Firewalk...anyone done one????

Hi....left a msg in here a few days ago about a firewalk I am organising in August (it got moved to Events/Perormances&Gatherings......go check it out if you wanna join in)

Im really looking forward to it
Just wanted to know if anyone has ever took part in one and would like to share their experience????

Angie x

yer ouch

howdy, email me for info about firewalking, done it, run it.

Hi Kerri....well impressed by your site ...thanks for your msg....dont know if you read what the event I am organising is about....but I am basically getting as many people together here in the west coast of Scotland as I can(well actually...there are people travelling from all over Scotland and England and even a guy coming from a small island in the Carribean) to take part in a firewalk...that will be run by a female firewalk instructor here in Scottie. The firewalk is to raise money for a young girl who was paralysed in a recent car accident.
I have never done a firewalk myself but have read about the Kahunas and Tibetan monks etc....and have been interested for years.
I was interested in hearing other peoples experiences of firewalking and I am amazed that there arent that many people on the H.O.P website that know much about it....given the amount of pyro freaks out there.....I spin fire myself (new to the 'fire' side of poi....but love it) and I would say that I have a passion for anything fire related......so what advice would you give me to spur me on?

Also... any motivation from anyone out there would be greatly recieved

Thanks

Luv, hugz n Happi vibes

Angie xx

I would have emailed you, but I figured that if anyone ever gains an interest in this in the future, then they can be referred to this topic. And I'm sure it will come up again some time in the future, so it's better to have it all laid out now. I've issued disclaimers for things before, and I will do it again. Neither I, nor Home of Poi, take any responsibility for any injuries resulting from anyone attempting to walk on coals. You do run a very real risk of burning yourself, but, if you do it correctly, the chances are extremely minimal. Try it at your own risk.

Now, it's not all that difficult. I have walked on fire plenty of times. (Won a $350 bet the first time, but that's a long, glorious story that would take too long for even me to type out!!! ) I have even done (a really crappy, makeshift version of) "River Dance" on coals before. I have had a couple of teeny-tiny burns between my toes from where coals have stuck for a few seconds too long (but not nearly bad enough to bother me past a few seconds). I have even had the unfortunate experience last year of peppering the soles of my feet with 2nd degree burns last year after being dumb and walking on a bed of coals after a bonfire party! That sucked. Big time! But I know that it was a result of my own carelessness, and I have fire-walked several time since then. The key thing is what you burn to produce the coals...and to always be precautious about what you are doing.

Here's the physics behind it: wood is a piss-poor conductor of heat. That's it. Even though the coals are sitting at a couple of hundred degrees fahrenheit and glowing red, they don't conduct heat fast enough to actually transfer that heat to your feet. Now, here's the tricky part: if any foreign materials are in the coals, you are sh!t outa luck! This includes nails (wood shipping pallets are a bad idea), broken glass from beer bottles, cigarette butts, rocks, and even sap from soft woods such as pine. All of these materials, when heated up or melted down, do conduct heat. And very well, I might add. My recommendation is to use nice, aged (because it's dried out) hardwood like oak. If you can find a ready supply of lumber (scraps from new housing developments work nice), then that also works pretty well.

You need to give enough time to burn the wood completely and let the fire die down to just embers. Rake them out so you don't go sticking your foot in a big pile and get stuck. All you need is a nice, even coating on the ground. It doesn't really matter how long the walk is, just so long as it's not ridiculously long. Maybe 6-10 feet is long enough. If you have reservations, then just walk across a short corner or test it first by patting the coals with your hand. It doesn't hurt. Break up any big lumps so you don't lose your balance if you step wrong on it.

Now for the walking part. Try to take quick, metered steps across the coals. Try to place your feet flat when they hit the ground instead of rolling them like you usually would, and spread your toes when you lift them up to let any coals that might have been pinched between your toes fall free. Don't take too long between steps, but you don't want to go running, either. That will only kick the coals up, and you will probably hurt the bottoms of your feet from the lumps (kind of like running over gravel). Actually, come to think of it, walking over gravel is a great way to practice how you should walk on coals. It is a similar feel. Don't, and I can't emphasize this enough, don't put anything on your feet before you walk. Water will turn to steam and will scald your skin, and lotions and ointments will heat up as well and stick to your skin. 99% of the time, it will go without incident, and each consecutive time you try, you will gain a little more confidence. Just as an obvious precaution, have some water or a damp towel (we all have one of those, don't we... ) handy. I should expect that anyone on this board should have a basic knowledge of what to do if they get burned. Usually the worst thing that might happen is that you singe some of the hair on your leg...and once again, I'm sure most of you have singed some hair before, right? Overall, it is a really neat experience. It is yet another proof of the small amount of control we can gain over our favorite element. Feel free to ask any questions, and let me know how it turns out. Have fun!

