For many people new into this industry, when they saw our giant inflatable obstacle course for 5K race, they felt that they can do the same job easily. At first glance, designing such a large obstacle race venue seems just placing some different inflatable obstacle units on the playground. However, it's easier said than done. A great inflatable obstacle course needs to challenge the participants of different levels physically and mentally. The project should include tests of strength, stamina, agility, gross motor skills (walking, running, jumping, crawling, etc.), and cognitive skills like hand-eye coordination, logic, reasoning, etc.

To complete such a great venue, you need to use a variety of giant inflatable obstacle structures. And commercial grade inflatables are not cheap. As the 5K obstacle run event organizer, you need to try and deliver as much of the challenges as possible within the financial and special budgets available to you. And make sure that the entire course can be actually completed by both kids and adults, too. If you really want to know how to create an awesome obstacle course with commercial inflatables, you should cooperate with Sunjoy Inflatables. After all, we make inflatable obstacle courses.

1. Know your needs

Before you start putting your pan to paper to design your obstacle course venue, you need to know who this event is actually for. The inflatable obstacle courses for adults will be significantly different from those designed for children. You can't put a small obstacle structure specific for kids in the middle of a variety of giant obstacle structures designed for adults. So choosing the right inflatable obstacles based on who is using them. Then you should consider the difficulty level of your obstacle course according to the general participants and purpose of the event. High challenging climbing wall and cliff jump obstacle is obviously not suitable for little kid's birthday party.

2. Which large inflatable components can you choose?

One great benefit to customize your own obstacle course from the manufacturer is that all this structures are modular design. One single unit is a fun inflatable game, and many units connected together is a big obstacle course. That means you can mix and match various inflatable obstacles and put together whatever combination of challenges you'd like. These inflatable structures include climbing wall, balance beam, pillar jungle and slide, monkey bar, crawling obstacle and tunnel, cliff jump, rolling ball, leaps N bounds, and many other skill testing games. You can also set up a bouncy castle or ball pit in the middle for participants to take a break from physical exertion. The combination is only limited by your imagination and location.

3. How to make it more fun?

As mentioned above, you can not only attach all modular inflatable units together in a sequence, but also leave some space between the larger units according to your venue size. Therefore, you add some smaller and simpler secondary inflatables between those two larger obstacles to keep it more enjoyable. They don't have to be inflatables. You can set up a tire obstacle course, a balance beam with gym mats below it, S-Running cones, even a food stall or a donation box for your fund raising event.

4. How to make it safe?

Last but not least, make sure to keep all participants safe. If your obstacle course looks dangerous, then no one will allow their kids to give it a go. Although most inflatable structures are inherently safe to begin with, you should also incorporate good safety practices between the inflatables. Use colored ropes or other visual markers on the ground to define a clear path for participants from one challenge to the next. And as a sport event organizer, it's always a good idea to prepare a first aid kit and some ice packs just in case.

From fun gatherings like birthday parties or festivals to more purpose-driven events like fundraisers or team building exercises, inflatable obstacle courses can be used at a wide assortment of events. Now come to sunjoy and start to design your great inflatable 5K race!