HSLP 2010: Day 2, Sunday, July 11
Jul 14 2010 - 2:08pm
High School Leaders Program Class of 2010
Day 2-Sunday, July 11
Recorded by: Maggie Chambers, Ashland
Before I start this Newsroom post for our second day at the Sorensen Institute’s High School Leaders Program, there’s something I should mention: I am pretty terrified of falling, ladders, and heights. As my 25 classmates and I got up for the first full day of Sorensen, I was filled with trepidation, becasue the Poplar Ridge Ropes Course we were scheduled to attend would undoubtedly contain all three. Looking back at our day now, I don’t think that at that point in the morning any of us really knew how hard we’d work today, or how much closer we would get as a group.
After the seemingly endless walk (for the tired teenagers, that is), we met our guides: Scott, Chris, and Julian. They led us through the goals for the day’s program and a few somewhat awkward exercises to get closer to our Sorensen classmates, cheering for and talking to people that we hardly knew. Following this, we were split into two groups, based on various preferences, to become our two teams: the Robot Unicorns and the Flying Dutchmen. As a member of the latter team, I’m pretty confident in my ability to declare us the superior of the two. My group started with several exercises designed to build our trust in each other on the ground, and then moved on to something much bigger and scarier–the “Y.” True to its name, this was a Y-shaped wire high above the ground, which two people would have to climb up to and go across together, aided only by a belay team and two ropes.
My roommate Chelsea and I decided to go up the Y together, despite balance problems and aforementioned fears on both our parts. It took what seemed like forever, but we made it (despite several almost-falls), thanks to the encouragement of our teammates and each other. By the time I was blessedly on solid ground, I couldn't believe I’d done the Y, and I was incredibly glad that I had such supportive classmates, despite knowing them for less than 48 hours. Finally after more team-building activities, including one “helium pole” that proved impossible to get down, it was time for a lunch break.
After a nice lunch of sandwiches, chips, and much-coveted chocolate chip cookies, we were back to the ropes for more challenging activities. We started off with Nessie, a course where two people climbed up a pole, then crossed through the air on balancing beams pulled by classmates below. This proved very difficult, and it took a lot of trial and error for the team to figure it out, but by the time Mary Gray and I crossed, our classmates had figured out the literal and figurative ropes of Nessie. After that terrifying experience, we did more activities, from fitting our 13-person team onto one small block to crossing a “river of lava” with only 3 planks to get us from block to block while blindfolded.
Finally, it was time for the swing–a free-falling pendulum starting 35 feet in the air. I went first, just so I wouldn’t have any time to get more nervous. After a nervewracking pull to the top, I pulled out the pin that was keeping me suspended in the air and flew to the ground with a scream. Though the first two seconds of that fall were the most terrifying ones of my life, by the time I was on the upswing I loved it. My teammates were a little less loud during the fall on their turns, but we all shared the consensus that it was one of the most fun experiences we’d had.
After everyone had a turn and we did one last bonding activity with the Robot Unicorns, the HSLP class of 2010 was ready to head home to Bice for showers, dinner, reading, and just hanging out. When I first realized I’d have to go on a high-ropes course for this program, I was sure I’d chicken out and would be promptly mocked by the rest of my class. Oh, how wrong I was! Our experiences at Poplar Ridge brought us closer together as friends and as a class. I think that we wholeheartedly did get to know each other better, trust each other, and respect each person no matter how much they wanted to challenge themselves. Based on our experience today, I am really looking forward to two weeks with these amazing people!
