Photograph by Robert Scheer
Peggy Hamilton exults after coming down from a 100-foot pole
By Loretta McCarty
High above the canopy of ancient redwoods, amid the serene backdrop of Mariani Vineyards, something is happening in the forest that gives new meaning to the phrase "learning the ropes."
These ropes are the "Ropes Course," a unique approach to leadership training and personal development taught by Odyssey owner Bill John.
Ropes courses have been around since the '70s, but they are making a big comeback in the '90s, in the wake of corporate downsizing and restructuring, John said.
Taking risks, making decisions, solving problems and dealing with change are some of the real-life hurdles John helps corporations and individuals come to grips with.
"The course is about stepping outside of our comfort zone," John said.
"We use the course as a metaphor to draw connections between concepts, and what people ultimately experience is far more than climbing trees and walking tightropes."
The experiential exercises get team members balancing, shuffling, leaning and swinging toward success.
"The exercises help teach people how to make bolder choices, those that go beyond safety and comfort," John said.
The courses vary from less intimidating ground-level exercises to ones that require a much bolder approach: climbing a 45-foot tree, walking a tightrope, or diving into the air from a 40-foot perch to catch a trapeze rope.
Odyssey trains groups from all over the United States. Recently a group of 25 from Spokane, Wash., went through the program at Odyssey's main facility outside Saratoga. The group was part of an eight-day seminar offered by Impact Training, a personal development company located in Washington and Arizona.
The men and women were into their eighth and final day of the seminar and were about to physically come face to face with their fears. Fears that, up until then, they had only verbalized in the seminar.
Reasons for taking the seminar are varied, said Betty Sue Vincent, a part owner of Impact Training. "The class is always a wide range of individuals who are looking to improve their relationships, whether they are personal or professional."
People who take the course are mentally prepared in advance by John, or other training companies such as Impact, to ensure that they know why they are doing the course.
Even the single-day programs start off with a half-hour orientation. Each step is explained thoroughly before anyone is allowed to participate, John said.
In the first exercise, two partners climb a 45-foot redwood and walk on parallel tightropes. Participants are asked to choose someone they trust and feel comfortable with to be their partner; then they are fitted with hard hats, harnesses and safety ropes.
Equipment is checked and rechecked, because safety is crucial to a ropes course, John said. Odyssey has safely conducted programs for several thousand participants with no injuries. John added that they use redundant systems on all high ropes events, and that the activity is safer than driving a car.
Before they begin their climb, each pair faces the group and announces who they are, who their partner is, and what they hope to learn about themselves by doing the climb.
Two young women, from Washington, Molly and Laura, who only recently met at the seminar, but who said they feel "closer than sisters," stood poised and ready to take their turn.
Molly, who wants to leave her troubled past behind her, faced the crowd and said her purpose for the climb is to work on trust in her relationships.
As they began their climb, they both showed visible signs of anxiety. "This is when I began thinking that maybe I didn't want to do this," Molly said.
But the crowd below supplied plenty of support by clapping, cheering and shouting words of encouragement.
"You can do whatever you want," one man yelled.
"You're incredible," shouted another."
"Go for it," added a third.
Once they reached the top, they stepped out onto their individual tightropes, joined hands and leaned into one another for support. They literally inched across the ropes.
The women were encouraged to talk to one another to reinforce their team effort. They did well, amid the cheers and yells, but gradually leaned too far away from one another and fell.
Suspended in their harnesses for a few seconds, they dipped toward one another and caught each other in a tight embrace, as they slowly descended to the safety of the forest floor.
Exhilarated and overcome with emotion, they continued to hold one another as tears flowed down their cheeks and wide smiles took over.
Molly said that the experience for her was about setting goals, sticking to them and feeling empowered again. "I felt the experience broke down a lot of walls for me," she said.
"There is no finish line with these exercises," John said. "It's about getting up and trying; we promote people's strengths and try to manage their weaknesses," he said.
As the group finished and all had time to digest their experiences, participants formed a circle of support. They engaged in a group hug and patted one another on the back, as John encouraged them to spontaneously share their experiences with the other members.
"Fear and exhilaration," one man shouted. "I learned to let go," declared a woman in the back. Another said that even though she didn't ask for support, she got it. Still another said she asked for support and got it tenfold.
"Giving it all you've got is the finish line," John said, as he led the group to face their next exercise: scaling a wobbly 40-foot pole and swinging into a trapeze.
Bill John has been in the ropes business for 10 years and has owned Odyssey for the last four. The company offers a variety of courses; some are offered through the Saratoga Recreation Department four to five times a year at a reduced rate. Contact Beverly Tucker at 867-3438, ext. 234, or Bill John at 510/531-4345.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, July 24, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved