Valparaiso, IN Outdoor Activities

In a shop lined with more than 100 bikes models from all around the world, Upgrade Cycle Works' pro mechanics channel their love of cycling whether they are aligning the frame on an old single speed or fitting guests for a brand new road bike. During the fit process, staffers employ the same computerized system used at the Olympic training center as opposed to tracing your body outline on a large piece of construction paper. Next, they’ll help guests choose from bike brands such as Felt, Masi, and Raleigh, and an in-store selection of rides that includes road bikes, single speeds, and hybrids.

In Upgrade's workshop, pro mechanics perform comprehensive tune-ups and repairs, revitalize faded paint jobs, replace punctured wheels, and align frames. The staff also hosts repair clinics to teach cyclists how to fix flat tires and adjust brakes.

Bike and Roll Chicago's staff dispatches clients on wheel-based expeditions throughout Chicago. Guides—several of whom are Chicagoland natives—can lead informative and entertaining tours in Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, and semaphores.

Odyssey Fun World's attractions aren't confined to its 45,000 square feet of indoor games and rides—they also sprawl across 11 acres in the fresh air. Inside, a ferris wheel, bumper cars, and a roller coaster host both kids and adults, and more than 250 arcade games and a laser-tag arena foster friendly competition. The indoor Gamers Lounge allows youngsters to practice their XBox 360 and Wii skills, while kids up to 10 years old fling themselves into ball pits, slip down slides, or dispute the physics behind make-believe-ore extraction in tunnels at the four-story Exploration Adventure play structure.

Outside, the staff keeps the Kidz Adventure Park's inflatable bounce houses and slides properly puffed. They also pretend to manicure the faux turfs of two 18-hole mini-golf courses, including one that's wheelchair accessible. Their bumper boats encourage friendly jostling, but the speedboats—limited to drivers aged 16 and older with a driver's license—are all about crossing the finish line first. As trips down the zipline peak adrenaline and appetites, Chipper's Cafe counters hunger with pizza, gyros, and Eli's Cheesecake.

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Mudderland transmutes one of the Midwest's largest motocross tracks into a swampy test of endurance, challenging thrill-seekers across 3.5 miles of military-style obstacles. Unfurled across the site of a WWII munitions factory, the one-day, full-body assault sends participants running, climbing, and crawling through a lineup of natural barriers, including a 19-foot concrete wall that sprouted from a radioactive apple seed during the 1940s. As limbs splash through ponds, slither through tunnels, and flail wildly while soaring down monstrous slip and slides, spectators bask in the muddy melee from elevated bleachers and VIP viewing decks. Afterward, fresh water bursts from the course's showers to blast away dirt and reveal each participant's new layer of confidence.

A green flag cuts through the air, signaling rows of Sodi GT2 karts to throttle up their 200cc Honda GX engines and roar around the quarter-mile track. Inside the 40,000-square-foot facility that houses these karts, Chicago Race Factory's staff provides safety briefings and protective helmets to drivers, scheduling track time in advance or penciling walk-ins into the next available race. The track is also open to parties for birthdays, social gatherings, and corporate team-building events. Recognizing man's natural need for speed, they have formed competitive and league racing for true gearheads who want more laps around their racer-designed track, whose tire border prevents captive Michelin men from escaping back into the wild.