Last winter, stuck in the office and dreaming of snow, I found myself watching a super chill, completely sublime documentary featured by Patagonia that explored a small village in Turkey that had been "Petranboarding" for 300 years. The village is called Petran and the board they've been hand crafting for centuries is simply called a Petranboard; wooden planks in a "toboggan-esque" style, but ridden standing up snurfer fashion, without bindings. According to the author and producer, Alex Yoder, Mythology claims Petranboarding was invented by a small Muslim boy who used his prayer board (a board instead of a rug, since textiles were scarcer than wood) to slide on snow. It was a chance encounter, but "after a grueling hike in waist-deep snow, he went on a date with gravity he'd never forget". And so, Petranboarding was invented and exists to this day, virtually unchanged, but -alas- barely holding onto the interests of kids. As explained in the video, "The youth is so caught up in social media and popular entertainment culture that they're simply not excited about Petranboarding's craftsmanship...they don't care to learn the craftsmanship and as soon as they're old enough most of them will move to the city". Boy, that sounds like the same old lament of this blogger, doesn't it? Maybe one day, like I did, they will return from the city (or escape for a bit) and rediscover the joy of their childhood riding fresh tracks on wooden boards.
If you too are stuck in the office dreaming of snow, dreaming perhaps of a simpler time with simpler pleasures, do yourself a favor and read about Petranboarding
...and then watch the video (it's at the bottom of the page, along with some other cool snurfer videos).
...and then, well, since Petranboards aren't for sale outside of Turkey (yet!) you'll probably want to grab a PHNX Board...infused with the original Petran spirit!
No comments:
Post a Comment