General Powerbocking Terms & History

By Pro-Jump.co.uk

This article aims to give a good insight into the sport of Power Bocking, along with general terms associated with the use of jumping stilts, its inventory, history and benefits of using them.

GENERAL TERMS:

Powerbock is the general name used for spring loaded jumping stilts regardless of the brand name. The name "Powerbock" has derived from the surname of the original inventor and patent holder Alexander Böck. Sometimes people often refer to the stilts simply as "Bocks" Our brand of Bocks is called Pro-Jump.

Powerbocking or Pro-Jumping refers to the activity / sport of using these jumping stilts.

Powerbockers or Pro-Jumpers refers to the user using the jumping stilt.

Brands There are a lot of different brand names for the jumping stilts such as Pro-Jumps, Powerskips, PoweriSer, PoweriZer, Velocity Motion Stilts, 7's, Skyrunners etc.

Inventor - You may often see the inventors surname spelt "Boeck" This I believe is the English way to spell it as the accent on the O in Böck is replaced with an "oe" - Don't worry there's only one inventor so when people refer to Bock, Böck or Boeck they are all talking about the same person!

ABOUT THE INVENTOR AND HIS INVENTION:

We have to thank Mr Alexander Böck for the invention of these stilts. Very little is known about the inventor himself but it is said that the jumping stilts were created based on his in-depth research into the walking and running movements of the kangaroo, the stilt was developed and evolved over time to mimic this and now offers the end-user boundless possibilities. It is widely recognised within the sport that once mastered you can run faster than 20mph and jump 7ft high!

In a very rare interview for Idea City the following pictures and bio were published in 2007:

"Alexander Böck has pioneered a unique way of propelling the human body. Similar to the comic book dream of being able to “leap pioneered a unique tall buildings in a single bound,” Power Skip Boots attach to the feet and create a bionic calf extension that allows one to mimic the effects of jumping on a trampoline with each step.

Böck has always had a strong interest in planes, rockets and combustion engines. He studied aerospace technology at the Technical University of Munich, graduating with a Master’s degree in Engineering. Shortly after graduating, Böck began a career as a turbojet engine designer. Meanwhile, he managed to keep up his own creative and inventive explorations, resulting in Power Skip Boots.

Often described as a “jumping stilt,” they must be seen to be believed. Currently Böck is working on some new designs for water sports equipment."

The biggest exposure the stilts saw was when the jumping stilts were featured in an advert for Zurich with the slogan "Because change happenZ" which can be seen below:

Luckily for Mr Böck his stilts have gone global and is now protected by a patent in most countries!

PATENT:

The design of the jumping stilt is protected by a Patent. The patent can be seen here surprisingly it was patented as "A Device for helping a person to walk!"

The following countries are protected by the patent held by Mr Böck...
The EU (Patent number EP 1 196 220 B1)
Great Britan (Patent number 1196220)
Spain (Patent number ES 2202160 T3)
Italy (Patent number 4840/BE/2003)
France(Patent number 1196220)
Germany (Patent number DE 500 02 752.8-08 andDE 102 11 691 C1) and America(Patent number US 6719671 B1)

This basically means that Mr Böck's invention is protected and that it would be illegal to sell the jumping stilts in any of the above countries unless you have his permission. Alexander Böck benefits from all sales that are made of jumping stilts in these countries.

POWERSKIPS - THE ORIGINAL BOCK

The brand that Mr Böck created and now sells himself is called Powerskips These stilts are regarded as the best and are used mainly by professional performing artists such as Swebounce.The stilts are very expensive and start at about £700. We now sell PowerSkips through www.UKGoodDeals.com

On this forum tundraH owns a pair and you can see him in action below:

PRO-JUMP JUMPING STILTS

UK Good Deals ltd first started selling Jumping stilts in early 2006 under their trademark Pro-Jump. Pro-Jump have now established themselves as one of the UK's leading sellers of Jumping Stilts providing users with an excellent quality jumping stilt at an affordable price and giving their customers a first class customer service. In 2009, Pro-Jump started selling their stilts into Europe and are currently building a dealer network across the EU to establish.

BENEFITS OF POWERBOCKING

mmmm.... Let's see
IT'S FUN!
IT'S LOTS OF FUN and yep IT'S FUN :D

Just looking at the jumping stilts, apart from the obvious benefits of fun and another extreme crazy thing to do there's lots of health benefits of using them... (For all the children / teenagers and adults - having a hard time convincing parents or the better half etc to buy you some here's some great points for you to use!)

Research by Korea's Hanlim Inforbecause mation Industrial University found that:
*People lost an average of seven pounds after five weeks of using the stilts.
*They also shed nearly an inch from their waistline and half an inch from their buttocks.
*In addition, levels of HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol) increased
* Levels of bad cholesterol decreased - so they can help protect against heart disease too.
(Source: Daily Mail)

So not only will you get a cardio-vascular workout, lose some weight, get rid of the belly but continued use of the Powerbocks will tone and strengthen the body’s core muscles too and to top that you should have FUN doing it too!

* Disclaimer

Any modifications, setting up guides, advice and tutorials found on the Pro-Jump Forum should only be followed at your own risk. Pro-Jump / UK Good Deals Ltd will not be held responsible for any injury, loss or damage of any nature. Some modifications provided on the forum may also invalidate your jumping stilts warranty so please check the terms and conditions on the Pro-Jump.co.uk site or the site where your jumping stilts were purchased from.

By following any of the advice set out on the Pro-Jump Forum you are exonerating the company (Pro-Jump / UK Good Deals) its employees, agents, members and the advise / tutorial poster from all liability which may arise in respect of personal injury (fatal or otherwise) or damage to your equipment which may occur by following the advice given. You undertake to make no claim against the company (Pro-Jump / UK Good Deals ltd) its employees, agents, members and the advise / tutorial poster notwithstanding that such injury was caused or occasioned directly or indirectly by the act of neglect ,or default of the company (Pro-Jump / UK Good Deals) its employees, agents, members and the advise / tutorial poster.