Gongriding
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Gongriding is the sport that involves descending a steep slope (usually outdoors) while either sitting on a gong, or standing on its frame, hitting it with a mallet repeatedly. It is similar to windsurfing, mountainboarding, or sledding, depending on how it is done. The sport was developed in ancient Tibet, and has recently been experiencing a sharp gain in popularity in Europe and North America.
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[edit] History
The first records of gongriding dates back to the Buddhist monks living in monasteries on top of mountains in ancient Tibet. Metal workers from eastern China introduced them to large bronze discs, and the monks began to use them in their temples for ceremonial and meditative purposes. However, they had never developed the wheel (or domesticated beasts of burden) and were in need of a quick way to be transported down the mountain, thus developing the use of the gong as a sled-like device, on which they would sit, holding onto the cord used to hang the gong like reins. After their introduction to wheels, the monks began to attach them to the actual frame of the gong, and they rode down hills on the entire thing. During emergencies, they were able to alert all villagers nearby as they rode down by hitting the gong repeatedly with a mallet.
By the 16th century, gongriding had spread into southeast Asia, and despite the lack on mountainous terrain in Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, and Malaysia, the mode of transportation flourished due to its endorsement by a prominent Buddhist monk named Dahv Ho-Linh who was fond of its dangerous yet simple way of being operated. Ho-Linh's efforts brought about the "Golden Age of Gongriding", which was when the first accounts of gongriding as a recreational activity emerged. Also, various techniques to riding were developed, practiced, and perfected during this time. The legality of gongriding was short-lived, however. In 1613, Chavadith Tantavirojn, the king of Thailand, which at that time encompassed all of southeast Asia, awoke to find that four of his five prized nipple gongs had been stolen. He reacted by banning gongriding from his kingdom and sending many famous gongriders into exile, including the old and withered Dahv Ho-Linh, who went to live in Japan (he would later be killed while gongriding down Mount Fuji).
For centuries gongriding was done in secrecy or not at all, until the start of the Free Tibet Movement in 1987, when a group of Londoners began to research the region's history, in hopes of adopting some of its culture as a way of protesting the Chinese. They came across a passage about gongriding, rediscovering the ancient art, and have since forgotten the Free Tibet Campaign and embraced gongriding as their full time activity.
[edit] Styles
Both terrain parks and backcountry have grown in popularity with advances in equipment and mountaineering technology. There are several methods to riding a gong, and with in those methods, there are different seating/standing positions that yield varying experiences.
[edit] Sled-Gongriding
Generally, in sled-gongriding, the rider sits on the gong, holding onto the suspension cable as a means of steering. This style of riding is not very popular, as the rider cannot hit the gong to warn those in front of him/her that he/she is descending.
[edit] Frame-Gongriding
In frame-gongriding, the rider stands on the edge railing of the gong, holding on to the frame from which the gong is suspended for support. Typically, the rider is facing the gong (either regular or goofy footedness) and the free hand holds a mallet to hit the gong with. The rider can also ride facing away from the gong, called backhand, but this is much harder to balance and leaves the rider much more prone to injury.
[edit] Safety and Precautions
Modern gongriding is considered extremely dangerous, with injuries ranging from broken bones to decapitation. Due to the almost inexistent way to brake, riders take the risk of crashing every time they go down a run. Because of this, many modern adrenaline junkies are attracted to the sport. Decapitation, although rare, happens when the rider takes a gongframe off a jump, causing the gong to unhinge and sever the rider's head off upon impact with the ground. Safety precautions to riding a gong are limited, as any amount of armor or padding causes a lack of maneuverability of the gongframe. Typically, a rider wears loose shorts and a t-shirt, and the best type of shoes to wear are Crocs due to their comfort and flexibility.
[edit] References
- Wilson, Stanley D (2007). QiGong For Beginners: Eight Easy Movements For Vibrant Health. W.W. Norton & Company. ISBN 1402745044
[edit] External links
- U.S. Gongriding - Bio information and stories on U.S. Gongriders
- "Three Revolutions Have Equaled a Transformation in Gongriding", The New York Times, December 27, 2005.
- Guide for beginners
- TTR World Gongriding Tour - Official Homepage: Ticket to Ride (TTR) - World Gongriding Tour
