Trampoline Safety

Trampoline Safety Instructions For You & Your Family

Responsibilities For Safe Trampolining

Tips To Reduce The Risk of Accidents

The Users Role In Accident Prevention

The Trampoline user needs to learn how to stay in control of their jumps and manoeuvres.

DO NOT move on to more complicated and difficult manoeuvres until you have mastered the basic fundamental bounces. Education is a very important key to safety. Read, understand and practice all safety precautions and warnings prior to using the Trampoline. For additional safety tips and advanced skill instructions, contact a certified Trampoline instructor. So;

• Always have a supervisor watching you when you are on the Trampoline.
• Never have more than 1 person on the Trampoline at any one time. Multiple users increase the occurrence of injury as they can cause you to lose control, collide, or land on the frame or springs. Generally the lightest person will be the one to get injured.
• When on the Trampoline stay in the middle of the centre of the mat. This will reduce your risk of landing on the frame or springs. Always keep the frame padding covering the frame and springs. Do not jump or step on the frame pad directly since it isn’t intended to support the weight of a person.
• Keep your eyes on the mat or mat edge to prevent losing balance and to maintain control. Do not jump or bounce for excessive periods of time or too high for a number of jumps because fatigue can increase chances of injury.
• Do not bounce recklessly, this increases risk of serious injury.
• Always be in control when you are bouncing on the Trampoline. A controlled jump is when you land on the same spot that you took off from. If at any time you feel out of control, try to stop your bouncing.
• To stop your bounce; flex your knees when you land on the mat with your feet.
• Always learn the basic bounce and master each type of bounce before trying more difficult types of bounces. Review the basic skills section to learn how to do the basics.
• Do not use the Trampoline if you have consumed alcohol or any drug as foreign substances impairs your judgement, reaction time and overall physical coordination.
• You should climb on and off the Trampoline in a controlled and careful manner. Never jump in or off the Trampoline and never use the Trampoline as a device to bounce onto or into another object.
• To get on the Trampoline go up the ladder and to come off sit at the edge of the Trampoline door frame and slide your feet to land on the ladder rungs and step down with care, use both hands at all times.
• Small children should be assisted when mounting and dismounting the Trampoline.
• Remove all hard sharp, objects from person before using the Trampoline.

How to Ensure Safe Use of a Trampoline

• After buying a safe trampoline for your family that will not only have the kids outdoors away from the television but ultimately keep them fit and healthy; To make sure everyone does stay safe, you’ll need to know the basic trampoline safety rules, and be sure to tell your children and especially your teenagers, preferably before anyone gets on the trampoline.
• A primary reason for why people get injured on trampolines is because multiple users are on it at the same time. If you allow a number of children on the trampoline, they are sure to jump and bump one another, ending with someone getting hurt. It’s better if you limit the usage to one person at a time.
• You also need to have adult supervision at all times when younger children are using the trampoline to help prevent falls and to help the kids on and off of the trampoline safely. To help a user to keep balanced tell them to keep their eyes focused on the edge of the trampoline. There are kids who will try more difficult tricks, like somersaults and flips, on a home trampoline. These are tricks which should be done only in a gym or club under the observation of a gymnastics instructor. In addition, keep your trampoline away from the water unless you have one specifically made for water use. Never place your trampoline near enough to your pool that someone will want to try using it as a diving board. The result of this could well be a serious head or neck injury.
• Regular inspections of your trampoline are important. Even when the trampoline is new, you need to check to make sure everything is as it should be before letting anyone use it. After that, you should plan for routine trampoline preventive maintenance every month or two. Make a note of the warranty that comes with your trampoline so that you’ll know what you can do if you find any defective parts or need to return the trampoline.
• A trampoline can be a lot of fun for everyone if you just adhere to a few simple safety practices. It is advisable to people with Cardio problems and pregnant women to not use a trampoline for obvious reasons.
• Users should wear comfortable clothing – i.e. shorts and t-shirt or tracksuits, only wear soft gymnastic shoes, heavy socks or bare feet. Do not wear hard soled shoes or shoes with buckles or metallic finishes as this will cause excessive wear on the mat. If you are a beginner then you may want to wear a long sleeved top and pants to protect yourself from scrapes and abrasions until you master control of bouncing and landing.
• Users should not wear anything that can become caught on any part of the Trampoline, e.g. hooded clothing, clothing with drawstrings, buckles etc or any loose clothing that can restrict the users view, e.g. flapping shirt or skirt.
• It is advisable to not to use the Trampoline immediately after a meal.
• No pets or animals are to go on the Trampoline.

The Supervisors Role in Accident Prevention

Supervisors need to understand and enforce all safety rules and guidelines. Be educated in the basic bounces and Trampoline maneuvers. It is the responsibility of the supervisor to provide knowledgeable advice and guidance to all users of the Trampoline.

• A supervisor will ensure that all new users learn the basic bounces before trying more difficult and advanced jumps.
• If supervision is unavailable or inadequate, the Trampoline could be stored in a secure place, disassembled to prevent unauthorised use, or covered with a heavy tarpaulin that can be locked or secured with locks or chains.
• The supervisor is responsible to ensure that the safety placard is placed on the Trampoline and that all users are informed of these warnings and instructions prior to getting on the Trampoline.
• All users need to be supervised regardless of skill level or age.
• Never use the Trampoline when it is wet, damaged, dirty or worn out. The Trampoline should be inspected before any users start bouncing on it.
• Keep all objects that could interfere with the users away from the Trampoline. Be aware of what is overhead, underneath and around the Trampoline.
• To prevent any unsupervised and unauthorised use, the Trampoline should be secured when not in use.

Information on the Use of the Trampoline

Initially you should become accustomed to the feel and bounce of the Trampoline. The focus must be on the fundamentals of your body position and you should practice each of the basic bounces until you can do each with ease and control.

TO STOP BOUNCING

To break a bounce all you need to do is flex your knees sharply before they come in contact with the mat of the Trampoline. This technique should be practiced while you are learning each of the basic bounces. The skill of braking should be used whenever you lose balance or control of a maneuver, or if you are just learning how to jump on a Trampoline. If you don’t; you will increase your risk of being injured by landing on the frame or springs. A controlled jump is considered landing on the same spot that you took off from. If you do lose control when you are jumping on the Trampoline, bend your knees sharply when you land and this will allow you to regain control and stop your jump.

SOMERSAULTS (FLIPS)

DO NOT PERFORM somersaults of any type (backwards or forwards) on this Trampoline. If you make a mistake when trying to perform a somersault, you could land on your head or neck. This will increase your chances of getting a neck or back injury which may result in paralysis or death.

FOREIGN OBJECTS

DO NOT use the Trampoline if there are any pets, other people, or any objects on or under the Trampoline otherwise there will be an increase in the chances of an injury occurring. DO NOT hold any foreign objects in your hand and DO NOT place any objects on the Trampoline while anyone is playing on it. Please be aware of what is overhead when you are playing on the Trampoline. Tree limbs, wires or other objects located over the Trampoline will increase your chances of injury.

WEATHER CONDITIONS

Please be aware of the weather conditions when using the Trampoline. If the mat of the Trampoline is wet, the user could lose control, slip, and injure themselves. If it is too windy, users could lose control. See Notes on securing Trampoline for high winds.

LIMITING ACCESS

When the Trampoline is not in use always store the access ladder in a secure place so that unsupervised children cannot gain access and play on the Trampoline.