ISSUE 1
PhotoEdition
JUNE 2011
URBANLINER
International Urban Slackline Magazine
Elephants on Streets
THE
FEATURES: • Riders from Down Under – Slackline Australia • Brown University Slackline Club • Urbanlining in South America – Chile • Urbanliner’s Photo Tour 2011
CONTENT 4
Riders from Down Under – Slackline Australia
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Elephants On The Streets
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Urbanliner’s Video Spotlight
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Brown University Slackline Club
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On The Line: Brenden Gebhart, USA
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Urbanlining in South America – Chile
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The World of Urban Slackline – Urbanliner’s Photo Tour 2011
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On the front cover: Elephant Slacklines athlete Josua Schmid Photographer: Bernd Hassmann Urbanlining adverts Photographer: Tero Heino Editor & Designer: Touko Helanen Check www.facebook.com/urban.slacklining for more information and updates. Urbanliner Magazine is published monthly by Urbanlining at Matti Alangon katu 4 A 11, 13130 Hämeenlinna, Finland. Signed articles do not necessarily reflect the official company policy. © 2011 Urbanlining. All rights reserved. Reproduction in part or whole without permission is prohibited. Editorial, publishing and advertising enquiries: URB@URBANLINING.COM
Issue 1 Contributors: Sam Carney Logan Hurford Slackline Australia’s riders Bernd Hassmann Benni Schmid Josua Schmid Joscha Weinert Niklas Winter Melissa Bowe Kyle Cackett Max Monn Hannah Varner Brenden Gebhart Tom Check Philipp Freudigmann Slackliners from Chile Florian Hansen Christian Krr Yannick Lis Kim Devos 2
Kevin Joeres Daniel Pedro Da Silva Matt Wiersum Mitch Host Holger Welsch Andi Frank Jan Grandell Edwin Moises Carlos Fuentes Tero Heino Johanna Kankaanmäki Jarmo Tyni Igor Scotland David Leidinger Florian Hamel Caroline Rangel Gustavo Valente Nathalia Barroso Jakub Hanus Tonda Honzik
URBANLINER PHOTO EDITION Welcome liners, as the first issue of the Urbanliner Magazine is being uploaded, the Austrian Slackline Open has already passed by and we are preparing ourselves for the next events of the summer 2011. In the future issues we will cover some of the great events of this summer – for instance the Austrian Slackline Open and the Slackline World Cup in Munich. In this issue we present some featured articles that hopefully reflect the sense of fun, adventure, and excitement of urban slacklining and slacklining in general. We will begin with a visually interesting article about Slackline Australia. The Brown University Slackline Club’s liners will be slackin’ hard and Philipp Freudigmann’s beautiful photos will tell you a story about urban slacklining in Chile, South America. We’ve also got a feature on Elephant Slacklines. Bernd Hassmann sent me some pics and a text about their photo shootings around the city of Munich, and I decided to make it into a featured article. The photo story about elephants on the streets turned out quite well – what do you think? Also, there’s a whole bunch of great pics here from all over the world taken by some awesome photographers. That’s why the issue is now called Photo Edition. We were supposed to tell you more about the upcoming events and so on... but I guess you will all be satisfied with the results – at least I hope so. Any comments and suggestions are welcome. In fact we are really hoping for some serious feedback. If you’d like to share a story in this magazine, you should first come up with a good topic and write down some ideas. The article should, at the very least, completely cover the topic that you’re writing on. If it’s a broad topic, you’re probably breaking it up into an article series. Each part of the series, however, should cover that area in depth. And don’t forget the fact that pictures can also make a good story. So go ahead, give it a try. Tell us a story. For any feedback, or editorial, publishing or advertising enquiries, please contact us by email (urb@urbanlining.com). Enjoy! Touko (Editor)
Riders from Down Under:
SLACKLINE AUSTRALIA
BY SAM CARNEY
“Whoa, check it out!”
