Zachary Cohn's Blog

New Mission: Guerrilla Compliments

2010-03-24T17:56:00.007-04:00

I have become enamored by the concept of guerrilla movements. The Princeton Dictionary defines a guerrilla as "a member of an irregular armed force that fights a stronger force by sabotage and harassment." Typically, the term guerrilla refers to warfare. People who fight with guns and bombs to inspire fear and terror in the enemy. I prefer a broader interpretation of the definition, where any tool or medium might be used to inspire any emotion.

During February 2010, the Washington DC area experienced what came to be known as "The Snowpocolypse." Almost 4 feet of snow over the course of a weekend paralyzed most of the area. Events like this are stressful and dreaded by most adults, but to an equal intensity excite kids and teenagers everywhere because it means two things: 1) No school, and 2) snow shovels come out and it's time to make some money.

This has become a normal part of life, and no one is really opposed to kids making a bit of money by doing some hard physical labor. But my friends and I had another idea. We adopted a guerrilla shoveling strategy: We'd pick a house (often one we knew had older residents), swarm up, shovel the driveway (because there were six of us, we'd clear a driveway in 2 or 3 minutes), and then we'd quickly evacuate out of sight. We wouldn't knock on the door, we wouldn't charge them or even tell them who shoveled their driveway. We did this throughout the neighborhood (We got caught only once. It took us 5 minutes to convince her we really weren't looking for money. At this point, she came out and gave us apples and ginger ale. We decided this was a valid payment and graciously accepted it). I found out later that we apparently hit the editor of the community newsletter. She saw us running away, saw what we had done, and was inspired to write a whole article called "Snow Angels." An excerpt from the article she wrote:

"I was left with much more than a cleared driveway. More importantly, I was left...
...with a greater faith in the character of the upcoming generation,
...with a hope, that the example of their kindness be recognized and spread,
...and with a sense of charity, that we all recognize the generosity of others and continue to pay forward the good will which we are blessed."

Since then, I've become interested in this concept of anonymity - doing good not only without expecting to be thanked, but by making it impossible to be personally thanked (or at least very difficult). During a conversation last night with Jesse Danger, I was hit with an idea. I call it "Guerrilla Compliments."

I took a pad of Post-it notes and wrote a short, positive message on each. Some were cliche sounding mood-boosters (The world is beautiful, and you are too), some were positive suggestions (Dreams are not just for when you are asleep), and others were calls-to-action (Make moves, not excuses). I wrote about 15 unique messages, stuffed them in my pocket, and went to campus for the day.

I've used about half of the notes I wrote so far. A few places that I've put Post-it notes today: Snuck one into a girl's open backpack. On a janitor's floor scrubbing machine. The 5th tray from the top of the stack of food trays in the dining hall. Each time, I take a picture of the post it note (on the target if possible, although most times I take the picture earlier so I can decide on a target at the last second), and then post it to Twitter through Twitpic with a description of where I just put it. I'm tagging each post with the hashtag #guerrillacompliments.

I hope that people are surprised when they find a yellow Post-it note somewhere they weren't expecting. And I am hoping that this surprise will encourage them to read, consider, and really embrace what is written on it. Maybe they will just throw the note away without reading it. But maybe one of these will brighten someone's day. Maybe it will inspire them to engage in their own spontaneous act of kindness. Maybe the encouraging Post-it notes telling people that "The only difference between dreams and reality is action" will cause someone to stop hesitating and take some action to change their lives. So many people go days, weeks, or months without a single positive or encouraging word said to them.

Lets change that.

Guerrilla soldiers fight a stronger force by sabotage and harassment. Lets be guerrilla soldiers, waging a war against unhappiness, with Post-its and pens as our weapons. If you want to join my war, I welcome you to show support by posting your own attacks on unhappiness to Twitter with the hashtag #guerrillacompliments. Don't have a Twitter? Then don't worry about it. The important goal here is to get out, and do good.

I'm going to inspire hope and joy where ever I strike. And I will strike every day. Will you?

Ah, Sweet Misremembered Youth

2010-03-10T14:08:00.000-05:00

This is an excerpt taken from the editor's note of the August 1986 edition of Analog: Science Fiction, Science Fact magazine. Analog is one of the longest running science fiction literature magazines, and authors from Timothy Zahn (of Star Wars Expanded Universe fame) to Isaac Asimov have written for them.

I found this issue in an antique shop in Seattle, and the message here really spoke to me. I wasn't able to find a copy of it online, and I think this is something people should be more aware of:

"Once upon a time there was a little town in the midst of a sea of fertile farmland. it had a downtown - not a big one, to be sure, or truly bustling, by cosmic standards; but a central district where a few main highways came together and townsfolk and farmers from the surrounding countryside converged to do business. One day this town decided to make all its downtown streets one-way - and many onlookers, both residents and outsiders passing through, wondered why. It didn't seem to them that the actual volume of traffic required such action, and in fact the resulting confusion seemed more of a headache than the "congestion" the new arrangement was supposed to alleviate. Some of these perplexed observers thought the matter over at some length, and the best explanation they could come up with for a tranquil little town's making its streets one-way was this. Much as a little girl might like to dress up in her mother's clothes because it makes her feel "like a big girl," a little city might adopt big-city traffic patterns to make itself feel like a big city.

A bit far-fetched, you may say, but several years later I still haven't heard a better explanation. Admittedly such analogies between the behavior of individual organisms and that of social units are imperfect, at best. There are such obvious differences as the fact that the decision to make streets one-way was made by a few individuals, not by the town as a whole (though that difference may not be as great as it appears, since the little girl's decision to dress up was made by a similarly small group of her cells). In any case, there are also clear similarities in the behaviors of organisms at individual and group levels. It can be at least mildly entertaining, and perhaps even instructive, to look at what they are.

The one I'm particularly thinking about today concerns a common tendency among adults which you've probably noticed in others and very likely exhibited at least occasionally in yourself. How often have you heard an adult beset by some problem like taxes or work pressures of family responsibilities sigh nostalgically that he wishes he were back in his childhood, without any worries? I've heard it often - and I've always considered it a clear sign that the adult's memory of childhood is, at best, exceedingly vague. Any child could remind you that childhood is anything but carefree. Every day is filled with concerns like what's-my-teacher-going-to-do-to-me-if-I-forget-my-book-report and is-that-bully-going-to-catch-me-on-the-way-to-school and am-I-growing-up-the-way-I-should and why-don't-boys-like-me.

"Ah," the adult smiles wistfully, "but those are such TRIVIAL problems compared to mine!"

To which I reply, with all possible respect, hogwash. The measure of a problem is not how big it is compared to somebody else's, but how big it is compared to your own perception of your ability to solve it. In those terms, a child's problems are not one whit less formidable than an adult's, and they may even be far more so. (Especially when you consider that the current crop of children are exposed to an unprecedented amount of information about current events and are well aware that many adult problems directly affect them, but are completely beyond their control.) A child's problems may loom large primarily because he lacks the perspective to accurately judge their real seriousness. If he's lucky, by adulthood he will be able to evaluate them more realistically and thus be less likely to let his worries get out of proportion to their causes (though many adults, alas, are not that lucky)."

The article goes on to talk about how this applies at a cultural and global level, which is just as important, but for another time. What do you think of this editor's note? Do you agree? Disagree?

Safety has EVERYTHING to do with Fitness

2010-02-03T14:25:00.000-05:00

Based on a forum post where someone stated that advanced practitioners were more likely to get hurt than beginners:

Safety is largely a skill/mental attitude. You can go about a difficult jump with safety in mind, using spotters, progression, and building up to it - or you can just go for it. Most of us choose to go the route of safety - but sometimes someone doesn't know how to be safe. It's an inherent skill to some extent, but must be actively developed or TAUGHT (which is something all three gyms (APEX, Primal, PKV) focus on.) To address later points, these gyms don't just say "Do X and Y and never do A and B." They teach with safety in mind, and through that teaching style students learn how to be safe on their own.

However, I do think Rafe is right about the quote "Safety has got nothing to do with fitness." being incorrect. On Saturday, I took either the worst, or the second worst, bail of my life (parkour, flipping, gymnastics, martial arts, slacklining, firespinning, waterskiiing, wakeboarding all included). The only reason I am probably not paralyzed right now is because of my strength, fitness, skill, and experience.

I wasn't doing anything dangerous, just a simple step up to crane with my off leg. I stepped, leapt, my foot landed on the top, but I had a little bit too much forward momentum and I pitched forward, head first, feet in the air, toward the concrete on the other side. It was about a 4 foot drop, and all I remember is a snapshot of the concrete about 2 feet from my face, and my right arm outstretched toward the ground.

Based on the map of my (extremely minor) injuries and scrapes, I contacted the ground with the blade of my right hand and braced with the palm of my left, lowered myself down into a roll. I hit my thigh on the corner of the wall, and I must have hit my knee at some point - probably during the roll.

