For millions of New Yorkers and Giants fans nationwide, this Monday morning brings highly anticipated and well-earned bragging rights about the team’s Super Bowl XLVI victory last night over the New England Patriots. While the game itself was certainly a nail-biter, the halftime performance was what particularly caught my attention. Decked out in a Spartan costume and belting her signature #1 hits, Madonna didn’t let the hype of the game eclipse her performance. And anyone watching closely enough would have noticed the young man to the right of the Material Girl, doing acrobatic tricks on a slackline. Enter Colorado transplant Andy Lewis, an athlete sponsored by the Boulder-based company, Gibbon Slacklines, who performed in front of millions of viewers during the Super Bowl halftime show.
Slacklining is an up-and-coming sport that blends tightrope walking with acrobatic tricks. The millions of football fans watching may not have been aware of this lesser-known sport, but for those of us from Colorado, Andy Lewis represented a hometown athlete in an arena our own football team didn’t get to compete in. According to the Colorado Daily, “Gibbon Slacklines, a Boulder company, provided both the line and the athlete, Andy Lewis. Lewis, who’s sponsored by Gibbon, performed acrobatic tricks and danced on the low, trampoline like line during Madonna’s show. The line was strung between two posts in front of the stage.”
Lewis was quoted as saying that performing next to Madonna was the most difficult part of the performance, while using the actual slackline was somewhat simpler. Lewis, who goes by the nickname “Sketchy Andy”, has been slacklining for the past seven years and has garnered multiple accolades for his adventurous feats, including slacklining into a canyon, and walking hundreds of feet above cliffs and mountains. He is sponsored by the Boulder company Gibbon Slacklines, who provided the lines used in the show as well. Though he was only on camera for about 30 seconds, Lewis has catapulted into a national (and viral) sensation. The Broncos may not have made it to the Super Bowl this year, but Andy Lewis is still bringing pride to the sports-crazed fans here in Colorado.
Source: http://www.coloradodaily.com/latest-stories/ci_19900260#axzz1lf424A8K.
Photo Credit: Charlie Riedel, Associated Press.
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at CU Boulder chapter.