To The Top - designing disabled-friendly challenge courses

Although there are standards for specific applications of challenge course design and installation, there are few boundaries to what a course may ultimately become. This is especially true of a universal course because this concept is still being developed and encourages creativity. The following components are part of the developing guidelines for universal and accessible courses as identified by the ACCT Universal and Accessible Design committee.

* Independent access to each element, transitions from element to element and to all support components of the program, such as restrooms, equipment sheds and dining facilities

* A range of experience choices within each element that provide for meaningful participation within the group

* A range of adjustable challenge levels within each element

* The availability and use of extra safety features, such as body padding, mats, full-body harnesses, and static belays on low elements.

Typical approaches to including a person with a physical disability on a challenge course have been to utilize various types of clip-on equipment that would be incorporated into the existing technical systems. A popular option is the fashioning of some sort of seating system that can be hauled up or down an element or traversed across a cable on a pulley. Another approach is the use of mechanical advantage systems, such as a set of 4:1 pulleys that make it four times easier for a person with upper body functioning to haul himself or herself up an element. One other adaptation that has been used on high courses and climbing towers is a counter-balance system that uses a counter-weight and pulley positioned well above the climber to assist with an ascent. These ideas have been somewhat effective in creating usable options for participants with disabilities. At the same time it is not unusual to see them used in ways that clearly compromise the principles of universal design. For example, having staff haul a person up an element in a confining seat system while this person could, if given the option and resources, independently negotiate the element. The only choice given the person in this case may be whether he or she wants to "go to the top" or not. Once hauled to the top, there is jubilation at what he or she has accomplished. When options for individually and socially meaningful and universal participation do not exist, the risk is high for experiences that are contrived, ineffective, and undignified.

Challenge courses that rely primarily on clip-on means of inclusion are limited in terms of creating universal experiences. They are also sending a message that options for inclusion were an after-thought. Some equipment-based access options will work as part of a universal course, as long as they are part of a larger set of options. In order to create a universal challenge course, it will be necessary to design individual elements that incorporate the above mentioned guidelines. These can be modifications of traditional designs or completely new ideas. Some specific universal design applications include: