ski Valley, N.M., opened its brand-new via ferrata, designed and built by Adventure Partners. Via ferrata, Italian for “iron way,” is an assisted rock-climbing route utilizing fixed cables, rungs, and suspension bridges to assist climbers with scaling steep, rocky terrain. The Taos installation allows climbers to ascend the sub-alpine ecosystem of Kachina Peak, situated at 11,500 feet above sea level in Carson National Forest.
Adventure Partners worked with the Taos Ski Valley team to design and install three tours for novice through advanced challenges, featuring via ferrata routes up some of the more iconic rock faces of Kachina Peak, along with a double cable catwalk and a 100-foot sky bridge suspended 50 feet in the air. The route uses about 1,000 feet of cable strung through 417 rungs set into the pre-Cambrian granite. The installation is part of a larger plan to attract year-round visitation to the ski area. This type of development was often discouraged by the Forest Service
prior to passage of the Ski Area Recreational Opportunity Enhancement Act of 2011, which allowed resorts operating on national forest land to pursue summer activity installations. ADIRONDACK EXTREME LOW RIDER ZIP TOUR Builder: Outplay Adventures Adirondack Extreme Adventure Course was originally designed and constructed in 1997, making it one of the very first aerial trekking courses in North America. The park has slowly been growing its aerial adventure offerings ever since. This year is no different: As of press time, Outplay Adventures, the build company owned by Adirondack Extreme founder Dave Johnson, was putting the finishing touches on a brand-new zip line course for Adirondack Extreme, the “Low Rider Zip Tour.” The Low Rider tour is designed for firsttime, novice zip line adventurers. The course will consist of 14 zip lines and seven bridges. “The difference between our [Low Rider] course and other traditional zip tours is its proximity to the ground,” says Adirondack Extreme owner Jamie Johnson, who purchased the park from his father, Dave. Each of the zip lines for the Low Rider tour will be no more than 25 feet off the ground. With zip lines ranging from 75 to 200 feet in length, he adds, the Low Rider tour “quenches your thirst for adventure without the threat of being too far off the ground.” The tour will be available as a standalone adventure or as an add-on activity for guests partaking in the park’s eight other aerial courses. “There’s nothing like the thrill of a treetop experience to reconnect and foster the togetherness we now hold so valuable,” says Dave Johnson. Are you building? Do you have exciting things in the works? Keep us in the loop! Email sarah@adventureparkinsider.com and tell us what you have going on. Top: The Adventure Partners team set rungs for the Taos Ski Valley Via Ferrata in New Mexico. At left: A view down a zip on the new Low Rider tour at Adirondack Extreme.
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TAOS SKI VALLEY VIA FERRATA Builder: Adventure Partners
CREATING DIVERSITY IN THE OUTDOORS- PART 2
SO NOW WHAT? Steps to take to put diversity into practice.
In the Winter issue of Adventure Park Insider, we explored some of the issues around diversity. We looked at and redesigned our limiting beliefs, and took on the challenge of shifting the familiar outdoor industry mindset to become more accepting. So what do we do now?
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It takes work to put ideas into action. In my work as a consultant, I often get asked, “How do we find the people? How do we invite the people?” Yes, we want diverse representation among our staff, and yes, we want a more diverse client base. But how do we find them way out here in [insert rural area]? How do we create trust and have people know that it is safe for them to come here both physically and emotionally? How do we engage with the community?
THE OVERALL PLAN IS TO BUILD YOUR FOUNDATION FROM WITHIN, AND THEN DO OUTREACH BY GAINING INSIGHT, KNOWLEDGE, AND GUIDANCE FROM PROFESSIONALS IN THE WORK OF CREATING SOCIAL JUSTICE IN THE OUTDOORS. operator, will ready the organizational culture first, before folks who are newly engaging in the outdoors even set foot in your parking lot. The goal is to create an environment for your guests and staff that is suited to them.
Let’s look at some action steps you can take right away, both internally and outside of your operation, to start creating diversity and bridging the gap right now. The overall plan is to build your foundation from within, and then do outreach by gaining insight, knowledge, and guidance from professionals in the work of creating social justice in the outdoors.
This could include engaging in online learning centered on DEI and culture building. There is a good amount of quality online content popping up in the outdoor industry to support this process as more organizations champion the work and become involved. You can also bring in a consultant to guide you through the process of becoming a space of inclusivity and give you the language and tools to relate to folks in new and innovative ways. Build the knowledge base and foundation and then take it to the streets.
Step 1: Set the table
Step 2: Host the party
To host new populations, make sure your staff and your grounds are ready to receive them. You’ll want to “set the table” before you invite people over for dinner.
Once the table is set, operators can host events that serve as a catalyst for community connection. Events have taken on many new shapes, sizes, and mediums through the innovations spurred by the pandemic, so think outside the box. Virtual gatherings, film fes-
There is a process by which you, the
By Rachel Maestri-Hailey
tivals featuring athletes and influencers of all kinds, or sponsorship of diverse groups already at work in the outdoor industry are all great possibilities. Hosting groups outside of the classic outdoor recreation profile can identify your organization as one that is making steps toward positive change. That can increase your industry and community reputations. Examples of these events can look as varied as the populations we are committed to serving. Pride day on the course, women’s climbing day, BIPOC retreat weekend, etc.
