We Went To A Parkour Training Academy

I would love to say you heard it here first! I would love to be the one who introduces the very Not Normal activity, sport, artform, discipline, and philosophy known as Parkour to the entire world. But the more I learn about it myself, the more I realize that much of the world is already on board.

It wasn’t more than a year ago when I wandered into my neighbor’s living room to find he and a couple friends huddled over a computer oohing, ahhing, and whoa-ing, repeatedly. I had to see what the commotion was about. On the screen was a man named, David Belle, scaling the outside of office buildings, apartment complexes, and parking garages. He’s running full speed, jumping from rooftop to rooftop and able to navigate any cement or metallic structure with ease. The video also shows Belle missing a jump, nearly faceplanting into a cement stairwell. Apparently, he wanted the filmmakers to include this mishap because as he insists, Parkour is not entertainment nor is it competition. In fact, much of Parkour and the philosophy behind it is to learn about the physical world and how to negotiate physical spaces in relation to one’s body. Another aspect of it is simply learning from your mistakes. Belle calls Parkour, “a method of training, which prepares one to overcome obstacles in urban and natural environments.”

To understand from where it derived, one must first learn about David's father, Raymond Belle. Raymond was born in French Indochina (Vietnam) in 1939. He became a child soldier for the French army and at 19 was sent to Paris to train with a special regiment of military firefighters. He joined the regiment's most elite team and took on the most challenging rescue missions.

David was raised by his grandfather and as he grew up longed to know more about his father, who was well known for his tales of heroism and courage. The older Belle eventually trained David in,parcours du combattant, an obstacle course method of military training that encompasses climbing, jumping, running, balancing, and other methods to enhance one’s athletic advancement. David would redefine what his father deemed, simply, the way. This art form would eventually become known as Parkour.

Belle and his work initially became known through French television in the late 1990s and later through videos posted on YouTube , which have attracted hundreds of millions of viewers. Today, Parkour is practiced all over the world, most notably in the former Soviet Union and in Great Britain. Parkour parks are popping up in urban centers all over the globe.

In Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley, I found one of a few indoor arenas called “The Tempest Freerunning Academy,” and spoke to Paul Darnell, one of it’s three owners.

“Freerunning is slightly different from Parkour,” he explained to me, sitting in a lounge at the warehouse, watching a group of boys train in Parkour and Freerunning as part of a winter break camp. “They are similar practices and one derives from the other but the goals are inherently different.

“Freerunning is more about self-expression and there is a competitive aspect whereas in Parkour no one is better than anyone else – it’s about you and your own thing. But both (Freerunning and Parkour) – they change your vision of the world. They help open people’s eyes and make them more accepting of things because breaking through the physical limitations and constraints of their bodies, makes it easier to break through mentally and emotionally.”

Darnell, who is originally from Virginia, came to Los Angeles to work as a stunt man in movies. In fact, both Parkour and Freerunning are appearing more and more frequently in feature films and television.

Darnell tells me that he and his partners saved money they made working as stuntmen to secure the 7,000 square foot space, which opened in April of 2011. Tempest Academy offers camps for children and classes for people of all ages. The space is open for anyone to use between 8pm-11pm Monday through Thursday nights, many of which they reach their capacity of 75.

“I hate to turn people away,” Darnell says, shaking his head, almost in disbelief. “It’s really catching on fast. We’re actually looking for another warehouse.”

Freerunning was founded by Sebastien Foucan, considered along with David Belle, one of the founders of Parkour.As the brandable and marketable Freerunning boom continues, Belle and other traceurs, the name given to anyone who practices Parkour, have distanced themselves from the more popular movement. Many feel that Parkour and its insistence on non-competition is being compromised and commercialized and much of the discipline’s goals and essence are falling by the wayside.

Regardless of one’s sentiments or sentimentality in general, Parkour is here to stay and is taking on a life of it’s own. It, like yoga or martial arts, is not only a set of physical practices but also a means of connecting deeply with the physical world, pushing limits in life in general, even reclaiming one’s humanity The practices are living beings and like anything alive, must naturally evolve and change. Of course, not all change is positive, but trying to control or deny it is pointless.

Regretfully, I had to leave the Tempest Freerunning Academy in Chatsworth, California. If I stayed any longer, I would have begun climbing and jumping from one piece of equipment to the next and that’s what I told Paul Darnell.

“Just come!” he said to me. “Explore, run! Anyone can do this – anyone. That’s one of the reasons it will continue to expand. Because it doesn’t matter what level or how much natural athleticism you have, your age, size, etc… the benefits and most of all, the fun everyone has… it’s just a joy a be a part of.”

At the end of the day, that’s really what drives Parkour and Freerunning. It offers a space and a set of actions wherein a person can assert and embrace their individuality and individual skills, while simultaneously being part of a group, something greater than themselves.  Whether you’re an athlete, a child, or just someone looking to learn more about yourself, the lessons offered in Parkour and Freerunning can help give anyone the tools to grow. If this story is the first you’ve heard of the aforementioned… stuff, I’ll rest a little easier knowing I’m doing mine.

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