Because we are closed on Sundays, there were no April Fools’ jokes or pranks this year.   However, it is a great time to reminisce about the joke we pulled last year.  And so the story begins…

April 1st, 2011.  It was a normal day in Gatlinburg, TN.  The birds were chirping and flowers were beginning to bloom.  Bears were caught yawning after awakening from such a deep sleep.  Ants began their harvest in order to have enough food to feed Hopper and the other grasshoppers.  Spring was in the air.  People from all over the world were flocking to CLIMB Works Canopy (ok, there might be a little embellishment).  Families were zip lining and having a great time.  Friendships were made.  Challenges and fears were overcome.  Again, it was a normal day.  

Yet this was no normal day.  This was April Fools’ Day.  So one of our very own, Ashley, was working in the office this day.  She had the wonderful idea to pull a prank on the next group of customers about to head up on the zip lines.  Those of you who have been zip lining with us know that you have two guides – one sending guide and one receiving guide.  The receiving guide goes first while the sending guide is the last one off the platform.  

The guides gave their normal safety instruction and started up the mountain with their group.  So far so good.  Once they arrive at the top, the whole group makes their way to the first platform.  You can tell the nervous ones by the large amount of sap already stuck to their hands – a natural consequence of making it to second base with a Pitch Pine.  

The receiving guide hooks himself up to the first zip line of the tour and leaps off towards the next platform.  So far so good.  Then comes the part where the sending guide SHOULD hook up the customers next, only she decides to hook up herself to the zip line and leaps off towards the next platform.  So here are nine customers on a platform with no guides!

 Little do they know that there is another guide on the platform, only he is disguised as a customer.  We will call him the Guide in Disguise.  

You could hear a few customers protest, “Are we supposed to hook up ourselves?!”  One guy confidently said, “I think I remember how they did it.  Do we just go?”  Amidst the anxiety, fear, and confusion, the Guide in Disguise finally revealed himself by ripping off his business suit…urhh I mean sweatshirt to reveal to the customers his CLIMB Works t-shirt, proving his validity as staff and certified guide at CLIMB Works.  

Laughs were had and everything went back to normal.  Spring was in the air.

Meanwhile Ashley, the brains behind the operation, is still in the office anxiously waiting to hear how it went.  The Guide in Disguise came down and instead of telling Ashley the truth, he turned the April Fools’ joke on her, telling her that the customers hated it and wanted their money back.

Moral of the story:  As an April Fooler, be careful that the April Foolees don’t find a way to become the April Foolers and fool you into becoming the April Foolee.  

We learned that the road we made was not built for our 10-passenger van.  Even though it was a great way to scare even the bravest of mothers, we made the switch to the more versatile and sleek Polaris, or as we like to call it:  golf cart on steroids.

We learned that dogs are good for business.  Bear is by far the most well known of all the CLIMB Works’ staff.  And without him, how would we be able to find the top of the mountain?

We learned that zipping in the rain is a ton of fun IF you have goggles.  Sorry to those of you who zipped without eye protection the first few months we were open.  You are tougher than a stale Milk Dud at the movies.  Consider everyone inspired.

And last but not least, we learned that cell phones and cameras that fall to the ground from 100 feet up sometimes don’t break.  Who knew?

We learned many more things – some trivial, others were life changing.  Either way we want to be able to look at 2011 and see progress as a company.  We want to be able to say we overcame challenges, learned new things, inspired others and ourselves, and followed our own mission statement:  Challenge. Learn. Inspire. Master. Believe.

What did you learn in 2011?  What challenges did you overcome?  What inspired you?  We would love to hear.  Leave us a comment and you might motivate others in the process.

Until next time.

Challenge. Learn. Inspire. Master. Believe.

…Always C.L.I.M.B.

This blog is for those proud CLIMB Works t-shirt wearers, those proud parents of a CLIMB Works employee, or even that random person surfing the Internet who just stumbled upon our blog.

This blog is for anyone who had a great experience at CLIMB Works Canopy and wants to learn more about who we are and what we do.  The people who overcame their fear of heights and truly understand what it means to CLIMB.  But it’s even for the fanatics who send us requests to make CLIMB Works underwear.

This blog is for those Boston Red Sox fans that need anything to get their mind off September 28, 2011, or anybody who needs a healthy distraction from the game we call life.  But whoever you are and wherever you come from, welcome to the family.

For those of you not familiar with CLIMB Works, we are much more than a zipline company. We are a young, energetic company with blinders on (what down economy?).  We really believe our mission statement: Challenge. Learn. Inspire. Master. Believe. By CHALLENGING ourselves, we step out of our comfort zones and LEARN new things. We then are INSPIRED to keep going and pushing and trying until we MASTER whatever it is in our lives that may have been holding us back. We then BELIEVE. In ourselves. In others. In something.  Ziplining’s our way to get you to embrace a new CHALLENGE, so you can learn how to CLIMB in every aspect of your life.

This blog will give you an intimate look into who we are, what we’re about, what makes us happy, what we’re up to, and pretty much anything else we can think of.  So stay tuned and stay in touch.

Until next time.

Challenge. Learn. Inspire. Master. Believe.

…Always C.L.I.M.B.