Straps

One of the skills that I’ve been training here is Straps (also known as Pitiao). Wang Laushi has been teaching me for a few lessons before I was officially enrolled in the school. He has a habit of shouting alot, not in an angry or aggressive tone, but just loud. Unsurprisingly this has earned him the nickname of “Shouty”. His favorite line it seems is “ing wen jiang, very good!”.

He might not look it, but he still has it. As he proves by holding a back planche.

I don’t get much time or energy to do much straps here besides during my scheduled class. But occasionally, I get to play a little.

This is the straps version of the back balance. I learnt it back home in Brisbane, but have only recently been able to pull if off cleanly.

Training and performing Straps is a generally painful experience. But as with the circus arts, it’s all about making it look graceful despite the pain and strain.