Planking pretty much puts people in prone positions, often
for photo ops. And plankers post pictures of their plank positions all over the
place. From Facebook to phone texts, folks find friends face-down. People have
to ask, “What’s next?”
First, a clarification is needed here. I get that planking
is a popular and well-recognized form of fitness training. But that’s another
matter. That’s the ab-wrenching push-up-style exercise, in which participants
hold the flat-out position until their entire bodies tremble in agony. It’s
supposed to tighten core muscles in all those difficult spots.
That’s not the kind of planking I’m talking about here. This
is about the planking prank. It kind of doesn’t make sense. People place
themselves in prone positions in all sorts of strange spots and then post
photographs on social networking sites. Clearly, this planking is not
fitness-related. It’s all about the pictures.
Honestly, this planking prank is sort of running out of
steam lately. But go with me on this. Let’s have a little fun at prank planking’s
expense.
 |
| Prank planking variations abound - public domain photo |
NOTE: Written by this author, this copyrighted material originally appeared on another publisher’s site. That site no longer exists. This author holds all rights to this content. No republication is allowed without permission.
Rest assured: Planking isn’t the first pranking fad to come and go.
In fact, it’s not nearly the funniest or cleverest. Who
remembers mooning, which later evolved into streaking? How about moving fire
drills at stoplights, mailbox baseball, or car egging? And don’t forget toilet
papering yards, or its not-so-distant crank cousin, tinseling.
Even photographic fads are fleeting. How many not-so candid
cameras have captured friends forming hearts or tiny stars with their fingers?
Still, planking has plunked persons in public view for
portraits for the past few years. Several variations have appeared – some more
daredevil than others.
 |
| Yeah, this is NOT the same thing. Public domain photo |
12 alternatives to
planking
Take a look at a dozen forms of planking-like stunts that
have cropped up. Maybe you know a few more as well.
1. Original planking
This one’s simple. Plankers lie down flat (like a plank of
wood), with their faces in the dirt and both hands pressed to their sides.
Apparently, the goal is to plank in the most unusual spot ever.
2. Batmanning
Like bats, folks hang rigidly upside-down, with their toes
tucked over fences or ledges. City statues are popular sites for batmanning.
3. Deading
Flopped limply over poles, walls, barrels or other barriers,
pranksters play dead.
4. Gravestoning
This fad is downright dangerous, as participants plunge
themselves into water from cliffs or other high places, landing stick straight
like tombstones. This prank requires the photographer to have quick reflexes,
catching the exact moment when the gravestoner hits the water.
5. Headless
horsemanning
It takes two to play this prank, which creates a photo,
taken from an angle that makes one appear headless and the other just the head.
This one's based on "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," by Washington
Irving. Of course, photo editing makes this gimmick easy to accomplish after
shots are taken.
6. Koalaing (or Teddy
Bearing)
Like the cute, cuddly bears, photo models wrap themselves around
poles or tree trunks and grin.
7. Leisure diving
Using a fast shutter speed setting, a photographer captures
the prankster in a seemingly relaxed lounge position, although the person is
actually falling through the air, hopefully into a swimming pool or onto a
trampoline.
8. Owling
Creepy, but creative, owlers perch on counters, furniture,
car roofs or other elevated spots, usually holding their hands out as birdlike
talons. Flamingoing takes a slightly different position (with one leg tucked
up), but you get the idea.
9. Plumbking
Who remembers the swirly? Plumbking is a basically a
self-induced swirly, for the sake of silly photography. What right-minded
person would actually stick his own head in a toilet bowl?
10. Teapotting
Like the preschool song, “I’m a Little Teapot,” this fad
poses people with one hand on a hip and the other bent out to resemble just
that.
11. Tebowing
Denver Broncos star Tim Tebow, popularly tagged “God’s
Quarterback,” became recognizable for kneeling and praying after a big play on
the football field. Tebowing mimics this move for photos in unusual places.
12. Toothpicking
Pity the guy on the bottom in toothpicking, as he must
remain in planking position, while another stands rigidly on his own head atop
the first guy’s spine. Small-town teenagers and big-city celebrities have
posted images of themselves in these crazy positions and more on social
networking sites. Online video sharing sites offer freakish footage. Gag photos
and daredevil shots have showed up in city newspapers and on television news.
 |
| The original prank planking format - public domain photo |
What won’t people do
for attention?
Pranks continue to develop. We’ve already seen ice cream
coning, when drive-through customers grab their frozen dairy desserts by the
tops to make mushy messes. That’s just slightly less rude than the soda toss,
which you can imagine.
We've also seen milking, which essentially results in a
dairy shampoo (usually self-inflicted). Think of the Bucket Challenge, but with milk
and no charitable beneficiary.
Snow porn is another prank, practiced seasonally, as folks
construct giant obscene forms and pose with them. (You get the picture.)
So what’s next for plankers and other pranksters?
Responsible adults are almost afraid to ask, perhaps hoping the planking craze
will simply go kerplunk.
No comments:
Post a Comment