I ended on my back, eyes closed, on the concrete. My right leg was extended, and my left knee was bent about 45 degrees. The person I was training with came over, and I calmly asked her to extend my knee and help me unzip my jacket so I could breathe. I walked away about 2 minutes later, and now about 36 hours later the only remaining pain/tightness/soreness is in my thigh, which is greatly diminished.

I was doing something easy and simple. This was something a beginner could probably do. I am sure, however, that this was not something a beginner could have walked away from so easily. I consider myself somewhat strong, but I still do things that are largely not risky. I take great care not to put myself in any unnecessary or excessive danger. This was a technique that was not excessively dangerous. But just like any technique, if the right thing goes wrong at the perfect time...

Physical strength is JUST AS IMPORTANT as mental strength. You can not say that a beginner is exposed to less danger because it simply isn't true. You can not say that because I am stronger, I have to take more risks. Because I was stronger, I am able to move my fingers to type this right now. Life is a long road and we must be strong in order to walk it to it's destination.

Last Night's Dream

2010-01-28T13:07:00.000-05:00

So I had a dream last night, and I'd like to share it with the world.

It started off and we were at the Whole Foods near Jesse Danger's house (there is no Whole Foods near Jesse's house), and there were a bunch of parkour people hanging out. Someone comes up and tells me they got the car, and we go over. The car looked kind of like the Corvette LT-1, but about a billion times shinier and better. They handed me the keys and we got in. There was a stickshift, but I never needed to shift between gears. There were, however, about 12-15 different orientations it could be in (including some sort of turbo boost).

So we started driving down this highway. We were going pretty fast, I looked down and it was about 35mph. I thought "We can go faster than this." So then I hit the gas and we sped up to about 80-90mph. I hit the "turbo boost" somehow, and then we were going about 300mph. At one point we saw a turn coming up and I said to the guy in the passenger seat "Oh crap." I pulled the e-brake, executed a perfect skid around the corner, and then we kept going.

Finally, we drive into this cave. There is still road, but the walls are right up against the edge of the car. I hit the turbo boost and we're going about 400mph when the view switches to 3rd person of the car. Jet fighter wings fold out from the car, scraping and sparking against the walls. The whole car is on fire - but it's white fire. Then we hit this massive jump and glide for about a mile.

Next, it's me and my friend in this cave (no car), and we get to a door. "You have to write something insulting to get in" he says. So I inscribe with my feet on the ceiling "Write and die." We enter a living room style area. My friend Graham is there, along with the guy we were going to meet. The guy immediately jumps up and starts demanding who we are and how we got in here when Graham interrupts and says that we're with him.

The guy suddenly becomes friendly and welcoming, but in a very "mafia boss" kind of way. There are other people around who seem to be there for the same event as me. I mash some macaroni and cheese with chicken in it on the guys face (that's what was expected of me) and then the dream ends.

Someone woke me up in the morning and I immediately reply "I was having an office space dream." I'm not sure what that means, or if I was having a dream about office space afterward - but I'm glad I remembered this one instead.

Decentralizing Parkour Jam Planning using Twitter

2009-10-27T10:22:00.001-04:00

One of the major problems with parkour communities right now is jam planning and coordination. Currently, Rochester uses Facebook to plan jams. Honestly I wish it hadn't turned out that way. The only way to announce your jam was to post on the discussion boards (which no one checks with any real frequency in ANY Facebook group) or to send out a message. Only administrators of the group can send out messages though, so unless I made everyone an administrator, only a few select people could effectively plan jams.

I recognized how detrimental this was to the community and I made a push to start using the American Parkour forums. As it stands, almost all typical parkour communities use forums to plan their jams, and it works pretty well. Forums allow anyone to post a jam, they facilitate easy discussion and planning of the jam, and it leaves a public record of past events. The problem is people had no incentive to check APK because any event we planned was blasted to them through Facebook. Additionally, it's difficult to reach critical mass on a forum (as defined by the amount of activity occurring to keep it interesting enough for people to keep coming back and generating more activity). So short of the leaders of the community abandoning Facebook entirely. I had to find a way to solve this problem in order for the community to be sustainable. How could we decentralize jam planning without destroying the community?

Then the idea. Twitter. It all fell into place, and the solution is SO much cooler than you think it is.

A quick rundown on Twitter lingo in case you aren't familiar. A Twitter update is called a tweet. You can do something called "retweeting" which is basically quoting someone. It's typically used as a way of saying "hey. This guy is pretty cool, you (your followers) should hear what he has to say." Then there are hashtags, which is Twitters keyword system. You can end a tweet with #08DebateTopics, and then whenever someone who was interested in 2008 election debate topics searched for that hashtag, tweets about energy policy, Iraq, and the economy would all come up.

So here is how my solution works:

Step 1: start a hashtag, #parkourjam. If I want to go train, I write a tweet like "Tuesday. Five PM. In front of the library. #parkourjam"

Step 2: Run a Twitter search for the hashtag, and then save the RSS feed for that search.

Step 3: write a perl script to scrape that RSS feed and republish it. (this is necessary because Twitter uses nofollow links, which will screw up the next step.)

Step 4: run your new RSS feed through Yahoo Pipes. Apply some clever filters and regular expressions to strip out the data you want, clean it up a bit, and the republish that as a new RSS feed.

Step 5: run that RSS feed through twitterfeed.com. This will check for updates every 30 minutes, then will actually update a Twitter account with the new information.

So what we just did is essentially create a retweet bot. It will automatically search Twitter for new tweets using the #parkourjam hashtag, do a bunch of technical mumbo jumbo back-end magic, then republish any tweet it finds under its own account.

This is obviously useful because now everyone doesn't have to follow everyone else, people only have to follow a single bot.

Cool right? Yeah. But we're not done yet.

Twitter is super phone friendly. You can register your phone with your account, and then you can actually text updates to Twitter. So I can be on campus, find out class is canceled, then without having to go home I can tell people to meet me outside the library in ten minutes to train.

Sweet, right? Sure, but then everyone else still has to be at their computer to see my update. And this is when the project REALLY gets cool.

Remember when I said that Twitter is super phone friendly? Yeah. SUPER phone friendly. You can actually set Twitter up to send you a text message whenever specific people update their Twitter accounts.

Yeah. So suddenly, I can tell everyone who follows this retweet bot that I'm outside the library and I want to train. Where ever they are.

So if your Economics 101 professor is droning on and on about the laws of supply and demand and it's an amazing day outside... You know there is someone who wants to go train. Or if your home alone watching television, or if you dropped the kids off at a birthday party and have a few hours to kill. Suddenly the entire community is at your fingertips. Anyone can plan a jam- either days in advance or minutes in advance.

I feel like this is what Twitter is going to be used for more and more in the future. With a bit of creativity, out of the box thinking, and knowing what tools are out there and what they're capable of, you can decentralize planning while centralizing community.

5 Cool Things Zac Has Done

2009-09-22T11:19:00.004-04:00

5. Challenged Housing Department to get our basements back:

Housing is more or less constantly trying to pull a fast one on RIT students. They often get away with it, but sometimes they just take things too far. Here's the story of how Housing tried to lock the basements of all the townhouses in my complex, and how I started a movement and stopped them by using social networking and a the power of rallying people behind a cause!

4. 72 Hour Fast:
I grew up in an upper-middle class family with a fully stocked refrigerator. Sometimes we were out of peanut butter, but we were never out of food. So I decided to find out what it was like to go three days without eating. I did not alter my schedule at all, and I used Twitter to keep a constant log of how I was feeling.

3. Trip around the country:
I was faced with a choice. Should I look for a summer job, or should I blow a fair deal of my money and travel to 20 different cities across the country meeting new people, seeing new places, and training Parkour? No real contest. I took planes, trains, and busses and never spent a dime on housing by staying with parkour friends. Read the stories (be sure not to miss the Plane to San Francisco one), see the pictures, and watch the videos of my 8 week trip.

2. Rochester Parkour:
When I came to RIT as a freshmen, there were only two other people training in all of Rochester, and they were about 45 minutes away. Since I founded Rochester Parkour one year ago, we've had special Beginner Workshops with over 100 attendees, host training sessions with over 40 regulars, have had two television interviews and five newspaper articles, been featured by the Rochester Area Community Foundation nonprofit organization, negotiated to teach children's classes out of a gymnastics gym, and led free children's workshops for the Strong National Museum of Play.

1. Backflips!

And undoubtly the coolest thing I've done... Backflips! What most people don't know about backflips is that they're also semi-legal tender in some places. I've done backflips for raffle tickets, backflips for cheese, and backflips for cash!

I Fought Housing... and I Won

2009-09-21T20:48:00.001-04:00

I am by no means spoiled. But when things don't go my way, sometimes it is necessary and proper to throw yourself on the ground, scream, flail, and thrash around for a bit. This is pretty much how I ensured that the basements of my townhouse complex remain unlocked...

