We took a little trip outside the office and tested our bounciness, agility and teamwork at BOUNCE Cornubia.
When you think about trampolines, you picture the little ones for children to play on. I will admit that a childlike wonder ignites the moment you see the bright colours of BOUNCE Cornubia’s branding outside. On the inside, you very quickly realise that not all trampolines are made equal; this is the big league. It certainly looks like you would need a good couple of hours to try everything. Excitement built up in our party as we descended the stairs to be greeted by our two lovely hostesses, Khitha and Nonkonzo.
They brought along a box of goodies for us, the special BOUNCE socks and purple and orange wristbands, granting us access to the facilities. We stored away our shoes, donned the brightly coloured striped socks and listened to a short safety briefing. Safety first, always! Make sure you always listen carefully to the safety guide before trying any activity, it’s to ensure everyone has a good time with no injuries. Afterwards, we basically hopped, skipped and jumped all the way to our first set of trampolines.
We each claimed one trampoline and started jumping along with our hostesses in the Free-Jump arena. It was gravity-defying! Just short of taking flight, we followed the ladies’ instructions as they demonstrated a few tricks to us. They looked easy enough, but once we tried them, some spills did occur. To begin with, we were told to land in a squat to regain our balance. The vibrations from that position made my legs feel like jelly! We had to take a short break to stretch and loosen up before heading back into the session. Recovering quickly, we tried to replicate what was demonstrated. From falling on our knees and getting up again to changing directions in mid-air, we did them all! Or we at least tried to. Let’s say those bottles of water really came in handy after that session.
Our next stop involved the Big Bag, a relay and falling from heights. After dividing ourselves into two teams, we raced each other. The course ran over a trampoline, the Big Bag, and running around the course before tagging your next teammate in. You aren’t just running; you’re hopping, tripping, falling and laughing the whole way through. After two rounds, our little competition ended in a tie.
Next was the Cliff Jump. This part tested our courage and trust in ourselves and our surroundings. We could choose to face this head-on, taking control by jumping forward or surrendering control and falling backwards in a trust fall. It was terrifying, as letting go of control always is. We want to control our actions, emotions and environment constantly, so surrendering that power can be really scary. Nevertheless, our team persevered, and we completed three different heights!
Next, it was time to test our agility at the X-Park. This was an obstacle course with 16 stations we had to complete. We were briefed on some safety regulations for the course and were offered to challenge ourselves by not touching the grass or the black padding as we progressed. It was essentially parkour, in Bounce style. Guided one at a time through the course, we attempted each obstacle in earnest. We fell, we got up, and tried again. I loved the show of bravery and resilience in my colleagues! Many of us had never done anything like this before, but we gave it our all! We rode a zipline down to the finish line to an exhilarating end.
To end the physical activities, we got to jump around for fun and try out the tricks we learned earlier at the Super Tramp. We also watched as the staff literally ran up the walls using the trampolines and momentum to propel them to incredible heights. The braver ones of us attempted to follow the instructors’ tricks, and the rest of us cheered them on.
All of the jumping, laughing and running really took a bunch of energy none of us knew we even had! BOUNCE, as part of party packages, offer food platters with a variety to choose from, and we were treated to a much-needed selection of snacks. The sugar in the delicious doughnuts restored that lost vitality. BOUNCE truly unlocked the fun in our team and got us speaking about returning before we even left!
Words: Cristina Govender
Cornubia Mall, Corner of Flanders Drive and Tacoma Drive, Cornubia, Durban
@BOUNCECornubia