Out Quiet Yourself

How quietly can you tread this gravel path?

As you walk across the gravel floor of this short tunnel, a sound meter measures your loudness and gives you a score. Can you beat your previous score? Can you beat your friends’ scores?

What’s going on?

Walking quietly isn’t easy. Here are a few tips from an expert Apache tracker:

Before taking a step, look carefully at where you will place your foot.
Bend your knees slightly.
Touch your foot lightly to the ground, with the outside edge of the ball of the foot hitting the ground first.
Next, roll the foot inward, toward the inside edge of the heel, until the whole surface area of the foot is on the ground.
Try not to shift your weight until your forward foot is quietly and firmly on the ground. Be patient—this requires considerable balance and practice.
When you are ready to shift your weight forward, slide, don’t bounce.

The secret to ultra quiet walking is patience—and practice, practice, practice.

This web project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services [MA-30-16-0175-16].