Parkour Visions

Very pleased with Parkour visions. It’s not always easy for our pre-​teen son to be in unfamiliar social settings, but the coaches at Parkour visions made him feel welcome and comfortable right away. He really enjoys the classes and gladly gets up early to go to the morning session on Saturdays. He always asks to come back for open gym time as well.
We drive there all the way from Arlington and it is well worth it. They have a great facility, different areas set up for various skill levels, kids and adults alike, and a nice observation area for those of us who are not hopping around obstacle courses :). I see participants have so much fun there, I actually would love to take some classes there myself as soon as my doctor OK’s it (I recently had hip surgery so no parkour yet).

Took the free first class there and it was a lot of fun. Got to work on vault jumps and some freestyling that was really informative and taught us how to move. I also appreciated that they were really low pressure about joining. Will def be back for some open gym time.

Very impressed! My son (13 years) had his first class today. We’ve been searching for his «thing» forever. He’s not an organized team kinda kid but he does love superheroes, ninjas, etc so he was really excited. His teacher (Ox) was inclusive of all skill levels and made it fun and motivating. I loved that I saw them take several water breaks and they’re taught safety at every step. We bought a membership when my couch potato smiled at me with his sweaty face and gave me a thumbs up.

Took my almost 6 year old here for class today. And it was worth the drive from Mill Creek. I was extremely impressed by the instructor we had. He gradually introduced components and then tied them together at the end. He was patient and knowledgable. We will be back!

Our 14yr old son has been going here every week for almost a year. The coaches have all been wonderful and he’s learned so much. They start to get you outside the gym a bit at the intermediate level. Lots of thrill for a teenage boy! For me (mom) I see all the safety being taught — how to grip, hang, hurdle, and even fall properly. Highly recommend for anyone at any level.

A fantastic facility with options for training limited only by your imagination.
The setups and obstacles change weekly, so nothing gets boring.
They have crash pads if you want to practice a new technique safely.
The coaches always teach safety and technique before anything else, giving you the proper foundation to train and learn from.
There is something here for everybody of all ages and skill levels. This place is top notch.
Your first class is free! Now, drug dealers do the same thing — if they have something you’re going to get hooked on, the first one is free. Parkour Visions obviously knows what they’re doing with that tactic. I’m now addicted to Parkour but at least I’m not in denial about it. I’ll get help when I’m ready.

The coaches at PKV are top notch and cater to the needs of each class. They can adapt a movement up or down to fit the needs of a students specific abilities and do so with ease.
I got my kids into Parkour so they would know how to run, climb, jump and yes… fall with the best of them. I started at the same time as it was a great way to stay in shape and feed my adrenaline addiction.

This review is long overdue.
I started Parkour with Parkour Visions over a year ago as a way to get exercise while my kids got exercise. PKV offers several adult classes at the same time as kids classes. We lived close, and PKV quickly became our second home. We moved to San Fran in late 2013 and practice now at APEX Norcal and around SF.
The Parkour community is amazing. Community is something we had a hard time finding in Seattle until joining PKV. On top of the great people we met, Parkour saved our lives in Seattle. The lack of sun was really bringing us all down including the kids. The exercise, challenge, fun and general silliness of the community were restorative for us.
My daughter (8) was doing 3 – 4 classes a week with Duncan, whom she adores among others. My son (6) had 2 classes a week with Janine, Morgan, Ari and Abe. I’ve had classes with Ox, Brandee, Rafe, Abe and Morgan and worked with Curt. Each coach has their own way of training so I enjoyed being with all of the teachers. Brandee is one of the finest teachers I’ve ever known — sports, college, career or otherwise.
None of us have suffered injury beyond a scrape or bruise in 11 months of training regularly at PKV. Safety was always first. I was in the best physical condition of my life after 11 months of parkour and I’ve been trail running for 30 years and doing Jujitsu for 10 years among other activities. As for the kids, I wish all kids had Parkour training. I liken it to jujitsu in body/​spacial awareness and then it goes beyond it by adding height, obstacles, and finally play.
Scheduling classes is a breeze and the costs are reasonable as compared to other Parkour gyms across the country.
My kids miss their teachers so much and keep asking when we can fly back for a weekend of classes. They hear the Crystalize by Lindsey Stirling and think of PKV (first place they heard the song) and get a bit sad. :(So we’ll be flying to Seattle for a PKV weekend this summer! I’m as excited as they are!

