[September 05, 2011] PLANK AND POST: Local teen takes photography fad from the Emerald Coast to Niagara Falls Tweet Sep 05, 2011 (The Destin Log - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Local teen Tyler Margaretten is always on the lookout for new and unusual locations where he can lie as flat as a board. "I first did it on a chair this summer. Ever since, I've planked everywhere," said the 15-year-old Santa Rosa Beach resident, who recently turned a few heads at Niagara Falls. Planking is one of the latest online fads going viral. Adherents must have a photograph taken of themselves laying face down and perfectly flat with their hands at their side in an odd or original location and post it online. "One of my friends in Miami -- His name is also Tyler -- had some planking pictures on his Facebook," Margaretten said. "It was silly and something I thought was funny." Most enthusiasts believe the Internet phenomenon was invented by two Englishman, Gary Clarkson and Christian Langdon, who dubbed it, "the lying down game" in 1997. But comedian Tom Green argues that he was the first to plank, only he called it "The Dead Guy," which he invented years earlier before the Internet. Although the origin is still unclear, the trend took off in Australia and spread quickly to Asia, Europe and the United States. "There are planking leagues and even planking groups against drinking and planking. A man died in Australia after he fell from his apartment,' Margaretten said. "Don't drink and plank." The Fort Walton Beach High School sophomore has posted pictures on Facebook of himself planking in a tree, on a VW Bus, and even in the pool. "The good thing is that there really are no rules. The main thing to do is just lay as flat as possible," he said. "Generally it's done in a public place -- the more people watching the better. And you need to get a picture or a video." As a beginner, "I planked on a chair in my bedroom. Then I planked on all seven Harry Potter books in a stack," he said. "The smaller the area that you're planking on, the harder it is to be flat." Although planking is the hot thing to do, Margaretten said he thinks the fad is already fading. "However, I do think Internet games likes this where you post pictures or videos online will evolve," he said. "There are new things such as owling and coning." Coning is defined by Urban Dictionary as "the act of buying an ice cream cone through a drive-through and grabbing it by the ice cream itself not the cone (generally known as the new planking)." Owling is pretty much like it sounds and involves squatting like an owl. "I've coned once before, and it's really funny... But owling is utter ridiculousness." ___ (c)2011 The Destin Log (Destin, Fla.) Visit The Destin Log (Destin, Fla.) at www.destin.com Distributed by MCT Information Services [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]