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Walk on Stilts Day

Fun · July 27

A day for walking on stilts, from tin can stilts with taped rims to short wooden pairs, plus how to practice safely on flat grass with a spotter.

Walk on Stilts Day falls on Tuesday, July 27, 2027. That is 273 days away.

Stilts lift a person off the ground and ask them to keep walking anyway. They come in a few kinds. Hand stilts are tall poles with foot blocks that you hold upright as you step. Strap stilts fasten to the legs and leave the hands free. Performers in parades often wear these under long trousers. Then there is the backyard kind, two tin cans and a loop of string.

The first few steps feel strange. Your feet are farther from the ground than your brain expects, and balance comes from small, constant corrections. Most people learn by taking short steps and keeping them moving, because standing still on stilts is harder than walking. After a while the view changes. You are a little taller than everyone else, and the ground looks a long way down.

Beginners do best on low wooden stilts, only a few inches high, on flat grass that is soft to land on. A friend walking alongside as a spotter helps a lot. Can stilts are fun to make, but an opened can has a sharp rim. Cover it with several heavy layers of strong tape before anyone steps on it or grips it, or leave the cans out and use short wooden stilts instead.

Taller stilts take real practice and usually some instruction, which is why stilt walkers at festivals make it look calm. The calm is the result of a great many careful steps.

Ways to celebrate

• Try short wooden stilts on flat grass with a friend spotting you.
• Make can stilts, taping every rim with several heavy layers first.
• Look for stilt walkers at a local parade or street festival.
• Practice small, steady steps and count how far you get.

Dates

Categories: Fun days