You miss me??

Even though there is literally maybe one person who has even glanced at this blog, I still feel as though I should type up what's going on in order to keep up with my training when I look back and track it. What's going on now? Well just about everything you can imagine. I've been training by myself for a long time now. My brother is at college so I have a lot of time to kill....a lot of time. So I killed about five hours today by going out and practicing. Even though it was raining. It didn't bother me. And I had some fantastic spills. In fact I have pictures to go along with my description of it...but no video :(. So the first one began with a very large jump I'm making to a cat leap. It's gonna be intense when I get it...but anyways. It's a lonnnng jump, especially when everything is wet. So here is the jump. Hope you can see it well. It's from the brown steps to the rock wall. It's pretty long...but totally possible. So anyways I tried it a few times coming up short because I was scared to go super fast because of the rain. So the last time I decided to go for it. I may be bad at math...but here we go...
(Rain x objects) + Slippery shoes= Slip? Well I guess I decided to take my chances anyways. So I went for it, and my foot slipped all the way across the stairs and I basically levitated parallel to the ground half way there then came down on my hands and knees...it was pretty cool. The second crash was much worse but ten times funnier and I really wish I had it on film but I don't so I am super sorry. But anyways. I was randomly doing front handsprings for fun. I don't know why, probably because I'm working on a legit video with my best moves on it (shhhhh....) it's totally a secret. But I was trying everything I could. So I did it and landed it twice. So the last time I tried I bailed. But it was the coolest bail I could've done... I did a 180 twist in the air (I was kinda pumped) but since I changed the momentum, my feet missed the ground and landed on my back. It was so cool I didn't even care that it hurt. It was so funny. I laughed for a few seconds hoping the girls on the tennis court hadn't seen it. I don't think they did. But this is what the jump looked like. And if you look closely you can see my body outline...but not really. The dark spots are from my constant landings. But it was a very high front handspring. But I've been working on a lot. Done some new parkour moves and new freerunning stuff. I've gotten way better at my handstands. I can walk down stairs and finally stay in one spot for awhile. It's been going well and I'm a lot stronger now in my shoulders. I've just started getting more serious about it. I love it! Practicing everyday feels good. And I'm in better shape because of it. But to get in good shape you have to keep moving. I have a new mindset on how to do it also. If I see something that's possible, I try it. I stopped saying, "maybe another day". I started pushing the limits, but still staying safe. I finally learned that bailing doesn't hurt. Which I think is do to wrestling and having to learn how to land correctly in any situation. So I guess that doesn't apply to everyone. I bailed on a backflip one time because I was tired. It didn't hurt but it scared me at the time. I haven't bailed on one of those in awhile, but it's understandable, I mean everyone falls sometimes. Even the best, like Cane Armitage's new video Adrenaline. Great video. But I am filming a new video to keep you updated on my training. Should be good. I am really looking forward to filming it because I finally have a lot of new things to put in it. So hope to put that out soon. Catch up with yall later.

My Old Promo

Found my old promo video and I think it's randomly really cool. Check it..

Aw Yes, Back to the Ole Days

Well, parkour has finally kicked back in. Especially since I can drive now. I have been able to go more places and do more parkour. Mike and Scott came down so we got to go downtown again! I was really pumped. I was just trying some new things. So the day started off pretty well overall. We went to the river and did parkour on the rocks. That in fact was really good exercise! I would never have thought. We got pretty tired doing it too. I was sweating really hard and doing jumps I would have never tried before. I may get some footage later on to show what we did, but it was pretty extreme. Mike screwed up his ankle on a jump but he'll be okay. So after our river raid we headed downtown again. Aw yes, down town, full of memories. So many good parkour spots. So yeah, we began at the museum and went behind it to a decent spot. It was pretty fun and got some good practice in. Next we proceeded to go to the library and park. We got out and headed to the famous parking garage. We did a few little jumps on the way up. Mike was a little too weak to go all the way up jumping across. So then we got to the top. Mike showed us his skill jumping over the top as always, then we decided to work our way up. I really wanted to do it, but there was a guy on top sitting in a car watching. Plus, it's quite frightening although easily make-able. So we tried it over the stairs so if we did in fact mess up, it'd only be a four foot fall. So Scott got it easy and so did I. So after a little while I got quite suspicious with the guy in the truck. He ended up driving down, but I could still hear his car. Something was wrong. We saw a cop parked across the street at a bank. That was too close for us. So we started going down the stairs. We got to the third level and there was that truck again. Weird dude. So we walked one more level down, and there was the cop. Watching us from his car as we walked down the stairs. What do you do? Well we did some parkour and got out of the garage and kept walking. We weren't doing anything super bad anyways so I wasn't too worried. So Mike went to the car while Scott and I went up the sidewalk. As we reached about half way we saw him pull our way out of the garage. Uh-0h. So Scott and I continued to walk and joke as if nothing was wrong. Right as we hit the sidewalk turned, he pulled out in front of us and jumped out of his car. "Two things boys, number one: I could take you both to jail for trespassing. Secondly:..." And I don't quite remember what he said. But the rest of the conversation sounded a bit like this.

Cop: "How old are yall?"
Austin: "I'm 15"
Cop: "Do you have any identification?"
Austin: "No sir."
Scott: "Well, I.."
Austin: (Interrupting) "Not with us."
Cop: "Where are yall going?"
Austin: "Just walking around."
Cop: "Yall were up in the garage jumping the gap."
Austin: "We were doing what is called Parkour, do you know what that is?"
Cop: (Blankly stares at me)
Austin: "Okay, no, I guess not."
Cop: "Yall need to stay off government property is that clear?"
Austin: "Yes sir, I'm so sorry."
Cop: "If you see your little buddy you need to tell him too."
Austin: "Yes sir, and I'm really sorry. It won't happen again. Promise."
(Cop races off to go find Mike but clearly goes the wrong way.)

Scott and I decided not to go to the car just yet. There were more cops around and if they followed us and found Mike it wouldn't be good. The fact that we are young got us out of trouble, and he had no way to prove it was us. Not that they would really do anything. Taking us to jail would do nothing. And besides, they can't even prove we did anything. And even if they did, the judge would totally think we were wasting his time. "These boys were jumping the parking garage gap." Yeah, that'll get a big fine. Not. People are to over dramatic. I can't believe someone would resort to calling the cops. Lame. Anyways, Scott and I went to Finley park and walked around then meet up with Mike and left. Went to Chick-Fil-A and got some food. Went home. Later that day we were watching parkour videos and decided to go to the ascot park during a light rain shower. It was eventful and good. And then our day was basically over. Aw, good times good times. Well, it's back to the good ole days.

