Bryce Brooks's family has worked in the field of indoor entertainment since 2007 when they opened the first of 16 Jump Street indoor trampoline park locations, which span from Denver to Atlanta. One of those locations is in Katy Mills. When it came to expanding the family business in December 2013, Brooks decided to open Segway Outback, a new entertainment concept in Katy.

The 30,000-square-foot arena of Segway obstacle courses, is the first of its kind in America, Brooks said. The company chose Katy for its first location because of the city's rapid pace of growth.

"This place gives normal, ordinary people the opportunity to come in and experience what it's like to ride a Segway," he said.

For those unfamiliar with personal transportation vehicles, Brooks said that riding a Segway is unlike riding any other vehicle. Using patented technology, riders stand on the two-wheeled transporters and control the Segway with only the movement of their bodies.

"It's a feeling of gliding," Brooks said. "It's pretty unique in the fact that there's no gas or breaks, it's all in your body movement. It's almost like it's reading your mind and knows what you want to do next. It's a cool technology."

When customers arrive at the business they are given a quick tutorial on the vehicle before trying their hand at the arena's obstacle courses, Brooks said.

"We bring them out to this training area and get them comfortable," he said. "A lot of people, when they first get on a Segway, they think they have to balance themselves like they would on a unicycle. After a couple of minutes they realize the machine balances for them. It goes from being a really unnatural feeling to being totally intuitive. It's neat to see people be uneasy at first and then a few minutes later feel totally comfortable."

Once patrons have acclimated themselves to riding a Segway, they ride their way through nine obstacle courses.

"They can weave in and out of pendulums or around barrels, [or] go through a speed course and ride up and down ramps," Brooks said.

Customers can pay for their Segway rides in 30-minute increments on weekends or in 15-minute increments on weekdays. Segways are also available for 24-hour rental and purchase.

Brooks said the business has attracted Segway enthusiasts and novices alike since its opening, prompting his family to open a second Segway Outback location within a Jump Street in Atlanta.

"One person will come by and try it, and they'll love it and want to show all of their friends and family because it's so unique," he said. "We're definitely becoming an entertainment destination with a lot of repeat customers."