No matter what type of thing you are looking into learning more about, there
always seems to be one particular word/term/slang phrase that we don't
seem to know. It is our goal to keep you educated and keep explanations
and terms to be relevant and clearly explained. There is always going to
be a term or alias out there that we will have overlooked. If you know
or are aware of one of these terms or aliases, then we would like to encourage
you to suggest and add these words to our contributive glossary under the
section of the forum.
| Chain - A general term for materials used to connect
harnesses to the wicks. More common types of chains are: stainless steel
ball-chain, welded link chain, wire, and kevlar rope. |
| Fire Poi - Kevlar wick attached to flexible chain ,
some form of hand harness attached to the other end. Generally used in
single pairs. |
| Fire Staff - A wooden or metal shaft that has wick added
to the ends. A short staff is usualy able to be spun in front of the body
without touching ones-self. A general rule for staf length is: longer =
slower = more momentum; shorter = faster. |
| Fuel Depot - A specific location where all the fuel
is stored prior to and during performance. This area should be located
away from the audience and the performance area. Depots are set in low
traffic to no traffic areas. Fuel depots are used for storing fuel and
soaking. |
| Harness - Wrap or loop oriented handles which the fingers,
hands, or wrists are placed through. . The common materials used are: leather,
kevlar or nylon. There are many different development styles for harnesses
with some of the more predominant being: constricting, fixed loop, one
or two finger loop, and wrist loops. |
| Practice Poi - These are differentiated from the fire
poi by a lack of fire wicking. Fire wicks gets a little sooty after being
burned as well as smelling like fuel. It is generaly more desired to use
something softer & cleaner to practice with. The most commonly used
types of practice poi consist of: stuffed animals, tennis balls, weighted
fabric bags, socks, and streamers. |
| Safety Person - This is an active role in fire dance
performance. Safety personell are pre-trained and stocked with equipment
such as: towels, fire extinguishers, buckets of water, and first-aid kits.
Normaly a cotton towel wetted to the point of being damp but not dripping
is held at a ready position by the safety person. The safety persons job
is to watch the performer and be ready to quickly and soberly, put out
a performers wicks and or burning areas if the performer gets into trouble.
Safety personell can prevent a simple mishap from turning into a major
incident. |
| Soaking - The application of fuel to equipment wicks.
This is done by placing fuel into a container and then placing the equipment's
wicks into this container, to absorb the fuel. Metal containers are highly
recommended for soaking as plastic containers will have the tendency to
crack and melt. All containers should have lids so that fuel container
fires can be smothered. |
| Spinning Off - After wicks have been soaked it is common
to spin off any excess fuel onto pavement, dirt, or a similar type of surface.
These locations are very important as the fuel can damage vehicle paint,
kill grass, and leave a collection of fuel on the ground for an unsuspecting
smoker to ignite. Without spinning off the wicks are prone to throw off
burning droplets, which can hit the audience, performer, fuel depot, etc. |
| Toweling - The act of being a safety person. (See
Safety Person) |
| Wicking - A fuel conveying material which has been crafted/constructed
to be attached to performance equipment and set on fire. There are implications
that wicking shoudl be of a re-usable nature. Wicking is primarily found
in a flattened or rope/string orientation prior to being crafted/constructed/developed.
Several common methods of wick construction are: round, cathedral/interleave,
monkey fist. Wicking material is normally kevlar or cotton. |