Step 3: Create change agents
When looking at the “how” of going out and engaging with your community, you want to start with the “who,” and create some change agents within your organization. Collaborating with and calling forth staff who have a passion and drive to foster diversity within the organization and community is paramount. These folx are essential to any lasting DEI initiative. Given the necessary tools, they will be able to engage with the community in a way that is powerful and forwarding.
CLARITY REVEALS ITSELF THROUGH MOMENTUM AND EFFORT. SO, WHATEVER STAGE OF THE GAME YOU FIND YOURSELF WITHIN YOUR ORGANIZATION AT THIS MOMENT, YOU MUST SIMPLY AND SWIFTLY BEGIN.
It’s important to educate and build up your change agents so that they have the confidence and the knowledge base to go be with the community effectively. Having these point persons for your organization pays dividends in the long term. It is also a way to ensure that your efforts are more than a flash in the pan, and to gain greater buy-in among the staff. This will make your work around DEI an organization-wide endeavor, not just something pushed down from the top.
Step 4: Make it so
How do we as operators create an environment that is accessible and say to groups authentically that “yes, there is a space for you here.” There is an answer, and one that challenges the organization to be more inclusive right out of the gate. Take a page from universal design, and make the things you do best available to people. Universal design can be defined as the design and composition of an environment so that it may be accessed, understood, and used • to the greatest possible extent, • in the most independent and natural manner possible, • in the widest possible range of situations, and • without the need for adaptation, modification, assistive devices, or specialized solutions, by any persons of any age or size or having any particular physical, sensory, mental health or intellectual ability or disability. Simply put, look at what you do well, and challenge yourself and your organization to take the first steps toward accessibility. Have your organization create user-friendly events and experiences that are targeted to people who are exploring the world of outdoor adventure at the most approachable level. Own a ski mountain? Have people come
play in the snow. Own an aerial trekking park? Offer educational guided nature tours on your property. As operators, it’s easy for us to get swept up in the paradigm of what we think is the baseline/starting point. That point might be too challenging for folks new to the industry and outdoor recreation, though. A more approachable way is to meet people where they are at. Give people a whole range of challenges to choose from, rather than starting with events and activities out of their physical, emotional, or socioeconomic range. Think about what new exploratory options you can provide to emerging markets, and go from there.
Step 5: Go NOW
Now that we have answered some of the “how” questions, it’s time for the most important step. Take action now! Put down this issue, walk away from the computer, and get into action! What can you do right now, today and everyday, moving forward? Small steps create big shifts, so get started. Take the bold leap and get in touch with a consultant to guide you in the process of setting the table. Coaching works. Olympic athletes, good as they are, rely on coaching to help take their game to another level. We as outdoor professionals should do the same. Enroll your leadership team in the multitude of available resources related to DEI, and put them into practice within your operation. What events can you host this season? What groups would you like to look at rolling out the welcome mat for? Not sure? Ask your staff, and while you are with them, connect with and invite them
to become the torch bearers for DEI in your operation. Educate your change agents. Who can they engage with in the community today? Schools, church groups, land access commissions, town boards, chambers of commerce? A more diverse community creates benefits for everyone. Finally, what are the small changes you will put into play today to create big results? How will you become more accessible and available?
SIMPLY PUT, LOOK AT WHAT YOU DO WELL, AND CHALLENGE YOURSELF AND YOUR ORGANIZATION TO TAKE THE FIRST STEPS TOWARD ACCESSIBILITY. Creating change in our industry is a very doable thing. It just takes the first step, the preliminary action. So many people get stuck here, on this step. Why? Because it requires a leap of faith, a step off the platform and into the unknown. Hesitation is the killer of innovation, doubt is the father of inaction. Without action, nothing in our industry will change. Clarity reveals itself through momentum and effort. So, wherever you are, whatever part of the process you are in, whatever stage of the game you find yourself within your organization at this moment, you must simply and swiftly begin.
IS THE JUICE WORTH THE By Lee Kerfoot, Kerfoot Canopy Tour, Henderson, Minn.
SQUEEZE? A personal view on making go/no-go decisions for all aspects of adventure park ownership.
“If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn’t lead anywhere.” —Frank A. Clark We opened our Kerfoot Canopy Tour in 2013 without a refined decision-making process. Like many entrepreneurs, we had (and have) an abundance of ideas, but a finite cap on our time and money. So, with the advantage of experience, my decision-making mantra has become, “Is this worth my invested time and money?” Or, more colorfully, “Is the juice worth the squeeze?” When analyzing this balance, we assign business demands into three main categories: physical structures, guests, and strategy/business. By sharing some of the decisions we have made, we hope to help you develop your own perfect “juice/squeeze” blend.
