Saturday 29th & Sunday 30th August 2009
by Nadia Yaseen.
Location: Queen Elizabeth Hall Southbank, London.
I tried not to have any grandiose expectations of what the day was going to bring or if I was going to learn, see or hear anything new at Rendezvous, but to go there with an open mind and enjoy the experience and come away with some knowledge of Parkour and its roots.
As I got off at Waterloo station and met Jen, we made our way to the Queen Elizabeth Building at Southbank. Upon entering I was profoundly struck with the notion that Parkour is a male dominated sport and I am just a spectator here to enjoy the show. Slowly the hall began to fill up and as I chatted to a couple of guys from the classes I had attended, my heart lifted upon seeing some of the girls from my Thursday evening class! At last! Jen and I are not the only girls! Hoorah! There was a great sense of camaraderie about the place and guys and girls swapping stories, tips and general buzz about the place. A great start to a great weekend. We all made our way to the roof top for the warm up and being warned beforehand about the intensity of the Yamakasi’s warm up’s, I had no misconceptions about what to expect and went with the flow.
…A little over an hour in and I can already feel the familiar burning pain in my thighs as we’re encouraged to do the monkey crawl… With Nicky gripping the back of my ankles we look like a couple of monkeys crawling backwards. Being the last ones left as is pretty usual for me as I tend to always be the one struggling the most, I hear Brian and Johann shouting encouragement. Next thing I know they are both there, doing the crawl with us and at the same time providing some much needed moral support so we don’t feel like the only ones left.
‘Start as a team, finish as a team’ that was the motto of the day, but never has it rang so true, feeling that support, no one gets left behind, no matter what.
Photo by Chris Grant
As I struggled on with the rest of the day, trying to keep up with the limber boys or experienced traceurs and traceuses, with my heart pounding, my palms sweaty and my mouth all dry from the nervous tension as I tried to hit that cat leap or weighed up jumping down 10 flights of stairs, no one made me feel inadequate, no one said, ‘what do you think your doing? You can’t hit that jump…’ Only things I heard were words of encouragement and support, a feeling that I wasn’t alone and that someone is always there ready to catch me if I should fall or there to give a lift so I can clamber up that wall.
‘One heart, one crew’ we’d chant that all day up and down Southbank to the amusements of all the tourists, Londoners and general public, but to us it meant something, that we were all in this together. It kept me going all day, the enthusiasm the buzz, we all bonded in our love for the l’art du déplacement, we felt special, ‘our Parkour community’ that old community spirit that most people have either forgotten or never had…
Standing a full head shorter than me, was Williams Belle. I suddenly came over all humble and looked on in awe as this small but immensely powerful individual showed us how to move with style and grace of one that is completely as ease with his environment, flowing like water over obstacles with such simplicity that I have no hope of emulating and can only clamber over like Bambi on ice instead. Still I persevered and kept on and every now and again I would feel someone steady my foot or see a hand reaching out to me so I can grasp and get over that wall, always with a smile and a nod of encouragement… Suddenly it was me who felt small and Williams Belle was the giant, someone for me to look up to and aspire to be like if only by a 1/3 that would be good enough.
Photo by Chris Grant
‘Remember, why you are doing Parkour, to over come the obstacle your first need to have a clear understanding of why you are here, what you want to achieve today, otherwise you will struggle to overcome the obstacle not only physically but mentally’ (para phrasing here) was one of the many teachings of Williams on the day to help and encourage us to use Parkour for the good of our minds as well as our bodies, after all it may take hours maybe days to nail down a that fancy flip or series of complicated jumps, but if you cant get over the barrier in your mind, how can you overcome a barrier that’s right in front of you…
Although I didn’t get to train with Yann Hnautra, Stephane Vigroux, Kazuma, Thomas Couetdic or any of the other amazing traceurs, the Q&A confirmed that they all feel the same about Parkour and are more than happy to pass on the knowledge to the next generation.. As well as the girls!!
Photos by Andy “Kiell” Day www.kiell.com www.parkourgenerations.com
At the end of the day, my body much worse for wear, new bruises and scratches to add to my list and aches and pains in various places I had no idea harboured muscles, having only learned maybe one new move all day, I felt the sense of community, love, family, friendship, camaraderie all around me and again I get this feeling of belonging. It doesn’t matter that I’m a girl or if I’m going at a slower pace than the others or that I might bottle out of doing a particular movement, or that its taken me all day to perfect one move, its not about the big jumps or fantastic flips nor how big a show you put on for the public but its all about the ‘one crew – one heart’ we’re in this together. We support one another, we don’t want to see each other fail or fall but to succeed and fly with the spirit of what Parkour is all about.
With that in mind, I suddenly feel all the weariness leave my body and a big goofy grin appear on my face as I head for my train home, already looking forward to next weeks class.
Photo by Chris Grant
Parkour Generations holds indoor and outdoor classes for men and women in London. For monthly girls’ jams in London, please email tracey (at) parkourgenerations (dot) com . For more information on their next women’s class or jam, check out their website or our Links page.
Majestic Force is the website of some of the Yamakasi founders and l’art du deplacement. For information about their classes in Paris, go to www.add-academy.com
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