Exploration
Looking to improve your slacklining skills? Highlining pro Sarah Rixham imparts some insider tips on how to hover above the clouds.
Former highline world-record holder Sarah Rixham makes balancing on a narrow line over 120m in the air look like child’s play. When she’s not balancing above a quarry or mountain gorge, she’s honing her slackline skills three times a week and hitting up some prime locations.
But don't worry if you're not yet able to amble confidently between great canyons on what is essentially a piece of string. Here, Sarah shares the slacklining secrets to stepping up your game.
1. Be persistent
“The thing I hear most when people try a slackline for the first time is, ‘I have terrible balance, I can’t do it,'" reveals Sarah. "The fact is, nobody can slackline immediately because their muscles haven’t been conditioned to control the movement of the line. I was the slowest person to progress in slacklining out of all of my friends and wasn’t gifted with particularly good natural balance. But I was persistent.
“Failure happens consistently as you progress in slacklining with new disciplines, new lengths and new tricks. So you need to learn early on that failure and the feedback you can get from each mistake, wobble and fall is the key to progression."
2. Mix up your lines
That short, tight, 5cm line is a great starting point, but if you really want to progress your slacklining skills, don’t hang around on it for too long. “Beginners are often advised to start on a short, tight, 2in line because it’s similar to balancing on a solid bar and intuitively it’s easier,” says Sarah, who agrees this is great until you get past the first couple of steps.
Beyond this, the secret to fast-tracking your progress is to mix up your lines. “The dynamics of different slacklines can change considerably. Varying your line allows your body to be consistently challenged so you can diversify your ability to balance.”
Try adjusting the line tension, varying its width, or switching to a material with different elasticity. “This makes it easier to progress to longer lines as you learn to control different line movements. You can also play around with changing your own movements to get a more robust understanding of how to balance – try moving fast and slow, and pay attention to how different movements feel."
3. Balance everywhere
No slackline? No problem. “There are always opportunities to train your balance away from the slackline,” says Sarah. “Balance on railings or chains you might find around the city, balance standing on the bus without using your hands or stand on one leg and close your eyes while brushing your teeth!” Practising on different mediums teaches your body to switch between different types of balance. “This is a useful skill as lines often have different dynamics at the start and end compared to the middle,” explains Sarah.
4. Challenge your senses
“Balance is achieved through a lot of sensory input," says Sarah. “Removing one of these inputs helps train your balance and can help you adapt when these senses become distorted."
To give this a go, Sarah suggests closing your eyes on a line or changing your point of focus by looking at your feet as you walk. Even playing around with your arm position on the line can help you learn about how your body adjusts its balance. “Try putting your arms above your head or down by your side while you walk,” says Sarah.
5. Find inspiration from the community
Need advice? Don’t be scared to ask. “The best way to improve is to learn from the people around you who have already made the mistakes,” says Sarah. “There’s a lot of inspiration out there in the form of videos and tutorials. Slackline forums, such as SlackChat, are a good source of advice and inspiration, and a way to meet up with other slackliners. Finding people to practise with is a good way to maintain motivation and push each other to new levels.”
6. Rationalise your fears
One asset that has helped make Sarah a world-class slackliner is the ability to rationalise fears, such as feeling insecure or isolated on a line. “I’m able to do this by understanding the strength of my equipment compared to the forces being created, and by being confident that the line is rigged correctly and redundantly [so that if one area fails it’s still safe]. Whatever your fear, if you can rationalise it to know that you’ll be safe, you can get past it – however impossible it seems."
Remaining relaxed also helps to iron out tension in the body and Sarah uses mantras to keep her mind focused, moving into a flow-like state when trying to walk without falling. “It’s best when my mind goes quiet and I focus on nothing.”
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