I live in an on-campus townhouse complex called Colony (which falls somewhere between "the slums" and "low-income housing" on my scale of RIT Housing). Despite the distance from campus, disrepair, and the smelly, ant-and-bee-infested swamp I have for a backyard, I really enjoy living there. One of the major draws is the basement - the only RIT housing option with a basement. We have two rooms, a "family room" and a "utility room."

According to the RIT Housing website, the Family Room is 12 x 21, and the Utility Room is 13 x 21. There is a very thin, poorly constructed wall (with holes in it) between the two rooms, and a door connecting them.

I was back home in Maryland this summer, but my roommate Charles Moreland stayed in our townhouse. One day, he emailed me and was furious that "Housing was locking our basement."

...What? I didn't get this email. I had him forward me the email, which stated that "this necessary work is being done to address past occurrences with fire code violations and maintenance issues. These incidents include: inappropriate storage of combustible materials near the furnace and hot water tank, and the sump pump being clogged with debris (resulting in flooded basements)."

I assumed my email was waiting in a queue somewhere, and was bound to arrive sometime that night. Over 24 hours passed, and I still hadn't received an email. That's when I realized that Housing was trying to pull a fast one on any residents not actively living there over the summer.

And that's when I got angry. And to quote the Hulk, you wouldn't like me when I'm angry.

I thought for a moment, then came up with a plan.

Phase I) Write an email. I wrote an email that started off by thanking them for locking our basement. I told them that I was glad that they were going to lock off 273 square feet of our townhouse, but I was confused as to why they didn't mention the $704 I would save in rent that year! I continued this implication that they were lowering our rent for a while, and told them I planned on using the money to buy food and textbooks - things I wasn't able to afford both of last year.

I acknowledged I was being sarcastic, and then I pointed out that this yet one more problem in a long line of "miscommunication issues" that Housing was facing. I was part of a Housing Committee that Housing disbanded (because these were the kind of issues we were bringing up. You know, real ones.). I pointed out that they weren't updating their Housing Guidelines handbook, they weren't informing students of changes to policies (or weren't until it was too late), and that they inconsistently enforced other policies. It was also unacceptable that they kept this a secret from most of the people it would effect (school-year residents). I offered my contact information for further discussion, and I promised they would hear more complaints.

And then I sent it 15 people. Everyone from the Director of Housing to the President and Vice-President of Student Government to the Director of Student Affairs. One person could ignore it... but fifteen couldn't.

I got an email from the President of Student Government telling me he was "looking into the situation," and then I got a call from one of the higher-ups in Housing. We spoke on the phone for some time, and he insisted that this was the way it was, and there was nothing I could do.

So then I got serious.

Phase II - Spark a Social Wildfire. I knew they could ignore me and my opinions, so I needed to get the word out. Which, I believe, is why Facebook was invented. I wrote a Facebook note that briefly informed people what was happening, why it was happening, and what I was doing to stop it. Then I picked one of the people from my email list, and I told everyone to email that person one person and complain. I was trying to ensure that the complaints would be concentrated. I posted an alarmist status update ("Do you live in Colony? Housing is trying to lock your basement! Read my note to learn how to stop it!"), and then asked people to repost my status update and my note.

I also contacted several social activists on campus and we were beginning to plan a Walk on the Housing office.

It spread quickly, and while I have no idea how many emails my target received, it must have been enough. All Colony residents (ALL residents, summer and school-year) received an email a few days later that "after phone conversations with several students residing in the Colony Manor townhomes as well as reviewing feedback posted on Facebook and through email, I’ve decided on a compromise."

Phase III- Resolution. They came in and marked off an area around the furnace where we couldn't store anything, and they put a grate over the sump pump. This was a perfectly legitimate, appropriate, and valid response to the problem, whereas locking the entire room was punative and disproportionate to the problem.

So while some people get an email like that, say "Damn, that sucks" and shrug it off, other people get up and complain. When that doesn't work, but you know that your needs and goals and just and right, then it's time to throw yourself on the floor, scream, flail, and thrash wildly until you get your way.

Keeping Busy This Summer

2009-07-17T11:28:00.004-04:00

We're now officially halfway through Summer, and I've been keeping busy. I've started, finished, and am working on quite a few different projects.

1. APK Affiliate Program
Toward the beginning of the summer, I came up with an idea to connect American Parkour more with other websites and communities. This eventually developed into the APK Affiliate Program. I've been leading the charge on this, and Im really happy with where this is going. At the time of this posting, we have four published Affiliates, two more waiting to be published, about 6 more in the works, and I'm getting more and more emails about it every day.

I think this is a great way for APK to boost the visibility of a lot of smaller, local sites and drive a lot more traffic to them. It's also a great way to get the people from those sites connected with, using, and contributing to APK and its resources, which will make APK a better community for everyone.

2. Marketing APK and Primal
I've always been very vocal about my ideas for APK (and I've had plenty), but this summer I was hired on as the official Marketing Manager for APK and Primal Fitness DC and Miami. I've been putting together plans and projects to help get the word about APK out there to new people, and to help grow awareness of Primal Fitness DC and help get Primal Fitness Miami started on the right track. This is an exciting opportunity for me to work even harder to grow and guide the organizations that have helped me so much.

3. Content Manager for APK
For almost a year now, I've been in charge of updating the front page of American Parkour on a daily basis. There is the occasional slow day, but for the most part there is something to post every single day. I have a couple different methods of gathering information: I use a series of Google Alerts to track breaking and developing stories. I check the forums for interesting videos, posts, articles, and information. People email me if they think they have something newsworthy.

I email everything to myself, then use a special Gmail label I set up to label it as a front page item. After I post it, I archive it. This system enables me to search my gmail for the string "label:frontpage in:inbox" and it will display all the stories I have yet to publish.

The role of content manager helps me really keep track of what's going on at a local, national, and international level and stay connected with people all over the world. These connections have enabled me to do a much better job with some of my other projects, like the APK Affiliate program.

4. Nunchucks
This is a bit of a side project. I decided I wanted to make a set of nunchucks, but really go all-out on them. I looked up a local woodworking club and went to one of their meetings. I sat and talked with some of the members for a few hours to learn more about basic woodworking. I went to Home Depot and grabbed a utility knife, then I went to a place in Annapolis called Exotic Woods. I was looking through their scrap pile and found 3 pieces of walnut wood. I cut one in half, and ended up with four rectangular pieces of wood.

The left pair have been sanded, the right pair gets sanded today.

I spent about 10 hours whittling (probably a good 4 hours for the first one, 3 for the second, 2 for the third and 1 for the fourth. I was getting better and better!) them into cylinders. I've spent about an hour sanding and that step is half done. Next, I'm going to use a tool my friend lent me. It's kind of like a soldering iron, but it's for burning designs/lettering into wood. I'm going to engrave four quotes, one on each chuck. I've decided on two of the quotes:

"Power Is Nothing Without Control"
"Etre fort pour être utile." (Translation: Be Strong to be Useful)

I haven't decided on the other two. Leave suggestions in the comments!

After I etch the quotes in, I'll stain it and then attach the chain. And then I'll have some awesome homemade nunchucks, and will have learned more about whittling, etching, and staining.

5. Local Parkour Training
Some locals and I have set up regular, twice a week sessions in the Severna Park, Maryland area. I have a lot of friends who were interested in training, but didn't really want to go off and figure it out on their own. When I came back from college we set these up, and we've had a good number of beginners show up (and stay!). I've done a ton of teaching in Rochester, but this group is a mix of experienced and inexperienced people, so finding a good balancing point of activities has been an interesting task.

I trained with the Bar-Barians a bit in NYC a few weeks ago, and it's solidified my opinion that strength and conditioning is paramount not only for safety, but will also in learning new techniques. See video below to learn about the Bar-Barians.

We were doing parkour with one of them, and he moved like he'd been training for three years. Turns out, this was his third parkour session. His incredible amount of strength made learning new techniques a piece of cake. Because of this, we've been doing mostly conditioning at our training sessions. I'm subscribing to the belief that if you focus almost solely on strength and conditioning for the first months of your training, you will progress much faster later on.

Those are some of the projects I've been working on this summer. While it was definitely frustrating not being hired this summer because I wasn't willing to work for free, I've definitely been keeping busy and staying productive.

Call for Help - Parkour Non-Profit Fundraiser

2009-06-10T19:09:00.003-04:00

Some of my closest Parkour friends are from Seattle, Washington. Of the people there, Tyson Cecka has started a non-profit organization called "Parkour Visions."

"Parkour Visions seeks to improve the health and well-being of today's movement-starved and overworked population by revealing the world filled with rewarding mental and physical challenges that everyone can playfully use to improve themselves.

We are a nonprofit organization bringing the exciting new sport of parkour / freerunning into mainstream society in a safe and responsible way through our classes, outreach programs, educational resources, and partnerships.

We believe that fitness should not only be physically demanding, but should challenge us intellectually, put us in touch with our environment, and expand our understanding of ourselves. Through parkour we hope to help children and adults connect with their innate love of movement, get in touch with their surroundings, and experience the full potential of what their bodies have evolved to do."

