Sports Teams can Benefit from Team Building

On Saturday, March 5th we had our first big group of the season out on the course and we were happy to welcome back the rugby team from Arch Bishop Spalding Catholic School to the course.  The boys ranged from 14-18 years old and were all up for the various challenges ahead of them.

Getting a team to work together off the pitch is a great way to improve how they work as a team during the game. We worked on various communication activities, where vocal communication wasn't allowed! This helps to make people look at each other and feed from other forms of communication to enable them to understand each other.

Trust is another big part of any team, and when your playing a contact sport like rugby you want to be able to trust in your fellow team members that they have your back when that huge winger from the other team is barreling towards you.  We can help teams build trust through all of our activities, and in the simplest of ways by teaching them to 'spot' for each other.  Knowing that someone is watching out for you while you are taking part in an activity and are there to protect you from falling is huge.  We teach all of our clients the importance of correct spotting at the beginning of each day as it ensures a safe environment for everyone to fully enjoy the day.

With any group of people when you take them away from their normal surroundings, it instills a level playing field for everyone. For their time on the course there is no 'boss' or 'team captain'.  People get to see each other in a different light and see what other skills each of them have.  It's an inspiring moment when somebody gets to shine in an area which they are not normally associated with.  We like to give everyone the opportunity to 'lead' the team in an activity.  Building respect for each other is another important factor that we like to include throughout the day - Respecting each others abilities as well as being respectful of people's inabilities.

The Spalding Rugby team is just one of many teams that we have worked with on the UEI Ropes Challenge Course and many come back to us year after year, as team's change and develop. 

In this photo the team had to exchange places on the raised poles, without talking.  Not as simple as it sounds.

Warning - Counterfeit Petzl Products

Here's an interesting article that I came across on the Petzl website.  If you're using Petzl gear, like we do, you should be aware that counterfeit items are circulating in the market and you should be careful where you purchase your gear from.

Read the full article here, directly from Petzl's website http://www.petzl.com/us/outdoor/news-2/2011/02/11/warning-regarding-presence-counterfeit-versions-petzl-products

March Madness! Its time to get outdoors.

Here we are in March already. Hopefully spring is waiting just around the corner too. We're excited to have groups booked to come out to the course this month and also to get our team ready for the upcoming season with our facilitator training later this month.

As the weather warms up, it makes you feel like leaving the warmth of your home and filling your lungs with some fresh spring air.  A day on the ropes course is sure to help blow away winters cobwebs and get your blood pumping!.

We're proud to be a part of the Frederick Wellness Challenge again this year and look forward to welcoming the participants of the spring group to the course. It won't be easy, but if it was, it wouldn't be as rewarding!  For more information and to sign up for the challenge visit their website at www.creatingwellnessfrederick.com/challenge.

An Exciting New Year Ahead!

Here we are in the second month of 2011 already. Before we know it, it will be the summer and instead of freezing like today it will be 100'....oh we can't wait.

Well until it's time to get out the shorts and sunscreen, there's still lots of fun to be had at the ropes course and we'll even throw in some hot chocolate to warm you up.  There's nothing better thatn getting the  adrenalin running to get you warmed up on a cold day.

Last year we added an amazing Canopy Tour to our array of activities and if you didn't get chance to do it last year, then 2011 is the year to  come and try it out.  After zipping through the trees on our 600ft zipline, take another zipline to connect with the start of the canopy tour.  Once hooked on you traverse through the course high in trees. Sound like fun?

The weather is going to start warming up soon (we hope) and we're eager to get out on the course again before cabin fever sets in, so give us a call to book your groups visit to the Ropes Challenge course for some fun this year.

We look forward to seeing you there.

Merry Christmas to One and All

Coming to the end of another year, we take time to reflect on the last twelve months. It has been another exciting year for Upward Enterprises with the addition of a new Ropes Course Manager, John, who joined us at the beginning of the season. We made some additions to the ropes course too with our new Canopy Tour and Zipline Return which got great reviews and has proved to be an integral part of the course.

We had a full season filled with some repeat clients and also a lot of new client groups coming out to the ropes course for the first time. Hopefully everyone will be returning in 2011 now they know how much fun it is.

Our last official team building group of the year was on the 2nd of December. A good end to a long season. Now we get some time to relax and enjoy time with family and friends over Christmas and the New Year before starting again full swing in March. (But don't hesitate to call in January and February. If the weather is good we will be out on the course.)

We are excited about what 2011 will bring and have plans to make changes to the web site and a new calender of events including monthly team building open days on the ropes course.

We would like to thank our staff, clients, family and friends and wish them a very Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy and Fun New Year.

Couple's Team Building

I have just completed a couple’s team building ropes course and it was interesting to see how the group dynamics change when the participants know each other on a different higher level.

One couple has been together for 16 years and obviously knows each other very well. Or so they think! When the circumstances are so different from the normal day-to-day routine and the consequences are so vastly exaggerated, the dynamics become so different. The 5 day long class saw a huge move from normal behavioral habits to a more sensitive approach and thoughtful process of what they perceived their opposite partner needed or indeed wanted.

If only we could get the same breakthrough to our other clients who maybe spend as much time with each through work and school but do not communicate on the same level.
I guess 16 years of marriage stands for something!