Nine Springs Project #1

Nine Springs has always been amazing for slacklining,

perfectly flat ground and too many rigging options to count

but since I have started exploring mid/highline options

I wanted to try and develop this beautiful area 

in the middle of Yeovil..

This is my first line 'Spring Has Sprung'..

16m long, 6m high..

I decided to tie back a branch on the left side tree as it 

was too close for a whipper, this line was easy to link

 and  really nice line to play on.. 

Nippon Tv

Sometimes if I  am lucky I might get the odd offer of TV work,

 mostly kids shows but its usually an interesting day out and a 

break from the normal routine of jams and demo's.. 

For this show Maverick were contacted by the Nippon TV hit show ItteQ!

20 million viewers regularly tune in to watch mega-star 手越 祐也 Tegoshi Yuya

perform stunts around the world..

We all headed to the Project Climbing Centre in Poole as it has a perfect set-up

for learning to slackline and its also the best indoor venue in the south-west..

He crushed the beginners line easily with only an hours practice and as it was

all for his TV show the producers wanted a bit of trickline from him, we tried

to explain how hard it is to learn basic tricks but we ended up supporting him

through a few buttbounces.. and then crushed his testicles with a chestbounce :)

Luckily he didn't destroy them and he enjoyed his first experience slacklining..

To watch a clip of the episode click this link,

NTV

Hollow Hunter #1

Since spring is almost here project hunting has gone 

into overdrive, my main goal is to expand upon the

 established Braddy Hollow lines and create a local area

 to push my personal record on highlines this summer..

 I have spent 3 consecutive weekends clearing brush for 

a new 40m line I have found..

The following weekend that I returned the weather

was too bad to try and re-rig the new line so I rigged

the classic in full waterproofs with Rich Pearson and

managed to bag a send..

Click here for SlackMap

  

Spacenet #1.. Small beginnings

After seeing Andy Lewis rig the craziest spacenet mankind had 

ever seen my thoughts have blurred into one long daydream,

I must have been inspired because out of nowhere I found myself 

researching the strength reducing factors of knots and watching

30 minute long Paracord net weaving tutorials..

So I built one...

To start off I worked out my dimensions using three equal length roundslings

in a triangle and with the help of a few tutorials figured out 300ft of 550 Paracord

would be enough with a bit left over, I found UK based company Wild Elk online 

selling 100ft hanks for £6 with £4 delivery.. basically £22 for a spacenet..

I couldn't weave the net outside as I work all week and have no daylight

when I finish and the recent weekend winter weather has been ridiculous

so I built a frame so I could rig indoors and not worry about my lack of sun..

 

The top edge I created girth hithches that could be slipped off the nails and slid

onto a spanset, the downward edges were left free to be knotted the night before..

The net was over-sized in the end and would suit larger spansets, 

we used 2x EQB Canons and an LC Lynx (double wrapped) as the anchor points..

After raising the net and adding some pretension to the white legs we then tied 3

backup ropes to a master ring and hand tensioned them ready for the final pulls.. 

Jon taking a break after we had finished adding all the tension..

       

Click the link for my edit
and footage of the 'Line Launcher' in action..

Spacenet Edit

Line Launcher Project

As it is mid-winter and work commitments 

have reduced my training time to zero I have

been thinking of creating a line launching device,

mostly to make rigging easier but also to satisfy my

desire to fire projectiles like some kind of dirtbag Rambo..

First task was sourcing a bow and luckily a friend had a 

junior compound bow that he was willing to part with for just 

£20 and then I managed to find 3 fiberglass arrows for £5.

I realised that to attach my launch line I would have to drill

a hole in the shaft of my arrow so I decided to create a custom

arrow to better suit my needs, A quick visit to the hardware shop

and I had 2 pieces of Dowel for my 1st attempt at arrow making.

I researched some video's on fletching (putting feathers onto arrows)

and realised I would need a fair few feathers so I started hunting around

for possible places to source them, I remembered seeing Guinea fowl at 

a farm I had been working at and the next time I was there I found a huge

stash of feathers in the back of a barn so I collected a handful .

I selected my favorite 3 feathers and following a Ray Mears tutorial

I split the backs off and sliced the spines through the middle.

The next task is to actually fletch the feathers onto the arrow shaft,

for this I used red nylon thread and finished off with elephant tape.

To add weight to the arrow end I attached a 12mm nut and added

tape to secure it in place..

1st attachment with thread..

Ends taped to add protection and nock put into end of shaft..

12mm nut added for weight and secured with tape..

I have found 1000ft of Paracord for £15 so thats my next purchase

and then I will start running a few tests to gauge what kind of distance

I can achieve, I have a few more adjustments to make to the bow to 

hold my paracord and then I am hoping to upload a video of it being used..