ABSTRACT

Tightrope walkers usually perform their feats with the aid of a long balancing pole. The idea is that any imbalance can be corrected by moving the pole a small horizontal distance to create a counter turning moment. It also increases the walker's moment of inertia which reduces the acceleration under a gravitational torque and provides more time for corrective action. If the pole is flexible an additional benefit is that it lowers the centre of gravity of the walker.