Cape Town power stilters in action

Posted by Evan Haussmann on 22 June 2011

Where did it start?

What can generically be called power stilts came to world attention in the 2008 Olympic games when a troupe performed choreographed high jumps, flips and spins in the mind-blowing closing ceremony. The original boots, invented by Alexander Böck and patented in 2003, are often referred to as Powerbocks or “˜Bocks’ for short – in honour of the pioneer. Sometimes, they are also simply called by their individual brand names, the Austrian made 7League boots being the most well known here at home. “˜Seven league’ is drawn from boots in European folklore that allowed the wearer to take 35-kilometre strides (one league is about five kilometres). This referred to the distance horse messengers rode before “˜touching down’ to change horses. The boots consist of a platform with snowboardtype bindings, attached to a fibreglass leaf spring and finished with a rubber foot (or hoof) at the base. The 7League version retails for R3 000 a pair. Power stilting is considered an extreme sport because skilled users can perform “˜superhuman’ tricks, but some “˜Bockers’ use them purely as a fun way to get a full-body workout. Whatever their motivation, they stand head and torso above any crowd and are leaps and bounds ahead of the pack. Now excuse me, I’ve got to bounce.

 

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