Slacklining

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Slacklining is a balance sport which utilizes tubular nylon webbing stretched tight between two anchor points. Slacklining is distinct from tightrope walking in that the line is not held rigidly taut; it is instead dynamic, stretching and bouncing like a large rubber band. The line's tension can be adjusted to suit the user. The line itself is flat, due to the nature of webbing, thus keeping the slacker's footing from rolling as would be the case with an ordinary rope. The dynamic nature of the line allows for impressive tricks and stunts.

1 Tricklining/Lowlining
2 Highlining
3 World Record - Longest Slackline
4 The History of Slacklining
5 External links

[edit] Tricklining/Lowlining

Tricklining is the most common type of slacklining because it can be set up from almost any two points. Tricklining is done low to the ground, and it is also often called "lowlining". A great number of tricks can be done on the line, and because the sport is fairly new, there is plenty of room for new tricks. Some of the common tricks done today are: Standing, stand start, walking, walking backwards, turn around, knee drop, opposite turn around, bounce walk, moonwalk, sit mount, buddha sit, mantle start, sitting down, laying down, jump start, cross legged knee drop, surfing forward, surfing sideways, front flip dismount, back flip dismount, "carrolls mount", jumping/bouncing, doing push-ups, throwing a disc around with someone from line-to-line, tandem walking, the tandem pass, piggy-back rides across the line, and jumping from line-to-line.

[edit] Highlining

Highlining is slacklining at a high elevation. The line is set extra strong with any and all precautions taken to make sure nothing goes wrong while the slacker walks across a gap anywhere from twenty feet to several thousand feet off the ground. Here, the experts push themselves to walk longer and higher lines in some of the most beautiful areas on the planet. To ensure safety, most highliners wear a climbing harness with a leash attached to the slackline itself; however, unleashed walks of highlines are not unheard of.

As of 2006, there have been no deaths while slacklining, and those who partake in the sport strive to keep this record clean.

[edit] World Record - Longest Slackline

The longest slackline on record was walked by Damian Cooksey on April 23, 2006. The length of this slackline was 310 ft (94.5 meters). Click here to see edited video of the walk.

[edit] The History of Slacklining

While rope walking has been around in one manner or another for thousands of years, the origins of modern day slacklining are generally attributed to a pair of rock climbers living in Yosemite Valley, California, in the early 1980s. Adam Grosowsky and Jeff Ellington started their walking on loose chains and cables alongside parking lots, and over time progressed to stringing up their climbing webbing and walking it. The sport blossomed from there among climbers in the valley, and then branched out elsewhere all over the world.