hard as silk
Observing | Photography | Contrast
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Gymnastics equipment has comparable charachteristics. Upon entering a gym, it feels and looks like entering a gigantic pillow where you can drop to your knees everywhere without hurting yourself. This is the case in most places, but below that soft, smooth survace is a hard, supportive construction which serves to make the material strong enough for the acrobatics to be performed on.
An example can be seen on the right. The 12x12 meter resilient floor has a soft top with 2 layers of foam below, supported by large wooden panels which are again supported by strong foam and large iron springs. These springs and tough wooden panels are subtly hidden below the surface and simple covering on the side, which makes sure the gym keeps its soft appearance (and prevents injury). |
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Sometimes the strong and hard fundaments of gym equipment is not hidden that well, but is placed in such a way that it does not look intimidating and cannot cause damage.
In this pommel horse, two flat, iron screwheads keep the smooth top connected to its frame. You can see how the screws dent the soft body with the leather cover.
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The beam is only 10 cm wide and 5 m long, but still needs to be steady and supported properly. This is why it has 2 strong legs with wide feet which are often hidden under the crashmats. Large, strong screws can be used to alter the heigth, but are in contrast with the soft top it supports.
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The springboard is comparable to the gymnastics floor. It has a soft top supported by two slightly curved wooden panels which are seperated from each other by large springs. Strong straps keep the two panels from seperating too much. The gymnast only uses the soft top, but the hard springs do the actual work.
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Lastly, the surfaces the gymnast touches may be soft, the equipment can still harm you. Jumping on the floor over and over agian where the springs give your ankles and knees an extra resistance can become painful on the long run. Gymnasts without any braces or protective gear are rare on the Olympics or any other gymnastics competition with gymnasts over 16.
Another example are rips on your hands. The uneven bars can cause your hands to lose all their skin, bleed and afterwards form callus on your palms. the wooden bars may seem soft, but after swinging on them for 2 hours straight, they are far from soft.
Another example are rips on your hands. The uneven bars can cause your hands to lose all their skin, bleed and afterwards form callus on your palms. the wooden bars may seem soft, but after swinging on them for 2 hours straight, they are far from soft.