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PHYSICAL STRUCTURES Courses are priority #1. Back in 2013, we had an excess of ideas and limitations on starting capital. We asked ourselves, what would give the guests the best canopy tour experience? Our answer: the tour itself. An architectural masterpiece of a check-in building would have been nice, but without fabulous zip lines, incredible towers, and beautiful scenery, our tour would be nothing.
So, instead of balancing our starting funds to build an okay check-in center and an okay canopy tour, we built a huge, 14-zip canopy tour with fabulous views and professional construction, and kept our registration building simple. The juice wasn’t worth the squeeze to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a building versus investing that capital into our main event. Our registration center cost $29,000. We used recycled telephone poles to construct an attractive and well-themed 420-square-foot structure. We leveled the land and decked it in ourselves. The
building houses our registration, gift store, guide break room, and manager’s office. Although snug and far from technically perfect, it operates efficiently and meets our needs. Guest comfort considerations. We didn’t want our scale to be too out of balance, so we needed attractive areas for guests to use. We built several covered picnic table areas to provide relief from the sun. All of our gear-up areas have hard roofs. We have fans and heaters under the roof of our canopy tour gear-up deck to keep guests comfortable throughout the season.
That view may change, of course. We re-evaluate our decisions all the time, and think every day about how our time and money are invested. Litter-free zone. I was raised on a family resort. My father, Bruce, insisted we had to be neat and provide “clean dirt” for guests. That meant picking up litter constantly. The absence of litter allows guests to appreciate the beauty of their surroundings; Bruce saw this as part of running a professional business. To this day, even when I’m jammed with tasks, I still make time to scour the parking lot picking up litter. If this means that I have an additional hour of payroll a week in order to make time for employees to do litter pick-up, I am good with it. The juice is most definitely worth the squeeze to have litter-free property. Kayak rentals. With our location next
to the Minnesota River, I thought we should add kayak rentals to grow business. We made a sizable investment in all of the necessary gear, including kayaks, life jackets, paddles, a van, and a trailer. I was ready to enjoy the juice!
a portion of the course and calling it its own experience. The shorter tour included the first eight zip lines on the 14-line tour. Offering a shorter course allowed us to host more guests, but also increased our variable payroll costs.
After year one, kayak revenue was $5,000; after year two, $25,000. Despite the impressive growth, the expansion wasn’t working. Kayak rentals required employee hours that we did not have. The put-ins and take-outs to the river were muddy, and the river water was as dark as chocolate milk. Guests were miserable when they fell into the water or had to walk through calf-deep, sludgy mud. None of our staff wanted to be part of this experience. The juice was definitely not worth the squeeze, so we pulled the plug and sold everything, at a significant loss.
While this seemed like a can’t-fail idea, the shorter experience was not as great as we wanted it to be. Our 14-zip experience is the sort of thing author Seth Godin terms a “purple cow”—something that stands out as amazingly different while elevating the experience or service. Our eight-zip tour didn’t. That juice was not worth the squeeze, so we removed it from our website and will only offer it in special situations.
Ball track. In 2020, we developed a new “juice,” a wooden ball track that weaves through the forest. This new activity welcomes younger guests, and at a tiny variable cost. However, the initial construction costs were higher, and it’s projected to generate only $5,000 (in a good year). I am still weighing my scale on this one. Shorter tour. Our course was built to be a 14-zip experience. That size demands a certain price. To offer a lower-priced experience, we looked at siphoning off
GUESTS We believe there are two guests in every business: Internal guests are the employees who deliver the experience, and external guests are those who pay for the experience. Service and a commitment to excellence are essential for all of these guests. These factors directly impact the expeLeft to right: Kerfoot’s spartan registration center gets the job done; clean, litter-free grounds allow guests to appreciate the outdoors; the 14-line zip tour at Kerfoot delivers an awesome experience.
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For our guest bathrooms, we chose to use porta-potties. That might make you cringe. However, we did not think bathrooms were going to make a major difference to the guest experience or drive reservations. To make the porta-potties as nice as possible, we installed spacious accessible units and clean them several times a week. We still believe that the juice of classy bathrooms was not worth the squeeze it would have placed on our bank account.
when we blow them away with service, compassion, and empathy, they become advocates on our behalf. Research shows that this happens even if you have made a big mistake that led to a bad experience—IF you nail the service recovery. This has heavily influenced how we handle the inevitable mistakes that happen.
rience for the external guests and the morale of internal guests. As a scrappy start-up, we wanted to convert as many guests as possible into advocates. So the juice was worth the squeeze to focus on delivering amazing guest service. Commitment to the details. For us, taking care of the external guests and doing the little things is extremely important. We expect our guides to: 1) learn and use guest names; 2) organize our gloves and hand them to guests, so they don’t have to dig through a pile of gloves themselves; 3) get water for the guests vs. saying “go help yourself;” and 4) never joke about safety or use sarcasm with the guests. All of these are a critical part of the experience we want to deliver, and the juice is most definitely worth the squeeze. Service recovery. Properly handling unhappy guests after service failures is a critical issue. Service recovery is essentially how you respond to a service mistake or unmet guest expectation.
