One of my friend's moms is bipolar, so I can relate a tiny bit to what your friend is going through. It's really not a very pretty site. :-/

As I said, the doctors are sure he'll be well enough to be released tomorrow. He'll probably want to get to the nearest all-you-can-eat buffet ASAP, but other than that...

Mentally though it's a long road ahead. Mental episodes of any stripe are difficult to deal with. When he gets back, I'll invite him to join the parkour team. It'll be something new for him to try and at the very least he can meet the other guys who are all great fun to hang out with.

What's a parkour team?

Parkour is also called freerunning. Translated from French, it loosely means "obstacle course."

The whole idea is to pick a path. Whatever gets in your way, find some way to get past it. This involves a lot of leaping, scaling, and vaulting over walls, railings, benches, and whatever other fixture happens to get between you and the next ten feet or so of your path.

It's a great workout because you're working the heart and lungs like in track, but also putting a lot of work into your whole body as you go, building up muscle tone and agility. And since you have to get creative more often than not, it keeps your mind sharp as you figure out on the fly the most effective way to get past certain obstacles.

Ohhh yeah, I've heard about that. Sounds kinda cool.

That sounds like a lot of fun.

It is. I was only with the team for a half-hour today, and I felt great. I've finally found an exercise routine I can get behind. I'm trying to get some of my friends to join simply because it makes great stress relief.

If nothing else, you get to run around and jump over things like when you were a kid, and people will think you're cool for it.

Is this an organized sport or what? I mean, do you compete against other teams in a league?..or how does it work?

It's not a competition at all. It's self-improvement. It was created by two European men (French, if I can remember the names correctly) to blend a mixture of athletics with Far Eastern philosophy.

Essentially, it's a practice in which you improve your body and mind by overcoming physical obstacles so that you have the courage and ability to face other challenges.

Right now, it's really big in Europe. Since you can practice it literally anywhere, all these people are really getting into it. It's slowly becoming a culture unto itself.

Parkour runners are called Traceurs, and right now there are several national organizations sponsoring the sport

A kid in my town died doing free running when jumping a gap. Pointlessly dangerous sport IMO.

[QUOTE=Shattered_Future]Yea, but I hadn't looked at Maiden tabs in 2 or 3 years, cause they were too hard at the time...

I feel like I accomplished something today. :mad:[/QUOTE]
Yeah, My band's cover of it Rocks, however, we are again without a second guitarist...because the guy who was going to be in the band just came out as being gay, and he's going through "too rough a time of it" to be in a band...



O.K... that wasn't true... but it was fun to write...

[QUOTE=Steerpike]Parkour is also called freerunning. Translated from French, it loosely means "obstacle course."

The whole idea is to pick a path. Whatever gets in your way, find some way to get past it. This involves a lot of leaping, scaling, and vaulting over walls, railings, benches, and whatever other fixture happens to get between you and the next ten feet or so of your path.

It's a great workout because you're working the heart and lungs like in track, but also putting a lot of work into your whole body as you go, building up muscle tone and agility. And since you have to get creative more often than not, it keeps your mind sharp as you figure out on the fly the most effective way to get past certain obstacles.[/QUOTE]That would be pretty cool. Its kind of how I walk through crowded shops, weaving around people and stuff, it's all about keeping a good flow.

It also reminds me of this silly idea I had about just sprinting along this boardwark that goes through a nearby wetland. It wouldnt be 2m wide, so.. if you fell or slipped, the mud and mangrove roots await you, centimeters below.

I guess since the path is defined, you could do time trials on something like that. Perhaps theres the option to do it on a bike as well. Anyway we refer to it as a "rally run"


In other news, I've decided that I think Opeth are boring and lots of their songs feel very similar.

Yeah, Opeth can get boring easily. Blackwater Park is great, but the other albums can get very long and tiresome.

I like all Opeth minus the newest album, whci hI don't think is all that good.
I don't think they get tiresome at all, but of course that everyone to himself
they are one of my favorite bands, but I'm not a fanboy :p

And I'm not much of a prog fan, so that might be it.

I love prog :cool:.

Most prog is long and boring, to me.

[QUOTE=Superpeer]Most prog is long and boring, to me.[/QUOTE]

Dude Jelle, u don even no!

Just to let you guys know, im going to be scarce around here for a while, i just started work and due to the demand part time workers have to work almost 50 hours per week, while full time has to work around 80.

That plus school means no free time for me anymore :(

[QUOTE=NJMetalMeister]Just to let you guys know, im going to be scarce around here for a while, i just started work and due to the demand part time workers have to work almost 50 hours per week, while full time has to work around 80.

That plus school means no free time for me anymore :([/QUOTE]

I has barely any time either, just this study hall I'm currently in.

[QUOTE=Arucard]A kid in my town died doing free running when jumping a gap. Pointlessly dangerous sport IMO.[/QUOTE]

By any chance was that the kid who climbed to the top of a school and attempted to jump a gap in the roof?

I read about that. Parkour athletes were pretty firm in asserting that that's not what the sport is about. When you hear about the Traceurs leaping from rooftops, these are guys who have had years of training and experience. Most Traceurs stick to ground-level obstacles and don't do more than basic vaults and leaps.

Like any sport you can still get hurt. Last week someone on the campus Parkour team slipped and bashed his head off a brick wall, had to get staples in the back of his head.

But in any athletic sport, you're going to get hurt in some way eventually. An accident will happen, but it's seldom life-threatening.

What? That is so much! Where the hell do you work?

[QUOTE=Steerpike]By any chance was that the kid who climbed to the top of a school and attempted to jump a gap in the roof?

I read about that. Parkour athletes were pretty firm in asserting that that's not what the sport is about. When you hear about the Traceurs leaping from rooftops, these are guys who have had years of training and experience. Most Traceurs stick to ground-level obstacles and don't do more than basic vaults and leaps.

Like any sport you can still get hurt. Last week someone on the campus Parkour team slipped and bashed his head off a brick wall, had to get staples in the back of his head.

But in any athletic sport, you're going to get hurt in some way eventually. An accident will happen, but it's seldom life-threatening.[/QUOTE]

Ouch, head injuries blow, I cracked my skull when I was like 3, still get head problems from it now.

[QUOTE=I Am Vikingcore]Ouch, head injuries blow, I cracked my skull when I was like 3, still get head problems from it now.[/QUOTE]

Ohhh, so that's why you're so 'speshul'. .. :)

[QUOTE=Superpeer]Ohhh, so that's why you're so 'speshul'. .. :)[/QUOTE]

Go back to Belgium with your waffles fag.

[QUOTE=I Am Vikingcore]Go back to Belgium with your waffles fag.[/QUOTE]

I am in Belgium. I can't go back to a place where I already am. :p (fag)

[QUOTE=Superpeer]I am in Belgium. I can't go back to a place where I already am. :p (fag)[/QUOTE]

Go home fag.

[QUOTE=I Am Vikingcore]Go home fag.[/QUOTE]

/is home :confused:

[QUOTE=Superpeer]/is home :confused:[/QUOTE]

Haha, I win, I used my prog rock mind power on you!

Prog is boring to me, except Rush. I like Symphony X, but hate Dream Theater.