Lost Passion Restored.

I finally got my passion for parkour back again. I've been so busy all I have been able to do is go to the gym and do flips. But now I'm back on the horse! I will be posting a lot more soon! I have stuff to do today. So here's my video.

Real Training.

I took a break from posting videos after my recent one year video. I am now just training. I stopped a lot of the flipping, although I did a lot on spring break, and I have worked a lot on strength. I have made much strength improvements. I can now walk all around on my hands and even do a push up without a wall. This was big for me. Other than that I have nothing big to report. I have just been working pretty hard. I finally went to the park today. It was exciting to get back out there, especially with the nice weather! Well hope everyone else's training is going well, I'll report back when I get something more informative to say.

God Bless,

Austin

Previous Poetry

Well, I had this sitting on my night stand for over 3 months. Thought I'd put it on since Kyle did one, so I don't feel completely gay I wrote this.

Leap of Faith

My thoughts echo in my head
"You can do this" I said,
The fear strapped me to the floor
"Only other way down is that door"

I glanced over the edge
Not far from the other ledge
Taking a deep breath I began to pace
I knelt down and tightened my lace

"3...2...1"
And I went off like a gun
My feet barely touched the ground
Then there was no sound

My breath was held tight
I had won the mental fight
rolling out from the sky
I burst out with a sigh

Looking back at where I'd once been
I could see the men
Their smiling faces
had gotten me to these places

Once so far away
were now here to stay
here and now
we traceurs take our bow.

Beautiful Day For Pondering!

Well, with the lovely weather outside (and me being stuck in a classroom) I began thinking about parkour. Now my thoughts went pretty deep into many things but there was one that really stuck out to me. I was shown this video of David Belle falling and it showed me the true side of parkour and how it is all about falling and getting back up and so on (just watch this to understand DAVID BELLE FALL). So anyways I began pondering about failing to do something right in parkour and screwing up. As I thought about this, I began to think about all the moves I would try when I got back to the gym and when my mouth healed. (Wisdom teeth surgery). One move came to mind that I thought would be incredibly challenging to me. (Inward Wall Flip) But then I thought about how I would accomplish it. Well, it is so simple. Trial and Error. How do you learn a move? Practicing it over and over till you get it. When I began learning front flips, it took me at least two tries to even get a decent one. But each time I got closer and closer. I fell and it hurt, but that is how I taught myself. So in all this thinking, I got an idea (wow, an idea while thinking!). Well people often think parkour is so easy and anyone can do it. I decided I'm going to make a video all about my mistakes and attempts. Next time I go to try a move, I'm going to film it. I want to show everyone that I make mistakes. This is another way of conquering fear. I must confront it head on to beat fear. You can't ambush fear, he can always hear you breathing behind the door. If you approach fear head on, then he is useless. He can do nothing to hurt you. Then it is all about physical ability. Why do people mess up on a wall back flip? Because they are super scared. A wall flip isn't hard. It is pretty much easier than a normal backflip. So why can no one do it? It is all about fear and trusting that you will make it! So in order to make this video I want to be in the right mind set! I want to walk up to that wall or that mat and say "I don't know if I can do this move, but I'm willing to find out." That is the parkour mindset. Being able to say "Let's do it." Instead of, "Here goes nothing" because that never ends well. (Normally with a scream and a broken leg). The movie will be called "Attempts", and I suggest you watch it when I'm finished. Hopefully I'll inspire many to try all the moves they have never tried. Failing isn't a bad thing. It is when you close your mind to moves when things will go down hill for you. Open your mind, clear your head, and go for it! All the moves will be something I've never done before, making it completely original and for a good purpose. Good training to all of you!

Insight without Wisdom.

Well, I got my wisdom teeth out. I'm not able to get out of the house for exercise and it is eating me alive. I can't eat hard foods. Which in turn makes me feel as if all my muscles are going to deteriorate because I had a super hard work out the day before surgery so I have no protein to build them back up! It is quite annoying. I have been watching tv and parkour videos all day to keep my mind off....parkour. Dang. Such a genius plan if I do say so myself. I really want to get back to the gym. I'm willing to try anything now. When you don't get to practice for awhile I realized you get better. All the bad habits you learned previously are forgotten so everything is spot on. Well I thought I'd let you share in my suffering, sorry. So I will hopefully get back in the urban jungle soon. But, before I go I must share something I found out about flips. Often people say flips are dumb and a waste of time. I beg to differ. Isn't parkour all about overcoming fears and seeing the world differently? All about getting your body to be agile and in shape. Well if that's true, why is everybody so anti-flip. A flip is a useful tool when needed a smooth exit or entry to a lower altitude. Sometimes it's much faster and sometimes even safer due to less impact. Flips can become the ultimate fear in one's journey and when you learn how to do it, You accomplish a huge mental freedom. It is something that I have used to get a stronger core, and my balance and "sixth sense" has improved greatly. Any failure a lot of times leads to injury. But not when you are always in control. Flips teach great control. So in conclusion I say flips are useful and a great way to teach agility! Good training to all of you!

Off The Sidewalk (Personal) Video

I took more footage from a recent training session and finished my own personal video. Here it is, but if you want to watch it in High-Def please go to youtube.

Rough Draft Video

Well here is my one year video rough draft. We plan on getting some better footage for the finished but tell me what you think of this one!

One Year Down, A lifetime to go.