When we don’t deliver the expected service (it happens), we try to deliver a stellar service recovery. An awesome service recovery magically transforms complaining guests into happy advocates telling everyone how awesome you are. Then we thoroughly train to prevent the problem from happening again. As long as we do not keep repeating the same mistakes, for us, the juice is worth the squeeze to blow guests away with service. GoPro rentals provide a good example. When mistakes happen with the video, guests always tell us we have ruined their experience. For our service recovery, we do not simply refund the cost of the GoPro—we give a free gift certificate for the guest to come back a second time on us. This transforms guests from being aggressive and complaining to amazed and appreciative. Often they return with paying friends, which in effect converts their free tour to a buy-one-getone deal. For us, the juice is worth the squeeze to nail the service recovery and have as many advocates as possible.
STRATEGY/BUSINESS
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Guests want to be treated fairly, and Hiring managers vs. self-managing. An early decision entrepreneurs face is, do you run the day-to day operations yourself or hire a manager? When we opened our tour, I had a day job and my wife was raising our two kids. For the first two years we were at the tour every night and weekend to ensure our culture and vision were being implemented. We believed this was critical and would help us to better grow the business. After two seasons we asked ourselves two questions: 1) Did we want to keep running the tour, or did we want to hire a general manager? 2) If we hired
Below left: When GoPro rentals go bad, service recovery is essential—and worth the cost. Above: The ball track keeps young kids entertained, but the juice-to-squeeze ratio is still TBD. a GM, did we want the position to be year-around or seasonal? At that time, and still to this day, 90 percent of our income is made during the peak sixmonth summer season. From a strategy perspective, hiring a manager to run the business allowed us to work “on” the business and not “in” the business. That meant we could focus on improving systems, processes, or standards to make the business work better, and not managing the day-today tasks. We felt that the continuity of a great manager, the culture, and the systems was important then, and we still feel that way today. So the juice was worth the squeeze to hire a great general manager. That meant it was worth the squeeze to take the time and ensure we nailed the hire. I increased my odds by strictly following the process outlined in the book Who: The A Method for Hiring, by Geoff Smart and Randy Street, which helped immensely. Debt vs. pay-as-you-go financing. One area we differ from my father is debt. He liked to expand using debt. We like to pay cash to expand. All entrepreneurs face this trade-off. It’s often a question of rapid expansion vs. slower growth. I make too many mistakes to afford taking on significant debt to build new adventures. For us, the juice is not worth the squeeze to take on debt (and risk) to expand rapidly.
Below: Billboards, such as this one for Kerfoot’s newer Brainerd, Minn., tour, failed to drive business for the original tour 45 minutes outside of Minneapolis. Right: The gift shop, located in the small check-in building, needs to justify the space it occupies. Inventory is constantly adjusted to remove slow-selling items.
Marketing. As we migrated to working “on” the business, one area we focused on was marketing. We knew enough about pay-per-click marketing to spend the budget, but we struggled to calculate a return on our ad spend for each digital ad. We were wasting marketing money by not analyzing the data. Ugh! The task was daunting and rapidly evolving—it felt like trying to learn another language by lip reading. The juice was definitely worth the squeeze to hire a professional marketing agency. We remained committed to this path even though it took several seasons to find an agency that understood both the outdoor recreation business and our booking engine. How much marketing help? Since 90 percent of our income comes in May through October, the juice was not worth the squeeze to have a marketing agency engaged year-round. But what was the right fit?
We use a marketing agency for seven months—April through August, plus November and December. For summer 2020, we skipped the fall months, with the hope that we would be able to fill the tour without needing to run payper-click marketing. We brought back the agency for November and December to run a holiday gift certificate sale that brings in approximately $90,000 in sales. The gift certificate sale is driven extensively by pay-per-click advertising, retargeting, and online profile marketing. The juice was worth the squeeze to keep the marketing agency on retainer to help with the sale. Billboards. We have gone back and forth on billboards. Our Kerfoot tour is about 45 minutes outside of Minneapolis, and not in a huge drive-to destination. So, when we opened in 2013, we sparingly used billboards. It didn’t seem there was enough juice to be had from billboards. Over time we increased our use of them. By 2019, we thought billboards were really driving business, and spent $50,000 in billboard advertising to increase visits. Alas, our business was flat to the prior year. Since billboards are expensive and did not appear to have a corresponding impact, we decided they were not worth the financial squeeze. Tracking ad efficiency. As we work “on” marketing, we try to focus on things that will make the biggest difference. For example, we believe strongly in trying to track the return on ad spend
for everything we do. But if all that tracking is not resulting in significant efficiencies, then is the juice worth the squeeze? If the return on ad spend for Waze is amazing, but only generates a few reservations a month, is this worth the squeeze? As we try to manage our limited time and precious funds, our answer is no. Gift store strategy. At the end of each year we spend time analyzing what shirts and hats are and are not selling. Typically, one in four will be a good seller. So we are stuck with three poor-selling hats/shirts for every one that sells quickly. Inevitably, we do not reorder the best-sellers quickly enough, and end up with shelves full of the poor-selling merchandise. That really bothers me. We have a small gift store, so every inch of space is extremely valuable. We do everything we can to get poor-selling gear out of the store as quickly as possible, even selling it at cost, so we can replace it with items that will sell better. For us, getting rid of the bad-selling inventory (at nearly any price) is worth the juice if we can replace it with a good- to great-selling item. Knowing ourselves and our values helps us decide which opportunities—the juice—are worth our money, time, and energy—the squeeze. We hope you, too, can find the juice that’s worth the squeeze. Have a great 2021 season!
