It’s been a while since we talked about slacklining (some call it baselining or highlining), and to remind you what the more extreme slacklining is about I show here, again, Dean Potter highlining across Hellroaring Canyon near Moab, UT:
Dean is one of the forerunners of this sport and has pushed his skills to the limit. He slacklines with a parachute rather than a safety harness!
However, slacklining has received some bad press and a fair amount of intolerance in some circles.
Most people slackline no more than a few feet off the ground. It is all about balance and control and that is what satisfies a lot of people. “It’s almost like meditation. You get on a slackline, all you think about is the next step,” Kate Vander Wiede, an engineering student at the University of Colorado said. However the university itself takes a more dim view of the sport. Citing safety concerns and possible harm to trees, they have banned slacklining on campus this year after dozens of students started showing up at slacklines strung across campus quads.
“Look, we’re not trying to be killjoys here,” said CU spokesman Bronson Hilliard . “You simply, as an institution, can’t accommodate every single fun thing kids want to do when safety and environmental factors come into play.” Which I suppose is true, although when the pastime is relatively harmless one would think it would be encouraged, or at least tolerated, rather than banned. Slackliners insist the activity is no more dangerous than skateboarding or bicycling, and that properly attached slacklines, which include pads, don’t hurt tree trunks.
So, what is slacklining exactly?
source : http://www.xtremesport4u.com/2008/11/
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