What is a rofer? This word itself arose from the English "roof", which translates as "roof". And the ruffers are those who are engaged in ruffing - an extreme activity, the essence of which is walking on the roofs of high-rise buildings. Fashion for such a hobby came to us from the West, and St. Petersburg became the first city in which ruffers appeared. It is worth noting that rouffing is a rather dangerous activity, and there are already victims.
Roofer Description
Probably, at some certain point in his life, everyone wanted to visit the roof in order to plunge into the beauty and mystery of the situation. Some in their teens, having gained courage, nevertheless crawled out there and were fascinated by the beauty of the panorama that opened to them. Someone was scared, but for someone, the roof has become a favorite platform for relaxation.
For many who are interested in the question of what a ruffer is, it should first be noted that this is only a hobby that resembles a walk around the city. Nevertheless, there are ruffers for which conquering the roof is an extreme sport. Such rooftops on the roof tend to conquer the most complex high-rise objects. Well, if in fact, then rouffing is one of the modern directions of the youth subculture, which is a bit like stalking - free movement in any space.
Types of Ruffing
This hobby has several types, which are determined by the purpose of traveling on the roofs. Climbing fire escapes, pipes and jumping from roof to roof is called extreme ruffing. If the penetration of the roof occurs in a standard and safe manner, that is, with the help of hatches, through the attic or stairs, then this hobby is called quiet rouffing. There is still art-roufing - here you can include the organization of picnics on the roofs. This option is chosen for themselves by creative individuals who take inspiration at the highest level.
Also on the roofs you can celebrate weddings or organize outdoor photo shoots - this area is called Wedding Rouffing. Of course, this is risky, but the experience will be overwhelming. In principle, if you wish, you can carry out any events on the roofs: presentations, discos, watching movies and more. This is called event-routing. If you want to show originality or surprise your business partners, then you will be interested in business-roufing - holding corporate parties and business negotiations on the roof, for example, of a historic building.
Roofer's Law
If you are considering how to become a rofer, then you should first learn their charter. Many of the rules of people who are fond of walking on the roof are aimed at the safety of life of an extreme traveler and at protecting the tranquility of residents of houses. First, you need to understand that it is better not to go up to the roof in a large company. In this case, you are unlikely to manage to go unnoticed. A group should consist of a maximum of four people, no more.
For such walks it is better to choose soft and non-restrictive clothing. For such a walk, of course, it is better to go sober. This is for your own safety. When you climb onto the roof, you should only rely on yourself and your strengths. You can not hold on to comrades, shaky cornices and unknown wires. Remember that in rainy weather the roof is dangerous, as it becomes slippery. Therefore, it is better not to take a walk during this period.
Roofers and house residents
Many residents of the houses probably do not even know what a ruffer is, since representatives of this subculture respect their peace of mind. They do not cut locks, do not spoil property. Of course, it happens that residents, having heard a suspicious noise, call the police. To avoid this, it is necessary to observe certain rules on the roof: do not make noise, do not drink and do not litter.
Tips from Experienced Roofers
If you look at the photos of the ruffers, it seems that repeating what they are doing is simply impossible. And in fact, ruffing is a difficult and dangerous hobby. In order to protect yourself at the highest level, you need to have the correct physical and moral training, specific knowledge and a sound mind.
Rufer Mustang
Such extreme and life-threatening type of rouffing as “hanging” at height is gaining popularity among Russian youth. Roofers without any insurance hang on the roof in one hand or even on one hand. Experts warn that this is not only a deadly hobby, but also illegal. But Russian ruffers from this do not lose interest in such an occupation. The danger only spurs them. However, and not only Russian.
Rufer Mustang from Ukraine is one of the founders of this movement. This mysterious Kievite uploads a shocking video with his participation on the Mustang Wanted website. Little is known about him: he is 25 years old, his name is Gregory. According to him, he works as a "bully." Roofers love to tour different cities, conquering more and more new heights. The Ukrainian rufer Grigory is also known in Russia. In the spring of St. Petersburg, Mustang, having waited for the bridges to be drawn, hung on one hand on the edge of the Trinity Bridge, and in his second hand he held a fire sign, writing bright circles of fire in the dark.
The observers present, laughing, said that the local authorities had to bring Trinity Bridge back in order to remove the troublemaker from it. When the police ran to the Rufer Mustang, he jumped into the Neva. And on the shore, his friends picked him up and thus Mustang managed to escape from his pursuers.
Rufer Mustang on Stalin's skyscraper
In the summer of 2014, the Ukrainian Ruffer Grigory Mustang again became famous in Russia. This time he climbed the roof of the Stalinist skyscraper and painted a star on it in the colors of the national flag of Ukraine. For this, he was charged in absentia with hooliganism. Now he is put on the international wanted list as one of the defendants in the case of damage to state property, that is, a star painted by him.
The site of this mysterious and scandalously famous ruffer begins with the following warning: "Everything that you see on the photo and video materials is done by appropriately trained professionals. We strongly do not recommend repeating it yourself, the consequences can be deadly for you." But it is worth noting that such a warning only spurs the followers of the Mustang, who seek to repeat the most dangerous tricks of the ruffer, and maybe even surpass it.
Vadim Makhorov and Vitaly Raskalov
Ruffer from Novosibirsk Vadim Makhorov, together with Moscow Ruffer Vitaly Raskalov, climbed a building 632 meters high. They conquered the Shanghai Tower, the ruffers posted online materials confirming this fact. The tower is considered the tallest building in China and the third tallest building in the world.
This is not the first and not the only high-rise conquered by these fans of extreme entertainment. According to their story, they made their way to the crane of the Shanghai tower at about midnight. It took two hours to climb on foot one hundred twenty floors. They spent about eighteen hours at a construction site waiting for suitable weather. Rufer Makhorov has conquered the roof of the Opera and Ballet Theater in Novosibirsk. And last year, he climbed the Egyptian pyramid of Cheops. He also conquered the top of the building of Moscow State University. And now he became famous for climbing onto the Shanghai Tower, which, upon completion of construction, will become one of the highest buildings in the world.
Feats of famous ruffers
The famous rufer from St. Petersburg, Pavel Gogulan, set his next record this summer. He crossed Nevsky Prospekt by wire at an altitude of more than 25 meters, thereby testing his physical and moral fitness. Pavel without insurance reached approximately the middle of Nevsky Prospekt and returned back. According to the rofer, he does not carry out such tricks for the first time, only earlier the distances he covered were much smaller. He also said that the impressions of the sensation of danger and height were indescribable, but in the middle of the way he realized that his strength was running out, and returned back. Pavel regularly conquers new heights - he recently “saddled” an eagle on Singer’s house, and even earlier he climbed onto the roof of the Hermitage, from which he was later removed by police officers.
Here is another fact from the biography of the rufer Vitaly Raskalov. In 2012, he climbed onto a bridge on Russky Island through the Eastern Bosphorus Strait, which is located in Vladivostok. The highest point on his track record at that time was a construction crane 350 meters high.
There are among the famous ruffers and the fairer sex. A couple of years ago, a video appeared on the American Internet in which Muscovite Marina Bezrukova walks along the beams at the edge of a high-rise apartment building. This video has gained a huge amount of views and reviews.
Ruffing Theory
In general, the question of what a ruffer can be answered as follows. This is a brave dreamer who longs to be on top of the city. Someone on the roofs does sports exercises, someone climbs here for meditation. And some want to take unique photos on top in the most unusual perspectives or just get an unforgettable experience.