Standards Background
Since the early days of the bungee jumping industry, entrepreneurs, industry experts, and AHJs have worked together to develop standards, codes of safe practice, and jurisdictional statutes and laws relating to the practice of bungee jumping.
The industry followed a regionally compartmental development with industry pioneers and early industry experts developing the practice independently in many corners of the globe. This led to the formation of numerous different coalitions of industry experts in regional associations and task groups drafting different codes and standards representing the interests of those groups.
Many of these documents originated in the 1980s and 1990s, and although their respective scopes were limited to the specific regions or groups that developed them, many have endured and are still utilized to this day. Some major publications such as NABA, NZ 5848, CBA, USBA, NF S52 501 have been used either directly or de facto by multiple countries and governing bodies over the years.
ASTM 62522
It was on the initiative of USA bungee jumping pioneer Casey Dale and amusement industry standards expert Mike Teske that the plan for the first-ever International Standard for bungee jumping was to be developed in conjunction with the ASTM in 2017.
The duo assembled a task group of industry experts from around the world who began monthly work sessions in order to put together a draft of a document that had an international scope and adhered to the TBT Principles for Standards Development put forth by the World Trade Organization.
The task group worked for several years over countless in-person and online working sessions and drew inspiration from other major international standards such as ASTM F2291, F770, F1193, and F2959. In addition to these standards, the group incorporated knowledge from existing regional bungee jumping standards such as NZ5848 and CBA.
The end result is a document that has the entire industry as its scope and, as of 2025, is expected to be harmonized in jurisdictions around the globe, paving the way for a new generation in the bungee jumping industry.
