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There’s no slacking in slacklining

The sport of slacklining has seen a boost in the last 10 years.

Claire Fucetola tries to keep her balance as she begins a slacklining lesson given by her brother Rocco along Kelly Drive on a warm and sunny January day. Rocco, in the hammock, has been doing slackline for about three years.
Claire Fucetola tries to keep her balance as she begins a slacklining lesson given by her brother Rocco along Kelly Drive on a warm and sunny January day. Rocco, in the hammock, has been doing slackline for about three years.Read moreMICHAEL BRYANT / Staff Photographer

Bare feet, shorts, and T-shirts in January? Siblings Claire and Rocco Fucetola took advantage of the unseasonably warm weather last month to practice slacklining out on Kelly Drive. The sport involves balancing or walking along a suspended length of a flat strip of webbing. Think tightrope walking. Participants do it for balance training, to improve core strength, or for meditation. The sport originated about 40 years ago when the rock climbing community in Yosemite National Park practiced it to pass time. The last decade has seen a jump in participation.