They're currently fundraising to finance their outreach programs for at-risk children. If they make their goal of $4,000 by the end of June, it will earn them a permanent spot on the GlobalGiving.org, which will help fund their programs for a long time!

The description of the project:

"Here's the deal: I'm betting all of you have had problems before getting parkour recognized as a legitimate useful activity that's not just kids jumping off of buildings and goofing around ;) We're all in this challenge together to be recognized as a worthwhile discipline to the masses and that's why places like these forums and projects like Jump Westminster and Leave No Trace have extra importance.

In Seattle, Washington they've started up a whole not-for-profit organization to help address this and guide parkour into the mainstream. Their largest project yet is launching this month which involves teaching low-income and homeless young people parkour through a public school, four apartment complexes, and a teen crisis center (so far).

They have little money to back this up and are reaching out to the worldwide parkour community to give as much as $10 to the cause. If they can raise $4,000 by the end of this month they can reach the tipping point and fund these programs till the end of the year. That's only one corporate sponsor and a few hundred individual donors. The media coverage and lasting impacts of these programs could be huge and be a big boon for parkour in the US and globally.

Take a look and please help by donating $10 or at least spreading this around."

Please help out Parkour Visions - even a donation of $10 will go a long way to supporting the first Parkour non-profit in America!

The Summertime Challenge

2009-05-28T11:37:00.000-04:00

While Parkour takes up a large part of my life, I also study Marketing and Business, with a focus in technology. I spent a better part of the Winter and Spring looking for summer employment, hopefully doing some sort of Internet Marketing. Due to the economy, however, it's unlikely I'm going to be employed this summer. I'll be out making contacts in the community, but there will be a lot more free time than I anticipated.

At school, we don't watch television. My roommate is actually going to sell his TV, it's been so long since we last used it. But in the summer I'm not around as many people, and often I'll turn the TV on as background noise while making breakfast or something. Often I'll get sucked into whatever I'm watching and end up wasting half the day. I always feel like crap after, but it's just what happens.

So now I'm in a quandary. I'm going to have a lot of free time, but I don't want it to get sucked up by TV. So I've come up with a summer challenge for myself, and I invite all of you to partake as well:

The challenge is essentially "No TV during daylight." No movies, no video games, nothing. Computer use is restricted to email and business uses. Instead, I propose everyone create a list - a long list - of things to do.

This list should comprise of skills to learn, books to read, places to go, and things to do. Mark each one in a category, and then write the skill. Don't limit yourself to Parkour oriented skills - use this summer to make yourself a more rounded person.

An exerpt from my list:

Gymnastics: Consistent 10 second handstand
Gymnastics: Front Lever Progression - Advanced Tuck
Tricking: B-twist
Tricking: Flashkicks
Marketing: Read at least two SEO books
Marketing: Attend at least 3 networking events a month
Juggling (balls): Factory on both sides
Juggling (clubs): Cuts with clubs
Juggling (poi): Five beat weave
Circus: Learn to ride Unicycle
Slacklining: Vertical jump
Slacklining: Horizontal jump at least two feet.
Reading: Read 5 fiction books
Reading: Read 5 non-fiction books.
Anatomy: Learn names of major muscles in the body, how to ID them.
Martial Arts: Find local Kali group and learn basics of Kali.
Martial Arts: Track down Taekwondo instructor, train with him.
Cars: Learn how to change my oil
Cars: Teach sister to parallel park.

Again, this is just an exerpt from my list. I want everyone to make their own list for the summer, print it out, and put it on their refridgerator. When you complete an item, physically cross it off.

Your list doesn't have to be realistic for the time constraints. I doubt I'll get all of this, let alone my entire list, complete in twelve weeks. But at least every day, I'll be able to wake up and know that I have a lot of things I can do instead of watching television.

Be Strong to Be Useful... or just plain "Be Useful."

2009-04-06T00:09:00.002-04:00

I think to truly understand the phrase "Be strong to be useful," you can simply modify it to: "Be useful."

On Saturday, Charles Moreland and I were driving back from the grocery store. We were already 20 minutes late to our own party, it was raining, cold, and there were 30mph gusts. While at a stop light, Charles noticed a van in the intersection across from us. It was stopped in the left turn lane, cars were going around it, and all the lights were off. The lights came back on, briefly, and then went out again. Clearly, their car was dead.

Immediately, and pretty much without speaking, it was agreed that we'd pull into the nearest parking lot, don our jackets and gloves, and run into the middle of the road to help. We walked up to the car, and I waved. The old russian man cracked the door open suspiciously, as I announced that we were here to help. "I already called Triple A" he said. "They'll be here within the hour." I waved my hand toward the oncoming cars. "It's not safe for you to be in this intersection. Throw the car in neutral and we're going to push you into the parking lot."

I think there was a bit of a language barrier, and a bit of suspicion about these random boys who showed up out of no where to help, but once we got behind the car and started to push, he shifted into neutral and steered. Once we got out of the intersection, we pushed the car (uphill! Damn minivans are heavy.) through the road and into a parking space. I noticed about halfway through, whenever he could, the old man opened the door and tried to help push with his foot.

We got to the parking space, he put it in park, and he and his wife got out of the car and thanked us profusely. She asked us if we were in school, and if we were done with calculus yet (she is a calculus tutor at a local high school apparently), and she gave us her card. The man shook our hands and thanked us many times. I gave them my card and told them to call me if they needed any more help - I lived just five minutes away.

Getting out of my car to help two complete strangers in need? To me, this is more parkour than the biggest prevision, the furthest kong to cat, or the largest drop.

Write up: March 28th Beginner's Parkour Workshop in Rochester

2009-03-29T02:04:00.004-04:00

Rochester Parkour hosted their first “Beginner's Parkour Workshop” in December. 35 people attended, mostly regulars. On Saturday, March 28th, Rochester Parkour hosted their second “Beginner's Parkour Workshop.” There was no definitive count, but the lower estimate was 100 people, mostly newcomers. During the first workshop, it was in the low 30s and starting to snow. This time, it was in the high 60s, sunny, and a beautiful day.

This picture was taken at the end of the workshop, after approximately half the group had left.

The workshop was scheduled to start at 2:30, but Zac decided to go a little bit early. When he got there at 2:00, there was already a handful of people waiting. After some introductions and idle chit-chat, Zac noticed a police car pulling up and parking nearby. After watching for a bit, the officers got out of their car and started walking over. At this point, Zac was convinced that the workshop was going to get broken up 25 minutes before it even started! He started walking toward the officers to introduce himself. After a brief exchange of introductions, the officers asked if this was the Parkour thing they saw on the RNews (the local news station). Reluctantly, Zac replied that it was. At this point, everyone else was silent and staring. There was a ten second awkward silence, then one officer laughed and said “You guys aren't in trouble! We just thought it was cool and wanted to check it out. We're not even from around here, we're from the next district over.”

Everyone talked with the officers for a bit, and they even said they'd try to stop back again during the workshop (although they weren't able to). It was a stressful, but overall positive indication of how the day was going to go!

Over the course of the next 25 minutes, more and more people showed up. Introductions were made, a Frisbee game broke out. A lot of teenage boys were coming, but there was also at least 10 girls who came out to participate! There were some adults, and even a few families that came out to give it a try! There was a husband and a wife, and their three young children who did a fantastic job! People just kept pouring over the hill and onto the field, until it was about 2:40, and it was definitely time to get started. A quick estimate of the turnout resulted in over 100 people!

Zac led everyone to the field, and we started off with a brief discussion. Zac explained what was, and what wasn't, parkour, and what was going to be covered in the workshop. Then random people in the audience were asked “Why are you here today? Why did you come to this workshop?” Everyone gave a different answer, ranging from “It's better than sitting inside” to “I've watched a lot of videos, and I wanted to learn how to do that, but safely.” After the Q&A session... it was time to get started!

With 100+ people, the warm up was interesting. We ended up doing two laps around the field, alternating between running forwards, backwards, and side to side – all while trying really hard not to trample anyone. Everyone then lined up and was taught basic QM, forwards and backwards. Seeing 100 people on their hands and feet crawling across a field is quite the sight! Landings were next, and Zac used his step-by-step progression to teach everyone the basics fairly quickly.

From here, the best way to deal with 100 people is to make them... not 100 people. So Charles Moreland took 1/3rd of the group to practice precisions, local traceur Zachary Leo took another 1/3rd to work on rolling and QM, and Zac Cohn took the last 1/3rd to learn basic vaults. The vaulting group started with the safety vault. After most people were comfortable with that, those who were ready learned reverse safety vaults. This was a bit different, but it ended up working really well. Benches were being used to vault over, so it was very easy to progress safely. The vault section ended with the Speed vault for those who were comfortable with the Safety vault, and that pretty much took up the rest of the time until the groups rotated.

