This article is going to be the first in a short series of posts about my experiences at the 11th annual Wings of Desire Oslo Suspension Convention, which was held over the weekend of 19-22 July 2012.
I went to Oslo, knowing only a few members of Wings of Desire, and that a few members of the North American community would be there, and with the knowledge that I’d be suspending while there. This would be the first time I’ve suspended in “public” in at least 6 years, possibly longer, so I was more than a bit nervous. Once I was at the space, working alongside so many talented practitioners, my anxiety subsided and gave way to excitement and even eagerness. Initially, I’d said I wanted to suspend on Saturday evening, but I changed my mind and decided to suspend earlier in the day. My chosen position being “superman”, since I’ve never done one before and also because it’s a position that really requires giving up control. Most of my more recent (and by recent, I mean “in the last few years”) have been variations on vertical back suspensions or knee suspensions, which allow for me to be in control of most elements of the experience. Not so much with superman, as piercing, rigging and lifting are all in the hands of the team, and even getting off the ground is different as it’s basically “you’re up or you’re not”, no tippy toes, no shoulders still grounded…
I’m not certain who my team was, other than Håvve was my team leader and Allen was there piercing, along with two others. Before we could down to hook placement, I had the pleasure of having most of my back shaved, along with patches on my legs, so that the bandages would stick afterwards. With that out of the way, the discussion as to where the hooks should go started up, and Håvve decided pretty quickly that they should use Sea Demons (the larger of the standard fishing hooks) for me since my skin doesn’t pinch up too well. The thought of receiving ten 6 gauge piercings was a terrifying one, so I expressed my concerns and it was decided that they’d instead use six Sea Demons in my back, and the normal 8 gauge hooks in my legs. Still worrying, but not quite as bad. The moment of truth came and I had the first four hooks all inserted at the same time, three in my back and one in my calf. It burned a little, but wasn’t unbearable. The next set was about the same, but this meant that eight hooks were in, leaving two more to follow. The two remaining, which happened to both be my upper thighs, which is tight skin, that doesn’t pull or separate terribly well, so I knew they’d hurt, and I was right! That didn’t matter though, as I was finished and ready to go.
There was a table already set up for me to climb onto and my rigging was basically all set as well. I did my best to relax and just enjoy A Silver Mount Zion playing through my headphones while the team connected all the hooks to the rig. That set, pressure was applied to balance the lines, at which point, my calves were burning terribly, so Håvve removed some pressure from them; a cycle we repeated twice more. After the third calf adjustment, I felt really good, so I just didn’t tell the person on ropes to stop, and in a few seconds, I was clear of the table, awash in a fresh flood of emotions and endorphins, and was hanging freely.
Photos courtesy of Stephan Strestik
The suspension was a remarkable success, lasting over an hour, and could have easily went for longer, however I had a presentation to give, which had me a little anxious, so down I came. However, I absolutely succeeded in my goal of letting go of control and trusting in a wonderful team of suspension artists. Thank you again to Wings of Desire and all the lovely people I met while in Oslo.
For more pictures from the event, check out the Oslo SusCon Google+ page.