from the pace at which I tie connecting to the pulsing tempo of music, or the play of light and shadow that reminds me of a blurry photograph scattered on a coffee table, my rope is also a connection to self and an amalgamation of all the things I have experienced to that moment, and the shift that this experience will have on my future. This weekend we were fortunate to attend a Kinbaku Salon, a first for the UK scene as a dedicated event. During the discussion a member of the audience made a comment that really stuck with me. He expressed that while watching the couple tie the rest of the room melted away, almost as if it were just him silently watching them and I realised I often feel the same when watching rope. There's an intimate connection between the observer and the observed, an epoch in time that forever changes us and that connection is something I hear very little about, but it has shaped how Ive approached rope for over 10 years, I've felt inspired, amused 2/3

Connection often feels to me as something ethereal, it evokes an idea of some intangible concept that is talked about in hushed tones in darkened rooms. In reflecting over this week I have considered a number of angles of what connection means to me in rope. Initially my connection is an emotional one, I find myself unequivocally draw into focussing on the minutia of my partner while she is in rope, I connect to the sound of her breath, the twitch of a toe, her hands clasping and checking her sensory inputs. I'm connected with her almost inaudible gasps and whimpers as each rope is place or removed, the subtle shifts of weight in a suspension or the gentle way her hair falls during a transition. But I also connect with myself. As a top rope is a creative outlet for me, I find inspiration from various arts, music, dance, paintings, photography and the ones that invoke an emotional response connect with me and resonate on a deeper level. These inspirations come out in my rope .1/3

Im always in awe if how you self tie someone these things, amazing first rope of the year though

Definitely important that you enjoy it too, i always think that teaching really should come from a place of passion and fulfilment so if your enjoying it you will teach much better.

I have a similar mat to this, it's the same material as the outer of a tatami mat and very portable so easy to take to workshops. Any igusa mat or rug is perfect.

Or if you have the space to store them 2 full size tatami mats are perfect. Our rope room has 4 tatami for the floor and we have the portable mat for workshops

Thanks for sharing that insight TangledNTwisted its interesting how you can have different sense of connection with yourself, from the mediative side to the more intense and focussed. That's definitely something that as a top I also find in rope, I can vary between very meditative flow states, to really hyper focussed states even within the same session. As for overintellectualizing, I think that shows up for many people as they develop within rope, often when we are in a growth phase technically and then as we settle that side of our brain we become more feeling, both sensation and emotional, driven

For a moment I totally thought this was a cool arty photograph of a reflection in the laptop, the realise which video it was haha.

Always good to revist basics though, and teaching can be a great way to solidy that knowledge, especially when people ask "why" type questions

hey Pine, welcome to the community and thanks for sharing, glad to hear how you are enjoying both sides of the rope experience

Hey John, thanks for sharing your experiences, loose lay rope can definitely be a bit more finicky than a medium or tighter lay rope and there's definitely such a thing as too lose. Looks like there might be some strand imbalance in that particular rope. especially if you are retying and strands are different lengths, probably not a rope id be trusting for and load bearing applications

Thats very kind of you and we are proud to be a part of your learning journey. Definitely think a lot of us share the imposter syndrome so rest assured you're not alone with that 🙂