ZORBING !

Zorbing - what is it?
You've probably seen it in 'The Amazing Race' or 'Gladiators' or even 'The Prisoner'?
It is "the practice of humans travelling in a sphere, generally made of transparent plastic, usually for fun." Why would you do it otherwise?
It is, of course, a New Zealand invention.



Sphereing or 'globe-riding' is held on a gentle slope, allowing the rider to roll downhill,spin head over heels and arrive at the bottom all tangled.. for fun! Which is what the girls did, in Rotorua ( the first zorb site which opened in 1994) They chose hydro-zorbing though, and all three of them in one zorb - talk about pushing their luck. Warm water was poured into the zorb, they climbed in at the top of the hill, and then rolled down!! They took part in the newest verb to be added to the dictionary, 'zorbing'.



A zorb is made of thick, transparent but strong plastic. The inner and outer balls are connected by hundreds pieces of rope, which keeps the balls turning together.
It is actually two separate balls, both made of flexible plastic. The outer ball is around 10 feet in diameter. The inner ball, which can accommodate one to three passengers, is about 7 feet. This leaves roughly 2 feet of air to absorb the shock for the riders as they make their way downhill.