This Tue night's Catch & Return sessions showed some jumps in some students' trainings...!
This night, we had the boisterous Brian A. instructing & catching w/us. He'll be w/us during upcoming Tue nights. French Emmanuelle C. made improvements on her Straight Jump returns (getting her feet behind her on the release to the return bar) off her Cut Away catches! The adorable Lauri W. caught her B/E Whip w/our Brian. Come to think of it: both Lauri & Kristy M. seemed surprised to be caught at all!?! Have faith!
Allegra G. is making headway w/her Pirouette & smoothing our her Layout at her point of catch. Lauren S. is insistent on earning her returns w/o pulls from the lines or being chucked by the catcher. W/a little more push from her end, she'll be earning all of them soon enough!
When instructed to just do it & not over-think, the comely Kristy M. easily inserted the "half" into her Cut Away Half! Then, she proceeded to make it a cognitive action as she reverted to her previous, partial rotations. You have it in you, Kristy. You'll find it again soon enough. The feisty Galit E. is looking strong as a flyer as she once again achieves Multiple Uprises.
Much to the lighthearted contempt of myself & our really cool & beautiful trampoline instructor, Myriah P., Brandon "Don't call me David" R. showed us how to do a Back Drop into a Full Twisting Half Somersault. That is the trampoline equivalent of a Full Twisting Whip on the trapeze. Then, Brandon proceeded to earn more eye-daggers & unbelieving grins from the students as he effortlessly learned his Turn Around & Force Out over the pedestal! THEN, he couldn't stop there: he had to go & learn his Force Out Turn Around!!
me: "Remember to pull when you're forcing out over the board & then try to touch the blue mat w/your toes."
Brandon: "You didn't see my last turn? I just did."
me: "Oh."
We never liked Brandon.
"Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly; devils fall because of their gravity." - G. K. Chesterton
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
Friday, March 7, 2008, Brooklyn, NY
This Friday night's staff training & open class were very productive & fun as I once again found myself in a very enviable environment...!
As a great boon to the staff & students, the boisterous Brian A. is joining our staff! He pulled for some catches before catching a strong Uprise Fwd Over w/our Amy W. One of our newest catchers, Matt T., is coming along extremely well as he's already calling the timing on all his catches! Kitao S. made his 1st catches w/the staff this night! Our Dap & Eli took their 1st swings OOM! And, Eli is also getting back into the swing of things in the catch trap.
Having a "Girls' Fun Night Out", J. Pagan brought the very adept & awesome group of Ashley, Kara, Lindsay, Vanessa & Theresa. Pagan's group each caught their 1st KHs ever as Pagan caught her 1st Set Splits ever! As we went out for celebratory drinks afterwards, we let them know that we really enjoyed them in class, so we kept telling them that they should come back for new positions & catches. Our Whit C.'s roommate, Erin, as also a newbie who was dressed ready for business; she easily learned & caught her KH, too! Lauren S. not only cleaned up the form on her Full Twisting Straight Jump, but also made her 1st returns w/o any line assistance at all! Twice! She asked our Amy W. to not help her w/the lines to pull her back to the return bar (a la Club Med) w/her Half Time Straight Jump, and Lauren rose to the occasion to snag that return bar!
And, for some more big news of the night, Patti's Layout is coming along very, very well! Great work, Patti! You'll be catching that w/us real soon...!
"First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do." - Epictetus
As a great boon to the staff & students, the boisterous Brian A. is joining our staff! He pulled for some catches before catching a strong Uprise Fwd Over w/our Amy W. One of our newest catchers, Matt T., is coming along extremely well as he's already calling the timing on all his catches! Kitao S. made his 1st catches w/the staff this night! Our Dap & Eli took their 1st swings OOM! And, Eli is also getting back into the swing of things in the catch trap.
Having a "Girls' Fun Night Out", J. Pagan brought the very adept & awesome group of Ashley, Kara, Lindsay, Vanessa & Theresa. Pagan's group each caught their 1st KHs ever as Pagan caught her 1st Set Splits ever! As we went out for celebratory drinks afterwards, we let them know that we really enjoyed them in class, so we kept telling them that they should come back for new positions & catches. Our Whit C.'s roommate, Erin, as also a newbie who was dressed ready for business; she easily learned & caught her KH, too! Lauren S. not only cleaned up the form on her Full Twisting Straight Jump, but also made her 1st returns w/o any line assistance at all! Twice! She asked our Amy W. to not help her w/the lines to pull her back to the return bar (a la Club Med) w/her Half Time Straight Jump, and Lauren rose to the occasion to snag that return bar!