After everyone hit every station, it was “free time.” People were free to work on whatever they felt they were weak in, or whatever was the most fun! Zac led a wallrun workshop, while his roommate Artem Sivak worked with people on climbups. This was a wildly successful station, with almost half the group coming over to learn.

After the free time was over, it was time for a game of Follow the Leader. Charles Moreland took the advanced/experienced group, while Zac led the beginners. QM, vaults, precisions, and some climbing were all utilized to give people a good workout, and to teach them about exploring their environment in new and interesting ways. Both games of Follow the Leader ended on the field, where everyone stretched out and chatted with their new friends.

All in all, there was beautiful weather, a huge and diverse turn out, and everyone had a ton of fun. There were many photographer's there, and a news crew from the RIT ESPN Sports Zone. Check out more information on Rochester Parkour, and check out Michael McGowan's photo gallery of the website.

Entry for Internet Marketing ticket giveaway contest.

2009-03-24T17:36:00.002-04:00

I should be given Jon Payne's ticket to IM Spring Break. I am a student studying Marketing in Rochester, New York, and I want to focus in Internet Marketing for my career. I have pending employment with an Internet Marketing firm in Baltimore for this summer, and unlike most students who complete their schooling and then start implementing what they've learned, I am already working with American Parkour (www.americanparkour.com) to improve their Internet Marketing strategies. I can take advantage of what I learn at this conference IMMEDIATELY, whereas other students who attend would wait until after graduation to begin to use what they've gained. By that time it might already be too late. This field is changing so rapidly that implementing a strategy developed a year or two prior is likely to result in an epic belly flop.

Not only can I take excellent advantage of this contest, but I'm almost as cool as you are Jon, so I would be an adequate replacement to send in your sted.

Beginner's Parkour Workshop in Rochester, NY - March 28th

2009-03-16T15:21:00.002-04:00

Rochester Parkour is planning our second Beginner’s Parkour workshop. This is a free introduction, designed to inform and educate anyone interested in practicing Parkour. It’s targeted towards beginners, but we encourage more experienced members of the community to come as well.

We will be covering the basics of Parkour, including an introduction to proper conditioning, landings and precision jumps, quadrupedal movement, and basic vaulting. Rochester Parkour also emphasizes an importance on safety and slow, progressive training methodologies in all of our events and training sessions.

We encourage anyone interested in Parkour to attend. Whether it’s your first time out, or you’re already an experienced traceur, you’re sure to learn something - or at least have a good time!

Who can come: Anyone! Males or females of any age. Parents feel free to bring your kids. Kids, feel free to bring your parents!

Who is hosting: The event is being run by Zachary Cohn, one of the most experienced traceurs in the state. He is a member of the APK Alliance, a national group sponsored by American Parkour. He will be assisted by Charles Moreland and Jeff Whalley, two experienced and dedicated traceurs.

What: Workshop designed to teach beginners the fundamentals of Parkour training, while emphasizing safety and progression.

Where: The big field above the Ice Rink at Manhattan Square Park: 353 Court St. Rochester, New York, 14607.

When: March 28th, 2:30-4:00pm

Why: To learn about Parkour and to have a great time!

How much: This event is absolutely free! We will be selling Rochester Parkour T-shirts for $10 - all T-shirt sale proceeds will go toward building equipment (vaulting boxes, precision trainers) and our Spring trip to New York City (to be announced).

What you should bring: Bring comfortable clothing and layers. We can’t control the weather, and we will be outside! Bring comfortable but athletic shoes (sneakers, running shoes, skater shoes, etc). If you haven’t already filled out and turned in a waiver, please print out and fill out this waiver and bring it with you.

Most importantly, bring a positive attitude and the expectation of having a great time!!

For more information, email info@rochesterparkour.com.

This Is How I Play #4 –PDQM

2009-01-13T17:06:00.001-05:00

Game: Today’s game was invented during one of the Philly jams. It is called PDQM. It doesn’t really stand for anything, just a combination of “Pretty Darn Quick” and “Quadrupedal Motion.” This game is a combination of PDQ and QM Tag.

Rules: All players must start the game on all fours. Any body configuration is acceptable, as long as all four limbs are touching the ground. The game begins like PDQ: each player counts off. No player may move until the player whose turn it is jumps into the air. The twist to this game is that the players must be on all fours. In order to tag someone out, you must tag someone’s hand with your hand, or their foot with your foot. When the player who is “it” is leaping, all other players may move to avoid or to tag someone else out.

Goal: To be the last player untagged.

Variation: Limb elimination. This is actually a pretty standard variant that we play by. If your left hand gets tagged, then you lose that hand, but you are still in the game. You only get “out” when you can no longer support yourself and a non-limb part of your body touches the ground (chest, butt, head, etc). If you lose two feet and a hand, you better hope you can balance on one hand.

Physical Benefits: This game combines the physical benefits of PDQ with QM tag. With the limb elimination modification, it force you to be able to balance in strange positions as well as move from strange positions with unusual restrictions. This game can tire you out more quickly than PDQ or QM tag, and it also is a lot of fun.

Other benefits: This game is an example of the creativity that can be applied to parkour and games. We had two games, and after some modifications to the rules, came up with an entirely new game. Creating games doesn’t have to be hard.

Homework: I want everyone to do this as a creativity exercise. Pick two games. Review the rules in your head quickly, and then figure out a way to combine them. The new game doesn’t have to work well, or be fun, and you don’t even have to play it! Just synthesize a set of rules for a new game from two pre-existing games. I want everyone who reads this to do this exercise three times, and then post the best game you come up with in the comments of this article. Your brain is just like a big muscle. The more you work it, the stronger it gets. The more you use your creativity, the more creative you get. So start exercising your creativity, and let me see what you come up with.

This Is How I Play #3 - QM Tag

2009-01-08T23:41:00.003-05:00

Game: This next game is called QM (Quadrupedal Movement) Tag. It's a popular variation on regular tag, except you have to stay on all fours the entire time. These game is a lot of fun, but also is quite the workout as it encourages some mad scrambles to get away.

Rules: The rules are pretty simple. Usually I designate a specific area the players must stay in. This keeps the game fast and intense, and prevents people from spreading out too far. In order to tag someone, you must tag their elbows. This makes it a bit more difficult to tag other players.
Goal: For the player who is “it” to tag another player's elbow.

Physical Benefits: For anyone who hasn't tried it, QM is a fantastic full body exercise. Essentially, walk around on your hands and feet with your hips and shoulders low to the ground – the lower the harder! Once you've walked around like this for a while, try doing it backwards. And then do it up and down stairs, or all around the house. Once you're comfortable with walking around like this, try to balance (not while playing tag though!) and walk on a railing or on top of a fence on all fours.

Other benefits: In addition to making you stronger, compound, full body movements like this teach your brain how to use muscles together, instead of just individually. Whenever you learn a new movement, whether it's QM, juggling, or playing piano, you are actually constructing new neural pathways in your brain. People, especially children, who stimulate their brains in new ways will continue to develop more neural pathways. These people tend to have more active, creative, and powerful brains. By learning how to move in new and creative ways, you can actually get smarter!

Another added plus, it's a pretty effective method of wearing your kids out.

This Is How I Play #2 - PDQ

2009-01-06T09:03:00.003-05:00

Game: The first game is called PDQ, or Pretty Darn Quick. This is an incredibly popular parkour game, where the basic objective is to jump on peoples' feet. This is actually one of the more complicated games, it usually takes a practice game for everyone to get the hang of it. I often play a “demo game” as I'm teaching it, so people can see the rules and their effects.

Rules: You start in a circle and everyone puts one first in the center. Someone (usually the winner of the last game) picks a random person, taps their fist, and counts “one,” moves to the next person in the circle, “two” and so on until everyone has been numbered. Once everyone has a number, everyone shouts “One, two, three, PDQ!” and everyone simultaneously takes one jump away from the center.

At this point, you continue in number order (“one” is first, “two” is second, etc). When it is your turn to go, your goal is to jump on someone else's foot. No one can move until you are in the air, however. If you feint and pretend to jump and someone else moves their feet, then they are eliminated. If you jump and land on someone's feet, they are eliminated.

The interesting twist to this game is... you can only jump when the person who is “it” is in the air. However, if you jump and land on someone else's feet, you can still get them out even though it isn't your turn.

Goal: The game continues until only one person remains.

Example Game: John, Sue, Peggy, and Roger are playing PDQ. John is player #1, Sue is player #2, Peggy is player #3, and Roger is player #4.

Round #1: John jumps into the air and lands on Roger's left foot. Roger is out. Sue and Peggy both jump away from John.

Round #2: Sue jumps towards John, but John jumps towards Peggy and lands on her feet. Peggy is out.

Round #3: John feints, but Sue doesn't fall for it. John then jumps, but Sue jumps straight up and lands on John's feet. John is out. Sue wins the game.

Physical Benefits: This game is nothing more than jumping, but it turns it into a very enjoyable and competitive game. It's not highly physically demanding, but it is a great method of training for jumping, as well as precision landings.

