The craze that has really taken off
They allow you to jump six or seven feet in the air and run at speeds reaching 25mph.
But most importantly for the proud owners of powerbocks, they provide hours of fun.
Anyone who has been to the city centre, Southsea or the Hot Walls in Old Portsmouth might have witnessed powerbocking – a fledgling extreme sport that has people on spring-loaded stilts performing all kinds of airborne tricks.
Bockers, as they have become known, use the equipment on their legs to spring into the air and attempt grabs, somersaults and split kicks. But Portsmouth residents may have just seen people bouncing around kangaroo-like, getting to grips with their new stilts and dreaming of one day being able to pull off superhero-style leaps.
Rob Cowie is probably one of the best type of bockers to explain the appeal to those who have never tried it, or maybe never heard of it.
He bought his first pair of power stilts and joined south coast powerbocking group the Jurassic Jumpers about seven weeks ago. Already the 27-year-old web designer is hooked.
He says: 'It's a nice sociable group and we have a lot of fun, trying out different moves. It's also great for fitness. It gives you a really great cardio-vascular workout and you're working on every muscle group, because you use your arms and shoulders a lot too.
'I haven't got the patience to stand in a gym or go for a jog. This is much more fun.'
And already he's seeing and feeling the benefits. 'I found it quite easy to start with, except for the fact that, as a web designer, I'm not the world's most active person.
'But I'm getting past the stage of aching every time I've been on them. And I'm developing strength.'
He recommends that those taking up the activity join a group like the Jurassic Jumpers because it's more fun to have company and safer and easier to be surrounded by people who can offer tips and advice.
Named after Dorset's Jurassic Coast, the group was formed in 2007 for bockers around Dorset and has gone on to expand into Devon, Wiltshire and Hampshire. Originally starting with only five members, the Jurassic Jumpers now number 20 active members, producing a wide-ranging level of skill and ability.
The Portsmouth area contingent either meet regularly at their favourite outdoor spots or at St Luke's Community Sports Centre in Southsea.
It is there that they will be taking powerbocking into a new and largely untested area. The Jurassic Jumpers are staging a powerball (basketball on power stilts) match to raise money for Children In Need on November 14. There will also be a display in Portsmouth's Guildhall Square beforehand, featuring local display team Pro Jump 101.
It's a great opportunity to take a look at choreographed tricks and, in the case of the match, one of the first sports to be combined with powerbocking skill.
But those who can't make the events are likely to stumble on some stilt-bouncing, walking or running activity sooner or later as members of the group are often out and about on their bocks.
Rob decided to wear his to the recent Love Albert Road day event and he says some members have been known to do their shopping on them!
Of course, not everyone delights in the sight of teenagers and adults bouncing around local historical spots and pedestrianised areas. But Rob says Portsmouth has been generally bock-friendly and hopes to reassure people that the group take the safety of passers-by and themselves very seriously.
'We'll jump on and off things but only where can do that safely,' he says. 'We don't want to break anything and certainly not ourselves. Sometimes people walk around us looking a bit concerned, which is understandable. I wouldn't want a big sweaty bocker falling on me. But we are careful about the people around us.'
And he says, for the most part, people are fascinated. 'It certainly gets you a lot of attention and luckily there's a part of me that's a bit of a show-off. It's a permanent Q and A session when we go out. But we like that. It's a nice friendly group and meeting people socially and talking to people about it is part of the fun.'
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Saturday 04 February 2012
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