Well, my one year anniversary came and went. It was a great day. Mike and I went to new spots downtown (movie coming later when we get more footage). It was a good day. I am getting better at parkour slowly. As I reviewed my footage, I noticed my moves were no longer smooth. There was a ton of fear in me, and I was going to fast on moves that don't require speed. So I learned a parkour lesson today. I decided not to play soccer. I am going straight to more parkour training. It'll be hard to do this in between school and studying but I'll find time. I have found new spots (no not new playgrounds but good joke!). So, after this weekend (which I have lower state wrestling) I will be done with wrestling so I won't be wrestling anymore and I'll take a break from that for awhile. Let my body rebuild itself so I'll be stronger. I need to improve my eating habits though. Ice cream, cookies, cake, and so many other things have become daily desserts. I get a lot of excercise so I work it off. But I still need to cut it out. I think I'll limit myself to two desserts a week. Good? Good. This will help me not stunt my growth and get my body in better shape. I also have been slacking off on weekends. I can't start practicing (maybe Sunday) but it may be a day of rest for me. (Since the Lord does command it....) Kyle is also back into parkour so he will HOPEFULLY keep us updated with that (hint..hint..) haha. I can't continue just reading my blog. I gotta see other people's progress. I still have yet to go to the playground to practice. It has become nothing now. Kind of depressing. But I will keep going. I have to travel a bit more if I want to get a good safe practice in. But it is all part of the journey. The journey to become physically and mentally stronger. I will be making my one year video quite soon, I was trying to get it done to quickly and ran out of time to put it out there on the one year day. That's okay though. It will be a lot better since I am waiting a bit. Kyle recently mentioned practicing alone and I agree that it is a lot better. I got a lot better a long time ago by practicing alone. It was all day everyday. Now I will do that more often. Or at least not associate for awhile if I go with anyone. I felt awkward doing moves in front of Mike. (My own cousin and I feel awkward, lame) So I didn't reach my full potential. I am actually finding great parkour music that I listen to while training. When you listen to music it focuses your mind on something else and puts you in rhythm. This truly helps you when overcoming fear. My method is listen and repeat the move about 10 times. Take out the headphones, concentrate and execute it again. Otherwise you can only do it with the music. Use different songs to or you get to into a pattern with the song and it is unatural without the song. This is a very useful training method for those who aren't about peace with nature and stuff. I like either focusing on my physical ability and concentrating, thinking about my walk with the Lord, or complete rythm focused. That's about all I have as far is today's updates. Hope all your training is going well! God Bless.
-Austin

Repetition and Practice

I was just watching a bit of my clips from the summer trainings. I noticed I really was fluent when I did my moves. Now, whenever I practice it seems like I just do the move. I think practicing rolling and such is boring. But when I watch these clips I realize how important it is when you do parkour. So check these out and see what you think. Remember I wasn't as good as I am now move-wise but just watch the things I do.

Back to the Basics

Well, Feb. 16, 2008 is when I first started doing parkour for real. Feb. 17, 2008 is when I began this blog. In a few days I will go back to the places that I started at many months ago. Back to the beginning where it all started. Back to the basics. In order to keep my foundations of parkour I must remember where I started and constantly remind myself or I will lose my way. So this weekend I plan on filming my one year review video and I think I will call it "Progress" instead of Breeze. It makes more sense. So get ready!!

"Breeze"

Well it's almost time I release my one year celebration of my blog!! I've been waiting for this forever. I've always wanted to say I've been doing parkour for a year. I've come up with the title of my movie. It's called breeze (if you didn't guess by the title of this blog). Wonder why? Well the breeze on a hot summer day cools you off and is very peaceful, it flows around bars, walls, and roofs without a flaw. You can't stop wind. I just like the idea of flowing like the breeze. Besides it is a "cool" word. Hahahah that's punny. Sorry. Had to say it. Anyways, I will be making this in honor of my one year parkour anniversary. Parkour and Freerun training has been put on halt till after my wrestling season. My friend George (our teams best wrestler) got hurt while doing a aerial and was out for awhile. It scared my coaches and they banned us from doing "stupid stuff" during wrestling season. I would normally be very upset about this but wrestling is a great workout and makes you in great shape. After that I'm doing soccer. That should get my legs stronger and get me in good running shape. It is all physical training that I really needed. David Belle spends a lot of his time training his body. That's basically what I'm doing. Just in a different way. So when I get back to training, I'll be in crazy shape. I should be back at the gym training freerunning very very soon. I really like freerunning although I used to be against it. It teaches great body control and really makes you overcome your fears. Parkour should kick back up right after that though. So it'll be great training the next year or parkour. Hope training is going well for everyone else!!

-Austin

Everyday Struggles of a Traceur

Traceurs. They train themselves everyday for challenges. Day after day they fight against their instincts to do the impossible. Fear is the enemy and they will battle to the death. These things are just part of the Traceurs journey. Without these things he wouldn't be a real Traceur. There is one thing though that many Traceurs go through that is incredibly annoying and is just another part of parkour. The Law. Everyday Traceurs are stopped and questioned by authorities. "What are you boys doing up there?" or "HEY! Come back here!". It is probably one of the most run into problems of a Traceur. It is inevitable. You can't avoid the cops. You can't avoid the people who don't understand the discipline that call the cops, and you can't avoid spots you will get in trouble if you were caught.
Now before I go on I must remember to say that Traceurs are nothing like skate boarders. In that I mean that they aren't out to cause mischief. They aren't rebels against the world. In fact Traceurs look down on those who rebel against society. Spray paint the walls because they can't stand being "held back by the man". Well Traceurs don't do that stuff. It isn't a Traceurs goal and it hopefully never will be a goal of anyone. So in saying that I must now say, we Traceurs can't stand being caught by anyone and being forced to leave a spot. It's like a parent telling a child that he can't play on the swing set because it's to dangerous. (Trespassing is a different story).
The cops always say "We are keeping you safe." but in reality, if someone was in danger (kidnapping or someone running from the cops) then I think Traceurs could be a bit useful. Cops are bound by rules and are weighed down by loads of gear. Traceurs on the other hand are always ready. Somebody takes the stairs, well, we shoot up the wall and cut them off at the top. They jump to another wall, well, we jump past them and catch them. We train day after day to do these things. It is part of the fun. How cool would it be for Traceurs to be in the paper for catching a theif or saving a person. I mean come on! That is what we strive to do.
The real point of this whole story is, that I've run into a problem. My playground. The beloved playground that has helped me learn so much by just sitting there and being an obstacle. Well, it may have to be put on hold. Here's the story behind it. I used to play tennis. For two years or so when I was a tad bit younger. I was starting to get better eventually. I started to get at my prime. I was getting lessons from a guy. He was a great coach and a decent tennis player. He made me the player that I was in the day. Well I got better but it was football season and in the opening game I missed a tackle, flew out of bounds and broke my arm. My tennis days were over. I never again took lessons or played another match. I didn't care though, I wasn't a tennis man. So recently I have been practicing a ton by myself at the playground and with friends. I kept seeing my old tennis coach on the tennis courts which were over the playground. They were up a small hill. Not far at all. Maybe a twenty second walk max. So anyways my old coach had been seeing me down at the playground. He didn't know it was me. I noticed that he was very suspicious of us. I would occasionally see him pacing around the edge of the playground fence behind the trees (creepy I know) and I didn't know what he was doing. I didn't care much, what was he to say " Stop playing on the playground?" Well a big surprise happened today when I got home. (Remember my neighborhood is very strict and has no tolerance towards anything. It is a bunch of stuck up rich people and I'll be honest, it's no fun. I like the neighborhood and the kids but some people can be a real pain in the nose if you get my drift.) My mom had gotten a call from this guy about the tennis court. It had been vandalized. Someone puts little holes all over it. Big sad face for me. This guy thinks I am some bad kid and now might think I'm the wrong doer. He doesn't know who I am or that he was talking to the very mom of the boy on the playground. (My advantage). He begun talking about a few very suspicious boys on the playground who "shouldn't be there". (Yeah. Whatever. I am the reason that playground even has a footprint on it.) So my mom explained that I do stuff at the playground. "Well it couldn't be him, I taught him and he is a good kid." (As if what I'm doing on the playground is wrong, although the top age is supposed to be 12. My bad. You could say I've got the heart of a kid seeking movement through a playground.) So my mom still said it could be me. "No, no, this kid is about 5'10 and has a shaved head. Uh oh. I just shaved my head, but I'm 5'8. Good guess at the height though. My mom said no more. She didn't tell him it was me. "Well if I see him down there again I'll ask him what business does he have on the playground." At this point I was almost laughing. "Well sir, I take part in a sport called parkour, also known as freerunning in a more common used word. I seek movement on this playground." How do you respond to that? I don't know but he said he may call the cops if he sees those meddling kids again. Well I sure as heck can out run him. But I want to respect my mom. So I have to wait til no one is around to do parkour. Shame. A kid can't play on a playground. Well that's the news for today in this new year. Hope all your trainings are going well. Best of luck to you this 2009. God bless.
-Austin (Shadow Knight)

