Over the past few weeks there have been a series of videos and pictures posted on Facebook that demonstrate very poor judgement regarding the safety of slacklining. On many occasions, people don't take the time to properly rig their highlines such that it's as safe as it can be. We at Balance Community want to emphasize that safety is the NUMBER ONE CONCERN when rigging highlines. Every single point in your system NEEDS to have a backup such that if any point in the system were to fail, you would still be safe.

These backups extend to every single component in your line. This includes using multiple connection points for your anchor, multiple lines for walking on, multiple anchors slings, redundant leashes, webbing anchors, everything! All points in your line must have a backup.

Not only should your highline be completely redundant, but you should only be using quality gear that has been designed specifically for use with highlines. All too often do I see people using ratcheting systems for their highlines. This type of system has been known to fail on multiple occasions and should be avoided at all costs. All too often do I see people using single components at multiple parts of their line. This is not how highlining should be!

When rigged properly, highlining is even safer than lowlining. This is how every single highline should be: safe!

I just wanted to remind everyone of this. Please be safe out there and only highline when you are fully competent with your rigging. Practice setting up highlines low to the ground in the park to be sure you have every step down before even thinking about taking it up high. Ask questions to people who know how to rig highlines and have done it many times before.

These Slack Science articles as well as the Forum are fantastic resources for learning the basics. But do not rely on just written material to learn how to setup a highline. Practice practice practice! You want to be sure you have every single step of the process down before going out to an actual highline location.

Thank you for being safe out there. Remember to Keep it Slack!

-Jerry

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