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Tricking is a comparatively new sport with roots in different forms of Martial Arts and Gymnastics. According to Tricks Tutorials' Jon Call "Tricking can be described as an aesthetic blend of flips, kicks, and twists." Tricking can be viewed as martial arts power tumbling.
Tricking has only recently come into its own as a recognised activity, although the various skills practiced have existed much longer and a variety of theories have been put forward as to where the term originated.
It incorporates and variates moves from different arts such as the Backtuck from Gymnastics, 540 kick from Tae Kwon Do, Butterfly Twist from Wushu and Double Leg from Capoeira. In general, practitioners are capable of performing the majority of their tricks on grass, regular flooring or even concrete, without the requirement for mats or plyometric flooring.
Origin of term
According to Tricks Tutorials, "Tricks are any radical or advanced technique in a particular sport, art, or style of movement." See Tricks for other usages of the word.
In extreme martial arts competitions, specifically in what are known as "free form" competitions, martial artists are allowed to perform differently from the traditional martial arts forms and katas. Performers may then use tricks in their routine, as long as it remains related to martial arts - with a sense of purpose and objectiveness. There are also "extreme kicks contests", in which contestants attempt to perform the best trick or combination of moves.
Aims of tricking
The main aim of tricking is to perform a visually impressive display of moves, mostly using only the body. Unlike many established sports, tricking has no formal rules or regulations, and there are no governing bodies that regulate the sport. Strictly speaking, participants are free to perform any kind of dramatic maneuver and call it a 'trick' - though there are certain moves which are generally accepted as tricking moves. Some tricksters (especially those who discover tricking through the Internet) tend to learn the easier moves first (such as the 540 Kick and Aerial), and try to progress through a list of recognised tricks in the perceived order of difficulty. However, how difficult a trick is will vary from person to person; certain tricks may be inexplicably easier or harder than normal for a particular tricker to learn.
Tricksters can be divided into different categories of style: some prefer performing mainly martial arts tricks (which almost always incorporate kicks into a trick), others mostly freestyle gymnastics & flips (mainly focus on doing multiple rotations and combining different types of rotations), but most tricksters just mix all disciplines. Most tricksters train hard in order to perform their moves in the streets.
Training
Since tricking is still a new activity, specialized coached training is practically non-existent. Practitioners usually come from various martial arts and gymnastics backgrounds or are self-taught. Many train by reproducing moves in videos submitted to websites such as Club540, Martial Arts Trickz, and Tricks Tutorials.
Loopkicks is a team of martial artists in San Jose, California, who are claimed to be amongst the best of the tricking community. They have been holding camps for the past few summers, teaching Martial Arts tricks.
Tricking Gatherings
Tricking gatherings have taken place around the world, including Toronto, Quebec, New York and places around the UK. For some gatherings invitations are required, but otherwise, from beginner to experienced tricking veteran, everyone is welcome. Most of the info on each specific gathering (they happen on a yearly basis) can be found on the Tricks Tutorials forums.
The first gathering took place in Toronto in 2003. This gathering started it all, in fact it led to many tricksters adopting the idea - such as Team FS holding their Maryland and New York gatherings. The concept has now spread to Europe, with gatherings in the UK and other European countries as well.
Martial arts tricksters have numerous gatherings before and after tournaments for the various leagues. They normally consist of competitors finding some free space at the tournament location, forming a circle around the performing area, and taking turns busting tricks.
See also
"Tricking"