Goals for 2009

I feel like if I set goals for myself, I will have a better chance of accomplishing things. So this year I am making a little list for myself so that I can achieve bigger and better things. The first two months will be a little slow since I have to finish wrestling season but after that it should pick up. I may take a tumbling class or something to make sure I get all the practice and training I can. I am putting them in steps so when I have them down pat I can move on. So with that said, here's my goals.

Conditioning Training
*Sprint/Jog- 2 Min Sprint/ 1 Min jog - 30 Minutes Total Every Other day.
*Push ups- 50 a day
*Wall Push ups- 20 a Day
*Sit ups- 50 then go right into 3 Minutes of 6 Inches
*Pull Ups- Work on each day and build up to 25 in one go.
*Curl Ups- " "
*When practicing keep moving no matter what.

Nutrition Goals
*Eat Healthily.
*One dessert every other day

Move Goals

Step 1
*Wall flip solid
*Round off back handspring
*Kick the moon

Step 2
*Back handspring to back tuck
*Gainer off something

Step 3
*Round off-back hand spring-back tuck
*Full off something
*Corkscrew

Step 4
*Review all steps

Step 5
*Get solid tumbling (series moves)

Step 6
*Perfect Moves & have all outside

Step 7
*Create new goals

Along with all those goals I want to practice parkour everyday and get better and more fluent. This will be tough putting myself on a schedule but it's just adding a little structure to something out of control as of right now. As my friends cousin said, I need to be tamed because I'm here then I'm there and I do whatever I feel like with no structure.

Starting Out

I noticed something recently when my brother was talking about us going to the gym while he was hurt. He said something like this "Well I don't want to go to the gym, I can't do anything so you'll get ahead of me and I'll have to catch back up." There are a few things wrong with this statement. Number one is that you can get ahead in moves but that's not what's important (especially since it's freerunning). Number two is that everyone should go at their own pace and we seem to have this whole competition thing going on, which helps, but at the same time it is kind of messing up the whole "your own path" thing. This New Year's Eve I am having a get together at the playground I always practice at just to get people into parkour. When I thought about what we were going to do I started thinking about teaching moves. I begun to think "Well he should be good at parkour". This, I think, is a big mistake in the motives. Anyone can do parkour. Isn't there more to parkour than just the moves though? Yes, there is so much more. It is about mindset, physical ability, and then the moves. (That's in no order). These things go hand in hand if you want to become a traceur. What makes a traceur? Anyone can be a traceur. Anyone can be good at parkour if they try and since there is no team or coach to decide who is good. A traceur is much more than a few skillful moves. I remember Will and I were out training and some of our friends showed up. They started trying to do what we do. Will and I laughed at first because they aren't in great physical shape. To my surprise they actually could do some moves. I was impressed, and quite embarassed. Luckily Will could do a backflip so we beat them there. I started thinking, "well if everyone can do these moves, what makes me a traceur and not them?" Well not only do I train everyday I can, I practice overcoming obstacles physically and mentally. I build my strength and if I can't do something I work at it until I can. Persistance is a good word for a traceur. Traceurs don't let the world hold them back, they push themselves to the limit to accomplish great physical ability and in the process they are becoming mentally strong. I know a few guys who started parkour, and their very first practice they filmed themselves and uploaded it. Now, it wasn't that they filmed it that bothered me. It was that they thought it was cool. When another one of my friends did that, he did it to see how much he would improve. I think that's somewhat of a good motive. Filming overall I don't think is good for the traceur. It messes with their head and makes it a competition and everyone starts telling you, you are bad at parkour and then you get depressed and such and it just isn't worth it. I do like filming my experiences and such but I wish I wouldn't have done so many videos. Unless it is a one time thing, like the up and coming New Year mini Jam. That's enough said though. Hope you all see what I am trying to explain. Happy New Year. May your training go well.
God Bless
-Ausitn

