SLIDESHOW: Flesh suspension at The Vault
OGDEN -- Dan Christensen has received 43 body piercings during the past few years, but even for him, the thought of inserting four large fish hooks into his back, then being suspended from the ceiling was almost too much to stomach.
He did it anyway.
After the hooks were placed under his skin Nov. 7, Christensen was hoisted up in front of as many as 80 people at the Ogden nightclub The Vault. Once the hooks were attached to a hanging device, the only thing holding Christensen up was his skin.
It's a practice that some call flesh hook suspension and can be compared to what is depicted in the 1970 movie "A Man Called Horse," in which an Englishman is captured by an American Indian tribe. The Englishman eventually becomes chief after going through a painful ritual of being hung from a tree with only blades hanging beneath the skin on his chest.
For Christensen, who does piercings at Legacy Tattoos in downtown Ogden, flesh hook suspension is something he has wanted to try.
Then, when a longtime friend died of a drug overdose late last year and his family was unable to afford a grave marker, Christensen thought making his first hook suspension a public event would be a good way to raise money for them.
Christensen said he was a bit nervous about going through with the exhibition at first, but thought about his friend for strength.
"I thought, 'This is this time. I'm really going to do this,' " Christensen said.
Without any kind of numbing agent, the large hooks were placed into Christensen's back before he arrived at the nightclub. He was later suspended in mid-air for about 20 minutes in front of curious patrons.
Officials with the Weber-Morgan Health Department say this is the first commercial display of flesh hook suspension in the area that they know of.
They didn't know what to think when Christensen contacted them recently to announce his plans.
The department sent a licensed environmental health scientist to the event to make sure the procedure was carried out safely.
"There's no ordinance that governs these sort of things that we know of," said spokeswoman Lori Buttars. "We just encouraged him to have the hooks inserted at a reputable place that's been inspected and found clean."
Participants often experience minor bleeding and may become light-headed or nauseated the longer they are suspended.
Online forums about the practice point out that some people practice flesh suspension because it can put them in a meditative state.
Buttars said if the practice becomes more common, the department may refer to the state Department of Environmental Health for guidance or recommend that guidelines be crafted to ensure people do it safely.
"They didn't quite know what to do or think about it," Christensen said. "They were concerned about my safety. I'm happy they weren't against it; otherwise, I would have had to do it in my garage."
Christensen and his friends had distributed fliers for about a week before the event to try to raise the money for the family. In all, they raised about $225 on Nov. 7, about $1,000 short of the money needed for the gravestone.
Christensen plans to donate a portion of the proceeds for piercings he does at Legacy Tattoos until the family is able to pay for the marker. He also plans do more advanced forms of flesh suspension as a hobby.
"It was the best thing I've ever done," he said. "I plan on doing every suspension I can come up with. I'm ready to explore."
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