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Kyle Griffith
March 21, 2011
RPTM 277
INTRODUCTION:
Throughout the time I have spent in class, I have obtained a quite larger view on how persons’
with disabilities have to go through life on a day to day basis. Truthfully it has really opened my eyes in
seeing what they must endure day by day. Even little things such as going to the bathroom, that we
take for granted, are sometimes difficult especially if the bathroom isn’t large enough for a wheelchair.
As I go through my own daily routine now I find myself finding little things in my environment that
would pose as a barrier to someone in a wheelchair. I especially took a hard look into this last weekend
while I attended high ropes course training at Stone Valley Recreation Center.
PROFESSIONAL POSITION:
Stone Valley Vertical Adventures is one of the biggest challenge course facilities on the East
Coast. The adventure course they have at Stone Valley is available to groups of all kinds who are seeking
a teambuilding experience, along with a great personal challenge. The vertical challenges are designed
for individuals to succeed together as a team while they work on problem solving, communication,
collaboration and building trust (athletics.psu.edu). The two main areas that I am looking to provide
recreation opportunities for will be the Odyssey course and the Alpine tower. The Odyssey Course
offers team events, designed for 4 to 8 participants to complete together at a time. The main idea of this
course is that teams will share a more productive, fun and educational experience than would
individuals in a traditional challenge course design. The Alpine tower provides universal training for all
persons, including persons with disabilities. It is a free standing fifty foot tower, in which participants
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need to travel through various types of climbing maneuvers to reach the top. It is also designed as a
great teambuilding activity. The professional position that I will be undertaking will be a challenge
course instructor on these activities.
BARRIERS TO LEISURE:
In a vertical adventure course there are many barriers that persons with disabilities may face.
When asked to describe the leading barrier they experience, people with disabilities consistently report
that negative attitudes are the most devastating (Dattilo, 2002, p.128). This could be consistently true
with their peers having negative attitudes towards them completing a course, that is as challenging, as
the one at Stone Valley. Let’s say that Joe sees his fellow students on the course and wishes he had the
freedom to be able to do the same activities. This is an example of reactance, because this usually
eliminated behavior that Joe is unable to do, has now increased in desirability. In order to decrease
learned helplessness it is our job as recreation leaders to provide ways for persons with disabilities to be
included. I know that having gone through the Odyssey course myself, and seeing how hard and
motivating it was for me, I feel that would the confidence a person with a disability would gain from
going through an activity such as this would be tremendous. It is the job of the instructor to help make
the person now that they are able to complete the course with a little will power. The great thing about
a challenge course is it promotes team building and help from your peers in the first place, so I just keep
thinking about the amazing benefits that it could have in impacting someone with a disability. One
barrier that may also be present is indirect competition. Completing a challenge course is completely
mental, and you really have to put your mind to it if you are going to succeed. Doing something you
don’t think you can do is the greatest motivator. There are a few architectural barriers that could inhibit
a person with a disability to complete the course. The first being the cargo net that leads to the course.
Another being the harness that would be strapped into the person. Luckily there have been special
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seated harnesses that have been developed so that persons with disabilities can even climb rock walls
(ehow.com). Stone Valley could obtain one of these harnesses and belay the individual up the platform
to begin the course. For the Alpine tower, special harnesses which Stone Valley already has have been
created for a person with a disability to pull themselves up through the course using a pulley system.
FAMILY MEMBERS:
It is very important to include family members in recreation activities, because you greatly
reduces the stress that is put on them. Family members are the major source of care and support for
individuals, and the lack of recreation opportunities puts just as much stress on them as the person with
the disability endures. I feel that coming to the serene setting of Stone Valley with their child would give
them a great opportunity to relax and see their son/daughter participate with their peers without
disabilities. Children who play and learn together develop respect for each others abilities (Dattilo, 2002
p.112). Seeing this would greater help to reduce the stress parents endure day to day. Along with
watching their son/daughter participate in these activities they could enjoy what Stone Valley has to
offer, including a 72 acre lake, along with 26 miles of biking trails. It is a great example of a family
centered leisure service option. Seeing their son/daughter complete something as difficult as a
challenge course would be very satisfying, and I also feel it would go a long way in reducing
overprotection of that individual by the family.