My 9 year old son came home from Parkour Visions so PUMPED!!! Thank you so much: He loves this form of exercise — and this is a kid who — during soccer practice — likes to lie on the grass in the outfield and gaze at the cloud formations, identify the planes flying over, or study the lichen and insects he sees. I am very happy to find a sport that engages my tiny engineer! Again, thanks so much! Great staff too!
(I want to try Parkour too.)

I took my kids to Parkour Visions after several months of hesitant contemplation. My hesitance was due to a Unilocal review that had some negative things to say about safety and the instructors neglecting to tell the woman about a wall-​mat falling on her child; I no longer see that review on Unilocal at this time though.
My kids love the American Ninja Warrior program, and the videos of Parkour that sometimes are shown on that program. I’ve also watched the program and it looks like great stuff to be involved with.
My issue stems from the fact that I did finally take my kids to Parkour Visions to try it out, in spite of my reservations about safety. During the class, my older child ended up losing his grip on one of the rings that they swing from (the rings with the round handles which are suspended from the ceiling) and landed flat on his back on the ground — ouch! These rings were rather high above the ground (not sure how many feet above the ground — you can see the picture provided her on Unilocal by Cynthia L.). When my child landed on his back he had the wind knocked out of him. I was nervous when I saw the look on his face and his inability to speak. He has never been hurt that badly in his life. The coach came over and stated that he was alright, but I’m not sure how he quickly arrived at that conclusion. I ended up taking my child to the doctor a week or two later when the back pain did not resolve. Diagnosis was muscular spasms and not broken vertebrae. The pain continues even now, months after our child fell from the ring.
A few minutes after my child fell from the ring, another child fell from the same ring in the same manner, but that child did not appear to have been hurt as badly.
I would not take my kids back, considering the danger of injury. Had there been some someone spotting my kid, or perhaps some soft pads under the rings, I suspect my child would not have been so badly injured. Or had the rings not been so high above the ground, again I suspect that the injury would not have been so bad. I really don’t understand why greater safety measures are not in place regarding those rings. There are risks inherent in all sporting activities, but my personal feeling is that in this case, there were risks which could have been mitigated, but were not.
I rate as 2 stars rather than 1 because the place has potential and may be good for adults who can decide about safety for themselves. But I think that for young kids, there is not enough focus on safety.

Yes, I do watch America Ninja Warrior: How did you know?
And YES! I DID see that hilarious intro to that one episode of The Office where Michael and Dwight do their version of parkour.
Yes, yes, yes. I’ve watched the YouTube parkour videos.
Remember when you were little, and you would hop from furniture to furniture, effortlessly figuring out the most efficient way to get from point A to B? Well, when you grow up, it’s called parkour ;)
The gym set-​up is all that I had hoped it would be. Wall structures, vaults, rings, boxes, balancing pipes – the works.
I signed up online for the free 90-​min (indoor) class on Sunday. At the last moment, my husband decided to try it out too, even though he was wearing slacks. We all warmed up by balancing/​walking on pipes forwards and backwards in bare feet. (Much easier to do without shoes on.)
We then moved on to some basics like squat-​sitting, floorwork, some light vault work, and then we were given an entire course within the gym to do! Jump on one board, slide down another, under/​over bars, jumping/​rolling over boxes, climbing, and then jumping off the loft structure to land on the giant mat. SO MUCH FUN! I couldn’t stop smiling and laughing while running the course over and over.
Ari and Ox were safety-​conscious fools! The way that they explained momentum and body mechanics was completely relatable and easy to apply right away. Well, I’m not saying I looked good doing it, but at least I knew what they were saying.
I’m going to try an outdoor class soon, and try to figure out how I can schedule a day during the week for indoors. And… it’s hard not to look at everyday objects and wonder what I could do to get to/​over/​by/​around/​through it if I actually got decent at it.

