Zip Line Dismount Platform Construction

After several ideas on how to get our zip liners dismounted...I think we have finally come up with a fairly simple idea, based on all the other ideas we had to work through to finally get to this one.  It has been a long and complicated process of thinking and re-thinking, based initially on our desire to not plant a structure out in the middle of the open field as a potential eye sore and visual distraction.   But, since something portable was not user friendly or even safe, we moved into the realm of creating something stationary.  Once again, ideas were many, based on input from other camps and other zip lines we were aware of...but all of them seemed to have potential problems or pitfalls of some form or another, and we could not come up with a good fit for our particular situation.  So, about a week ago, and after we thought we had come up with a dismount platform we could live with, I decided we had better do a simulation of the idea in mind and get some guinea pig riders out on the zip line, simulate the structure we had in mind and test the distances from the zip line riders to a structure in-between the lines.   I immediately realized that if we were going to have a fixed structure between the 2 zip lines, it was going to have to be at least 5 feet away from the rider passing by...or it was going to be too close to be considered safe.  After some more test runs we decided upon a plan of having a stationary platform w/ steps that would only be 3 feet wide...in-between our zip lines that are 13 feet apart at the point of dismount (which is near the belly of the gravity brake zip line and the point where the rider will eventually end up after gravity brings them to a stop).  So, after the rider has come to a stop... a rolling platform is rolled up next to the stationary platform, positioned then underneath the zip line, and the rider is pulled to the point of dismount on top of this rolling platform where they can be unclipped from the pulley and safely end their ride.  If the rider happens to be lightweight, and higher than the platform, a hook and crank system will be used to aid in pulling them down to the level of the dismount platform.  After the rider is unhooked, they exit the zip line down the steps on the stationary portion of the platform.    Ride over.

Here are a couple pictures of the construction so far...which is only up to Day 3 at this point.  Day 1 was forming and pouring the concrete footing runways.  Day 2 was setting the metal poles and the framework for the dismount deck...and dodging several scattered thunderstorms also.   Day 3 was pulling the forms and backfilling around the concrete footing runways.  More of the process and pictures yet to come... so stay tuned.