Suspengineering II: Material Science to gear and skin

Can I use this rope my friend gave me? Can I combine gear made of different metals, and when should I retire them? What happens when the skin is put under tension, and does the speed of tensioning influence how it reacts?

In this class, two stories will be told. We start off with a runthrough from belayer to hook talking about elasticity, plasticity and friction of/between components with examples of alternative material choices. This allows us to get creative, develop our personal preferences in material choice and improve safety.

Secondly, we talk about skin in the material science sense: as a viscoelastic material. What are the facts and available research data? How can we apply this in bodysuspension? And what happens when skin in fact does start tearing and how does this look up close?

This course is relevant for body suspension practitioners of all experience levels and touches on a broad subject to spark questions and exploration, inspired by an engineering approach.

Since mechanics and material science together create what happens in a situation, it might be interesting to also attend Suspengineering I.

by: Yosse Moonen
Slot 16 : Sun. 11am-12:30pm