I have school age kids who have taken about 8 classes here, mostly from Duncan. Duncan is a fantastic teacher! He has lots of experience working with kids and it shows. He knows how to keep things moving, interesting and fun yet he also gives great instruction. He’s very professional, friendly and seems like a genuinely good guy. My kids love it here. I like that I can watch from a good spot and use the time productively (free WiFi).
Just a few cons: The website isn’t great for scheduling/​navigating, it’s expensive and the open gym hours for kids stink (Sat. & Sun. nights).

I have never considered doing Parkour before until I stayed with an Airbnb host who was into it and persuaded me to give it a try. So I am a complete beginner.
The first class was free which was perfect and I had Abraham (Abe) for a teacher who was awesome.
The first thing that struck me was how cool the gym was — really like a kids playground but adult sized! The next thing was how friendly and approachable everyone was. I had a preconceived notion that people who do Parkour are über cool and perhaps a bit pretentious (I would regard myself as pretty uncool, verging on nerd) so this was also nice :)
The lesson for beginners was at a perfect level for me, I will challenge myself, but am no gymnast and Abe was great about teaching safety, how to land and fall correctly and warming up. The lesson was well structured and was a small group so felt more personal and we all got more attention regarding tips and hints to improve technique. I was doing things by the end of the class which I didn’t expect to be able to do at all — a sign of good teaching! So thanks Abe!
If lived in Seattle, and my leg and feet muscles ever recover, I would definitely go back!
Going to find a gym in NYC this weekend…

It’s the morning after my first class at Parkour Visions, and, as warned, I’m feeling it from neck to knees! Brian was a great instructor for a brand-​newbie like me, letting me try each movement or skill several times and offering gentle corrections with encouragement.
A warning to new adults: Parkour can be incredibly frustrating, if you’re the kind of person (like me!) who likes to be good at things right away. Be prepared to fail and fall — a lot. But also know that you’ll only get encouragement from the instructors, and cheerful tips from the other members of the class — they’ve been there!

As a kid growing up in Southern Calfornia during late 70s and early 80s when skateboarding was taking off and surfing was very much a part of the culture, I can appreciate the freedom and fun of the far more urban sport of Parkour.
Parkour today reminds me of those early days of kids exploring what was possible with movement, their bodies, and taking calculated risks with exciting and innovative consequences.
How to describe Parkour? When did Parkour become a sport? It has to seen to be appreciated.
Parkour Visions offers great instruction for kids and adults in their converted warehouse studio in Lower Queen Anne. They offer easy online sign up, memberships and lots of excellent instruction. Here you are taught that you can get around any obstacle (physically and metaphorically) with practice, discipline and creativity.
By way of introduction of what’s possible at the highest levels of Parkour, if you are new to the sport, check out this Daniel Ilabaca run through urban Paris.
If you are a fan of alternative culture or urban settings, give Parkour a look-​see. Its addictive, as kids classes go, and its great for teaching self reliance, agility and strength.
On the downside, a large heavy pad crashed down on my child while she was doing her first training session,. This was meant to be something kids could jump up on and hang on –it was hanging on a wall. This means it was not well secured. Lots of crying ensued. My child had to tell me about this when I picked her up, rather than her instructors, which was disappointing if I’m honest. But at the end of the day, she was fine, and they made adjustments and removed the pad from the wall. All this to say, I think they may working some kinks though. Kids are going to get a bruise on sports like Parkour, snowboarding, surfing, riding a bike, but I’d prefer to hear about any incidents from the instructor directly.
Regardless, I do recommend checking this place out. Parkour is a fascinating, activity, teaches agility, is perfect for urban settings, and some kids just naturally gravitate to it.

I enjoyed my experience with parkour at Parkour Visions very much! The staff was extremely friendly and encouraging. I learned a lot, and I got a great workout. They are great with beginners, and every skill level seems to be welcome to join in.

