Running the show and hiring good people. “Managing the company was al- ways my goal because if I’m going to do something, I want to be able to control the destiny,” says Olson. His background as an educator also strongly influenced his decision to invest in ABEE. “I like guiding people to do what they really want to do and giving them the knowledge they need to be profession- als,” he says. “I don’t like micromanag- ing: I want to develop people so I can leave them alone and let them grow on their own. Some of the best hires I have made I did because they were good people, not because I had a need.”
One key to success: stick to the knitting. Like Olson himself, ABEE has never strayed too far from its roots. More than 40 years after its founding, the company still concentrates mostly on building challenge courses for camps, schools, and hospitals. “We’ve gotten into commercial zip lines and aerial parks since I took over, but not huge-dollar projects; we’ve just dipped our toes in,” he says. “We only do commercial projects for people who seek us out, and when it won’t take away from our core business.” However, that’s not to say the company has grown stale. Even in its core busi- ness, course elements have evolved and
new activities have become popular; many of ABEE’s builds now incorporate zip lines and climbing walls, for exam- ple, and the company has responded to client needs for higher throughput while maintaining a strong commitment to user safety, says Olson. The importance of building smarter. “The majority of courses we build now have smart belay systems, no matter what setting we are in,” he says. “Kids can stay at height longer, and belayers can be more monitors than belayers.” A lot of the company’s climbing walls use auto belay systems, he notes.
The rising complexity of longer zip lines in terms of braking and landing
Above: An internal staircase eases access to the challenge course elements at the NEW Zoo & Adventure Park in Green Bay, Wis. Left: Nearly all of ABEE’s installations are pole- based structures, like this challenge course and climbing wall at JCC Ranch Camp in Colorado.
Made with FlippingBook Digital Proposal Creator