Jump Street

If you're in or around the Denver area like I was last week, I suggest you take the time to find a place called "Jump Street." Not in any way affiliated with the 80's Johnny Depp show "21 Jump Street," this place is part gym part carnival bouncy house.

The facility is a warehouse which contains clusters of linked trampolines. Between each trampoline is a heavily padded joining structure, so even if you mis-jump and land on the solid structure you don't get hurt. Even the walls are lined with trampolines allowing a type of ricochet jump where the bouncer leaps up towards the side and is thrown back towards the center of the room.

The question quickly becomes: What kind of jumper are you? Are you a rowdy bouncer who strives for height and speed, or are you a technical jumper who flips and cartwheels from one trampoline to another? Many of the children I saw at "Jump Street" fell into the first category. There was at least one woman there, though, that definately fell into the other. She was very focused and deliberate with her jumps. Like a gymnast practicing she would try a series of flips and then sit and recuperate before trying it again. For her the experience was much more like a standard workout. I'm not proud to say it, but I fell into the childish bounce around like the Tasmainian Devil category. I have to admit, although I was much less structured in my technique, the next day I felt like I'd been to the gym. Not only were my legs sore, but my back, shoulders, and arms all felt weary.

If you watch the video on their website (http://www.gotjump.com), it looks like a fun and simple activity. But the truth of the matter is, jumping with such frequency while focusing on speed, height, and distance is quite a workout. Travelers, such as myself, will immediately feel the effects of The Mile High City's thinner air. I jumped for about two whole minutes before the burning in my legs and lungs left me laying on one of the padded supports, wheezing.

If commpetion is more your thing, there is a specific trampoline court that is used for round robin style dodge ball games. It's hard to say what was more satisfying: bouncing off of a wall trampoline and hitting and opponent square in the chest with a ball, or leaping hard off the trampoline to dodge and incoming missile by jumping over it.

When our hour of jumping was over, i knew that I had to come back here and try to get the word out about this place. It's a great unique experience that is fun for both adults and children. Often, places that offer these kinds of quirky fun activities seem to suffer from lack of business (and I have to say there weren't that many other people in the facility the day I went). So, if you're in the Denver area, do yourself a favor and seek out "Jump Street," you won't regret it.