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The slackline storm is brewing off the coast of Australia. Word is getting around that the swell is coming up. As is true most mornings, some guys are already in the water, and have been since first light, already riding the clean, peaceful waves. Slackline Australia woke up early to the sounds of the surf at Burleigh Heads, Queensland. They’re not only ‘Riders from Down Under’ but craftsmen, manufacturing and providing the tools of the trade. You can’t surf a wave without a board, and you can’t walk that fine line between the earth and the sky without a slackline. People of Australia are slowly discovering there’s a new solution to a bad surf day. You don’t need much to surf the line. Anchors, webbing, a few ‘biners. There’s no line up, no shallow reef, no dumpers, no hardcore local dudes to accidentally ‘drop in’ on. The ‘Grommits’ (young, inexperienced surfers) of slacklining are called ‘Twangers’. All over Australia twangers are broadening our horizons with awesome multi-line action and flipping skills. The swell is building. We in the water can feel it.
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Photos provided by Logan Hurford
Leon Cossar highlining
Across the world, and the country, twangers and slackers to-be let go of their world for seconds, minutes and hours at a time. Friends of Slackline Australia have already begun travelling the globe, sharing their own kind of enlightenment with kids and adults in Papua New Guinea, Cambodia, India, Nepal and Malaysia. We’ve even had one of our boys slackline on Antarctica! Stepping onto a slackline has an amazing ability to make the world fall away. Nothing else really matters. We all had to crawl before we could walk, and fly. Being truly balanced is a big part of what makes slacklining what it is, and can be. As is the confidence of overcoming the fear and self-doubt to achieve something that you will always be proud of. Whether that’s a four metre high, 25m long unteathered walk over rice fields in India, 150m high, 35m long walk over the beautiful Blue Mountains of New South Wales, or 50cm off the ground between yours and your mate’s 4X4in the front yard. It feels good. Slackline Australia Instructors and Team Riders are living to share their passion and for some, sharing their passion is how they are earning their living.
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Abbie and Miri balancing
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Surfing on the beach
The Gittoes brothers, Ryan, Dylan, and Kirk along with their slacklining brothers and sisters Logan, Joshee, Izzy, Sam, Uri, Kandy, Miri and Phil, are responsible for the vast majority of the happiness Slackline Australia has brought into the world so far. Team riders like Joshee Mannix and mavericks like Lucky Chance, Leon Cossar and Ryan Graney who are pushing the boundaries of slacklining in Australia. With any luck, Slackline Australia will have representatives at the ISPO2012 slackline competition. Practicing focus, relaxation, agility and will – The holistic approach Slackline Australia promotes is not just a sport, but a lifestyle. A lifestyle that encompasses not only physical fitness, but mental and spiritual focus which can penetrate and benefit all aspects of life. We love it! With love to my fellow slackers and the global slacklining brothers and sisters that have provided inspiration to Australian Slackliners. See you on the line or online http://www.slacklineaustralia.com
‘Slackline’ Sam Carney. A Queensland Slacker. 12
Logan Hurford practising yoga on a slackline
Elephants On The Streets W W W . U R B A N L I N I N G . C O M
BY BERND HASSMANN AND THE OTHER ELEPHANTS
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WWW.URBANLINING.COM
Josua Schmid (Germany) Photographer: Bernd Hassmann
Thursday – 11:00 p.m. – Munich: Our two cars arrive at the spot we chose for our first night shoot with the Elephant team: the “Münchener Freiheit”, a big underground station near the city centre. Unfortunately, Flo Ebner from Innsbruck can´t make it to Munich today, which leaves us with Joscha Weinert, Niklas Winter, Bernd Hassmann, Benni Schmid, Josua Schmid and two of their friends. At this time of the day, the station is less crowded – awesome conditions for amazing urban slackline pics. Slackline, photo camera, video camera, tripod – that’s all we need. Everyone has a special jump, grab or other move in mind to
Benni Schmid (Germany) Photographer: Bernd Hassmann
Friday – 0:30 a.m. – Munich: Next stop: “Pinakothek der Moderne”, a museum in Munich dedicated to modern art. It’s also dead useful for slacklining! Lots of concrete pillars right in front of the entrance area generate a perfect scenery for a modern and yet classical photo shoot. All slackliners are in great shape: grabs, flips, spins and static moves – everything comes off terrifically. Unfortunately, the bad lighting makes it very difficult to capture the session and the results don’t seem to be very satisfying...
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Setting up the line takes us about ten minutes, what with arranging and re-arranging the slings for a perfect fit. Then: Game time!
Everyone has a special jump, grab or other move in mind to perform for the camera. It isn´t easy to figure out the right camera angle and flash position for each trick, but in the end our teamwork pays off.
