Work out for the Marine Veterans

I took a call the other day from a Marine Sargent who was looking to celebrate one of his colleagues' birthday and return from Afghanistan with something a little different. They chose team building at Upward Enterprises and I agreed to take this small group of America's finest on my challenge course.



I guess there could be some similarities.

I arrived at 7:00 a.m., 30 minutes before the agreed start time, only to find they were already on the property and had been there from 6:15 a.m. and travelled 45 minutes to get there. They had hiked the trail already and got an indication of what was to come.
After the formalities and intros we share a few "war stories" and then proceeded to the zip lines and canopy tour. It wasn't long before they came to the opinion that I too was "Hard Core". Even the EOD (Bomb Disposal) Specialist, who was apparently scared of nothing, referred to me as the 'Old Grey Back".

After a couple of hours we changed direction and headed for the Static Tower. More of the same just with more height. Again we shared some old stories and metaphoric relevance's to our experiences and so it came to end of the session and move on with the day.

We left each other's company with a good deal of respect for each other and what we have done and are doing for our countries. I hope these guys will revisit as they said they would.

Keep safe lads and God bless.

Zipping, Swinging and Problem-Solving

Written by Karen Highland June 12, 2012, for her website 365 Frederick

We recently participated in a Team Building Retreat with a dozen people from our office. From problem-solving and team-building exercises, on to zip lines and swinging over the Monocacy River, this was a remarkable experience!

Clive Felgate with Team Building Ropes
Course in Background

Clive Felgate owns and operates Upward Enterprises in Adamstown, Maryland. Located on the grounds of the Claggett Retreat Center @ 3035 Buckeystown Pike, they specialize in Team Building and Adventure Programs. On the grounds you’ll find several challenge courses and team-building activities available for Corporate groups, youth groups and birthday and private parties. Some of the activities:

• Ropes Course Training, over 80 different high and low ropes activities
• Corporate Team Building
• Event Planning
• Rock Climbing
• Caving
• Ropes Course Design and Construction
• Indoor Team Building and Conferences

Our Team Building Retreat

Twelve of us spent 3+ hours together at Upward Enterprises last week. We struggled through two team-building exercises, learning a lot about ourselves, and each other, our communication styles, and how our interactions can improve. I thought it was a valuable experience and took away several points............................
To read the rest of Karen's ropes course experience story go to her website 365 Frederick.
Thanks Karen!!

Add Team Building to your Workplace Wellness Program

Did you know that June is National Employee Wellness Month? If you are a corporation looking for an event to encourage employee wellness in celebration of National Employee Wellness Month, how about coming out for a day on the Upward Enterprises ropes challenge course. It's a perfect fit to encourage physical activity along with the benefit of team building. Everyone needs a mental health day.

Is zip lining a safe activity?

Is flying safe? If you select your zip line operator with the same confidence as your airline operator then the risk you take should be minimal.

The zip line industry has been hit hard in the last few months with some bad press involving zip operators who function outside industry practices with little or no standards.

Yes, zip lining is safe if your operator follows the industry standards and maintains the daily and monthly checks that they should perform to ensure that they are not putting their staff and clients at risk. If you are looking to zip line be sure to find out the qualifications of the company you choose to hire to ensure your safety.

Here at Upward Enterprises, we go above and beyond assuring that all industry standards are met and you have a trained staff member with you at all times when you are the zip line at our ropes course. I encourage my clients to ask about the safety rating and procedures that we enforce to keep them safe.  I have a display of my last inspection and trainings to hand for the client to see. I insist that clients fully understand the protocols of our course and if they chose not to adhere to them, they will not ride.

Zip lining is fun and very rewarding so let's keep our industry safe from both the operator's side and as clients get the answers to questions that will keep everybody safe.