I Walk the [Slack]Line

For those of you not ‘in the know’ a slackline is used primarily by climbers to develop balance by walking the length of tubular nylon webbing (usually 1 inch thick) ala the Great Blondin. The difference between tightrope walking and slacklining is that the slackline, although tight as a drum, flexes and moves – a true test of balance.

How high the slackline is up to the slacker. I set mine up about 3 and a half feet high between trees in the backyard – just high enough to dislocate a shoulder and close enough to the back door so my sobbing is heard from the house. Dean Potter and other accomplished slackers like to go a little higher – like the 2,500 Lost Arrow Spire Gap in Yosemite. Much like myself in the backyard, Dean did Lost Arrow without a tether (yikes).

Just as bouldering was initially used to develop explosiveness for climbers, slacklining has become a sport all its own. More and more surfers, boarders and other balance sport enthusiasts are setting up between trees. Some purchase slackline kits, which greatly simplifies set-up and break-down. I rolled my own with a three carabiner pulley system.

Check it out and start slacking (slacker) – Mr. Cash ain’t never walked this line.