Other Benefits: This is quite a fun game because it is actually a bit taboo. We've always been told not to step on people's feet... but now we're supposed to! If you present it to kids this way, they can get really excited about it. This is also a very flexible game; it can be scaled to any number of people. I've played with only my sister, and then I've played a game with 45 other people. The more people there are the more hectic it gets, with people jumping at you from all directions.

This Is How I Play: Introduction

2009-01-04T12:04:00.002-05:00

This post is an introduction to a blog series I will be publishing over the next month called “This Is How I Play.” The inspiration for this comes from a book I'm reading, Exuberant Animal, by Frank Forencich. In one of his articles he claims that we “study and test, research and measure, drilling our knowledge down to the deepest levels, and then we wonder why people find exercise so dull and unattractive. We strip human movement down to the sterile elements of anatomy, physiology, and biomechanics and then complain that no one wants to participate.”

I don't agree with this quote 100%, especially for high level athletes, but I think that a lot of fitness programs (especially for school-aged children) should pay a lot of attention. If games were emphasized as the primary method of physical activity, it will not only be more effective but also will be a lot more enjoyable. And that's really the secret to a successful fitness program. If exercise can be made fun, then people will WANT to come back and participate again; they will enjoy and look forward to it.

I'm not talking about sports however – there's a huge difference between sports and games. Sports are fantastic – for athletes. But if you aren't an athlete, you probably aren't going to have many opportunities to play sport-games. Even when you do play a pickup game, there is often equipment, a large number of people, or a specific location necessary for that sport. In order for the game to be played all of these conditions must be met, and that is often very difficult to plan and organize. Then there's the potentially humiliating experience of picking teams and, once the game starts, not being passed to or truly included.

The kind of games I'm talking about are more free-form and creative. Things that really engage the imagination, and don't necessarily have a lot of rules. During this series, I'm going to be giving examples of a lot of different games. Some are games developed by the parkour community, some are games I've developed, and others are just random games that I've come across in my travels. For most of the games, I have also listed one or two variants or combinations, a way to develop a whole new game simply by changing the rules or mixing it with another game.

Creativity and imagination is fundamental to what makes us human, but many kids aren't given the opportunities to exercise their brains and their body together. Encourage your kids to create their own games to play, or you can use these games, or make up your own variations of these games to play! Most of these games can be played without any equipment and can be played by anyone, five to fifty five, skinny or heavy, male or female.

Rochester Parkour Visitor's Weekend

2008-12-16T20:22:00.003-05:00

A month or so ago, Bryan Augstein (Maryland) and KC Parsons (Michigan) told me they wanted to come up to visit me in Rochester. I met both of them on my trip this summer, and (through the wonders of free verizon-to-verizon texts) texted back and forth quite a bit during long bus rides. We became good friends, and so of course I was enthusiastic about having them come up! KC Decided to bring a close friend of his, Nate Manly (Michigan), and soon Jesse Danger (NYPK) and Christopher Price (Michigan) were added to the list of attendees. Soon enough... we were having ourselves a Rochester jam!

Jesse arrived at the bus station Thursday night, and we hung out with some friends and watched The Dark Knight on our projector downstairs. We went to sleep late, and then got up early for a workout at the gym. We left straight from there to go back to the bus station KC and Nate arrived early the next morning. After a great (and cheap!) dinner at the local diner, we came back to my house and... immediately dropped to the floor and went to sleep. Jesse and I had 3 hours of sleep and a workout, and KC and Nate had a 14 hour bus ride under their belt. We woke up 5 hours later and went to the Red Barn, the local rock climbing gym (it's a big red barn. Go figure!). Chris showed up, and we all packed in his pickup truck and went to the bus station to pick up Bryan.

Everyone was hungry again, so it was time for dinner. If it's your first time in Rochester, there is only one meal your hosts will give you: a garbage plate:

Ingredients: hash browns, chili sauce, macaroni salad, 2 hamburger patties, American cheese, diced raw onions, mustard, ketchup.

So... I sort of kind of challenged Jesse to an eating contest, to see who could finish theirs faster. We decided on to have a good, old fashioned gentlemen's wager: The loser had to eat a second one. Long story short, I didn't lose. I got annihilated. Destroyed. Pummeled into the ground. I still hold that it would have been at least a fair fight if it hadn't been for the mayo on the mac salad.. but alas. I ended up chickening out of the bet, but I accepted an alternate punishment: The Hundred Burpee Challenge. Outside. In the snow and wind and cold.

I have to say, I did fairly well. I've never actually done the Hundred Burpee Challenge before, and a time of 9:16 isn't shabby (all things considered). I did it without vomiting, which was A) A nice perk, and B) means I didn't try hard enough. This event gave rise to a series of challenges throughout the weekend, with a complex series of governing rules (such as the hundred burpee challenge is an acceptable alternative punishment for losing, but if you don't “one up” the previous challenge in some way (ex. Faster time, fewer clothes, etc), you had to do the original punishment as well).

We got back to my house that night, and things kind of slowed down. We spent the next few hours laying around my living room, half-trying to find something to do, but really just trying to recover from the garbage plates. Then someone saw the slacklines on the staircase, and we had an idea.

We hopped in cars, drove to a nearby abandoned Kodak building with a huge secluded parking lot, and played in the snow for a while. We ran and slid and played tag, explored some woods, and had some epic snowball fights.

Saturday was Parkour day! We woke up, Happydud's Emporium of Pancakes was once again visited, and then started piling on the layers. We drove up to campus to pick up the locals, and then drove over to Manhattan Square Park in downtown Rochester. After a good warm up (because it certainly was not warm out), we decided it was just too slippery and dangerous for Parkour training. Instead, we had a series of truly legendary snowball fights. We started in a field, then had a Capture the Flag match in another area that was a great mix of nature and urban environments, all the while snowballs flying everywhere. We wrapped up the day with a game of Humans vs Zombies – Snowball Style, then stopped by a coffee shop and a mexican resteraunt for dinner.

After warming back up at my house, we went to a playground for the night. While everyone else was either doing random strength training stuff (rings, muscle ups, finding routes through the playground), or having 2v1 wrestling matches (I still say it was a draw... if I can go that long without tapping out it has to count for something!), Jesse was busy constructing a sled out of two skis and a precision trainer he found in the back of my car.

Well, that was an awesome freaking sled. We went SO FAST. Graham, a local traceur and EMT (foreshadowing!), had brought a bunch of real sleds. We all took turns on the various sleds and picnic table (which, it turns out, makes a fantastic sled as long as you bail fast enough), until Chris went snowboarding on one of the sleds. Turns out, Grade 2 ankle sprains are the reason you use sleds as intended, and not as snowboards. Graham was able to wrap him up and make sure he was okay, but it was still a bummer.

The next day was gymnastics day! I went to our gym, Zenith Gymnastics, and taught my kids Parkour class, and then the visitors joined the RIT Gymnastics club in a gymnastics training session. It was loads of fun, people worked on everything from back tucks to side summis over things, from rings to jumping over things. It was a pretty productive session, and everyone had a lot of fun finally getting to run and jump and flip and horse around. We wrapped up the day with pizza and movies, and then I started shuttling people back to the bus station.

That wraps up the Rochester Parkour Visitor's Weekend. Not much actual Parkour, but still great fun was had by all. I'm glad we could give Nate a great first jam-weekend, and it was great seeing all my old friends again. We're already planning our next few gatherings!

Write up - Leave No Trace/Beginner Parkour Workshop

2008-12-08T04:00:00.003-05:00

On Saturday, December 6th, Rochester Parkour held a “Leave No Trace Initiative/Beginner Parkour Workshop.” Thirty five people put on layer upon layer and headed out into 25 degree weather to Manhattan Square Park in downtown Rochester, New York.

We arrived at 2:00pm with three brooms, three dustpans, two (very) small rakes, six pairs of rubber work gloves, and about four thousand gallons of elbow grease. There were a lot of new faces, people out for the first time, so we all circled up and had a brief introduction to Parkour. Zachary Cohn explained what Parkour is, what it isn't, and what it means to be a traceur. We discussed the different facets of respect – respect for yourself, respect for others, and respect for your environment. Respect for yourself included a discussion on safety and an emphasis on slow progression. Respect for others was about respecting your fellow traceurs, pedestrians, property owners, and law enforcement. Respect for environment was the focus of the discussion however – we talked about how lucky we are to have these amazing locations to train on, and how it is important to give back to the community. We discussed how important it is to pick up trash as you see it; such a small effort can make a huge difference. On Saturday, we decided to clean up Manhattan Square Park.

Manhattan Square Park had several years worth of trash, broken glass, cigarettes, leaves, and other miscellaneous junk scattered around it. For the first 90 minutes of the day, we spread out around the park. We raked, swept, and picked up everything we saw. We ended up removing twenty one bags of trash and leaves from the park. It looked AMAZING afterwards, so much better than it did before. And the best part? I found out from a Fire Marshall that was there preparing for a fireworks show that night that there was a parade that evening, and it ended right smack in the middle of the park! So we ended up doing the whole city a huge favor by cleaning up the area for them. It was a very gratifying experience... even if as a whole the city never finds out who cleaned up, we still know and we still can be proud of that.

