Tied up with a harness, hanging from a rope, and with both hands on the railing, Carlos takes a deep breath. He is about to launch the longest zip line in the Peninsula: 100 meters long, 11 meters high and more than 20 seconds suspended in the air. The same terror that Pablo Casado distilled this last week in Génova, 13, is reflected in his eyes.
“Come on, you’ll be the first customer to try it,” the monitors joke. It doesn’t seem to reassure him. Swallowing his fears, he takes a small leap into the void and, holding on to a rope, slides around the room. “It has been shocking. I had never felt like a chorizo hanging in a delicatessen », he says upon reaching the mainland.
At his feet, a dozen people try the mats, the air bed, the climbing wall and all kinds of activities that awaken a vertigo that not even Hitchcock. He is in jump yard (San Ferran, 4, Cornellà de Llobregat), a indoor activity park that this Friday, at 4:00 p.m., opens its doors to the public and that, without a doubt, lives up to its expectations: with 2,850 square meters of jumping areas and almost 5,000 of leisure, it is the largest in Catalonia. “Is he 13th JumpYard in Europe and the first of Spain», says Pedro Alfonso, responsible for marketing. «Three months ago we premiered one in Portugal, the first on the Peninsula. The rest, in Scandinavia”, where the company originates from, founded in 2017 by two Swedish ‘skaters’ “who wanted a place where they could feel the same adrenaline as on the ramp,” explains Juanma Santamaría, director of the Barcelona venue.
“The success was such that, since then, and despite the pandemic, they have not stopped founding new premises,” he adds. «Only in Naca [Suecia] we have some 1,000 visitors per day», asks Daniel, who comes from that headquarters to train the new monitors. “Yes, and soon we will inaugurate the 14th JumpYard, in Oslo”, continues Juanma, proud.
Under the zip line and the ‘high ropes course’, a dozen jumpers try the mats to have them ready for the grand opening. “You have to try the ‘cardio world’», recommends Juanma to Carlos, pointing to some mats with large screens full of augmented reality games to make the exercise more dynamic. «10 minutes on trampolines is equivalent to 30 minutes of continuous running. Mat cardio kills you,” she warns. “If even the astronauts prepared themselves with this sport.” Come on, you leave here so sweaty that even your clothes fantasize about a washing machine.
Family-friendly space
Although it seems very hard, there are activities for everyone. “The ages? From the age of three until the body can hold on”, says Juanma laughing. «It is a space suitable for families», he comments, pointing to the different spaces, widely separated, that range from semi-Olympic trampolines and circuits for the bravest, to air mattresses and ‘family-friendly’ beds that do not require any physical form.
In fact, families are one of its main targets. Beyond those who come looking for adrenaline at more than 10 meters high, the space is designed to be very inclusive. «They fit 170 people per hour and there are always monitors supervising so that the spaces are divided between the needs of the children and the adults, rotating in the spaces”, assures Juanma. He also adds that they have several private party rooms where birthdays, teambuildings or bachelor parties can be held: “It’s a space for everyone, really,” he says, convinced.
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Of course, even if you choose the easiest option, fatigue is guaranteed. “I should go back to the gym,” Carlos murmurs, panting after half an hour on the mats. Beside him, Daniel does somersaults in the air with each of his jumps. «Man, he is a professional», adds a monitor when seeing the faces of disbelief. “This is another of our short-term goals: to make tutorials to learn to jump”, says Juanma. Yes, this is the first gym where skipping classes will make you fitter.