Do you like broken ankles?

I’ve seen some pretty silly mistakes in the suspension community from time to time… things like substituting venetian blind cord for parachute cord (there’s quite a strength difference between the two)… So at first glance I had a chuckle when I saw this wooden suspension rig imagining the tumble as it shattered under stress:

But I was too hasty with that laugh — Peter Sheringham over at Piercing Urge X in Melbourne, Australia has done his research. This is Mountain Ash Hardwood (write one if you want one), and may well be stronger than many of the metal rigs I’ve seen in use! You’ll also see it used in bows, hammer handles, and baseball bats. Oh, and as a point of trivia, this is from the tallest flowering plant in the world, and examples have been found that are even taller than the Pacific US coast’s redwoods!