The shepherd's leap ( es, Salto del pastor) is a folk

sport Sport pertains to any form of Competition, competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and Skill, skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to specta ...

practised throughout the

Canary Canary originally referred to the island of Gran Canaria on the west coast of Africa, and the group of surrounding islands (the Canary Islands). It may also refer to: Animals Birds * Canaries, birds in the genera ''Serinus'' and ''Crithagra'' i ...

Islands.

History

The origins of ''salto del pastor'' may date back to the

Guanches The Guanches were the indigenous inhabitants of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean some west of Africa. It is believed that they may have arrived on the archipelago some time in the first millennium BCE. The Guanches were the only nativ ...

, the aboriginal inhabitants of the islands prior to the Castilian conquest period of the early 15th century. Canarian

shepherds A shepherd or sheepherder is a person who tends, herds, feeds, or guards flocks of sheep. ''Shepherd'' derives from Old English ''sceaphierde (''sceap'' 'sheep' + ''hierde'' 'herder'). ''Shepherding is one of the world's oldest occupations, i ...

required a specialised means of

transport Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline, an ...

ing themselves safely across ravines and down steep embankments, and settled on the use of long wooden poles known as ''lanza'' or ''garrote''. These poles are fitted with sharp metal points called ''regatón''.

Description

Salto del pastor practitioners have developed a wide range of techniques to facilitate quick and agile movement across extremely difficult and dangerous terrain. These techniques range from pole-vaulting across crevices to the "dead drop" in which the practitioner leaps into space from heights of up to eight metres, jamming their ''garrote'' into the ground below and then sliding down the pole. There are many other types of leaps, depending on the nature of the obstacle that needs to be cleared. Some of these are so fraught with

risk In simple terms, risk is the possibility of something bad happening. Risk involves uncertainty about the effects/implications of an activity with respect to something that humans value (such as health, well-being, wealth, property or the environme ...

that they have given rise to beautiful legends, such as the ''salto del enamorado'' (lover's leap) and the ''salto de media luna'' (half moon leap).

Development

As ''salto del pastor'' has now developed into a folk-sport, the ''garrote'' is also used in competitive events, which include climbing up and jumping over walls, speedy descents down steep rocks, precision leaps,

acrobatic Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance (ability), balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sports, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most ...

feats and leaps of various.

Other data

The lance of the shepherd is part of the iconographic attributes of Saint Peter of Saint Joseph de Betancur, who is the first saint of the Canary Islands. This is because said Saint was a pastor or peasant before becoming a missionary in

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

References

External links