“Talent wins games but teamwork and intelligence wins championships,” Michael Jordan once said. I agree! You really need teamwork for the Bedford Ropes Course. If you have sixteen people who all have different ideas, you are going to really work together. You can’t think of these challenges as easy, and you won’t after you see how hard they actually are. But they are actually really fun.

There was not one course that I didn’t like but my favorite was the rope swing. The rope swing is when you are standing on a log. You have to get on a rope and try to get on a platform on the other side. The rope swing I really enjoyed, because I got a lot of support from my friends. One time, I was hanging on the rope for a minute and a half so my hands hurt like crazy. I had a massive rope burn but my favorite part was when my friends were screaming, “Let’s go, withstand the pain.”“I laughed another time when they were trying to use a stick to get the rope back. I would have been able to make it but my hands gave out. That was really one of my favorite experiences during the trip. In addition, I got to work with my team to find the best strategy possible because it just feels so good when you execute a plan. Another one of my favorite courses was the Indiana Jones walk. It is very complicated. You have to walk across beams, Climb up a tree, go through the tree, walk across wires and swing on two feet apart swings. Yeah, It’s really hard. I loved this activity because it taught me how much trust I need in myself. You have to test yourself and your ability to balance. On this course I had passed all the thin beams and was working my way up the tree. I had almost reached the top but my balance gave out. I was extremely upset but I knew that I had to try again. I remember my friend named Dowlat complaining that he had fallen on the first beam. He was so upset and said, “I fell on the first one.” That was really funny. The last challenge I loved was the wire walk. There were unlimited strategies to this challenge. I had to crawl on my stomach while trying to get to the checkpoint. We got really lucky because there was a fallen tree and we got to use a pad on the ground to make it easier. I had to think, legs, knees, hands, or stomach. That was my favorite part, getting to choose what strategy to use. These were three of my favorite courses/challenges.

This trip was a lot about teamwork and learning how to be a helpful part of our community. So I think it paid off. I learned that not everything is about me. On the trip, my cooperation was tested and I had to see how well I worked with a team. I think the trip paid off and the results were incredible. I saw a change in how well I work with a team. In addition, I learned how much cooperation I need in real life. To work in a team there is a ton of cooperation needed. To work in a group means to be patient and open minded. That is what the Bedford Ropes Course taught me, to be open minded. There was a lot I learned about how capable I am to do what I think I can. There were a lot of courses that required a certain point of view that everybody needed to cooperate with. I feel that the point of view was to be helpful. I learned that helpful means not shouting over people and needed to be the one that comes up with all the important ideas. I did so many things that were harder than I thought and after I did it I felt really good. I love that feeling when I feel confident about what I accomplished. This is what I learned on the trip.

Teamwork makes the dreamwork! Cooperation, Balance, and athleticism are so key in this course. I think you can tell, the Bedford Ropes Course is super difficult but super fun. Especially the Indiana Jones challenge, The rope swing, and the wire walk. My blood sweat and tears went into this course. You will be able to build awesome teamwork and cooperation skills. After this, I think you are ready! Will you put it to the test?