Welcome to your crash course on zip lining.
Wait. Scratch that title — let’s just stick to zip lining 101, shall we?
All kidding aside, we are excited to share with you the basics of zip lining, which just so happens to be one of the many activities you can engage in at our aerial adventure park in Raleigh, TreeRunner Raleigh Adventure Park. Before we dive into the essentials of what you should know about zip lining, allow us to say a few words about our aerial adventure park in general!
What Is An Aerial Adventure Park?
Aerial adventure parks don’t always look alike, but broadly speaking, it’s an outdoor park that can include rope courses, obstacle courses, zip lines, and other challenges that take place above-ground.
At TreeRunner Raleigh Adventure Park, we offer more than 70(!) obstacles, zip lines, and rope courses, complete with three difficulty levels and seven different courses, which are designed for varying levels of experience and physical ability. Ideal for school field trips, family outings, corporate events, or for anyone who loves being active among the treetops, you can’t really understand what an aerial adventure park is until you’ve experienced it for yourself!
“Everything Felt Very Solid And Well Constructed”
“Had an awesome time bringing my 7 and 9 year old nephews. Everything felt very solid and well constructed and the magnetic caribiner [sic] system is very clever and keeps you from ever feeling unsafe. The courses are definitely challenging for the young and old. I also can’t say enough about the staff. Everyone was very friendly and helpful and definitely kept an eye out for safety.” – Brian Pypiak, Local Guide, Five Stars, Google Reviews
As Mr. Brian Pypiak so generously noted in his five-star review of our treetop adventure course in Raleigh, all of our equipment and courses are constructed with extreme attention to detail and a borderline obsession with safety — in a good way, we promise! So, before we talk about the details of zip lining, which we promise we will eventually get to, we want our readers to know the following: we are serious about safety, just like we are serious about fun. The best part is, you don’t have to choose between the two at TreeRunner Raleigh Adventure Park! You’ll be challenged and empowered with our rope courses, obstacles, and zip lines, but you’ll never be put in danger.
Alright, ladies and gentlemen, without further ado, let’s talk about the one-of-a-kind experience known as zip lining!
Zip Lining 101
Wikipedia defines a zip line as something that “consists of a pulley suspended on a cable, usually made of stainless steel, mounted on a slope. It is designed to enable cargo or a person propelled by gravity to travel from the top to the bottom of the inclined cable by holding on to or being attached to the freely moving pulley. It has been described as essentially a Tyrolean traverse that engages gravity to assist its speed of movement.”
Some call it a zip line, while the British might say “aerial runway,” and our friends down under have been known to refer to it as a “flying fox.” But whatever your preferred nomenclature might be, the common denominator is that it’s a darn good time. Below, we’ll briefly describe the components of your basic zip line ride.
- Before all else, your guide will show you how to put your safety harness on.
- Once you’ve arrived at the launch point, some distance above ground, your guide will show you how to use the pulley you will use to control your speed and eventually brake. Don’t be alarmed if you hear jargon like “capture block” or “passive arrester system” — zip lines are very simple, really.
- You will likely see a demonstration of (one of your) guide(s) going down the zip, showing you a safe speed. You need to get some momentum going in order to get to the end of the zip line, so remember that you shouldn’t go too slow or too fast.
- Get up there and try it! You are locked in and, assuming your equipment and course are well-constructed and inspected, you’ll be right as rain!
At TreeRunner Raleigh Adventure Park, we are passionate about the quality of our park. That includes how our guests are treated and how they find our facilities and courses. If you are ready for an exhilarating challenge, come visit us soon! We’d love to see you zip lining among the trees in the Triangle this summer!