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Expanding slowly has a few advantages. First, we are not taking on additional debt and the associated stress. Second, we build a little, learn what works, then apply the lessons as we grow. Third, we offer new adventures for our guests every year, giving them a reason to come back. Fourth, this continues to increase cash flow. Most importantly, if we build something that does not work out (or if a pandemic forces us to shut down), we can close it down without the associated liabilities of a large bank loan.
ZIPPY COMMUNICATIONS Well-executed staff communication protocols are key to smooth, safe operations.
One of the great lines of 1960s cinema comes from Strother Martin, in his creepy, high-pitched voice, pronouncing in Cool Hand Luke: “What we’ve got here is failure to communicate.” Take that comment from a prison work gang scenario (with Martin as gang boss and Paul Newman as recalcitrant prisoner) and reimpose it on an aerial adventure setting, and what you’ve got is the potential for mayhem.
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Communication is a powerful adhesive, turning a park’s staff from a loose bunch of individuals into a unified, interconnected group. Good communication is not only a matter of staff cohesion, it is, more importantly, a preventative measure, mitigating the possibility of collisions and other injurious mishaps—and subsequent lawsuits. Zip safety. While good communication throughout a park is essential, it reaches its critical apex in the management of zip lines. Collisions on zip lines are the leader of the mishap pack, both in terms of frequency and seriousness of injury. According to Cameron Annas of Granite Insurance, collisions are the number-one reason for liability claims “pretty much every year,” accounting for roughly 37 percent of all claims. (Auto-related claims can nonetheless account for a greater percentage of claims in some years.) Poor communications aren’t responsible for all collisions, but they are a major player. As Robert Monaghan of the insurance broker Higgs-Hallmark
By Peter Oliver
says, “When you drill down, it’s usually poor communications” that cause these accidents to happen.
ALWAYS HAVE BACKUP The communications methodologies and technologies available to park operators range from primitive to electronically cutting edge. On the primitive end is tapping on the zip line as a way to alert a guide at the start of a zip line that a rider has reached a terminus. Not quite smoke signals, but pretty close. On the advanced electronic side, at least one belay-equipment supplier has developed an automated gate system. In between are voice commands and hand signals and the most commonly used methodology, hand-held radios. Low tech, just in case. Monaghan says that communications protocols have “evolved over the years,” from line-tapping to hand gestures to hand-held radios, with the former two “fading out.” That said, these systems still have their place. Eric Marter, owner and CEO of Synergo, a company involved in park building, inspecting, training, and operating, says that “whatever we create, I want a backup for radios.” If a radio fails—due to a dead battery or other issue—a system of hand signals or voice commands needs to plug the communications hole. Sam Johannson, operations manager for Alpine Adventures in New Hampshire, makes backup radios available at a variety of locations on the park’s six-zipline layout. If a radio fails, a backup is
The Motorola XPR 7000e series offers high-tech, feature-loaded options. ready to go. In addition, two guides are stationed at each zip terminal, so if one guide’s radio fails, there is another guide to pick up the communications slack. For longer zips, Eric Cylvick, owner of zip-line builder Terra Nova, recommends that terminal operators be equipped with binoculars in case hand (or flag) signals need to be used if radio communications fail. Cell phones can also serve in a backup role.