AMERICANS WITH DISABILITES ACT:
Due to Joe’s disability, he is covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Therefore
making a purchase such as a device to raise and lower participants to the challenge courses would be
considered a capital purchase due to the expense of such a piece of equipment. The ADA requires that
people who meet essential eligibility requirements, or could meet them with reasonable
accommodations be given the chance to participate (Dattilo, 2002, p. 156). As long as he meets the
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rules of capacity, fee, rules of conduct, safety, skill, age, and residence Joe is able to attend Stone Valley.
As stated before the one major accommodation that would need to be made is adapting safety
equipment to accommodate Joe. Staff would also be trained on how to accommodate a person with a
disability on the course. The one thing that would need to be modified is the Odyssey course. The
Alpine tower is already universally designed, including ramps underneath the tower, which allow for
accessibility for a wheelchair, to reach the beginning of the course.
SELF DETERMINATION:
Self -determination involves people having control over their lives in areas they value (Dattilo,
2002, p.195). Take for instance a soldier who is wounded and now in a wheelchair. Previously before
their accident they were used to completing various physical activities that really challenged them. The
accommodations at Stone Valley can really help them fulfill their self -determination, giving back to
them the physical part of their life that may not be present or accessible to them at many other places.
They would have great intrinsic motivation to challenge themselves and complete the course. I feel that
Stone Valley encourages all the components of promoting self- determination, which are: providing
opportunities for choice, promoting communication, responding to preferences, fostering active
participation, encouraging empowerment, increasing competence, and advocating goal setting (Datillo,
2002, p.199).
LEISURE EDUCATION:
By assuming that Joe can learn how to complete the course, it will help him to succeed. If Joe
were to complete an education course at Stone Valley, he would learn many skills that he can apply to
his everyday life. This will be a great way to help Joe be excited about his leisure time, and maybe even
help him to pick up other various activities such as rock climbing, when he sees that he can succeed.
The teambuilding aspect of the course will greatly help in his family and friend support of him. In will
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greatly influence his adolescent development because, he will be experiencing various roles in a
constructed team environment. He will learn how to do something that he maybe never thought would
be possible in completing a challenge course. This will also help enhance his leisure skills, decision
making, and enhance his self esteem (Dattilo, 2002, p.222). I feel that working with Joe would not only
enhance his life, and skills, but also give every instructor that works with him a more broad view of what
a person with a disability deals with daily. This will help to enhance everyone who is involved life.
FRIENDSHIPS:
Since Stone Valley is all about teambuilding, Joe will have a chance to work right along side his
peers, in a non -classroom setting. Being able to help Joe and have him help me in a stressful situation, I
know would help me to appreciate what Joe deals with day to day. Joe will have opportunities to grow
as a person and maybe even make some new friends that he would never have met if it were not for
being put in a situation where he needs to work closely with other people. The challenge course would
greatly help to reduce the challenges of social interactions. When you are up on that course, everyone
has to work together to complete it. There is no isolation, or else you won’t succeed. The impact of
leisure participation on social support is likely to be significant for those who have limited friends or few
social friends (Dattilo, 2002, p.235).
ADAPTATIONS:
It is clear that adaptations can have a positive experience on a person’s leisure participation.
When making adaptations it is important to think of the individual needs of someone with a disability.
As stated before, an adaptation to the Odyssey course would need to be made in order to raise the
person with a disability up to the first level of the course. Because many people possess differing levels
of skills, and experience, it is important to individualize adaptations (Dattilo, 2002, p.247). Stone Valley
will need to take a person first approach, focusing on abilities rather than disabilities. Teaching various
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skills to instructors on how to provide leisure services to a person with a disability will greatly increase
the experience for everyone involved.
CONCLUSION:
By having Joe attend Stone Valleys Vertical Adventure program, he will obtain many skills that
he can apply to his everyday life. By completing the course it will not only help him to foster friendships
by working with a team, but also teach him to fully believe that he can accomplish any task that life
throws at him. His self- confidence will be greatly increased, and his families’ overprotection of him will
slowly fade, seeing he can accomplish such a feat through his own will power. As an actual instructor at
Stone Valley, I plan on fully looking into all options to make the Odyssey course universally designed in
the future. Seeing that the Alpine tower is accessible to anyone, really got my mind rolling as to pursue
options on how to make the entire course accessible as well. I hope that in the near future this
adaptation can be made, and we can start to change people’s lives. Nothing is more fulfilling than to
help someone accomplish something that they previously had not thought was accomplishable. I am
really looking forward to working on this project and seeing where we at Stone Valley can go from here.