As is now tradition, the Discovery class will change location for another month. For September we will be based around Clapham Junction station which is short journey away from all London mainline railway stations. Meet at 8pm on Thursdays for some training and exploration!
Recently we did a shoot with London's famed info magazine, Timeout, and this image of Team Member Kevin Francomme made the front cover.
We'll have a few more images from the shoot available for you soon, and we're pretty impressed by some of them. We're also about to start running a special exclusive offer with Timeout, so grab a copy of the magazine soon to find out more ;)
Thomas Couetdic is a member of the core team here at PKGen and is rarely in one place at one time. He is often travelling the globe looking for new challenges and meeting new people and it was this spirit that brought him to Parkour. After learning much of his Parkour in Lisses with the founders, Thomas has been training hard and this shows in his current level.
The smoke is now beginning to clear from last weekend's annual and amazing Rendezvous 2012 international gathering in London, UK. And what an event it was!
One of our outdoor classes was recently visited by a journalist from online magazine 'Hip and Healthy' which aims to inspire people to be 'the healthiest and happiest version of themselves'. Sabi Phagura took part in the class in London and she does a great job of covering the different elements of a typical outdoor class. It also seems that she was thoroughly challenged but enjoyed herself - a feeling that many of our students will agree with!
Our very own Brian Appiah Obeng is well known for his video directing and has recently produced a little video inspired by a music track he liked the sound of. 'Cheat Chords' by RLP was the inspiration for 'One Day Training with Leon' which simply focuses on a few movements shot at the Abbey Road spot in London.
This week's video is a collaboration from the guys in Leeds and Huddersfield. It's full of huge catpass precisions and strides and really kicks off at around the 1:30 mark. The routes in this video are also particularly impressive.
A big thanks to our friends at ZICO for supplying delicious coconut water for everyone at Rendezvous 2012 on Sunday! Coconut water is credited with many health giving benefits, and ZICO is focusing on people with active lifestyles – hence their generosity for RDV. ZICO recently questioned 1000 active Londoners about their favourite outdoor work-out spots around th
This month's Off the Wall jam will be held on Sunday 26th August at the Elephant and Castle spot near the old playground in the Heygate Estate (the exact spot where the pin is dropped on our hotspots map). Meet at 12 midday for some exploration of the abandoned estate and training with London's Traceurs.
Dan and Stephane had a great time delivering the ADAPT Level 1 coaching qualification in Singapore last week, with a fully booked course of 18 candidates from the country throwing up some great training and good fun.
Our YouTube channel has just released our newest showreel - that of Performance Team member Axel Dupre. Axel is well known for some insane movements and the video reflects this. Click on the link below to be blown away!
We're sorry to announce that one of our longest-serving and best loved coaches will be leaving us Londoners behind for the forseeable future. Dominic Willoughby will be leaving the UK this week in order to help coach with Parkour Generations Asia which has seen demand for coaching explode since officially being launched earlier this year.
With over two hundred and fifty international participants from all corners of the planet, fifty plus of some of the best coaches in the world, arguably the best locations, education modules, structures, experts and community you could wish for, all in one place for one hell of an event, Rendezvous 2012 was officially PKGen's biggest, best and most enjoyable seminar to date.
'One Spot' is a series of videos made by YouTube user 'Joelstraining'. It aims to show his interpretation of the possibilities of just one spot. The idea is to show that, with a little creativity, you can come up with a range of different movements in limited spots. Get creative people!
Just a reminder to all students that there will be NO classes this weekend due to the Rendezvous 2012 Event happening.
All teachers, Instructors, Guests and Students will be jumping on everything within sight over this beautiful weekend and therfore all regular classes will resume on Monday 20th August.
Next weekend (24th & 25th August) a few of the team will be performing and running workshops for the Soho Arts Fair based out of Kingly Court just off Carnaby Street in London. The Fair is run by local artist Lanre Olagoke with Soho-based charity Art-Alive which encourages vulnerable young people to explore art as a means of personal expression.
Last week a few of the team were tailed by the BBC World Service who wanted to record the 'sounds of Parkour' and take some photos of training. The original plan was to train somewhere near the Olympic park, but the crowds and security meant that the guys had to move to Plaistow where the radio piece was recorded and photos taken. The recording was used as part of a segment on the street sounds of London and can be found on the BBC website here.