Christmas Special Short

Thought I'd give you a little Christmas special. It's mainly flips and such but it is pretty cool. Hope you enjoy!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Break just kicked off and I am already getting some great parkour practice in. I didn't have a wrestling tournament this weekend so I hung out with will and we went out and did parkour all day. I have started working on more training and building strength. I don't have any rock walls or anything like that to work on grip, so I settled for trees. There are these trees in my back yard that are good for jumping back and forth and climbing. I tore up my hands and made them really tough. Will says I look like a monkey which is actually how I felt. Well, I didn't feel like a monkey but I was as smooth as one. I also worked on rolling on concrete. It was very painful on my hips. The next day I could barely sit in my desk. But that's a sign that they will get stronger and soon I will be able to roll no problem. Handstands are coming along steadily. The picture at the top was actually one of my better ones. Mainly because I didn't want to fall because when I did I came crashing into bushes. But it was fun. I went back to my old torn up shoes for awhile because when I use them I have to try a lot harder so I won't slip. I am forced to have perfect technique, otherwise I fail miserably. I finally am eating healthier. I went on a bad food streak but it's over now. I am getting better slowly. More progress will be posted later. MERRY CHRISTMAS and God Bless.
-Austin

Slow Down, Think, and Really Train

I recently read an article by Chris "Blane" Rowat that really changed my thought process. So many times I have used parkour as a way to look cool or expand my skills in movement for fun. But in all this I forgot what was important to me and all who train parkour seriously. Parkour isn't about show or being the best. It's not about who can do this move or that move. It's not about how quickly you can get better. I can't explain exactly what parkour is to me but I can give you and idea.

Many times I have pushed my body to hard and I've gotten hurt. Nothing that would stop my training though. But I forgot about long term effects. The injuries I'll have when I'm 40 or older. Right now David Belle is starting to get to the age where he should start hurting, well, he isn't. You want to know why? Because he trained since he was very young just learning the basics and slowly building. When I first started parkour, I did it for myself. I had a pretty boring life. Now I have something to occupy my time. Not only that but I have my escape. Everyone needs somewhere to go when they are down or just when they need time for themselves. That was my place. I would practice for hours. I wasn't very good at anything and my progression was super slow. But I loved it. It took me months to get moves that I now teach my friends in two minutes. I had to learn by myself. Trial and Error. That's how I got good. Both physically and mentally. Now I have friends that come along and are as good physically as I am in a matter of days.

The problem here is that it isn't real training. It drains your creativity. It's like taking an art class and them teaching you how to paint. They teach you how to do everything, what makes your art different from everyone else if you all paint the same? It is about your own style. If you constantly go on youtube (I do quite a bit) and search and study these guys (which is fine to a point) then you start to do it like them. You learn but you look exactly like them. That's one thing that makes the parkour world interesting, everyone is different. Everyone has something new to put out there. But when websites are giving the lists of moves for parkour and such, where is our creativity. Now everyone wants to learn the basics but it restricts them in their mind when they see that "these are all the parkour moves".

Parkour is about becoming like an animal. Smooth in all their moves. You have to be useful in life. If people are in danger, we step out and use what we know to save them. If I am going to save someone in a fire, I need to know where they are, how I am going to get there quickly, and find an efficient way out. Parkour covers a lot of that. Even something like a cat in a tree. Well I can get up there and get it out quickly so the firefighters don't have to come by and waste their time on something dumb like that. Basically what I am saying is, you have to be useful. Parkour trains people to be useful. David Belle said in an interview, when we look at a panther crossing a river we say "how beautiful" and then it jumps. But the panther isn't trying to be pretty, it's just trying to get across the water efficiently. That's how we should be. We shouldn't be all about show and does this look good to you. Well to be honest I don't care if it looks good to you. It's all about my progress, my journey. Do you think that Panther started out jumping across that river? No, he had to walk first, then run, then jump, then jump smoothly, and finally jump quickly and smoothly. It took awhile for him to get that good. He didn't walk out and do it. Even though we say he had animal instincts, he still had to learn. Humans walk, but we had to learn how to walk.

Have you ever lost a move because you got scared of that move? I have. A lot of times. I think this is a result of moving to quickly. How do we get comfortable with a move? Well to learn a kong vault I didn't just go out and do it. I took a table that was very tiny and jumped over it. Then I jumped over it with my hands, and finally tried a kong vault. As I got more comfortable I turned the table long ways and tried it. Now I am comfortable doing a kong most anywhere. I learned after working up slowly. These guys who go out and just do the moves are not learning the basics. It's like jumping into a freezing pool, you nearly freeze if you jump straight in. If you slowly work your way in then you get used to the water. I learned a wall backflip once and then I practiced it everywhere. Then soon I fell on my head. I haven't been able to do it since. I tried it with two feet because I was so ready to progress and "catch up" to the people that have been practicing for five years, and then I paid for it.

From now on my training will be very slow. I want to become a great traceur. Not just a really athletic teen. I hope this article helps others see the truth in parkour. It really helped me by just writing it. David Belle once said you should do the move, then do it well, then do it fast and well.
May you all spread the truth about parkour and the original art. It took David Belle over 15 years to get where he is, and it is taking us, what, two minutes? Those people who say we are dangerous and we are going to hurt ourselves doing parkour are right for once. If we continue the path we are going, we will get hurt.

God Bless,
Austin

My Discipline.

This world is full of complication. Most people live a life of fear and hate. They struggle everyday against problems that don’t matter. Caught up in the world and things that won’t last. Every day they are driven to the brink just because their hair isn’t how they want it or their friend turned his or her back on them. But why? Do they have nothing better to do? Well they can do whatever they want to do, but I train everyday to face these problems, mentally and physically.

One day in 2007, I sat at my computer searching for a video on youtube. I don’t know how I found it, but I came upon a video called The Real Spiderman. I thought it was awesome. At the time I just thought it was a cool video, later I figured out about another video called Russian Climbers or Russian Parkour. I researched it to see what it was all about. I don’t know what truly made me understand it but I learned quickly. I started out just jumping off my porch. I never progressed till later when my cousin remembered I showed him those videos and he found somebody who practiced it. We went downtown to try stuff and learn from each other. It was the best experience ever. I felt so free and strong. I had found something that would stick for a long time.

Since then I have progressed so much. I’ve gotten stronger physically and mentally. I can finally do the moves but I can also go through life without all the stupid problems that everyone else has normally. It feels good to have a burden shed off your back, but try taking it a step further and leaping into the sky. It’s hard to think about the things of this world that trouble you when you are three steps from jumping across a building.

