For more information on suspension visit – http://www.suspension.org/

Here at Hook Life we receive photo and video submissions every day.  Usually our job is to decide which are the best, but occasionally we are faced with another task.  There are times that we have to determine if the suspensions are safe or not.  This next video from the crew of Sinner Team is prime example of our concerns.  Now don’t get us wrong.  We’ve been known to do some things that I would never recommend trying.  So, at times it’s hard to act as the voice of reason.  However, what you are about to see comes with a huge warning.  Please do not attempt a death swing from hooks unless you are prepared, experienced, and willing to accept the risks.

Warning – Free falling onto hooks is extremely dangerous. If the stopping distance is too short the impact force will exceed the breaking strength of skin, hooks, safety equipment or possibly your bones/internal organs.

When you think of dangerous suspensions what comes to mind?  I’m sure one of the two helicopter suspensions might be your first thought.  Yes two, Criss Angel was the second.  Joey Strange did it first 5 years prior but that’s another blog all together.  Maybe it’s one of the crane suspensions.  Stelarc did hang over 200 feet (61 meters) in the air from a tower crane back in 1985. There is a beautiful video of him suspended in the center of Copenhagen, but we have yet to find a clip a online.  Possibly one of the human mobiles?  Again another entry you will see in the future, but today’s blog deals with something a lot smaller, but potentially just as dangerous, the 360.  The video below compiled by Ron Garza shows some clips using the device, created by Steel Fetish, with multiple warnings included.

We realize, to many people, suspension is all about pushing boundaries, but safety cannot and should not be sacrificed in the name of performance art.  If you do have a wild hair and feel like trying something that’s never been done before, please do the research, test the physics and check your math.  Being the first has its rewards, but putting yourself or your team at risk is never worth the glory.

If you’ve never seen a suspension, then chances are that this photo might draw your eyes to the redness or the blood.  Are you an artist or a photographer?  Well then chances are you’ve noticed the soft blur, short field of focus or maybe the richness of the colors.  However, if you are a suspension practitioner your first thought might be why is Robin aka Dadilydoo hanging from snap links? The answer is actually very simple.  Rigging is evolving.

Over the years suspension teams have been making improvements in both techniques and equipment.  There once was a time, not so long ago, that snap links and non-locking carabiners were come place in suspension.  Now with research, experience, and training our community has steadily progressed gaining praise from professional riggers throughout the world.

Over the years there has been a lot of discussion on how to minimize cross contamination while rigging a suspension.  The main problem we found is that each team had a slightly different protocol.  Some were better than others, but in the end we thought it was best to have one universal system.

People have asked for a nice printable version. So, we have made a letter size pdf that is print ready.  Feel free to click on the image below to download the file.