Parkours anyone? I was recently in Central Park, and saw what I thought was a woman chasing a man; and he was trying to escape. They were climbing over rocks, running over benches, and running over the tops of railings. If he was running behind her I may have tried to do something chivalrous, but I came to find out that they were participating in a physical discipline called Parkours.
Parkours is a French word, and it seems that the activity has a long history, and was first practiced, in France. The object is to overcome any obstacle that comes up during a free running outing using different skills along the way. Almost ninja-like in its ability to adapt to the many different public structures that are available, it can best be compared to a random obstacle course.
Although it is a free style event, the different skills are:
•· Jumping and landing on your toes/ball of the foot, so you can continue without stopping.
•· Balance, which involves walking along the top of an obstacle.
•· Cat balance or quadrupedal movement along the crest of an obstacle.
•· Jumping or swinging through a gap between obstacles.
•· A hanging drop from a branch, wall, or bar.
•· Different types of vaulting over objects.
•· Climbing, rolling, and leaping.
No equipment is necessary, and there are no formal training facilities. You can literally practice Parkour anywhere. Manhattan seems to be the perfect place to adapt this urban style activity, and where else but New York would an off-beat practice like this catch on?
So, if you ever see someone running as if they were trying to escape from something or someone, Pause for a second, and determine if they might simply be out for their daily run.
Visit my website at www.LouSnitkin.com
Comments(2)