COMMUNICATIONS PROTOCOLS Marter suggests that it is up to a ziptour builder to determine, after a hazard analysis, the most effective policies and procedures for any particular site. Jamie Barrow, who heads up summer operations for Vail Resorts, says that Vail determines the most effective communications procedures through a three-part process: 1. refer to the recommendations of the builder; 2. look to the regulations or standards (ASTM or ACCT) applicable in any location, making sure there are no conflicts with the builder’s recommendations; and 3. make procedures as simple and unambiguously clear as possible. Barrow and Annas agree that one of the keys to safe and effective communications is to use distinctly different words
BREAKER BREAKER When it comes to radio technology, there are, of course, many choices. Most handheld radios operate on a line-of-sight basis, although higher-wattage radios may still be effective in environments with minimal amount of interference. Line of sight and repeaters. For relatively short zips, relatively inexpensive radios might do the trick. On the other hand, in mountain environments where line of sight is often impeded, a relay system of repeaters and transmitters might need to be applied. These systems are typically already in place at ski resorts transitioning to summer programs. In such situations, a summer communications plan is a simple matter of “piggybacking onto the ski-resort network,” according to Cody O’Neill, channel sales executive for Motorola Solutions. In other words, repurposing winter’s ski patrol, grooming, lift operations, maintenance, and emergency channels for whatever best serves summer ops. Whether or not repeaters or line-ofsight communications are in play, key questions arise. How many channels are necessary? And how should those channels be assigned? Channels. For starters, keep in mind that there are basically two different types of channels—those that use public frequencies, with which many radios are pre-programmed; and those that use private frequencies, for a specific region, available for purchase via FCC licenses. O’Neill refers to these two types, respectively, as “uncoordinated” and “coordinated” frequencies. How much a park operator might be concerned with the interference of non-park communications—Johannson says Alpine Adventures’ radios sometimes pick up communications from ATV tours—might
determine the desirability of going with dedicated FCC frequencies. Assigning exclusive channels for emergency and maintenance is a first step. “You wouldn’t want anything getting in the way of emergency and safety,” says O’Neill. After that, a variety of options are in play. Cylvick suggests that all operations and tour segments should be on the same channel, with each zip span identified by a name. “Switching channels can be confusing,” he says, especially for supervisors listening in and trying to monitor overall park activity. Barrow, on the other hand, prefers to have several channels in use, each possibly dedicated to a specific zip span. A multiple-channel strategy “keeps the airwaves clear so that people aren’t always talking over each other,” says Barrow, and minimizes possible confusion of who is communicating with whom. A multi-channel approach might be challenging for operators of larger parks with several tours and features. Some radios can be programmed for as many as 64 channels, but putting that many channels to use could be a recipe for communications chaos. Again, following the guidance of a builder is probably the best first-step procedure to follow.
TRAINING Smooth park operations ultimately come down to good training, of which thorough training in communications is a critical component. Establishing a set of communications protocols and commands should obviously be a part of any initial training sessions, but it shouldn’t end there. “Where [some parks] fall down is in continuing education,” says Annas. Guide complacency is a major target of training updates. Repeating the same procedures and commands many times over can lead to lapses in precision or judgment. To ward off complacency, Barrow recommends not only “monthly refreshers” but also weekly reminders to be sure that everyone, literally, is on the same channel. (Read how to identify and mitigate guide complacency in “Beware of Complacency!” p. 12.)
Johannson goes even further: His protocols call for daily safety briefings, which stress “the importance of clear, concise commands.” Barrow and Cylvick additionally suggest employing an assignment rotation schedule, moving guides around on a regular basis, to help alleviate the boredom of repetition.
TECHNOLOGY HELPS Communication technology continues to evolve and improve. O’Neill says that relatively new features are now available on select radio models, such as a single button for emergency alerts. On some radios, GPS can be used by supervisors to “track where assets are,” meaning exactly where staff and their radios are. Video may also come into play. And automation, to assist but not replace guides, is likely to be more in play in zip operations of the near future. Automated safety. Kanopeo, manufacturer of the Speedroller belay system, has introduced an automated gate system, zipEYE, in which a gate at the beginning of a zip line opens only when it receives an electronic signal from a gate at the end after a rider has safely passed through. The zipEYE was initially designed for Speedroller systems only, but a version for any continuous belay should be available soon. Cylvick also talks about a “wireless gate control system” to prevent more than one rider on a line at any time. Failure to communicate should never be an option. Sensible procedures, largely defined for any particular site through course builder recommendations and applicable industry standards, are the first and most important keys to averting failure. Thorough and repeated staff training is a close second. And keeping abreast of technological changes in communications gear is third. It’s important to remember that what works well today might soon be superseded by methodology that works even better tomorrow. Kanopeo’s zipEYE provides an automated safety option.
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for various commands. “Verbiage is a big thing,” says Barrow, meaning that commands that are too similar—say, “on zip” at the start and “off zip” at the finish—can become confused when radio communications are garbled due to weak batteries, wind, or some other form of interference.
Adventure parks and local kids are a perfect summer match.