In my on-​going quest to ditch anything that resembles a chain gym i.e. 24-​Hour, BTF, etc., I have discovered that in this quest, I just might need a cape… or spandex tights with a spiderweb pattern on it.
Came here today to surprise the bf with a little «welcome to Seattle» treat. It was suggested to me by one of my pole instructors to come here, so I did.
I signed us up for the beginner special. The bf had no idea what he was getting himself into (and neither did I), but we had the best time ever in our workout.
We had Brian and Ox as our instructors. They led us through a series of balance and strength assessments. They then taught us some techniques on how to vault over obstacles. The meat of our workout was running through an obstacle course that they had set up where we negotiated through a metal jungle of pipes, crawled through one area, climbed through another, then utilized our vaulting techniques toward the end.
The introduction emphasized community within their facility and everyone was made to tell a little about themselves through the various exercises.
The bf and I are definitely going to come back to take the regular classes since we’re both a couple of little monkeys that like to climb stuff. It’s also a lot more appealing to work with or challenge our bodies with the environment than to just imitate what mice do for exercise.
I am so glad I was told that I should come here. Parkour is definitely going to be added to my much more interesting, weekly circuit workout!

Parkour Visions is awesome! I took my first class tonight (women’s)! Cory was our instructor. She was very knowledgeable and gave great detail about how and why we were doing the moves we were doing all to strengthen the little muscles we don’t usually think about at a regular gym. As a beginner, the pace of the class was very comfortable. My muscles are already warning me how sore I’m going to be tomorrow. What’s better than getting a killer workout via swinging, jumping and balancing and having sooooo much fun? The first class is free so you really can’t lose anything to give it a try!

My son is really into parkour and being the supportive parent I am, I would rather he learn the proper way to do something than to scale a rooftop and break his neck. Hence, our leap to Parkour VIsions.
We lived on the east side so right there it was difficult navigating to Fremont. When my son was in the beginner classes it was a non-​issue because they are held on Saturdays and the traffic (unless there is a festival) isn’t that bad. Street parking can be tricky. Fast forward the the intermediate class… now they are held several times during the week at rush hour. Not so convenient for us. Too many missed classes and a relocation caused us to leave.
The class itself is varied taught by skilled parkour enthusiasts, but I have 2 issues with this place. First, one or both of the owner/​instructors were always injured. Doesn’t set a good «safety first» standard. Second, I wouldn’t call them skilled teachers. Yes, they were skilled at parkour and they spotted the kids, but not everyone can break down and demonstrate moves in a way to expedite learning and be a great teacher. Most learning relied upon jumping into a class and watching the guy in front of you demonstrate something and trying to replicate it. Because you can start anytime, you may end up overfaced with something beyond your skill set and get injured (like my husband did).
My son still loves parkour and yes, he scales rooftops. (He’s 10)

As a caveat: I have yet to visit Rafe and Tyson’s new gym. The extent of my experience is with a free intro to Parkour seminar that Rafe taught at Northwest Crossfit before they opened their own gym.
ABOUT PARKOUR
Parkour is tough to describe if you haven’t seen it before. Many think of it as a hybrid of gymnastics and running. The pros do it at breakneck speed and seem to have a preference for abandoned buildings and industrial ruins.
Want to know more? YouTube and Wikipedia have eye candy and good, basic info.
ABOUT RAFE
Rafe is a good teacher, no doubt about it. He’s excellent at sequencing for beginners and he’s very up front about what you should and shouldn’t try when you’re just starting out.
There were a couple of avoidable injuries in the class I attended, but they were due mainly to the fact that Rafe wasn’t capping his classes then and was unprepared to handle the number of people who turned out for a lesson. But this was an exceptional situation – and really, a testament to how quickly Parkour is exploding as a sport. The format of a normal class is (as I understand it) totally different, with constant, close supervision from your coaches.
If you’re not already a traceur and want to learn how to jump around like a crazy monkey, leave your ego at the door, pay attention to your instructor, and drill your skills over and over and over. It takes a lot of time and patience, especially if you’re past your prime (on a gymnast’s scale) like I am.
But if you work hard, practice safe, and don’t get drunk on your prowess, you’ll be rewarded with supernatural balance and strength, and the camaraderie of a growing, tightly-​nit community of fellow traceurs who will help you push your body beyond what you ever thought possible.