Outlines 10 principles of leadership and program design derived from the philosophy of Woodswomen, Incorporated, an adventure program for women of all ages. Elaborates on the principles of developing an atmosphere of security and safety, encouraging individuals to set their own goals and agendas, and avoiding a success/failure approach to…

The findings of industrial safety engineers in the areas of accident causation and prevention are wholly applicable to adventure programs. Adventure education instructors can use safety engineering concepts to assess the risk in a particular activity, understand factors that cause accidents, and intervene to minimize injuries and damages if…

The Wilderness Risk Managers Committee (WRMC), a consortium of outdoor schools and organizations, works toward better understanding and management of risks in the wilderness. Among other activities, the WRMC gathers data on incidents and accidents from member organizations and other wilderness-based programs. This book compiles incident data for…

A camp that is establishing a challenge course or climbing wall must ensure program safety. Discusses financial planning, selecting a contractor, adhering to standards for construction, inspections, staff training, screening of participants, and the administrative challenge of implementing and documenting proper actions. Sidebar discusses a study…

A high-profile liability case concerning a fatal ice-climbing accident provides the background for this discussion of liability issues in adventure activities. A brief history of outdoor adventure litigation, emerging trends, and how outdoor guides can protect themselves and their clients is presented. Guides should candidly describe the risks…

Adventuresports Institute offers a two-year degree program at Garrett Community College (McHenry, Maryland) that combines courses in adventure sports with economics, marketing, environmental science, and events management. The goal is to develop an infrastructure for the adventure sport industry and promote economic development in Appalachia based…

This study identified the highest heart rates attained on a ropes course for a corporate population; examined relationships between highest heart rate and other physical measures (basal heart rate, blood pressure, height, weight, body girths, cholesterol, maximum number of pushups, and heart rate after brisk walk); and developed an equation for…

Discusses participant rights and the responsibilities of outdoor recreation programs in complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Describes situations in outdoor programing and the manner in which they should be managed to meet ADA standards of accessibility. Distinguishes levels of responsibility between public and private…

Explored are the societal influences that have led to contemporary views surrounding the adventure experience. Adventure recreation and outdoor recreation are contrasted. The growth of the adventure recreation phenomenon is discussed. (CW)

A survey of 179 organizations offering outdoor adventure experiences for adults over 50 found strong growth in such programs. Offerings were typically low-level challenge activities, short-term summer-based, with educational goals; most participants were 60-69; course fees provided most funding; administrative practices varied; and research in…

Explored the feelings, attitudes, and perceptions of at- risk adolescent girls from a psychiatric rehabilitation facility following their participation in adventure therapy that involved outdoor experiential activities. Interview data indicated that participants found positive meaning within various activities. The resulting themes were…

This paper examines the effect of participation in an Outward Bound course on participant levels of situational fears. Patterns of situational fears were studied with regard to: (1) fears before, immediately after, and 1 year following the Outward Bound course; (2) the intensity of these fears; and (3) relationship of fears to gender, age, and…

Bicycling is a valuable medium for outdoor experiential learning. Bicycling shares with other outdoor learning activities some common elements such as environmental contrast, physical activity, a small group context, and a self-reliant form of transportation. However, bicycling has several unique characteristics that set it apart from other common…

This study investigated the effectiveness of using an outdoor-adventure education program as a method of intervention for enhancing the self-concept of a group of hearing impaired individuals receiving services from the Department of Vocational Rehabilitation. Nine adults (6 male, 3 female) with hearing impairments participated in a 4-day…

The effects of an eight-day traditional camp and an eight-day adventure, wilderness camp on self-esteem scores of 28 physically disabled adolescent campers (randomly assigned to one of the groups) were investigated. Results reinforced the theory that one single exposure to wilderness camping will not significantly effect the camper's self-esteem.…