At 3:30, we started the Beginner's Workshop. The group was split about 50/50 between traceurs who had been coming fairly regularly and very inexperienced people. This workshop was focused on the very basics of Parkour, so that's where we started. Jeff Whalley lead the first half of the warm up, and Charles Moreland wrapped up with quadrupedal movement variants. Once the warmups were finished, Zachary Cohn taught landings in six separate phases: 1) Just jump. 2) Jump and land on the balls of the feet. 3) Jump, land on the balls of the feet, and bend the knees. 4) Jump, land on the balls of the feet, bend the knees, and use your arms when you jump. 5) Jump, land on the balls of the feet, bend knees, and maintain good back posture. 6) Jump, land on the balls of the feet, bend knees, maintain good back posture, and be silent when you land.

After everyone was taught how to properly land, we broke up into three separate groups. One group went to a playground with Charles to work on rolls, one group went to the park benches with Jeff to work on vaults, and the third group went with Zac to the field and worked on precisions. We brought three homemade precision trainers use, and then the precision group drilled footwork by taking two steps and then precisioning to a stair. The vault group learned safety vaults, and then some of the more experienced people drilled their speed vaults. The rolling group started by rolling from a squatting position, and some of the more experienced traceurs drilled rolls from standing.

We had to rush a little bit at the end, they were going to be shooting off fireworks and we needed to clear out. We packed all of the bags of trash into cars, gave out a few of the new “Rochester Parkour” t-shirts, then went across the street and stretched a bit. We decided to head to a local coffee shop for some well deserved hot chocolate to wrap up the day.

All in all, it went off better than we could have possibly expected. The weather was tolerable (and for Rochester, that's as good as it's going to get), we had a HUGE turnout, an article in the paper that morning, pulled out 21 bags of trash and leaves from a great training spot, made friends with several parents who were watching their kids play near us, and we all met new people and made new friends.

All in all, I'd call it a win.

PSA - Rochester Parkour Beginner Workshop

2008-12-02T11:59:00.002-05:00

Zachary Cohn and Charles Moreland of Rochester Parkour are hosting a Leave No Trace Initiative and Beginner Parkour Workshop on Saturday, December 6th in Manhattan Square Park. The Leave No Trace cleanup will start at 2pm and will last approximately 90 minutes. Afterwards, the more experienced traceurs of Rochester Parkour will assist Zac in teaching the 90 minute beginner workshop to all of the attendees. This will be a great event for new people interested in learning Parkour, for fairly new traceurs who need to review the basics, and for experienced traceurs who need experience teaching.

Details:

Who: Rochester Parkour
What: Leave No Trace Cleanup/Beginner Parkour Workshop
Where: Manhattan Square Park, Rochester, New York
When: 2pm, Saturday December 6th, 2008
Why: To clean up a popular training location and to instruct newcomers on the basics of Parkour
Cost: Free!

Contact zac@rochesterparkour.com and check out http://www.rochesterparkour.com for more information.

New Parkour Classes at Zenith Gymnastics

2008-11-26T12:28:00.004-05:00

Rochester Parkour is offering Parkour and Obstacle Coursing Classes on Sundays from 2:30pm to 3:30pm at Zenith Gymnastics. This class is geared to the 8-14 age bracket, but even if you aren't in this age range, please contact Zenith anyway and let them know you are interested. We will take your contact info and alert you when a new class opens up.

Located in Rochester, New York, Contact Zenith at 585-292-5370 and ask about Zac Cohn's Parkour classes now!

72 Hour Fast - Part 3

2008-11-20T02:18:00.002-05:00

71 hours, 58 minutes into my 72 hour fast: I sat at the dinner table, my plate of food steaming in front of me. I didn't know how my stomach would take food, so I decided to start with small, easy to digest foods: Olives, raisins, grapes, assorted nuts, steamed broccoli and some salsa for dipping. I had some chicken prepared and ready to go on the grill, but I was going to give that another hour or so.

Sitting in my chair, I leaned over and inhaled deeply. When you don't eat for a long period of time, your sense of smell intensifies. I had gone to a grocery store earlier that day, and it was intoxicating. Walking into the store was like walking into a brick wall. I was inundated with smell, I just stopped and stood in the entrance, eyes closed, taking it all in. Charlie did the shopping, and I just ran from display to display, leaning over and inhaling deep.

I had two minutes left in my fast, and I spent it with my eyes closed, lost in smell. My phone hit midnight, and I began to eat. I was unsure how my stomach would accept food, so I wanted to take it slow. I ate my dinner nut by nut, raisin by raisin, olive by olive. It took me about an hour to finish my plate, but I enjoyed every bite of food to its fullest. I'd let the grapes sit in my mouth for up to a full minute, absorbing the taste, before biting just enough to let the juice leak out into my mouth. I'd finish cleaving the grape in half, and let the two halves wander around my mouth, saturating my taste buds with flavor. The broccoli dissolved in my mouth, and when ever something was dipped in the salsa my tongue was overwhelmed by the sensation. As I neared the end of my dinner, I grilled a chicken breast. I cleaned my plate of the first course just as the chicken finished, and I probably spent thirty minutes on the single filleted breast of chicken.

I learned a lot from my fast, but not all of it I can put into words. A good deal of it was just learning more about my body, becoming closer and more in tune with it.

The first and most obvious thing I learned was that I can go three days with only water without radically modifying my daily schedule. I led and participated in a parkour conditioning session, I juggled, I biked to and from campus several times, and I led a Taekwondo class. I got an average amount of sleep each night and only took one nap.

The more important thing I learned was how the body reacts to food deprivation. I kind of assumed that the first day would suck, and that it would just keep getting worse. The first day did suck, but the second and third day was actually very easy. I was telling people that it was “disappointingly easy.” After the body realizes it isn't getting food, something happens and you just stop feeling hungry.

Rating my hunger on a scale of 1 to 10, this is how I would break down the days:

Day 1:
Constant hunger (average): 4
# of hunger pangs: 15-20
Severity of hunger pangs: 7-8

Day 2:
Constant hunger (average): 2
# of hunger pangs: 2-5
Severity of hunger pangs: 5

Day 3:
Constant Hunger (average): 1
# of hunger pangs: 0
Severity of hunger pangs: N/A

So you can see, by the third day my hunger was really just background noise that could be easily turned off. Really, by the second day it was just background noise. The hunger pangs of Day #2 came typically around meal times, which I think was more mental and habit-driven than hunger driven. So really, my 72 hour fast was pretty easy once I got past the first day.

Upon later research, I found out that complete fasting isn't the best way to experience hunger. I could have made it a LOT harder for myself if I had waited most of the first day, and then had three almonds for dinner. The second day, had a strawberry for breakfast and then maybe a single bite of chicken for dinner. The third day could have been a half dozen raisins and a peanut for breakfast and then a bite of a banana for lunch.

Basically what happens is that in Scenario #1 (what I did), after about 24 hours your body realizes it isn't going to be getting any food (for whatever reason) and it just hunkers down. Your metabolism slows to a crawl and you start turning to fat, muscle, and other sources of stored energy instead of utilizing energy from food currently being digested. In Scenario #2, Charles explains that your body is constantly being given small amounts of food to digest. This forces it to continuously be switching metabolic pathways from a highly catabolic state to an increase in metabolism to utilize that energy as soon as possible. You end up confusing your body by cutting it short of its energy needs, but still taunting it with some small morsels of food. It is a highly mental side effect though, essentially toying with your desires.

I didn't notice many side effects (besides hunger, ha ha). The two primary ones I did notice was temperature and emotional control. In short, I got cold. Really, really, cold. Like, “two pairs of pants, a t-shirt, a zip up hoodie, a sweat shirt, a jacket, and a comforter wrapped around me” cold. Not all the time, and that was definitely the worst time, but I did get cold a lot easier, more often, and more intensely than everyone else around me. It didn't help that during my fast was the first really big cold spell in Rochester. Poor timing, I suppose. The other side effect was a some loss of emotional control. Especially towards the end of the second day and the third day, I started getting a bit short and snarky with people. Some events took place Friday morning that left me pretty depressed, but after a few days of food in my stomach I felt a bit more stable. I don't think I would have taken it so poorly had I been eating.

It may have taken me a while to write this post, but I did talk to a few people about the experience once I had finished. My friend Courtney told me about something she did once – she went into the woods, by herself, with only water, a tarp, a sleeping bag, and a candle. She fasted for 48 hours while completely alone. I would like to do some modification of this, perhaps this summer. Get enough water for 5 days and some material to protect me from the elements. Probably some method of starting a fire. I'd go into the woods, alone, far enough where I wouldn't come across anyone, and then just stay there until I felt it was time to come out. The one thing I didn't experience during my fast was focus. I was very distracted by a lot of different things, especially during the third day. Sitting, with absolutely nothing to distract me, for an indeterminate amount of time, sounds like a very different, almost spiritual, experience to me.

