Zorbing

Zorb in Rotorua

Zorbing (globe-riding, sphereing, orbing) is the recreation of rolling downhill in an orb, generally made of transparent plastic. Zorbing is generally performed on a gentle slope, but can also be done on a level surface, permitting more rider control. In the absence of hills some operators have constructed inflatable, wooden or metal ramps. There are two types of orbs, harnessed and non-harnessed. Non-harness orbs carry up to three riders, while the harness orbs are constructed for one to two riders. Double-harness spheres have different slope requirements, and must only be operated in specific locations. The longer runs are approximately half a mile. The first zorbing site was established in Rotorua, New Zealand, by David and Andrew Akers.^[1]

Construction

The zorb is double-sectioned, with one ball inside the other with an air layer between. This acts as a shock absorber for the rider, damping bumps while traveling. Orbs are lightweight and made of flexible plastic, as opposed to the rigid plastic, for example, of a hamster ball. Many orbs have straps to hold the rider in place, while others leave the rider free to walk the orb around or be tossed about freely by the rolling motion - water can be added inside, and this is commonly called a "water or aqua ride". A typical orb is about 3 metres (10 ft) in diameter, with an inner orb size of about 2 metres (6 ft 7 in), leaving a 50–60 centimetre (20–24 in) air cushion around the riders. The plastic is approximately 0.8 millimetres (0.03 in) thick. The inner and outer orb are connected by numerous (often hundreds of) small ropes. Orbs have one or two tunnel-like entrances.

Facilities

Zorbing is performed at commercial locations, where prospective riders pay a fee for each ride or for a whole day's activity. 'Hill-Rolling' (the generic name for this activity) is practiced in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, New Zealand, the middle of Sweden, Estonia, the Gold Coast in Australia, North Pole, Canada, the Czech Republic, the Slovak Republic, Switzerland, Japan, Kochi in India, Thailand and Slovenia.^{[citation needed]} In the United States, there is a facility in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee (near Great Smoky Mountains National Park), and facilities in Amesbury, Massachusetts and Ski Roundtop, Pennsylvania have recently^[when?] opened. Several franchise-based companies (SphereMania, Orb 360) as well as OGO Inc, Downhill Revolution which do not sell franchises but do offer consultancy services and products to suitable operators) have entered the market.

History

Zorbing at the Chew Stoke Harvest Home September 2010

Hamster balls, hard plastic single layer spheres made for small rodent pets, have been manufactured and sold since at least the 1970s.^[2] A Russian article on the Zorb mentions a similar device having debuted in 1973.^[3] In the early 1980s, the Dangerous Sports Club constructed a giant sphere (reportedly 23 metres / 75 feet across) with a gimbal arrangement supporting two deck chairs inside. This device was eventually cut up for scrap, with some of the plastic remnants used to cover a compost heap.^[4] Human spheres have been depicted in mass media since 1990 when the Gladiators event Atlaspheres first aired, albeit with steel balls.

In 1994, Dwane van der Sluis and Andrew Akers conceived the idea for a type of sphere in Auckland, New Zealand, calling their invention the "Zorb". With two other investors they created the firm ZORB Limited, and set to work commercializing sphereing. Their business model was to develop the activity world-wide via a franchise system. In 2000, van der Sluis exited from the company to return to his career as a software engineer; Akers continued to run the company as CEO until April 2006, when he resigned. Around this time, ZORB's European master franchise operator, Michael Stemp, and Hungarian master franchise operator, Attila Csató, ended their affiliation with ZORB and started a manufacturing and sphereing consultancy firm, Downhill Revolution^[5] and created the human cocktail maker called Spinfizz.^[6] Andrew Akers and his brother David Akers have since teamed up with Chris Roberts to create the OGO (Outdoor Gravity Orb) and The Fishpipe.

Sphereing is also referred to as Orbing or Zorbing, and Zorbing entered the Concise Oxford English Dictionary in 2001 where it was defined as: "a sport in which a participant is secured inside an inner capsule in a large, transparent ball which is then rolled along the ground or down hills".

Records

The Guinness Book of World Records recognises two sphereing records, set over two consecutive days in 2006:

• Longest sphereing ride held by Steve Camp who travelled 570 metres (1,870 ft).
• Fastest sphereing ride held by Keith Kolver who reached a speed of 52 kilometres per hour (32 mph).

Sochi 2014 Olympics

Zorbs have been adopted as a symbol of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. According to Dmitry Chernyshenko, president of the Sochi 2014 organizing committee, "The transparency of zorbs also reflect the open, accessible and inclusive society that Sochi 2014 Games is helping to build.”^[7]

The Late Show with David Letterman

The OGO (a new zorb ball brand developed by the inventors of the original zorb)^[8] appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman on Wednesday 14 July 2010. David Letterman tried out the OGO in the studio before his guest Joseph Gordon-Levitt rode inside the OGO on 53rd Street outside the CBS studios.^[9]

See also

• Water ball
• Hamster ball
• Mikael Granlund

References

1. ^ "History of Zorbing". Outdoor Gravity NZ Ltd. http://www.theogo.com/About_History.html. Retrieved March 1, 2010. 
2. ^ Ebersolt, Gilles (April 2008)). "A History of the Ballule" (PDF). http://www.gillesebersolt.com/tel/ballulegb.pdf. Retrieved August 18, 2009. 
3. ^ БАЗЫЛЮК, Марина (March 1, 2005). "Новые Известия / Кого не берут в космонавты, тот становится зорбонавтом." (in RU). http://www.newizv.ru/news/?id_news=23482&inset=extrim&date=2005-05-01. Retrieved August 18, 2009. 
4. ^ "What on earth is a zorb?". ExtremeDreams. http://www.extremedreams.co.uk/index.php/Extremedreams/zorb/xsid/59. Retrieved August 18, 2009. 
5. ^ "Downhill Revolution - Who we are". http://www.downhillrevolution.com/Who-we-are. Retrieved July 26, 2010. 
6. ^ "SpinFizz website". http://www.spinfizz.de. 
7. ^ Mertl, Steve (2010-02-27). "Sochi to introduce the world to the new Russia - and the zorb". Winnipeg Free Press. http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/olympics/russias-top-leaders-not-in-vancouver-for-sochi-olympic-flag-handover-85715597.html. Retrieved 2010-02-27. ^{[dead link]}
8. ^ "About OGO - by the inventors of zorbing". http://www.theogo.com/About_index.html. 
9. ^ "video of David Letterman and Joseph Gordon-Levitt playing with the OGO". http://www.theogo.com/OGO_Images_Videos.html.