Parkour, also known as "the art of displacement", is a unique and relatively new discipline devoted to fluid and efficient body movement through any environment.
Scaling walls, performing death-defying leaps and various other sorts of acrobatic finery are all run of the mill to traceurs, people who perform parkour.
Advertisement
Facts
Developed in France by David Belle and Sébastian Foucan, parkour has gained a massive international following. Parkour sessions, or ‘jams’ usually take place in urban areas between a group of traceurs who attempt to accomplish a run through a series of obstacles without stopping. The obstacles could be anything, ranging from telephone poles to gates, walls or trees.
When out on jams, traceurs occasionally employ ‘spotters’, fellow traceurs who observe whether certain obstacles are too great to overcome, like buildings that are too high to jump from safely. Novice traceurs are discouraged from participating in jams until they are able to complete a gruelling 4½ kilometre run on their own.
Parkour has gained mainstream appeal through its use in movies like District 13 and Casino Royale. It has also garnered something of a dark side in Paris as many cat burglars and thieves have taken to using parkour when escaping from the police.
Philosophy
Parkour was developed through the belief that man was meant to move with his entire body in a way that nature intended. On its surface, parkour appears to be nothing more than an extreme sport but its philosophy is more profound.
Parkour was established on the principles of self-betterment and the ability to escape from dangerous situations quickly and efficiently. As such, it has less in common with extreme sports and more with the martial arts
Moves
The moves practiced in parkour are hardly tame in nature. Vaults, spins and flips meld together to create one fluid, continuous run where momentum is key. The moves are performed in such a manner so that they minimise the likelihood of heavy impacts and force traceurs to think on their feet. Some of the moves used in parkour include:
The roll/ Roulade
The roll is the most fundamental move in parkour. It lessens impact and conveys momentum which allows tracers to continue their runs without stopping.
How to do it: After landing a jump, take the initial impact into your legs, bend your knees, lean forward, arms out to soften the impact some more, tuck your head towards your chin and roll from the right-hand side of the back of your shoulder down to the bottom-left side of your back. Rolls can also be done the other way round, from the back side of the left shoulder to the bottom right of the back.
Drop jump/ Saut de Fond
Drop jumps are used to land safely from heights. This is one of the more dangerous parkour moves as it has a high risk factor besides additional risks like wind or mistiming a jump. Traceurs usually use spotters to help them determine if some jumps are too high to perform. Drop jumps, like precision jumps, can be performed from a stationary position or after a run-up.
How to do it: During the jump, make a metal note of where you’re going to land and steady your body with your arms. Land on both feet, allowing your knees to absorb the initial impact and lean forward to continue into a roll and use the momentum to continue your run after rolling into a running position. Be sure that the area you’re jumping onto doesn’t have any lose gravel, sharp stones or broken glass. Also, be sure that the place where you plan on land is clear and will allow you to continue your run.
Pop vault/ Passe Muraille
Pop vaults are used to scale walls. Run towards a wall/vertical obstacle but not too quickly.
How to do it: Kick off the ground with your strongest foot, placing the other foot at least waist high on the obstacle. Grab the top of the obstacle and drag yourself upwards, kicking off of the obstacle as you do so to gain extra height while pulling yourself up. Be sure to check if the top of the obstacle has anything dangerous like glass shards or wires near where you have to grab on.
Clubs
Jams take place informally as most traceurs within an area meet and decide where their jams will take place. Visit www.parkour.co.za for more information on where you can participate in jams in your area.
(André van Wyk, Health24, November 2007)
Sources: Parkour South Africa (www.parkour.co.za), Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org), AskMen.com (www.askmen.com), Urban Freeflow (www.urbanfreeflow.com)
Bookmark with:
What are social bookmarks?