I'll let you know when I do this. In the mean time, I definitely learned a lot from this experience. Technique is obviously a very important part of parkour training, but I feel like to be a complete and well rounded traceur you should strive to experience as much as you can. I plan on doing a few other types of deprivation training over the next few months, so look out for those posts.

72 Hour Fast - Part 2

2008-11-03T15:17:00.003-05:00

Here are the Twitter updates from the 72 hour period (and a little before). In a few days, I'll post up my reflections on what I learned, and plans for the future.

I'm anxious about fasting for 72 hours. I have 4 hours and 57 more minutes of foodtime left, and then nothing until Saturday. 7:03 PM Oct 28th

Just set up my phone. I will be constantly updating this twitter with how i feel during my 72 hour fast. Visit www.zaccohn.com to find more. 7:17 PM Oct 28th

is hungry and tired already... and he hasn't even begun his fast yet! This is going to suck. 9:30 PM Oct 28th

I'm home for the night. It's timeto pee, then start making the last supper. One hour and five minutes. 10:55 PM Oct 28th

I'm starting to eat dinner now... Cutting it a bit close 11:54 PM Oct 28th

Here we go... 12:00 AM Oct 29th

First morning: Woke up on time, showered, and ready for class 25 minutes early. I forgot how long breakfast takes to prepare. A bit peckish. 7:35 AM Oct 29th

Just finished his first bike ride to class. Current weather: hail. Good game, Rochester... Good game. 8:16 AM Oct 29th

I'm feeling the first urges to eat. It's been eight hours and fifty five minutes since i last ate. 8:50 AM Oct 29th

I just made it through my first hunger headache. Nothing special, I get these all the time when I skip breakfast. Signs of things to come... 10:10 AM Oct 29th from web

Twelve hours down. Sixty to go. No real issues yet. 10:10 PM Oct 29th

Perhaps going to lunch with my friends was a bad idea... That's an awful good looking bowl of pasta. 1:09 PM Oct 29th

i just turned down free pizza. Other than that, 16 hours in and so far so good 3:36 PM Oct 29th

Is at Denny's. Not eating. Coming here was dumb. 23 hours in. 10:34 PM Oct 29th

One third done! Not bad so far. We'll see how the first night on an empty stomach goes. 12:16 AM Oct 30th

I am awake. 33 hours in. I feel pretty normal, not as hungry as I was expecting. A little lightheaded, maybe. 8:54 AM Oct 30th

Biking is getting increasing more difficult and tiresome. That's the only real symptom so far. 10:04 AM Oct 30th

36 hours down. Halfway there. I'm at a constant one out of ten on the hunger scale... Nothing too bad. 12:08 PM Oct 30th

Getting very cold. The hunger is amplifying stress from work and I'm definitely getting a bit irritable. Little things are getting to me. 1:52 PM Oct 30th

My face is two inches from a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Le sigh. 8:13 PM Oct 30th

Going to bed. 49 Hours down, 23 to go. Pocketchange. 1:31 AM Oct 31th

48 hours in. I'm feeling no different than normal right now. My sense of smell is definitely heightened though. 8:02 AM Oct 31st

Just woke up. Still very three but can't seen to fall back asleep. 56.5 done. I can stubborn the rest of this out. 10:24 AM Oct 31st

I wonder if using toothpaste is cheating? 11:35 AM Oct 31st

I've seen more free food, drinks, and candy today than ever. Torturrrre. 6 hours left though. Stay the course! 2:05 PM Oct 31st from

I have walked part so much free candy today... I an truly being tested. Just bought chicken to grill for tonight. 4:50 PM Oct 31st

just finished taekwondo. Less than three hours! I'm going to have broccoli and grapes first, then some nuts, then maybe some chicken. 9:22 PM

One hour and sixteen minutes. I'm going to start cooking in about 45 minutes, and then spend about 3 hours savoring a very small meal. 10:43 PM Oct 31st

My dinner is ready. Just counting down the minutes... 11:55 PM Oct 31st

Victory is sweet. Sweet and tasty. 12:00 AM Nov 1st

72 Hour Fast

2008-10-28T20:25:00.003-04:00

My name is Zachary Cohn, and I have never been hungry.

I don't think I've ever gone more than 18 hours without food. Even during religious holidays when fasting was encouraged, it was only sun-up to sun-down (and I'd sneak food throughout the day anyway). I've wanted to eat before, my stomach has told me it was empty and needed more food to sustain it. Even right now, my stomach is growling a bit, even though I ate less than 2 hours ago.

Food is actually a fairly significant part of my life. I eat healthy and I love to cook. I pride myself on having never drank a soda. My roommates and I regularly cook our own dinners, ranging from calzones (made from scratch!) to oven-baked chicken with a homemade alfredo sauce. We eat healthy, and we eat a LOT.

I live in an upper-middle class household where there have always been cans in the cabinet, apples on the table, and milk in the refrigerator. I've made enough money so if I'm out, I don't have to deliberate and decide if I can afford to eat out somewhere or if I should just hold out and wait until I get home. Food has always been an arm's reach away.

I was sitting in class last week when my stomach growled and I decided I was hungry. This time though, for some reason, I thought about my last thought. "I am hungry." Four hours before, I had eaten a 3 egg omelet with cheese, turkey, and peppers. There was no way I was "hungry" again. This is when I realized that I've never truly been hungry. Starving children in Africa, to use the cliche, have gone days without food. People tortured in POW Camps have been deprived of food for days at a time.

Running out of peanut butter and jelly that morning suddenly seemed like not as big of a deal.

That's when I made my decision. I was going to fast. Not for any religious reason. Not for health or weight loss or purification. Just to see if I can do it. To see if I have the willpower to not eat for a full 72 hours.

I hope this will do a few things for me.

First, I think it will ultimately be satisfying. My training for Parkour goes beyond simply running and vaulting over stuff. I train Parkour so I can be ready for anything that happens. Parkour alone won't do this, which is why I do a variety of activities (Parkour, martial arts, rock climbing, lifting, slacklining, even swing dance and juggling). When called upon to act, I want the ability to perform and meet the demands of the situation. If the situation is not having food available... I want to know what it feels like. I want to be ready.

Side note - I'm interested in deprivation training. In the coming months, I hope to spend a full 24 hours with various disabilities. I want to go one day without sight, another without thumbs, with only my non-dominant hand, and without my lower body. But for the next 72 hours, I'll be going without food.

Second, I think this will allow me to control my desire to eat better. A lot of times I find myself eating just because there's food around, or because i have nothing else to do, or because it's "that time of day" when I usually eat and I feel obligated to eat. I want to break that habit. This will hopefully give me a frame of reference. Which leads into the next reason...

Two point Five, this will also be a test of willpower. I am not removing food from my life, I am just not consuming it. I will be around food fairly often. I will be going to the dining hall with friends, I will be eating dinner with my roommates, perhaps even cooking food with them. Being around food, but not eating, will probably be the hardest part of all. Several people have said it would be cooler if I went into a jungle or into the desert and did this... but at that point eating is simply not an option. In my case, eating IS an option, and yet I choose not to eat.

Third, I want to know hunger. It's an experience that most people in society never know. zNo one I interact with knows, has ever known, or will ever know hunger. I'm not kidding myself, three days is nothing. People can go 15, 20 days without food. I'm not willing to sacrifice and damage my body to that intensity, but I feel like this will at least be a taste of what true hunger feels like. To really understand what I mean, please read this short story (it's 7 paragraphs, and it does an excellent job describing what I'm talking about).

Because of these reasons, because I consider this experiment "training," I'm not going to be changing my daily routine. In fact, I'm going to become more strict. I am going to wake up and get up when my alarm goes off. I will continue biking to and from school each day. I am going to get to every class on time. I am going to get to work on time. I will also be attending the activities I usually participate in those evenings. Wednesday is juggling night, Thursday is swing dance, and Friday is Taekwondo (although this one I teach in, so I won't be actively participating in all of the drills). I will not be eating a huge dinner tonight, just my normal meal. I'm not going to prepare for this at all, I want it to be as though eating was suddenly no longer an option, yet I had to continue on as normal, as if I was fighting in a war and we ran out of rations (although slightly less intense).

I'm publicizing this for a few reasons. I hope I make other people to think about hunger. I don't necessarily want everyone to join me in my fast or in a fast of their own, but I do want people to recognize that they probably have never truly been hungry in their life.

I've posted a link on Digg to my Twitter, where I will be making regular updates about how I'm feeling. I hope this will help the information get out, but I also hope this will hold me publicly accountable and be added incentive to stick to it.

I'll be updating twitter pretty often, and on Saturday, after my fast is over, I will be posting here again with all the twitter updates, and a "wrap up" summarizing how it went and what I learned.

[Edit - Read Part One and Part Two of my twitter-logs from my fast]