Benni Schmid Photographer: Bernd Hassmann
Niklas Winter (Germany) Photographer: Bernd Hassmann
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Benni Schmid Photographer: Bernd Hassmann
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A
Friday – 03:00 a.m. – Munich fter almost two hours of doing tricks, changing camera positions, adjusting the flash and shooting around 200 pictures, it is time to sort through the results on the computer. BAAAAMM! Our pink Elephant flash’line features the best possible contrast to the grey panels in the background, as you can see in the pictures. Knowing that we have achieved our set objective – namely getting good shots of every team member – we go straight to bed to recharge our batteries for tomorrow. On the agenda: Longlining! W W W . U R B A N L I N I N G . C O M
http://www.elephant-slacklines.com
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Joscha Weinert Photographer: Bernd Hassmann
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Go urban – join us!
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WWW.URBANLINING.COM WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/URBAN.SLACKLINING WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/URBANLINING WWW.TWITTER.COM/URBANLINING
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URBANLINER’S VIDEO SPOTLIGHT
Hiroyuki Kusakari – Wildcard entry for the WSFED WorldCup 2011, Munich
Elisabeth Schulte – Wildcard entry for the WSFED WorldCup 2011, Munich
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Urbanlining @ ISPO 2011 – Introducing The Urban Slackline Family W W W . U R B A N L I N I N G . C O M
! T , H e G I t L T u rib e SPO
h t t n n i Co your vid
t e g d an
Send us your video link: URB@URBANLINING.COM
Or share it here:
http://www.facebook.com/urban.slacklining
If the vid is absolutely awesome, we will share it too. 31
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Kyle Cackett (USA) Photographer: Max Monn
Brown University Slackline Club BY KYLE CACKETT
The entire club meets once each week for 2 hours. When the weather is nice we tie 3-5 lines between a cluster of trees on the central green of Brown’s campus. Typically we set up 2-3 two inch lines and 1-2 one inch lines and our lines are roughly 10-15 meters long. We also have access to a university building where we set up 3-4 shorter lines in the winter so we can slack all year round!
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Melissa Bowe (USA) Photographer: Max Monn
We are the Brown University Slackliners and we slack hard! The Brown University Slackline Club was created in the fall of 2010 at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island in the United States of America. The club is officially recognized by the University and we expect to receive school funding next year.
Our club is primarily run by four members, Kyle Cackett, Melissa Bowe, Hannah Varner, and Max Monn, who provide lines, organize slack sessions, take photographs, and publicize and fundraise for the club. We have an additional 10-15 casual members who slackline with us regularly. Our best riders have been slacklining for as short as 3 months to as long as 4 years and have athletic backgrounds in gymnastics, climbing, ultimate Frisbee and many other sports. They ride a Gibbon surfline and often set it up throughout the week to get more practice on the line.
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Inspired by the Gibbon team’s “City Slackers” video, Melissa Bowe rallied the core members of the club together to set up lines at notable locations in Providence for a slackline video tribute to the city.
We then headed down the hill to Roger Williams Park. The park has an open grassy area bordered by trees. However, the only trees suitable for anchors were approximately 25 meters apart so the line had a slow bounce and was difficult to control. The line was too long for serious tricklining and we were only able to do basic tricks. Photos show Kyle Cackett doing a butt bounce in the sunlight. As the sun began to set we moved to a dock at India Point Park by the Providence Harbor and tied a line between the dock posts. The wooden planking beneath the line made wipeouts especially painful but the setting sun on the water in the background made up for it because we took some amazing pictures and video! Photos on the dock show Kyle Cackett performing an elbow lever and a butt scratch, Hannah Varner doing a chest bounce, and Max Monn in a kneel.
“Our best riders have been slacklining for as short as 3 months to as long as 4 years”
We started at our home turf on the main green of Brown’s campus. The green is a comfortable grassy area at the top of college hill where we slackline all the time so we were very familiar with the length and behavior of the lines. We were able to confidently work on both simple tricks and tricks we hadn’t quite mastered yet. Photos on the green show Melissa Bowe working backflips and Kyle Cackett doing a butt bounce.
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As of now club members have left the University for the summer and the video tribute to Providence is not finished but the Brown University Slackliners are dedicated and passionate riders! Look for our video online next year and expect to see our members competing slackline competitions soon!