By Gina DeCaprio Vercesi
58 [www.adventureparkinsider.com]
For many kids, the annual camp field trip to an adventure park is the highlight of summer. Imagine, then, how psyched those kids would be to learn that instead of having just one day at the park, they could spend a whole week—or even two or three— zip lining through the trees, bounding across suspension bridges, and scrambling up climbing walls. That’s exactly the kind of opportunity some adventure parks are creating. Summer camp programs geared toward kids looking for more outdoor action and nature play than traditional day camps offer are becoming a thing. They occupy a niche between other day camps and multi-day sleepaway camps. As an adventure park operator, you might not think about your facility as a venue for summer camp. The majority of park models hinge on families, school and camp groups, corporate teambuilding events, and small celebrations like birthday, graduation, and bachelorette parties. But incorporating day-camp programs can boost visits and revenue,
Camp enhance brand identity, and introduce the world of adventure parks to folks who might not have thought about checking them out in the past. That, at least, has been the experience for several parks that have taken the leap. BOUNDLESS ADVENTURES Boundless Adventures, which has locations in New York, Massachusetts, and Wisconsin, launched its summer programs in 2019. Owner Lorrie Funtleyder noticed the daily lull in activity that occurred once visiting day camps had left the park for the day. “We started by offering the program at three in the afternoon,” she recalls, “and we decided to try it for two weeks as a way to fill that slow period. We didn’t have a ton of kids at first, but we thought it would be something neat.” They were definitely onto something neat. When Covid hit last March, Funtleyder correctly assumed that camp trips wouldn’t be happening during the summer 2020 season. To mitigate that
loss, Boundless Adventures expanded on the 2019 program and offered threehour morning and afternoon camp sessions for two weeks. “As soon as we put it out there, we sold out,” Funtleyder says. “So we added two more weeks. We were doing 100 kids a week, 50 in the morning and 50 in the afternoon.” Boundless Adventures’ day camp model is simple. Kids spend the morning or afternoon exploring the parks’ aerial adventure courses in small groups alongside park guides. Depending on campers’ interest, days might also include some time for icebreakers or integrated team building. “It’s pretty straightforward,” says Funtleyder. “They arrive, get harnessed, and they climb.” The program was so well received that toward the end of last summer, parents who were worried that normal after-school activities would be canceled due to Covid asked for camp to continue into the fall. So, instead of going to dance class or soccer practice, kids went to the park. “We’re running it in the spring as well,” Funtleyder says.
HISTORIC BANNING MILLS Located on 297 acres and surrounded by another 1,000 acres of protected wilderness, Historic Banning Mills in Whitesburg, Ga., is a full-fledged adventure destination with miles of zip lines, a multi-tiered aerial challenge park, and an extensive network of suspension bridges as well as horseback riding, kayaking, miles of nature trails, and a variety of overnight accommodations. “Having a camp in a location like this is amazing because we already have all these activities available for our guests,” says marketing manager Kyle Werner.
the country, but many of them offer limited time in the outdoors or, when the kids do have time in the outdoors, it’s on a basketball court, parking lot, field, or other multi-use space, not out in nature. We didn’t want to be just another summer camp. Kids get to experience things here that they wouldn’t get to experience anywhere else.” KERFOOT CANOPY TOURS Though much smaller than Historic Banning Mills, Kerfoot Canopy Tours in Henderson, Minn., created its summer camp program for similar reasons. As a longtime proponent of outdoor recre-
at the Park Campers arrive at 8:30 in the morning and spend their days spread out across the resort’s campus. Some groups may go for a hike in the morning followed by a couple of rounds of mini-golf, while other groups hit the climbing wall or scramble through the park’s Crazy Squirrel Village. Kids can also go swimming and paddleboarding, try their hand at archery, and enjoy special wildlife programs. Through its camp programs, Historic Banning Mills strives not only to create opportunities for kids to get outside and play, but also to truly connect their campers to nature and adventure. “Kids don’t spend nearly as much time in the outdoors as they used to,” says Werner. “Summer camps exist all over
ation, owner Lee Kerfoot founded the park to encourage visitors to develop their own passion for nature and adventure. Launching a summer camp was just another way to further that mission. “We’re teaching kids about outdoor adventure and the excitement of being outside,” says Kerfoot. “We’re putting kids exactly where they need to be—outdoors, physically active, getting fresh air and goosebumps on their arms. They don’t need to be inside on a screen.”
Opposite left: Campers enjoy the aerial challenge park at Historic Banning Mills. Above: Paddleboarding is just one of many activities for campers at Historic Banning Mills. Below: Boundless Adventures sold out its morning and afternoon camp sessions last summer, and added a fall session.
In addition to introducing kids to the great outdoors, Kerfoot’s youth adventure camp promotes leadership, cooperation, trust, and self-confidence. “We take kids through a simulated sky guide training. They work on harnessing, knots, and ropes, but they also get to go zip lining and play in the aerial adventure park,” he says. Each camp session runs for three full days, from 9:30 a.m. until 3 p.m., and includes a midday break for kids to have lunch. They also get to play with the new, 400-foot wooden ball run. At
59 Spring 2021
The resort has been offering weekly day-camp sessions for the past five years, welcoming 50 kids per week for two different camp programs: Camp Adventure, which caters to kids ages 8-13, and Camp Xtreme, which ups the adventure ante for ages 13-16.