Chris 'Blane' Rowat has been in influential character on the Parkour scene for many years now. His blog and videos gained international recognition for their professionalism and precision. He is also a bit of a beast and will happily take out a huge jump continuously until it has been totally mastered. A central part of the PKGen team, Blane teaches all over the world and is a great source of inspiration.
Starting today we have our hugely popular and successful Parkour Camp programme run by Westminster Sports Unit which is for all youth practitioners under 18 years of age.
The camp runs every day this week from 10am until 1pm at Westminster Academy Sports (Map HERE - Behind the Naim Dangoor Centre on Torquay Street) and is open to all kids. The price is usually £1 per day, but please check with the sports center first.
Over the last few days, three members of Parkour Generations have been leading a three day Jubilee event over the pond in Wisconsin, America, for Wisconsin Parkour.
From all accounts the event was a huge success with Pete McKee, Fizz Hood and James Gore all representing Parkour Generations on the coaching front. There'll be much more information, photos and video in the coming days, but for now stay tuned to the Wisconsin Parkour Website HERE.
This week's video of the week was a shoe-in. It's a video made by our good friend Karen Palmer who originally made an interactive version of the piece which could be controlled via mobile internet. The version below is the non-interactive version but will blow you away with amazing cinematography and a message that will resonate with all Traceurs.
Last month we had the biggest and most influential Chinese newspaper, the Beijing Morning Post, visit some of our Indoor academy and Youth academy classes to report on the progress of Parkour in the UK.
Andy Pearson is a long-standing member of the PKGen team and has become well known for his hardcore warmups and web prowess. His habitat ranges from a darkened room with a computer to destroying people at the weekend wakeup class on Sundays in London.
How long have you been a Traceur?
6 Years
What movements are you currently working on?
Mostly breaking jumps and technical work involving accuracy and quality of movement.
This weekend saw the third instalment of the yearly Parkour festival that is Roots of Movement hosted by Glasgow Parkour. It was attended by 200 traceurs and traceuses mostly from the various Scottish communities, but there were also some international Traceurs and, of course, team PKG. The event was both great fun and hard work!
This week's video comes from one of the ladies at Uppsala Parkour in Sweden. 'Josefine 2012 Parkour jumpyjumps' features some well-executed movements that only come about through hard work. This is best displayed between 1:22 - 1:32 where a wallrun threatens to ruin the Traceuse's resolve.
This month sees a world first with us touring south-east Asia to run a series of training events and ADAPT coaching qualification courses across the region.
Beginning in the Philippines this coming week we will then be moving on to Singapore and Thailand, deliving a Level 1 ADAPT course in each country, hosted by our regional parters and official fitness qualifying body, FIT.
Today sees the first day of the Scotland 3rd annual Roots of Movement seminar, held in Glasgow in the Kelvin Hall and hosted by Glasgow Parkour Coaching.
If you haven't yet subscribed to our YouTube Channel, you may have missed the new Parkour Tips episode #10 that just hit the web - this time with Steve Moss giving us a tip on undershooting jumps...
James Adams attended many PKGen classes for years and his dedication stood out. He has progressed rapidly since starting training and now helps run the store and trains regularly around London. He's well known for his wit, strength and muscle ups on rings (not easy!).
Due to popular demand, the Discovery class will not change location this month and will stay at Finsbury Park until the end of August. If you wish to attend the class, just meet at the Station Place exit of Finsbury Park tube station at 8pm tonight or any other Thursday!
We have today added a new store item, the Parkour Generations Mini Card Holder! A vital tool for any traceur on the move and perfect for those of you travelling to Rendezvous later this month - find it here: http://www.parkourgenerations.com/catalog/mini-card-holder
As part of the ongoing press coverage of and related to the London Olympics, the BBC will today be interviewing and shooting with our team in East London, this time for a BBC World Service feature.
We've just released a little action showreel video for one of the newer members of our Developing Athlete Programme, Serg Abramenkov - a fantastic guy with incredible talent, Serg is one to watch!
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