But what is Parkour? Parkour isn’t just being a crazy guy trying something that no normal person would. It is about concentration, power, toughness, freedom, and much more. It’s about someone’s personal journey through life. I sometimes like to view it as a personal walk with God. When you are out by yourself, it is just you, God, and the jungle we call the world. The practice physically is making you strong for those situations you need it. The moves so you can get from point A to point B quick and efficiently. Parkour is about taking your fears and conquering them. Some physical, some mental. It doesn’t matter how you accomplish your task, just that you accomplish it the best way you can. Parkour is about discovering who you are inside. It isn’t a competition between two people, it is a competition between you and the everyday struggles life throws at you.

We see the world differently than the average person. As Kyle Clayton once said in a blog “If life is a chess board, then in terms of movement, the average man remains a mere pawn, moving down the row in one direction, one square at a time, or at best, a rook. A skilled parkourist however, is more in line with the queen, having the ability to move freely in any direction regardless of obstacles. A parkour practitioner relies on training and technique, coupled with primal, animal instinct to overcome these obstacles.” I haven’t found a better way to describe the way we look at the world.

Although not everyone knows about this sport, it is my passion. Most people would see me doing these “stunts” and laugh at me. I really could care less what others think about me. I have been laughed at time and time again for being a loser, but I won’t stop. It’s hard to understand when you are viewing it from the outside. That’s okay, no Traceur expects you to understand. If you see me practicing it around, just smile, wave, and keep going.

Mental Block

It's been awhile since I have updated those of you who still read this. Although I don't write this blog for anyone but myself in order to track progress and see what I have done 5 years from now and when I did it. Anyways I have been practicing moves and getting better at parkour. I have gotten smoother and quicker at all my moves which I was going for originally. One problem is it's wrestling season so I can't get to much done. I worked on my handstands today and I'm getting slightly better. Not much. There has been one move though that I lost and haven't been able to get back and that's the wall flip. I had it, on slanted surfaces, then I landed on my head one day and I slowly got it back. Then I landed on my head again. Now it is a never ending cycle. I lose it then get it back. I just can't get my confidence up enough to get it solidly. I noticed that it is easy to get a move but very hard to get it back once you lose it. I think when you first get it you don't realize the danger, then you get hurt trying it and then you are scared. Once the fear leaves you haven't done it in awhile and all you can do is picture yourself crashing. Well that's my problem at least. Then it is just a matter of doing it because you get in the habit of quitting before you try it. I plan to get over that fear tonight. It'll be tough but my plan is to no longer see it as a fear but more of a move I just can't do yet. If I can't do it, then I force myself to relearn it completely. I will start from step one and build up again. Can't wait to test my theory. I'm sorta pumped. Good training to all of you. (I might make a Christmas special video)

The full video

Here's the finished video just changed a lot.

Saturday Training

We went out and filmed all day. If you'd like to read about our adventure and more go down an article. Thought you'd enjoy this. (oh Mike and kyle, there is a special part at the end for you and you'll know what it is when you see it. )

Progress

What have I been up to since last boring mini article. Well just about everything. I have practiced every move in the books. What have I gotten, Gainer, wall runs, parkour type stuff, good front flip, front flip over and off high stuff, almost an aerial, wall flip is a working progress, and much more fluent in all my moves. Sorry to overload you there but it is so awesome. Well Corey joined the team and he is getting good, pretty quick learner. I am working on a video for our school talent show that is pretty cool with Will and I which is pretty cool and should be up soon. We got to go downtown again with Mike and it was fun. Didn't learn much but it was exciting and we had some major fun at the end. In fact we even got frosties from Wendys. No better way to end the day of parkour. Let's talk about our downtown adventure first. We got there and the library was blocked off so we couldn't do much there. We went to the parking garage where I almost got the guts to jump across but decided not to. We left there and went to finley where we did a few things like cat leaps and such. We traveled back and pretended we were a car and just sat at a stoplight. Then we did some stuff behind the library and I had a fun time making fun of all traceurs who have pictures of them by no trespassing signs, as you can see here. So then we practiced cranes, stealth jumps, wall runs, and cat leaps. It was exciting and we got very good. A guy came back there and told us to leave. He insisted we come out the front and Mike said "Little does he know we can climb walls!" and we climbed away in a very extreme way.
Today was interesting. We went through filming so the footage can show most of the stuff we did. But one interesting event was, Will could not get his crane to a big sign. He hurt his ankle and had begun to walk off when a man with kids and a wife drove up (he was an older man) and with his raspy voice said "Try it again!" We thought he was angry at us, he repeated "try it again while we are watching. Will warmed up and did it, as smoothly as yogurt. He looked at the man and he gave Will the thumbs up and smiled, rolled up his window, put his car in drive, and rode away. It was quite strange but he showed up at the right time to help Will. God sent his little helping messenger down to help Will get a move. It was a good day which ended with beautiful weather. I prayed it wouldn't rain (for it was rainy and dark clouds) and God gave me beautiful weather to film in. Thanks to all who read this. God bless.

-Austin

Here it comes

I chase my dream of becoming a professional director or producer. I want to do something with movie and I think through parkour I can accomplish it. I recently found a Chase Armitage video called Free Inspiration that really inspired me. Makes sense doesn't it? But I enjoyed it a lot and you should watch it. I'm getting more into tumbling type stuff because I want more freedom on the ground. To control my weight and body like that. My body is improving and getting more healthy. I could never let go of this feeling. It's wonderful. I wish to do parkour till my body cannot go any further. When I'm 90 I still may jump on a building or two. Not really but it's great to think of that. Really funny too. Here's our latest video. Thanks for tuning in everyone. May God be with you.
-Austin

Class is in.

Today I woke up at seven in the morning to do something spectacular. I went to a gymnastics gym and was taught with George for two hours on flips. Goodness gracious it was fun. George's uncle taught us everything and we are getting good. Wall flips, back handsprings, back flips on the ground. It was crazy. Actually he wants to film us and start a class. To teach free running. How cool is that? He wants us to get a lot better than teach younger kids, and our age kids parkour and freerunning. My dream came true. A class in SC. I'm so pumped. We get private lessons and teach. Sick!

Busting my tail, back, and leg.

