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Stilts are poles, posts or pillars that allow a person or structure to stand at a height above the ground. In flood plains, and on
beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc sh ...
es or unstable ground, buildings are often constructed on stilts to protect them from damage by water, waves or shifting soil or sand. Stilts for walking have platforms for the feet and may be strapped to the user's legs. Stilts have been used for many hundreds of years.''Les Echasseurs Namurois''.
(visited 2008-03-11)


Types


Hand-held

Hand-held stilts are used as childhood toys and in circus skills workshops and are of two main types: string and can/bucket stilts and pole stilts. Unlike other forms of stilts, hand-held stilts are not tied or strapped to the wearer. Hand-held pole stilts consist of two long poles, each with a foot support. The stilt walker holds onto the upper end of the pole, rests his feet on the foot plates and pulls upward on the pole while taking a step. A second type of hand-held pole stilts are similar to the first type but ends in a handle so the walker has more control and flexibility to move his stilts. Those type of stilts can be very high (more than under feet). Hand-held string stilts (also known as tin can or bucket stilts) are platforms with strings attached to them. The platforms, most commonly made of
tin can A steel can, tin can, tin (especially in British English, Australian English, Canadian English and South African English), steel packaging, or can is a container for the distribution or storage of goods, made of thin metal. Many cans ...
s or small plastic upturned buckets hold the stilt walker's weight while the strings are used to pull the cans to the feet as they take a step.


Peg

Peg stilts, also known as Chinese stilts, are commonly used by professional performers. These stilts strap on at the foot, ankle, and just below the knee. Peg stilts are often made from wood but can also be made of aluminium or tubular steel. This type of stilts are the most lightweight ones and allow a user to walk quickly, to turn suddenly, and even to jump rope or dance. The stilt walker must keep moving at all times to keep their balance.


Drywall or Dura

Drywall Drywall (also called plasterboard, dry lining, wallboard, sheet rock, gypsum board, buster board, custard board, and gypsum panel) is a panel made of calcium sulfate dihydrate (gypsum), with or without additives, typically extruded between thic ...
or Dura stilts are designed to allow the stilt walker to stand still or to walk. They were originally designed for people to work at an elevated height during drywall or plasterboard construction, painting and other such activities. Drywall stilts are heavier than peg stilts and are usually mostly made of aluminium. The design means they are safer for walking but often means they are less versatile than peg stilts in use.


Spring

Spring stilts Jumping stilts, bounce stilts or spring stilts are special stilts that allow the user to run, jump and perform various acrobatics. Spring stilts using fiberglass leaf springs were patented in the United States in 2004 under the trademark "Powe ...
also known as bounce stilts are spring-loaded and allow the user to run, jump and perform various acrobatics. Spring stilts using fiberglass leaf springs were patented in the United States in 2004 under the trademark "PowerSkip", marketed for recreational and extreme sports use. Using these stilts is also called
powerbocking Jumping stilts, bounce stilts or spring stilts are special stilts that allow the user to run, jump and perform various acrobatics. Spring stilts using fiberglass leaf springs were patented in the United States in 2004 under the trademark "Powe ...
, named for the stilts' inventor, Alexander Boeck. Spring stilts are often mostly made of aluminium. Spring stilts using steel coil springs, an antecedent of the
pogo stick A pogo stick is a device for jumping off the ground in a standing position, through the aid of a spring, or new high performance technologies, often used as a toy, exercise equipment or extreme sports instrument. It led to an extreme sport named ...
, were attempted in the 19th century.


Digitigrade

The digitigrade stilt is a peg stilt whose line follows the foot and not the shin bone. This allows costumers to mimic the walk of an animal. Because of the extreme stresses on this type of design they tend to be more rare; that is, fewer successful home-made designs.


Articulated

This type of stilt is similar to drywall stilts in that they allow the walker to stand in one place without having to shift weight from foot to foot to stay balanced. Articulated stilts feature a flexing joint under the ball of the foot and, in one variant, under the heel. These stilts are commonly used in theme parks such as
Walt Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort, also called Walt Disney World or Disney World, is an entertainment resort complex in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida, United States, near the cities of Orlando and Kissimmee. Opened on October 1, 1971, ...
and
Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...
because they allow performers to safely dance and perform stunts that would easily damage other types of stilts. Two brands of articulated stilts include "Bigfoots" manufactured by Gary Ensmenger of Orlando, Florida, and "Jay Walkers", manufactured by Stilt Werks of Las Vegas, Nevada. Articulated stilts can be adjusted anywhere from 18" to 30" high.


