Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Tuesday, February 19, 2008, Brooklyn, NY

This Tuesdays Catch & Return class was extremely productive...!

Once again the long, hard efforts of our students & staff are paying off w/some very welcome fruits! For her 1st time ever, the adorable Lauri W. caught her B/E Whip! After fighting for a while to get her B/E Splits (and, catching it once), she switched it up to better get her hips up. Congratulations, Lauri!

Here's Lauri's 1st B/E Whip catch!


Though she regularly takes non-program classes, Lauren joined us for a new, valuable experience. She made great progress with her Full Twisting Straight Jump, getting her body into the correct angle. Then, she managed to hold onto & catch a solid B/E Straddle Whip! The ever-smiling Debbie D. is making good headway w/her take-off, eliminating the pesky pike. Her swing tempo is virtually flawless, and her B/E positions are smooth. Uber-flexible Rebbecca S. joined us in the air again after a while off the rig to work on her form, make a few catches & work her 1/2 turn to the mat/net. The feisty Galit E. wasn't as feisty this evening, but that didn't stop her from catching & return a nice B/E Splits & trying out a Straddle Cut/Catch in my hands with her B/E Planche. The comely Kristy M. is gonna be such a diverse & strong flyer! She has a nice array of tricks under her belt already (including her Cut Away return!), and she caught her Layout for her 1st time this evening! Great flying, Kristy!

Kristy's 1st Layout catch!


The effervescent, oh-so-cute Kristin R. warmed up her swing w/some arches before improving her Layout & going for some catches. She even dusted off her Angel returns. Another flyer who flew great this night was Sharon C.! She's found new power & tempo with her stronger swing before making her 1st ever Angel return! A strong one it was! AND, this was Sharon's 1st return of any kind ever!

Sharon's stronger swing:


Sharon's 1st Angel return!


To much envy, eye-daggers, unbelieving grins & incredulous laughter, the prodigal Brandon performed a full swing with a force out & strong pull that was more indicative of a flyer of MUCH more air time! Did I mention that he started his swing roughly a week ago?! So, as we wanted to see what & how much he could accomplish, we had him try his 1st B/E position: a Straddle Whip. After a few practices, Brandon made his 1st B/E catch ever! LOL

Brandon's brand new, 1-week young swing:


Brandon's 1st B/E Straddle Whip catch!


"It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar & seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous & exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power." - Alan Cohen

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