Business climbing to new heights
Marble Zip Tours building a high-rope obstacle course
First he brought zip lining to the area, and now Martin Flynn is getting set to take his business to whole new heights.
Flynn, the owner of Marble Zip Tours, is in the process of setting up a high-rope obstacle course in the area of the pond in front of the lodge at Marble Mountain.
“Basically, it’s obstacles hung in the air and the higher you go the harder it gets,” said Flynn of the course that’s currently under construction. “It just challenges a person to climb that height.”
Flynn said high-rope obstacle courses are common around other zip lines and popular around ski resorts, so adding one to his business seemed like the natural thing to do.
He said zip line clients are often looking for other things to do while in the area, and this will give them just that.
As for the location, Flynn said the area near the pond was not being used and required little landscaping.
The engineered structure is being constructed by Tony and Ken Abbott. Flynn and Tony Abbott travelled to Ontario and Nova Scotia to check out other courses as they developed a plan for this one.
The poles making up the structure are 75 feet high with the top elements of the course at about 65 feet above the ground.
With the poles in place, construction has started on the top level of the course. On Monday, tightropes and wooden bridges could be seen strung from platform to platform.
Flynn said the levels are rated much the same as a ski hill as green, blue and black, with black being the hardest.
The higher you go the harder it gets. Martin Flynn, of Marble Zip Tours
“The higher you go the harder it gets,” he said. “The obstacles are tougher. Just physically and mentally harder to do.”
People will progress around the course by way of zip lines, bridges and tightropes. He said it’s really a progression in difficulty and things at the top are not only moving more but also get smaller.
Flynn said course users will be connected to the course from above at all times and there are several exit points along the way. There’s even a plan to incorporate the pond into the course by running a zip line across it to a landing point.
Flynn hopes to have the course open by the beginning of August.