Traditionally, if the participant touches the ground during the course of their traverse, they will be invited to start over.
Caution, this activity can be very physically demanding. Fatigue sets in quickly, so encourage participants to make good decisions in regards to their continued participation.
Urge your group to resist the temptation to offer or seek physical support from the spotters, eg to manipulate the position of a tyre. When a fall occurs, or the participant ends up stranded in the middle, simply encourage them to make another attempt.
This activity is usually designed to allow for the tyres to be detached from the overhead cable, to discourage unauthorised use. Or, another option is to secure the tyres with a cable or chain and lock.
Typically, the bottom of each swinging tyre is about 600mm above the ground. The drop of each hanging tyre can differ to vary the challenge of the activity.
This element can be integrated into a section of the Mohawk Ironworkers Walk, but owing to its typical difficulty, it is best designed as an individual challenge.
In case you’re wondering, yes, tyres are the same as tires – just spelt differently (in most Commonwealth countries.) The activity is sometimes called the Tire Traverse.
You could integrate Swinging Tyres as part of a well-designed SEL program to help your group make caring and constructive choices about personal behaviour and social interactions across different situations.
Specifically, this activity offers opportunities to explore and practice the following social & interpersonal skills:
Self-Awareness
- Identifying Personal, Cultural & Linguistic Assets
- Recognising Strengths, Prejudices & Biases
- Demonstrating Self-Confidence, Honesty & Integrity
- Experiencing Self-Efficacy
Self-Management
- Demonstrating Self-Discipline & Self-Motivation
- Setting Personal & Group Goals
- Taking Initiative
- Use Planning & Organisational Skills
Responsible Decision-Making
- Demonstrating Curiosity & Open-Mindedness
- Identifying Problems
- Making Reasoned Judgements
- Identifying Solutions
- Anticipating & Evaluating the Consequences of One’s Actions
- Promoting Personal & Collective Well-Being
You can learn more about SEL and how it can support character education here.
Resilience
Depending on the level of challenge at which this element has been designed, the Swinging Tyres can be a very difficult challenge to accomplish. To this end, you can expect many people to make multiple attempts before they can successfully traverse the area. Programmatically, you may consider exploring a variety of strategies that build resilience and then present this rope course activity to practice these skills.
When you think of Tarzan, I’m sure you have images of Tarzan swinging through the jungle on a series of vines hung from the trees above. Would you like to be Tarzan or Jane for a few minutes…?
One of the iconic images of summertime for me was an old car tyre suspended from a rope tied to a tree limb that hung out over an inviting river. Standing on the bank of the river, with the rope or tyre in my hands, there was a rush of adrenaline when I finally jumped off and I swung out wide and high over the river, before finally letting go and splashing into the river. Sigh… so much fun. Our next activity may give you a similar thrill…
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Have you played this activity? What worked, what didn't work? What type of group? Do you have useful advice for other users? Do you know a fun variation?