Charlie

Tuesday Night Adventure Club

The boys are back. And they’re not wearing seersucker and bow ties.

Instead, they’re rappelling off downtown Charleston buildings and zip lining over your head. Like Spidey, without the webs.

Welcome to Tuesday Night Adventure Club, otherwise known as TNAC (“tee-knack”). Ensuring that you never have to spend another run-of-the-mill Tuesday watching “American Idol” again if you don’t wish.

Bryan Young, an assistant operations marine manager by day, and Bill Westley, an esteemed environmental consultant, co-founded TNAC on a whim. It was three years ago when they serendipitously found themselves celebrating Mardi Gras and Westley’s birthday on the same evening and, after some bar hopping, decided to mark the night by rappelling off the Moon Tower parking garage on East Bay and Calhoun at 2:30am. TNAC was born.

TNAC is open to anyone with a thirst for adventure. Men, women, young and…old, apparently. Westley tells us in a “Confucius Say” kind of way, “The important thing is that there is no maximum age. As long as you are youthful in your heart and have a spring in your step, you’re welcome.”

Their stunts vary from climbing and rappelling, to dirt skiing and extreme water sports. Sure, it’s not always, strictly speaking, “legal,” but it sure is a good time. And what is a felony between friends?

Young is the dreamer and Westley is the safety guy. When we went on a recent TNAC adventure, we witnessed an intervention of sorts: Young contemplating knee-boarding through mud being pulled by a jeep, and Westley alerting him to the fact that the stunt would likely rip off his quads. So, yes, there is a voice of reason to ensure minimal casualties. Westley assures, “I’ll shoot myself out of a rocket as long as I know where I’m landing.”

TNAC has many mottos: “DANGER: The Official Sponsor,” “Making Girls Scream Since 2007″ and Westley’s personal motto, “Always Find a Reason to Celebrate.”

They even have sponsors (besides DANGER). ZipLineGear.com is the first “unofficial” sponsor, providing gear to the crew in exchange for flying its company banner at events. CHARLIE also just became an “unofficial” sponsor for, well, doing nothing, so the point is that they are actively accepting sponsorships.

There’s adventure, laughter, thrills and, sometimes, a little blood (usually on Young), but the bottom line is that TNAC is about new friends and exciting experiences. It’s about seeing your city from the rooftops and sharing a champagne toast post-climb. It’s about leaving behind the ordinary and mundane. It’s about, as Westley puts it, “finding the best in everything…even yourself.” He cracks a sarcastic smile at this one.

Story by: Caroline Nuttall