A study of hip harnesses and their components

LEVEL: Intermediate

Class style: Lecture, demo, and hands-on

The hip area is the center of gravity of the human body. Whether you want to pull someone towards you, or suspended them in the air, hip harnesses are an effective way in controlling and bearing a large portion of load.

This class aims to uncover the fundamental ingredients of many hip harnesses and how they affect the way a specific harness feels and behaves.

In this class we will explore concepts essential to constructing a hip harness that suits the bottom:

• Hip anatomy
• Characteristics of good hip harnesses
• Primary load-bearing components
• Distributing load across various components
• Good and bad directions of applying force
• Good and bad points of attachment to the harness

There are many hip harness out there. Most bottoms have one or two favorites, depending on their body and the harness application. We will examine several hip harness through the lens of the above concepts.

Prerequisites

• Single-column tie
• Joing 2 ropes
• Half hitch
• Munter hitch
• Creating an inline cuff
• Experience with tying a hip harness is preferred but not required

What to bring

• 3-5 pieces of 25’-30’ 5-6mm natural fibre rope.
• 1-2 pieces of 10’-15’ 5-6mm natural fibre rope (optional).
• A yoga mat or something else soft to tie on. The floor is hard and might be uncomfortable for tying.
• A small blanket for warmth.

This class will be limited to 10 tying pairs.

Ticket cost: Duo tickets are $70 online, or $85 at the door.