Staying true to my reputation...that of being a Fun Gram, I decided to buy my 12 year old grandson a reservation to Zip Line USA in Reeds Springs, MO for his birthday and of course, I wanted to share the experience with him. However, the closer we got to our destination I started asking myself..."What was I thinking when I bought this? Am I senile or just insane? I don't like getting on a step ladder without a safety net below." Then, looking at the excitement on Andrew's handsome face, I could only say, "This is going to be a blast!"
Upon arrival, I met Jason the manager. There had been some conflict a few weeks back due to our first reservation landing close to the time our town, Joplin, MO had been hit by a deadly EF-5 tornado. Due to mixed communication, I thought they were not going to let us reschedule. Because of this, I wrote a negative review about the company...well, there we were, so everything worked out though I still made sure Jason and I were "ok" before allowing him to put me on a cable hundreds of feet in the air. (Smiling) Besides cute, he was great!
Our guides were Ethan, a Paul Bunyan of a man and Nathan very experienced and just recently joined the service.
After getting our group geared up, we were loaded into a large van and later transferred to a jeep for our final destination; solid ground...Ethan gave us detailed instructions on everything! He then quizzed us to make sure we understood. Sooo, why wasn't I terrified by now? Because our guides were/are extremely experienced and knew exactly what they were doing. Their knowledge instantly put our group at ease. Friendly and funny was just an extra perk, because most important was feeling safe, and we did.
I had the camera so I went before Andrew. We had been told how to break, two hands up from our guide, but instructed to wait until we were given the sign. OK, so I felt I was going too fast and broke early causing me to stop a few feet from the first platform. I had a choice of letting Ethan come out to get me or hand over hand the cable myself forward. Just as I was about to make my decision, one of the men in our group, a retired drill sergeant, jokingly yelled, "Come on 'GRANDMA!' IDid he really call me Grandma? I for sure made it back..On My Own! Easy. I may be a grandma but don't call me one! (Smiling)
We spent the next 2 hours, zipping from one gorgeous tree top to another and crossing a couple of swinging bridges. I will tell you this company is 'all about' safety. When we were on a tree platform, they had us tethered to a safety apparatus so if we slipped we wouldn't fall. Ethan and Nathan were constantly at attention to make sure we were safe, felt secure and having fun.
The scenery was beautiful and we were impressed knowing not one tree has been hurt by drilling holes in them to make this course.
Returning to our car, Andrew asked what I thought. I simply said, "I HATE HEIGHTS...When can we come back? Maybe next time I will even open my eyes...just kidding. But that was too fun!"
From previous comments on here, I agree it was hard of me to make contact with the company, however once we connected; Zip Line USA, made sure it was a fun, safe time for all. read more