Suspension Bondage Is Dangerous

We love suspension bondage and we’re excited to share it with you. We want to be very clear, however, about the risks involved.

1. Suspension bondage involves unavoidable risk. Like rock climbing, suspension is a risky activity. Good preparation and training can reduce your risk, but even if you do everything right there is still a chance that you may be injured or killed, or that you may injure or kill another person.

2. We don’t have all the answers. Unlike rock climbing, suspension bondage has no professional standards bodies and no expert consensus about best practices. This book is based on years of study, practice, and consultation with outside experts. Nonetheless, you should be aware that suspension is still a developing field, and our understanding of the best way to do things is still evolving.

3. You can’t learn suspension from a book. The only safe way to learn suspension is to work with a qualified instructor or mentor. This book is a valuable adjunct to expert instruction, but not a substitute for it. Without a skilled teacher to guide and evaluate you, you cannot learn suspension without placing your partner in tremendous danger.

4. Don’t get ahead of yourself. Suspension is fun and exciting, and you will likely be tempted to rush ahead and try activities that you aren’t yet ready for. We can’t stress enough the importance of proceeding slowly and methodically, and always working within your skill level.

5. Always use good judgment. Your best defense against mishap is your own common sense and good judgment. Always be mindful of what you’re doing, and err on the side of caution.

Your partner is placing tremendous faith in your competence and judgment. If you are careless or overly ambitious, they are likely to pay a heavy price for your foolishness. Make sure that you are worthy of their trust.

Suspended Animation accepts no responsibility for any injury or death which may occur as a result of the activities described in this book. By reading this book, you agree to take full responsibility for your actions and their consequences.

Suspension

Tying up your gear bag is great fun, but it turns out that tying up people is even better. Now that your basic rigging skills are solid, it’s time to learn how to suspend your partner.

While we hope that you will eventually develop your own unique suspension style, you should stick closely to the face down suspension technique in this chapter until you have mastered it. We’ve chosen this particular suspension for its ease of rigging and because it’s the safest position for new riggers to work with.

Before you get started

You’re about to start suspending people, which is awesome. However, you are about to enter a particularly risky phase of your rigging career: you’re working with real people, but your skills are still developing. Work carefully, and make sure that you know exactly what you’re doing before you proceed.

Remember the very beginning of this book, where we said that you can’t learn suspension from a book? We weren’t kidding: if you try to learn suspension bondage just by reading this book, you are at great risk of injuring someone. The only way to safely learn to rig is with a teacher who can watch you work and provide feedback about your technique.

If you’re trying to learn suspension on your own, please put down this book and don’t proceed until you’ve found a teacher.

Seriously—don’t be an idiot.

Suspension Bondage Is Dangerous

Suspension

Before you get started

Sections

1. A Simple Suspension

2. The Suspension Process

3. Head Support

4. Tips and Tricks

5. Special Situations

6. Skill and Judgment

7. Emergency situations

8. Finally