Well yesterday went well as you can tell by the title. So I started off filming a movie that is in High Def and will be a short commercial for Irmo Underground. Later I called some of my friends up so I could teach them stuff. So I was running upstairs and I pulled a muscle in my back! Alright I do three thousand back flips and I pull a muscle running up stairs? Weird. Anyways so I went there and started teaching when I tried a long precision and slipped busting my tail and shin. I have a huge bump on my shin but I'll get over it. Lesson learned. I need more practice. You thought I was going to say I didn't need to try precisions! Well as of right now I'm working on commercials for our team as I said earlier and they are slowly coming together. It's great to finally do a useful video.

Freerunning

I recently have been doing more freerunning. Although I don't like it as much I have so many places to learn it and I have been doing it so much better lately now that George is training with us. Once I learned the back flip I have become ten times better at freerunning. I hope to do a lot of parkour soon also. George is just now telling us that his Uncle owns a gymnastics gym. So we plan on practicing there for free! Pretty exciting that we can do it whenever we want. Also I'm sorry for the recent splurge of videos. I will tone it down a little really soon I just have wanted to show you whats going on rather than telling. I like making videos to much to pass up an oppurtunity to film. Practice is going well and I can't wait for winter when you can actually practice without getting over heated. I will be complaining about the cold probably. So here is our most recent work.

Flip Training

A short collection of flip training that George and I made today. Pretty cool. More coming soon.

Some Quick Accomplishments

Just went out today and tried some new stuff. Stuff I wanted to learn. I was sore but I pressed on. So far I've got a few new moves in my arsenal. I think I will learn a side flip soon. I figured out how to do it. Pretty easy. Like a front flip sort of.

Labor Day Training

I started the day off extremely ticked that I had to go to the lake and not going to do parkour. We recently found some houses being built that were perfect for training. So anyways we went to the lake and we practiced flips into the water. I did some high back flips and front flips. Then low. Then George got the bright idea to try it off something. So he got Corey to spot him. He tried and tried then Corey let him try on his own. He landed it easily. Well I decided it was my turn. I got Corey to spot me a few times then he walked a little bit away so I could do it on my own. It was so easy. I did it about 10 times. Then I tried it on something else but got scared and fell. So I got scared again and stopped doing it. So it was good for awhile. I'll get it back when I rest up. George got a standing backflip on the ground. So unfair. I almost did it but landed on my knees and hand because I thought I had support from Corey. It hurt. But whatever I should have it all down by Friday. The video in my previous blog really inspired me. Thanks Chase.

Chase Armitage

Some great advice that my favorite Traceur gave. I think this is a really good video because he is talking about what he does and what we do in a way. It's great.

What it feels like to be free.

Well on Friday practice was fun because we got two of my friends to come and practice with us. Well they invited us to be honest. We were up and out in a minute. After sitting in my classrooms for a week I needed a break. A chance to run again. A chance to feel the flow. So we taught them a lot then went back home. Will spent the night and that morning we went out. Practice seemed like it would stink. We started off not talking. Will went unto a little bridge in the woods and streched while I got on the playground and stretched. My mind was at peace. The breeze was cool, and soothing. After stretching all the muscles we could have we set out slowly practicing hard moves we normally don't do.I would do something and take a minute break then try again. My moves came smoothly and easily. I would breathe in and out slowly and calm myself. There were no words needed. It was understood what we were doing. We were feeling what it was like to free your mind. Later we stopped because we felt accomplished. We found some sprinklers and cooled off. Most refreshing thing ever. We walked back with our shirts and shoes off enjoying nature's beauty. It was glorious. It was so relaxing and opened my eyes to this world we have. The world of freedom. The freedom of nature. I wish everyday was like this so I could always escape the problems and stresses of this world. Today I will settle for that practice.

Parkour Shoes

Well the day finally came where I needed new shoes and my parents let me get parkour shoes from five ten. I did my homework on them and found out they are the best on the market. If you ask why I needed them it's because I'm tired of this....

A Tragic Loss.

My day started out well, I went to school, had good classes, talked to all my friends, and to close it off practicing flips at a gym. Then I got in the car to leave. I checked my messages. (taking Kyle's idea click here and listen while you read) I had about a two minute message about my cousin Mike's resignation. It is a tragic loss. My best partner and my inspiration crushed because his father was so worried about him he thought he would die doing parkour. They don't understand we don't do it for the stunts or the fame. Just the mindset. The mental accomplishes. If only he could stay and not have to leave this beautiful world that we so cherished. We hadn't had a great relationship till we started parkour. We had hour long conversations on the phone about what we wish to accomplish and what we already had accomplished. Now my phone remains silent. I only have one real partner right now, Will, and I know we can make it through this tough time but it'll be hard. Kyle and I still may go but it won't be the same. Maybe Mike can film for us or something. We will let him edit the movies so he can still have some connection with it. It's like being a Jedi. Even when you leave you are still one with the force. Mike still has the mindset and I know it. You can never truly lose the parkour mindset when you stop. We don't do it for the moves. It's only for the mindset. Mike has broken so many boundaries since he had started but those things he has overcome will never leave him. I also feel bad for Kyle because Mike was his partner for the longest time. They did so much together. If you watch their videos and see them now you'd be pretty amazed they have improved so much mentally and physically. I don't wish to tell Mike good bye from this Parkour world so I won't. It is just understood. "No room for goodbyes in Sparta. No room for weakness." This is the end of Mike's parkour days and we are sorry it had to be this way. We will still get together. It won't be the same. Or will it? Who knows. I'd rather his problem be solved than ours. The parkour world has many obstacles and Mike found an obstacle he can never overcome. No way around it. No way over or under it. He will have to take the sidewalk today. I'm sorry Michael David. May you never forget the times we shared together when we weren't just cousins, we were traceurs. A long time ago I was going to make a movie about a traceur who was on the run, he was solo. That is me today. I am a traceur without his wingman. I haven't missed a day of parkour since Michael David was here about two weeks ago. But today I will not go out and practice, today I will rest, today I will remember.
-Austin

Update on Training

Well training hasn't stopped at all. It's been go, go, go all week long. Front flips, back flips, green flips, blue flips. Sorry had a dr. suess moment. Anywho, it seems practice has gone on a little to long. Got some new injuries for you to here about. First I was doing stuff on bars and I jumped over something and when I grabbed the bar two of my calluses ripped off and it stung like crazy. Then I continued to practice that night. I got front flips down to a science. But I did so many of them and so many jumps I now have shin splints. Dag yo. Anyways with school starting it should heal pretty quickly. I'm going to have to stay off my feet as much as possible till Friday so I can practice back flips. They are so fun especially when I get them on flat ground. We've gotten three times better. Me meaning Me and Will. We actually created a new team and a blog, irmoparkour.blogspot.com . Check it out. Here's a video from our training.

