Don’t try this at home, kids.
Video of a man walking a tightrope — well, more specifically, “slacklining” — between the soaring peaks at Lion Rock appeared online over the weekend, giving some netizens a small dose of vertigo.
Footage of the stunt initially appeared on a closed Facebook group for hikers before being re-published on local outlets yesterday.
The videos show the man — topless, in beige shorts and harnessed-in — sit on the line first before tentatively standing up and making his way toward the other side as spectators watch on.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnimVau5FHs
He makes it about three-quarters of the way there before turning around. At one point, our daredevil loses his balance, but manages to cling to line, pull himself up and return to start.
“That scared me to death,” one onlooker, speaking in Mandarin, can be heard saying in the background.
The Facebook post also shows shots of a sheet of paper left at one end of the tightrope.
“Please do not touch: Physics experiment,” it reads, in English and Chinese.
We’re not sure exactly how the stunt benefited science. It did prove, once again, that some people love sticking their middle finger up at gravity.
It’s was perhaps a “tongue-in-cheek way of saying don’t touch the equipment if you don’t understand it,” suggested one commenter, named Edward Szakal. Thanks Edward, probs correct.
Edward went on to discuss slacklining, which Wikipedia explains differs from traditional tightrope walking by the material used and the amount of tension in the line.
“We practice weekly and introduce slacklining to the public and teach (for free) how to balance on a piece of webbing – everyone can try it,” said, Edward, apparently a member of a slacklining group, perhaps this one.
“There are as many benefits to learning to balance on a slackline as doing something like tai chi or yoga.”
The pursuit has it’s followers in Hong Kong, and the recent footage isn’t the first to show such stunts at Lion Rock and other precarious places of height.
Some netizens, however, weren’t super cool with what they characterized as a reckless stunt.
“If he died he doesn’t deserve pity, more work for the fire department,” said one. “If he falls, don’t bother sending rescuers to look for him,” said another.
Speaking to Apple Daily, mountaineering expert Chung Kin-man said that places like California in the US have outdoor venues where people can slackline safely, and that the extreme sport only became popular in Hong Kong about two years ago.
“The most important thing is not to endanger others and make sure you yourself are safe. For instance if you tried doing this on a high-rise in Central, people below will be concerned,” he said.
Lion Rock is a popular and iconic hiking spot that was featured on a government list of “accident black spots” earlier this year.