Oh my God am I long winded!!! Sorry that was so long. Hope you made it through all of that. Didn't seem like so much when I was writing it!

nah man kudos to you for being longwinded - i would be worried if such a perilouse performance be given a light treatment! (if ya gonna make an omlette, ya gotta break some wood-coals!)
just goes to show the immense variety of fire specialists reside @ HoP.
/wonders if ugg-boots are fireproof.

Thanks!

Sometimes I wonder if anyone reads some of my posts all the way through!

ugg-boots?

Thanks glowshow for your interesting (not at all longwinded) reply.....I was interested to read about the types of wood as I had been asked by the instuctor to get pine....which now leaves a question mark over that one.....hmmmm! I know a guy who runs a sawmill who has promised to donate a ton of dry seasoned wood....but I think its pine!!!

I have all confidence in the instructor who will be running the day as she herself has been firewalking for the past 4yrs so I am sure she knows what she is doing. My jobs is to get the wood the place to have it (which is a beautiful Scottish country estate next to the sea ...perfect!!) and the people to do it....which I dont seem to have a problem with (50 peeps already!!!)

Im really really looking forward to it....I feel the urge to do something a bit crazy and this kinda fits the bill nicely

Thanks again Glowshow......I will keep you updated and maybe hound you for some more advice too.

Love Angie x

FOCUS, if you fear or anticipate it too much it doesn't work. try and concentrate on only one thing preferably the end or the fat reefa your mates rolling for you. DON't walk far for a good few hours instead get plastered.

That which does not kill me can only make me stronger!

He He.....Burns
me thinks I will be going for more than a spliff after the walk is over

So youve done a firewalk yourself then Burns?????

Tell me more

The only reason I mentioned pine is because it has a lot of resin in it that can melt and stick. That's why you aren't supposed to use it in fireplaces. The sap sticks with the soot on the walls and it can burn at a later date. I would think that some of that might be left in the coals as well. I don't know for certain, though, but it's always been better safe than sorry for me. Most of what was burned in the fire that I burned my feet so badly in was pine. It might have been the wood, it might have been other things, or it might have been a combination. I'm not going to take my chances again. It hurt! If someone else has done it plenty of times on pine, then I would trust their judgement. It's probably just me being overly cautious. I haven't done any other times on pine to really be an accurate source of information. Sorry! Best bet might be to try it out beforehand with a small fire if you are still unsure. Either way, let me know. I will trust if someone else proves my thin theory wrong.

Glowshow I read all your posts to the end

Ugg boots = A good use for sheep

Seriously, are ugg boots an aussie thing? surely not.......

I never read any of your posts glowshow. I have glowshow blindness

Hi Ade, how you doing honey? I've been dissing you in another thread. See if you can find it.

Was the ugg boots thing not in another thread as well? Although it was Bender that mentioned them there as well.

Can someone actually explain what they are please?

I'm very well for someone that's ancient

Yeah, ugg boots were mentioned in another thread.....

Essential westie/bogan apparel

Hey glowshow,
I must say I am impressed, you know your shit. Interesting what you think about hardwood- FWDCo owns a laser-thermometer gun, you point it at the coals and a digital readout tells you how hot it is. We ran heaps of tests and found hardwood to burn too hot as it was denser than pine, but we did not investigate the sap. As far as burns go,I had exactly the same experience, and found putting a wet towel at the end of the run very soothing! One thing I also noted was that the sharpness of the coals hurt more than the heat!!!
THere has always been two very polar sides to firewalking- those who believe it is mind over matter, and those who believe in sceince. What do you think? I think it is a mix of the two.

Angie, I would have said to you what glowshow said, WITH A GREAT BIG DISCLAIMER aswell cos firewalking is for crazy people, I have heard soooooo many stories of people trying to run firewalks and ending up in hospital, even big league football club wankers here in Australia thought they'd give it a go as a team building publicity stunt years back and it all went to hell for them, several players ending up in hospital. Make sure you or the person running the show is HEAVILY insured. It may turn out all fine, but it is FAR better to be safe than sorry.
Good luck!

Ugg Boots are a huge part of the Australian export market. All the international A listers wear them. Pamela anderson, for example, loves her knee high lace up uggs!

I haven't owned a pair for a few years and would NEVER EVER be caught dead wearing them in public.

ugg boots - eek!
...heard of an amazing twirler who haunted the area a few years ago with "trademark" ugg boots and kilt... strange combination me thinks, but just thought I'd share...

but just a little bit of back on topic... (well kind of)

my dentist was telling me this morning that he'd done a fire walk (meant to take my mind off the drill or something I guess - which didn't work I might add!)...
...he experienced a very nasty burn from a coal stuck between his toes, too - doesn't sound much fun.. but then he found it to be an amazing experience even with the burn...