Kate Vander Wiede places her bare feet on the slackline suspended a few feet off the ground between two large trees in a park in the South End. She stands up on the line with her hands over her head for balance, and spectators gather in awe.

One man asks to try, steps on the line, and immediately falls off.

“It’s harder than it looks,” he said, but wants to try again . . . and again, and again. Reluctantly, he says he needs to go, looking down at his two dogs panting impatiently. Vander Wiede, an elite Boston slackliner, tells him about a slackline event at the Boston Ski and Snowboard Festival at the end of the month, and he says he will be there.

Success –– another one hooked.

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