Experts such as Montaz-Rosset have termed this new sport: Highlining - a combination of rock climbing, slacklining and tightrope walking. While Petit used a steel cable, these days the structure and fabric of the line is made of flat nylon webbing to keep it from rolling under the athlete's foot. Unlike a tightrope in high tension, the highline is slack with only a measure of tension. This makes the line easily susceptible to wind and any small shift in weight, bouncing the line like a trampoline and making the walk that much more of a dynamic challenge. Falls in this sport are therefore often and those involved prefer to use a fall leash which links the climber back to the main line though some daredevils defy this safety measure by stepping out with only a small parachute pack as protection.
Sébastien Montaz-Rosset is a professional mountaineer, athlete and ski instructor and guide. Stationed behind a camera, he's not easily perturbed when it comes to filming in extreme conditions. He is an outdoor man in constant contact with nature and armed with camera, experience and talent, he has brought us amazing high definition footage of fellow highliners (see video above).
A sneak peak of the trailer for his latest creation entitled I believe I can fly (Flight of the frenchies) - available on November 14 - features the rush of physical endurance, mental concentration and emotional stability mixing together as these athletes tread across the Norwegian sky and drop into unscalable depths. We had a chance to speak with Sébastien about his films and his exceptional experiences.
Find out more about Seb Montaz and his documentaries on his site. source
