The actual English translation is Freerunning but Extreme Walking sounds cooler.

Parkour is the freestyle sport that’s like skateboarding, only without the board. I got linked to flash of this and was more inspired rather than simply impressed. These are just simple moves that almost anyone can do. I’ve done martial art rolls a plenty, even from heights; but never done or seen them done from 20 feet up onto a building across the street like David Belle, frenchman and father of Parkour, does.

Belle has a philosophy of “natural” sporting or play, in which someone just uses their surroundings to get a workout. This I can relate to since after 5 years of formal sword training I still feel like I’m the kid in the back yard playing with sticks. This is admitted as the real strength of the sport: that nothing is formal, nothing is to be judged ala X Games and thus it’s pure underground. So underground that children running around like this in rural/urban areas later find out that someone in 1988 went ahead and gave this activity a name. After all, there’s no expensive gear to even market other than shoes.

From here there is alot of juvenile involvement, including gangs/clans putting vids of their tricks to Eminem backbeats. Will you find me doing any of that? Not likely. Will you find me doing stupid shit like jumping off (small) buildings? Maybe. Will you find me finally getting down that aerial that I almost perfected years ago and then forgot about? I’m already working on it.

Full vid of the flash here