LOS ANGELES -- The following is a transcript of Chris Schauble's story from KNBC's 11 p.m. broadcast on May 8, 2008.

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Anchor: They jump and scamper, climb and seem to almost fly, and it happens around the concrete jungle of the city. There are no helmets, no kneepads and seemingly, no fear. Are they urban Spider-men? Chris Schauble has more on the ups and downs of Parkour.

Chris Schauble: Why go around, when you can go over? Why use the stairs, when there's a ledge? And why take a walkway, when you can spiral around a railing? This is Parkour.

Cliff Kravit, co-founder PK Cali: It's about quick, fluid, safe and overall efficient movement, going from point-A to point-B, getting over the obstacles in between.

Schauble: Let me be the voice of people who are unfamiliar with this discipline. Are you guys crazy?

Kravit: We're definitely not crazy. (laughs)

Schauble: Parkour is an amazingly physical pursuit involving speed, strength, balance and concentration.

Kravit: We love climbing, jumping, rolling, crawling over anything in our environment. So, yeah, a lot of people have called us Spider-Man. We don't think of ourselves as Spider-men.

Schauble: In fact, they bristle at the idea that this is physically impressive.

Kravit: We're not looking to say, "Oh, my God, look what I can do."

Schauble: Parkour was developed by a Frenchman with a military and firefighting background, and practitioners insist Parkour is about being useful.

Kravit: If I need to save someone's life, or if I need to save my own life, what can I do? Or how can I be useful to other people to get out of those situations?

Schauble: And Parkour is about personal improvements.

Jo Neuris, traceur, PK Cali: The self-advancement, the satisfaction of seeing myself progress, and the things I'd never imagine were possible.

King David, traceur, PK Cali: It's actually knowing your body, being able to read how your body moves and reactions to certain things. It's just a concept of knowing what your capabilities are.

Schauble: Parkour means "obstacle course." It is meant to be practiced using everyday city spaces and requires no special gear.

Kravit: Most people will wear some type of athletic shoe, and that's about it. We really just ... our bodies are our tool.

Schauble: People who practice Parkour are called traceurs, and they say they see spaces differently than most people.

Andrew Eng, traceur, PK Cali: I can see myself doing anything as I walk down the street, and it's just so ... I feel so much more attuned with the world around me.

Schauble: So while you might see this corner as -- well, a corner or a dead end -- traceurs see it as a springboard: an opportunity. Thanks to considerable play on YouTube and a memorable scene in Casino Royale, curiosity about Parkour is growing

Kravit: When you jump, sort of like you're a superman diving at it. You know, get your hips up behind you.

Schauble: And some local gyms, like this one in Culver City, are beginning to offer training and conditioning for Parkour.

Keri Telford, traceur, PK Cali: It's not something that's impossible to do, and it's a mind challenge every day with Parkour, and it's fun. I'm progressing, so it's, like, I reach little goals.

Schauble: After spending a Saturday morning with the Southern California Parkour group, known as PK Cali, my goal was this seven-and-a-half foot wall.

Kravit: Kind of think about when you're putting your foot on the wall, you're stepping up stairs and jumping up. So you're lifting, lifting your chest up, and get your body over.

Schauble: OK, you first.

(Schauble jumps, falls back)

Kravit: Use your feet. OK, this time with more feet.

(Schauble scales wall)

Kravit: Good job.

Schauble: And traceurs insist facing an obstacle is mental exercise as well.

Eng: I often spend a lot of time just looking at it.

Schauble: Just for reference, this is a 10-and-a-half-foot lateral leap.

Eng: It's almost a little battle of wills with it.

Schauble: But in Parkour, there is no bragging -- just moving on.

Eng: It's a great feeling of accomplishment, knowing that your training has paid off, that you can do these things.

More Resources:

• pkcali.com