Kyle Cackett Photographer: Max Monn
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Kyle Cackett (USA) Photographer: Max Monn
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Max Monn (USA)
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Hannah Varner (USA) Photographer: Max Monn
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ON THE LINE
Photographer: Tom Check 42
BrendenGebz’ ‘b Gebhart Introduce Yourself:
I’m 21 years old, living in the Western United States. I’m always living a very active lifestyle, and the slackline makes me feel where I want to be, no matter where that is.
How Did You Get Into Slacklining?
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I got into slacklining one day when I saw some slackliners in the park bouncing around on a Gibbon Jibline. They called me over to check it out, and the second I stepped on the line, I was hooked. I came into slacklining with 6 years of gymnastics experience, and I decided to start taking everything I knew in gymnastics and putting it on the line. Within the first week, I had already landed a backflip, 540’s, buttbounces, and some fun static tricks. Now, 1.5 years later, I’m raging more than ever.
What Are Your Favourite Tricks On The Line?
Chest Roll feels AWESOME! If you start it right, your momentum does everything for you, and it looks awesome. And backflip because it’s the first move I learned and it was my favorite move before I knew about slacklining.
What Do You Love About Slacklining?
Everything!!! There are no downsides to it, the community is awesome, and there’s no limits!
Your Favourite Lines:
Trickline: Balance Community RAGEline, Longline: Balance Community Mantra Webbing
Your Sponsors:
Raw Revolution Organic Food Bars, Balance Community: Slackline Outfitters, Five Ten
Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/bgebz 43
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Urbanlining in
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South Amer
rica
Urban Slackline Photo Series
Chile
Photos by Philipp Freudigmann
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Carlos Zúñiga Photographer: Philipp Freudigmann
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Carlos Zúñiga Photographer: Philipp Freudigmann
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Carlos Zúñiga Photographer: Philipp Freudigmann
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Maximiliano Molinare and Diego Mu単oz Garcia Photographer: Philipp Freudigmann
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Nico Aimone Photographer: Philipp Freudigmann
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Check out Philipp Freudig http://www.youtube.com
gmann’s Youtube Channel: m/user/Worldoftomorrow
Franco Cravero MendiburĂş performing a chest bounce
U R B A N L I N E R ’ S
P H O T O
T O U R
2 0 1 1
The World of
Urban Slackli
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ine
Florian Hansen (Germany) Photographer: Christian59Krr
Yannick Lis (Belgium) Photographer: Kim Devos
U R B A N L I N E R ’ S P H O T O T O U R 2 0 1 1
Kevin Joeres (Germany) – http://www.youtube.com/user/TheAurum0 Photographer: Daniel Pedro Da Silva
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2 0 1 1 T O U R P H O T O U R B A N L I N E R ’ S
Matt Wiersum on the streets of Minneapolis, Minnesota (USA) – http://www.youtube.com/user/rideride2 Photographer: Mitch Host
Holger ‘Ho’ Welsch (Germany) – http://www.youtube.com/holischitt Photographer: Andi Frank
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P H O T O
T O U R
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Jan Grandell (Sweden) and his trusty old Land Rover
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P H O T O
T O U R
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Edwin Moises (Venezuela) working on a Double Knee Drop Photographer: Carlos Fuentes – http://www.flickr.com/photos/char5vzla
2 0 1 1 T O U R P H O T O U R B A N L I N E R ’ S
Johanna Kankaanmäki (Finland) Photographer: Tero Heino – http://www.teroheino.fi
Jarmo Tyni (Finland) Photographer: Tero Heino
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Igor Scotland (Austria) – http://www.vienna-slackliners.at Photographer: David Leidinger
2 0 1 1 T O U R P H O T O U R B A N L I N E R ’ S
Florian Hansen (Germany) Photographer: Florian Hamel
Philipp Freudigmann (Germany) – www.youtube.com/worldoftomorrow Photographer: Himself
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P H O T O
T O U R
2 0 1 1
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Caroline Rangel and Gustavo Valente – Icaraí Urban Beach, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) Photographer: Nathalia Barroso
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Jakub “Kwjet” Hanus – Prague (Czech Republic) – http://www.youtube.com/slackshopcz Photographer: Tonda Honzik
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FACEBOOK.COM/ URBAN.SLACKLINING