History

Archaeological ruins and texts show that stiltwalking was practised in
ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of Classical Antiquity, classical antiquity ( AD 600), th ...
as far back as the 6th century BCE. The
ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...
word for a stilt walker was κωλοβαθριστής (''kōlobathristēs''), from κωλόβαθρον (''kōlobathron''), "stilt", a compound of κῶλον (''kōlon''), "limb" and βάθρον (''bathron''), "base, pedestal". Some stilt use traditions are very old. In Namur, Belgium, stilt walkers of Namur have practiced fights on stilts since 1411. The inhabitants of marshy or flooded areas sometimes use stilts for practical purposes, such as working in swamps or fording swollen rivers. The shepherds of the Landes region of southern
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
used to watch their flocks while standing on stilts to extend their field of vision, while townspeople often used them to traverse the soggy ground in their everyday activities. Stilts were used by workers to attach hop grass to wires at 12 feet above the ground. This technique was documented up to the mid 20th century before being superseded.


Modern uses

Stilts can be used as a prop in entertainment, as a tool to enable other types of work to be achieved and as part of a hobby or recreation.


Entertainment

Stilts are used widely in many countries for entertainment. Stilt walkers perform in parades, festivals, street events and at corporate functions. The local festivals of
Anguiano Anguiano ( es, Anguiano) is a small town in the province of La Rioja, Spain. It is located near Nájera and has a population of about 546 people (2006). Anguiano is famous for its caparrones, red beans that are usually eaten in a stew with chor ...
(
La Rioja, Spain La Rioja () is an autonomous community and province in Spain, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Its capital is Logroño. Other cities and towns in the province include Calahorra, Arnedo, Alfaro, Haro, Santo Domingo de la Calzada, and N ...
) feature a dance on stilts in which dancers go down a stepped street while turning. Other stilt walking and dancing festivals are held in Deventer,
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, in early July each year, and in Namur,
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
. Early stilt walking acts were mostly of the style of a very tall person with the costume having long trousers or skirt to cover the stilts. More recently stilt walkers have created a wide variety of costumes that do not resemble a tall person. Examples are flowers and animals. The tall person type has also expanded to include a wide variety of themes. Examples include sportsmen, historical acts and acts based on literary or film characters. One of the most recent varieties of stilt walking acts is a stilt walker riding a "stilt bicycle" with an extended seat post and handlebar stem. With Light festivals being very popular around the world, Stilt walkers have incorporated technology in their costumes making. It is very common to see LED Robots on stilts or other light costumes at public or private events.


Work

Aluminium stilts are commonly used by fruit farmers in
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
to prune and harvest their
peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, non-f ...
, plum, and apricot trees. Stilts have been used for washing large windows, repairing roofs, and installing or painting high ceilings. Stilts are used for
drywall Drywall (also called plasterboard, dry lining, wallboard, sheet rock, gypsum board, buster board, custard board, and gypsum panel) is a panel made of calcium sulfate dihydrate (gypsum), with or without additives, typically extruded between thic ...
construction, finish painting, and hanging suspended ceiling tiles.


Recreation

Stilts are available to be purchased as a children's skill toy and stilts are commonly taught in circus skills workshops at schools and summer fairs and other events.


Records

In 1891 Sylvain Dornon ( fr), a stilt-walker from the Landes region of France, walked from Paris to Moscow in 58 days. .n.(26 September 1891)
Stilt Walking: Sylvain Dornon, the stilt walker of Landes
''Scientific American'' Supplement (821): npaginated Accessed March 2014.
On 1 October 2001 Saimaiti Yiming of China walked on stilts in 24 hours in Shanshan County, Xinjiang, China. On 14 September 2002 Doug Hunt of Canada walked on the heaviest stilts used. They weighed for the pair. He managed 29 steps unaided on these stilts. On 15 November 2006 Saimaiti Yiming of China took 10 steps on stilts to break the Guinness World Record for walking on the tallest stilts. In 2008 Roy Maloy of Australia took five steps on stilts high, an unofficial record for the tallest stilts. On 30 March 2008
Ashrita Furman Ashrita Furman (born Keith Furman, September 16, 1954) is a ''Guinness World Records'' record-breaker. As of 2017, Furman has set more than 600 official Guinness Records and currently holds 530 records, thus holding the Guinness world record for th ...
of the US ran in 7minutes 13 seconds on spring stilts in Dachau, Germany.


Gallery

File:Sylvain Dornon, the stilt walker of Landes - Project Gutenberg eText 13640.jpg, alt=Sylvain Dornon. Record holding stilt walker, upSlyvain Dornon, record holding stilt walker File:LED Robots Stilt Walker.jpg, upLED robot stilt walker File:A stilt walker at Shahbag , Dhaka 4.jpg, upStilt walker in Bangladesh File:Los Chancaires - Primtemps de l'arribèra 2015 (02).jpg, alt= "Chancaires" school in Saint-Pé-de-Léren (France)., upStilt walkers at a school in France File:Koninklijke steltenlopers Merchtem.jpg, upStilt walking troupe File:Parade through Macao, Latin City 2019 9.jpg, Stilt performers in Macau


References


External links

*Official website of th
stiltwalkers of Namur
* * {{Authority control Footwear Walking Physical activity and dexterity toys Traditional toys