Good or Bad Day?

I can't quite figure it out. My day started out bad. No one could go do parkour with me and I was stuck at home. I practiced front flips only to land on my butt and side. It hurt so badly. I was crushed. Later I went to my friends house to do a backflip. To everyones surprise I spent two hours debating and didn't accomplish it. I just couldn't do it. Yeah it seemed the day had gone wrong. Well about six o clock I called my friend and asked if he wanted to practice. Well we didn't have much time but we went anyways. He did more back flips and I debated again. Only to fail. So we headed to a playground at a school to do some boring but good practice. On our way we found a perfect little front flip spot. I tried and tried again to land it well and to my surprise I got better and better. Finally I started landing on my feet but still close to the ground till I got it right. Then he tried and made it. So we kept walking. I tried it again on this big thing of grass and all I can say is my knees need a day off. Ow. So we went to the playground and did our practice and left. Found some kong spots and a way to get on the roof. Which we will not be doing because it's quite inhabited. So I'd say now my day went bad and good. Here's the summary.

Tomorrow.

Today I wasn't able to get around to doing my back flip cause I had stuff to do. I went to my friends trampoline but there was a net which made it impossible to flip off of. So tomorrow I'm going to a gym to do it so I won't kill myself. I also will get my front flip down. I can pretty much do that now. I hurt my legs practicing it unfortunately when I was practicing them out in my yard. I ran out of energy and landed on my leg sideways. I stopped for now but I'll do it tomorrow night if I get the chance. I must do a back flip though. In order to make my movies look better and become a better traceur this is a must. I will grow slowly but until I do this I must put everything on hold so I can accomplish this goal. It may take a week or a month but I will get it. I am determined to. It is my only goal for now.

Speaking to soon.

This would happen to me. That is my luck. My last blog was about how I conquered my mind and I had no limits. I had no limits. But I figured out what I can't endure. (Had to add batman stuff in this whole thing) My friend (Will) and I went to a school today to practice. It was rainy and wet but we dried stuff off. I did some cool tricks on bars and got really good at it. This is my friend who got the back flip down. Now get this I got him to do it off a trashcan. He did it three times. I knew I had to do it. I got up on the trashcan, the first time not feeling it so I got off. So a minute later I hopped back up. The hop sent the message to my brain to flip. But I didn't flip. So I repeated the motion a few times. Nothing. I never did it. I finally figured out that my mind still has a fear of back flips. Not flips, just back flips. In fact in saying this I nearly landed a running front flip in the wrestling room. It's a start. I'm doing better at that. Tomorrow we are going to his trampoline and trying the back flip. I have to do it. So hopefully tomorrow there will be a video up with me doing a back flip tomorrow. So right now you will have to settle for this. I warn you this video will make you mad if you can't back flip. It simply gives me motivation.

Mindset

Currently my mind is clear. I see it clearly now. Every move, every drop, every jump, everything. I watch my last video repeatedly and see what I need to improve on. I go out and do it. Whenever I'm about to give up on a move, I stop back up and execute it. The move becomes natural and I never think about it. No more pacing before trying. It only leads to failure. Crash and Burn. It's amazing how much better I am when I study and get the mindset back. No more "I can't do this! That's impossible!" I attempt and succeed, and if I do not succeed then I do it again. Maybe I'm not strong enough to do a move, well then I find a strategic way to do it. If I can't figure out how to do it like everyone else, I invent my own way. Parkour is not about everyone else, it's about yourself. You create your own style. If I follow what everyone else does then I look like everyone else. I want to stand out from the crowd and make my own parkour style. I know I can do it, anyone can. You find moves you can do and build on those moves. Do a little of everything but get good at one certain type of moves whether spins, flips, jumps, vaults, whatever. Get good at it and be yourself. Let the traceur within free.

There and Back

Well we went downtown again Saturday and were a little less motivated. We were tired and were messing up like most of our moves. Of course everything cool we found I would get nervous because of our encounter with the cops. So we'd do something and leave quickly. I never did anything risky so I couldn't get any good footage. The day over all went badly but we managed to scrounge up some footage of ourselves practicing random stuff. Also before you watch this video we were practicing and were not executing our moves very well. Plus it isn't meant to be fast pace or smooth. It's practice. If we were filming a real movie I think we would've tried a little bit harder. I will probably start working on our first real video that is fast paced and our moves are smoother and more fluent in winter. I thought you would like to watch a practice video though because I mean seriously who wants to read all day? Not me. I want to see the people in action. So here ya go!

The Traceurs Strike Back

Well today went extremely well. Me, Mike, and Kyle went back downtown for practice. Unfortunately Kyle didn't get any practice, mainly because he is on a cane. Well it went well for Me and Mike. Maybe Kyle got mentally better, possibly worse because he is probably going to hurt himself now because he is so ready to get off his feet again. So we started off by parking at Chick-fil-a and we got change to fill the parking meter. Turns out the meter had 1:13 minutes still on it. So we walked off. Of course a homeless guy asked for the leftover change. Denied. Anyways we meet Kyle as he walked down the Capital building's steps. It felt weird to once again be together since the last time I saw Kyle we were surrounded by campus cops. So we walked on down to a few small spots and did some little tricks to get back the old mindset. It seemed distant but it came to me. We walked to the public library and practiced cat leaps and cranes in this little alley beside the library. It was wonderful. Then I spotted a worker within the library that walked by so we left. We took no chances of being caught. We wandered to Finley park where we practiced everything. As we practiced wall runs a homeless man walked by and said "police". So as we were about to bail the guy goes "You owe me a dollar". Joking of course. We got into deep conversation with the man and he seemed really smart till he started telling all these dumb stories so after about thirty minutes we left. Attempted kong vaults on a table and weren't successful at all. As we went back to the car I tried a wall spin on a pillar and landed it in front of a lot of people. Mike did it after and also landed it. I don't normally like showing off but I felt like a street performer and the people enjoyed it. We did that then left. Good time. Good Day. It truly lit the spark within me once again.