Rick Rankin
Adventure Experiences, Inc.
Challenge Courses have been in existence in the United States since the 1970’s. Since this time they have been used for the purpose of experiential education. Experiential education was originally based on long expeditions to create artificial stresses and obstacles for participants to overcome and gain confidence. Educators realized they could offer the same type of stresses and challenges in a shorter amount of time creating the first challenge course. These courses were originally constructed of rope, wood, trees, and cable hence the title - ropes course construction. The industry continues to grow in popularity and program development. Corporations and athletic programs utilize these challenge courses to build teamwork, trust, communication, and problem solving. The industry has evolved into utilizing the challenge courses for therapeutic recreation, rehabilitation, and counseling.