Parkour

Parkour
by Vaughn Wallace

Andrew Obenreder isn’t someone who waits idly.

He is a practitioner of parkour, the French art of traversing one’s environment as quickly and efficiently as possible. To the untrained eye, it appears that Obenreder is hurling himself around Oakland, jumping off of ledges and vaulting over fences. But to his fellow traceurs (those who practice parkour), Obenreder looks as graceful as ever. The name parkour was derived from the French word parcourir, which means ‘to skim through’.

Parkour started to gain popularity around the year 2000 and has been featured frequently in the media. AmericanParkour.com, a leading parkour resource, has approximately 53,000 members. It hosts several forums, with subtopics dedicated to practicing parkour around college campuses around the country.

Some may remember the opening scene of Casino Royale, which features the founder of the modern day parkour movement, Sébastien Foucan, as he leaps from rooftop to rooftop and onto a construction crane.

Outsiders consider parkour to be an extreme sport, while others with more experience liken it to a disciplined art similar to gymnastics.

Obenreder was first introduced to parkour in 2003 by several friends from the United Kingdom. He began reading up on the subject, using videos and other resources on sites like UrbanFreeflow.com.

Obenreder holds the title of the city’s oldest traceur, and has worked to develop the parkour scene around the Greater Pittsburgh area. In 2004, Obenreder and two friends founded PKFR International, a non-profit organization that hosts parkour events (called jams) and instructional workshops. He’s also involved with Team Sanjuu, a team made up of leading traceurs from around the country.

The numerous challenges and opportunities drive traceurs to practice several times a week. Ben Stampahar, a 14-year-old traceur from Pittsburgh, started practicing parkour at age 11 after watching videos on Youtube.

“I was drawn to parkour probably because it looked cool. I now stay with it because it is fun and very rewarding,” he said.

Stampahar’s only goal is “to continually get better.”

Part of the allure of parkour is that it is an all-encompassing activity, almost a complete lifestyle.

Says Obenreder, “For some people it’s fun, for others it’s a challenge. Parkour is not all about the physical. It is more of a lifestyle and a way of thinking.”

Physically, parkour does not require a massive amount of strength. Corey Burr, a senior at Pitt, has an extensive martial arts background, which he found translated well to parkour.

“Most moves only require good momentum, balance, and grace; not much strength.”

Make no mistake, Pittsburgh traceurs are not jumping from Towers rooftop or scaling Hillman Library. Spots such as the Frick Fine Arts building or local playgrounds are popular for practice because of their low railings and numerous obstacles. Traceurs might jump or vault over one handrail onto another, or scale a wall from its base to the top, pulling themselves up and over with their upper body.

Sound dangerous?’

“The only thing that ever holds you back is fear. Once you get past that fear, the possibilities are endless” says Obenreder.

Added Burr, “Parkour is not a reckless sport…people should be careful not to give it such a faulty image in the eyes of the authorities…it’s not about showing off.”

For more information, visit PKFR International (http://www.pkfrinternational.com) or American Parkour (http://www.americanparkour.com). New traceurs are encouraged to start slowly and learn new moves exponentially. Stampahar encourages those interested in trying parkour to avoid drops to prevent unnecessary knee damage.