Hi, I’m Charlotte and I’m based in Sheffield. I stumbled across slacklining early in 2016 when I met the most wonderful bunch of people trying to start a massage train outside Sheffield station. Encouraged by the warmth of their smiles, I joined in and soon learned they had been highlining on the Sheffield Hallam University buildings as part of the Sheffield Adventure Film Festival. They gave me the most inspiring introduction to the sport, and I never looked back.

These days, the top of Meersbrook Park is my most favourite place to slackline, where a cosy little corner of trees provides the perfect rigging ground to flow above the city. Turn into exposure and you can gaze over homes and offices, hills, hospitals and houses of worship. Sometimes – if you’re lucky – you can even catch a glimpse of the train gliding in between. When I was first welcomed to the spot by my new friend Justin, I was struck by a feeling of exposure as we practiced out in the middle of a popular park, but this soon fell away with the widening perspective provided by the fantastic view and was replaced by a sense of belonging in the air amidst the trees on the edge of the city: a small drop in the vibrant Sheffield pond.

Whenever I hear a song from The Cat Empire, it will remind me of summers spent slacking. Although I often just listen to the sounds around me, some good tunes never go amiss – especially on a night session.

Despite it being my oldest piece of gear (and perhaps because of it), my lovely old tatty piece of Cobalt remains my favourite bit of gear. I bought 100m of this webbing second-hand when I first took up the sport, with big ambitions to use the entire length. It has been all over the city with me – and elsewhere – in my heftiest rucksack, earning me the title of “Bag Lady” for always carrying my excessively long line with me everywhere I went!

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