EVENT SCHEDULEThe Slackline Yoga and AcroBalance weekend features four events. Saturday sessions are for all skill levels. Sunday sessions require previous experience.What: Slackline Fundamentals.Who: All skill levels; no experience necessary.When: 9-10:30 a.m. Saturday.Where: Tennessee Bouldering Authority, 3804 St. Elmo Ave.Cost: $15 (pay at the door).Website: www.TBAGym.com.What: Intro to AcroBalance.Who: All skill levels; no experience necessary but some basic yoga knowledge helpful.When: 1-2:30 p.m. Saturday.Where: ClearSpring Yoga, 17 N. Market St.Cost:: $15 (register online).Website: www.clearspringyoga.com.What: The Next Step in Slackline Yoga.Who: Fundamental knowledge required.When: 10 a.m.-noon Sunday.Where: Tennessee Bouldering Authority, 3804 St. Elmo Ave.Cost: $25 (pay at the door).Website: www.TBAGym.com.What: Intermediate AcroBalance.Who: Some experience required.When: 2-4 p.m. Sunday.Where: ClearSpring Yoga, 17 N. Market St.Cost: $25 (register online).Website: www.clearspringyoga.com.
The first step to learning slacklining might be getting over a fear of falling.
“Especially if you’re first starting, you probably won’t be able to even stand on [the line],” said Blake Stone. “It takes a while to learn to balance. It’s different than anything I’ve ever done.”
Stone, a sophomore at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, is among a growing number of people embracing the balance sport known as slacklining.
Slacklining was thrust into the public eye during the Super Bowl halftime show when Andy “Sketchy Andy” Lewis, a 25-year-old California native, performed a series of gravity-defying tricks on a bouncing line while Madonna sang and danced.