By Scott Rogers

If any of my adventures on this site have the properties befitting of the word "wild", this trip was probably one of the most apropos. Leaving Boulder last Friday (March 21st) and returning Wednesday (March 26th), we were in Moab for quite some time. The trip was prepared meticulously, making certain that everyone who was going had accurate directions to the obscure destination, and that all the requisite gear would be there at the start of the trip. Mary and I drove out to Moab, meeting Joe, Dave, Josh, Jesse, Lindon, Nathan, Dylan, Greg, Josh, Kale, Deon, Terry, Larry, Chris, and a few others at the designated pulloff. Thats right, we had more than 16 people all setting up and crushing highlines at different times during the weekend/week.

Edited by Scott Rogers

With a Line Locker, it is possible to set up a slackline with no knots. Furthermore it will be perfectly flat with no twisting whatsoever. This method is just as easy to do as tying a knot (if not easier) and comes undone with little to no effort when you’re ready to take down your line. It consists of no more than a single link from a high strength chain. The material should be approximately 5000 pound working load high strength 3/8” chain. You can find this at any hardware store in most cities. Buy 1 foot of the chain and either cut every other link with a hack saw or beg the worker at your local hardware store to do it for you. Obviously you have to cut half (every other) of the links to get the other half free. You’ll get about 5-6 Line Lockers per foot of chain. We recommend painting them so they won’t rust. The following is a step by step guide on how to tie a Line Locker:

Check out the first full length slackline and highline documentary! For more information on the film, and to purchase a DVD check out http://www.elements-film.de/

2008 Competition Results

UK Competition
1. Best UK: Jon Ritson (Lakes) - £500
2. 2nd UK: Frank Kroner (Glasgow) - £300
3. 3rd UK: Andrew Marshall (Belfast) - £200
4. Best effort UK: Rupert Oellinger (Edinburgh) – Slackline kit

International Competition
1. Best international: Andy Lewis (USA) - £500
2. 2nd international: Michael Aschaber (Austria) - £300
3. 3rd international: Damian Cooksey (USA) - £200
4. Best effort international: Nils Diamer (Germany) – Slackline tightening system

The Fort William Mountain Festival hosted a historic coming together of some of the world's most devoted and skilled slackliners. These "slackers" gathered in Scotland to compete for the title of International Slack Master of 2008. Along with the title came the promise of over $3000 worth of cash and prizes to ensure a sizzling competitive fire. With the continuously progressive evolution of slackline style and frequent updates of the purposed physical limits of the sport-- no one knew what types of talent to expect.

On July 13, 1985, Scott Balcom became the first man in the world to walk across the Lost Arrow Spire Highline. A towering 2890 feet (880 meters), above the valley floor. 22 years and 3 days later, Libby Sauter became the first woman to cross the lost arrow spire highline. This has become the most coveted highline in the world. Congratulations to Libby! 

Click here to read more and see photos in our community slackline forum!

To say that slacklining was invented would be difficult, almost as difficult as crediting an individual person with its creation. The truth is that slacklining is an ongoing innovation to the already popular practices of balancing. From the balancing beam in gymnastics, to tightrope walks in the circus, balancing has been a small part of the athletic community. But recently, slacklining has exploded in popularity as more and more people are trying it, and more and more lines can be found in city parks and campgrounds alike. How exactly did this activity emerge, and what spawned the incredible growth in the recent years? Hopefully this article will clear up a few questions.