Building self-confidence at Kerfoot’s youth adventure camp. to get this kind of experience? What’s the alternate product? The alternate product is the Xbox or the PlayStation. But if you do this type of camp and teach kids about the excitement of being outside, you’re planting the future forests.”
the end of the day, campers might take turns rappelling from the park’s 45-foot tower. Although the activities offered are the same from week to week, campers are welcome to enroll in multiple sessions throughout the summer. Beyond the benefits provided to the kids, Kerfoot believes that camp enriches the staff experience as well. “I think our guides see what we’re doing with camp and it reinforces the mission of why we’re there. They get to zip line and work with these younger kids and watch their confidence grow over three days. They get that we’re committed.” KEY CONSIDERATIONS FOR CAMP
60 [www.adventureparkinsider.com]
So what should adventure park operators consider when planning their own camp programs? Here are four key pieces of advice from Funtleyder, Kerfoot, and Werner to help parks get the summer camp ball rolling. Do your homework. Regulations vary from state to state, so find out what is and isn’t permitted. “There’s a little bit of homework you need to do because you don’t want to hold a program and not have the appropriate licensing,” says Funtleyder. “In New York, the health department gets involved if you offer more than one activity. We didn’t want to be classified as a ‘camp’ from a health department standpoint, so we stuck to offering a single activity. But if we played soccer with the kids, then suddenly the health department would get involved.” Bigger doesn’t always mean better. You don’t need a park with endless activities like Historic Banning Mills to
launch a camp program. As Boundless Adventures and Kerfoot Canopy Tours demonstrate, smaller parks can break into the summer camp game. “If you’re a smaller property, it would probably be fairly easy to add activities like mini-golf or to work with a wildlife partner to bring in animals and talk to the kids,” says Werner. But parks can also simply capitalize on their existing or evolving infrastructure. “As a business, when we added new adventures, like our high-ropes course and our ball run, it just seemed natural to include those in the camp program,” says Kerfoot. Advance your mission. Whether your park’s objective is to help your visitors build self-confidence, challenge their boundaries, fuel their adrenaline, or simply learn to love the outdoors, adding summer camp programs can be a great way to reinforce those goals. For Kerfoot, that includes getting kids outside and away from those ubiquitous screens. “Kids need this more than ever right now,” he says. “If you don’t do this as an owner-operator, where in your community are the kids going to be able
Focus on, then expand your visitor base. Getting the word out about your camp program begins with your loyal customers. “Start by marketing to your base. I think it can be hard to get campers in the door who haven’t already been to the facility,” says Funtleyder. “But once we did that, and so many kids enjoyed it, the program just kind of fed off of itself.” Introducing summer camp can also help to broaden your patron base. “You’re creating a new reason for people to come and visit you,” says Kerfoot. “That’s what it’s been like for me. People knew we were here, but they didn’t know we offered a program like this. Now, they’ve become our advocates because they loved it so much.” Making the leap from hosting traditional park visitors to launching your own camp programs may feel daunting, but with a bit of confidence and planning, it can be done. “I’ve learned that there are two types of people in this world,” says Kerfoot, “the naysayers and the ones who say, ‘This is great! Let’s figure out a way to make it happen!’ Are you going to let the naysayers prevent you from doing something that kids need more than ever? Or are you going to do something that really makes a difference in kids’ lives? What seeds are you planting for the next generation?”
Left: Zipping at Historic Banning Mills. Right: Ropes course at Boundless Adventures.
>> Laws & Rules & Standards continued from page 32 stakeholders can take whatever time is needed to carefully craft language expressing the MINIMUM required for our industry. Standards for our industry are written in a public, open process under the procedures and rules established by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). ANSI does not set the standards, but establishes the due process procedures to assure all materially affected parties are afforded a voice in the writing of these important rules. Everyone is encouraged to join the standards writing process if those standards will affect them. That you would be affected by a standard makes you a “materially affected party.” Those affected and interested can help draft new standards language by providing language to standards bodies like the ACCT and PRCA Consensus Bodies or by joining the ASTM standards process.
People can also apply to be parts of the Consensus Bodies that approve new standards language. The easiest and least time-consuming way to be involved is to comment on new language when a Consensus Body asks for public comment. Look for those opportunities on the websites of standards developers like ACCT. Anyone working in or using a challenge course is strongly encouraged to read and comment on the drafts of standards when they are released for public comment. The timing and method of public comment is part of the ANSI process. Being involved in standards writing as a commentor or by suggesting language for a standard is a way to impact the industry globally. Local action. You may want or need to have impact closer to home. You can do that by following ACCT’s Regulation Map blog (acctregmap.org), where ACCT posts notices of new regulatory efforts in North America. When a regulatory change or adoption process begins in
your area, you can be part of it. You can testify at a hearing, provide public comment to draft language, and attend advisory board meetings. Attending meetings is a way to not only be known, but also to hold officials accountable. The regulatory forest consists of the laws, passed by elected officials, that enable state staff and volunteers to write regulation. Regulations are the rules used to reach the goals enshrined in the laws. Standards are often used in the regulation to provide detail and specificity to the rules for each industry. You can, and should, engage in the process. Like Dorothy stepping into the woods in Oz, you may find that familiarity helps make it all less scary. Scott Andrews was a facilitator, program manager, owner operator, and ACCT Professional Vendor Member before jumping headfirst into the regulatory forest as policy director at ACCT. He can be reached at scott.andrews@acctinfo.org.
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