Daring Youth: Then and Now

My friend and colleague Stephanos Androutsellis-Theotokis pointed me to two amazing YouTube videos (here and here) of Parkour and Free running. He commented that it's crazy what these people can do, and with how much flow and speed.

I find it interesting that youth always seeks exciting and (at least to the minds of their parents) dangerous pastimes, just for the joy of it. The videos reminded me of an amazing game that Baden Powell describes in his book Rovering to Success:

I well recall a game we used to play called "The Bounding Brothers of the Bosphorous!" You pile all the furniture in the room into a pyramid, legs of the chairs upwards for choice, and place a good solid table well out in front of it. Then each competitor takes it in turn to run at the table, turn head over heels on it, landing on the pyramid and not forgetting to shout as he does so, "I am a bounding Brother of the Bosphorous." For the life of me I can't see the fun of it now - but I did then. But that is just the sort of ass a young fellow is.

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