And, for some more big news of the night, Patti's Layout is coming along very, very well! Great work, Patti! You'll be catching that w/us real soon...!
"First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do." - Epictetus
Friday, March 7, 2008
Thursday, March 6, 2008, Brooklyn, NY
This Thursday night was a great one that got us laughing, experimenting & having fun...!
We were graced w/the presence of the wonderful Marisa B. who has been diligently working in the legal world. She dusted off her Shooting Star (rather well we say) before making some B/E Splits catches w/me. The tight-bodied Thais K. was making some B/E Splits catches OOM.
The powerful & smiling Molly G. embraced "going back to basics" (as only someone like Molly can do since her Layout was actually her 1st catch of any kind OOM) as she caught her B/E Splits OOM for her 1st times this night! She was even going for the return bar, too. Renee F. I noted that even Molly's Suicide looks powerful!
The much liberated & lighter-spirited Renee was in a Super-Sized, Dbl Bonus w/Extra, Special Sauce Day, doing triple duty of aerials this week! Tiny, agile prodigal flyer, Karen DL, was returning to the pedestal board a few times before making a really nice return off her B/E Planche catch w/our Jeff L. I foresee full round trips very soon for Karen. The flyer-formerly-known-as Amy G. was practicing her Half Turn returns & Angel returns. She gave our Jeff L. his 1st time w/an Angel return OOM. See, we're all learning.
The adorable & sweet Suzanne M. is gonna be quite the flyer! She played w/her Layout & B/E Splits catches before fatigue set in. So, I suggest she try a "Kill & Build". At 1st, she was a little confused, but after seeing a demonstration, Suzanne implemented a great pull & found a better tempo. She was building height in her swing like a champ! Mark my words: she's gonna be one of our flyers avoiding the ceiling...!
For some big news: We had two flyers making certain catches for their first times! The feisty Galit E. caught her Half Turn OOM for her 1st times. Even though they were solid & smooth, she still couldn't help but sound surprised when we 1st caught it! And, the powerful Lex R. is really ramping up his flying. His swing is looking SO powerful & fluid now! For a long time, the Turn Around on the bar to force out over the board was the bane of Lex. But, no longer is that true. He can not only "touch brick" when forcing out over the pedestal, but he did his Turn Around for his 1st times OOM this night! Great work, great progress, Lex.
And, right after class & late into the night, I met my Catherine & our friend, Luis, at the nightclub, Cielo, to hear the tunes spun by DJ Benny Benassi.
The whole scene w/the fast music, thumping bass, moving bodies, swirling lights & high energy made me dream of having a party w/aerialists on silks, static, straps, lyra &, of course, flying trapeze strutting their best stuff among a crowd of dancing watchers. Imagine the fun we'd have flying through the air in front of friendly eyes, everyone moving to the same music...!
Recently, I've tried one of those high bar & uneven bar moves that I was hoping to translate to the fly bar: a free hip circle into a force out. It didn't go so well. I found that we can't do it at the top of the swing when a force out would normally come b/c the bar doesn't have any more force for us to push against when we drop through the hip circle. So, I tried it at poles. That didn't go so well either. At that point, as we all know, is when we're heaviest. So, do fall through a free hip circle at that point is like trying to hold a lever under great centrifugal force.
On the bright side, I found out that one of the other moves (Layout w/half turn to re-grab the bar) is called a "Gienger". And, the other one (Cut Away flip to re-grab the bar) is called a "Jaeger" or "Yaeger".
"The dream was always running ahead of me. To catch up, to live for a moment in unison with it, that was the miracle." - Anais Nin
We were graced w/the presence of the wonderful Marisa B. who has been diligently working in the legal world. She dusted off her Shooting Star (rather well we say) before making some B/E Splits catches w/me. The tight-bodied Thais K. was making some B/E Splits catches OOM.
The powerful & smiling Molly G. embraced "going back to basics" (as only someone like Molly can do since her Layout was actually her 1st catch of any kind OOM) as she caught her B/E Splits OOM for her 1st times this night! She was even going for the return bar, too. Renee F. I noted that even Molly's Suicide looks powerful!
The much liberated & lighter-spirited Renee was in a Super-Sized, Dbl Bonus w/Extra, Special Sauce Day, doing triple duty of aerials this week! Tiny, agile prodigal flyer, Karen DL, was returning to the pedestal board a few times before making a really nice return off her B/E Planche catch w/our Jeff L. I foresee full round trips very soon for Karen. The flyer-formerly-known-as Amy G. was practicing her Half Turn returns & Angel returns. She gave our Jeff L. his 1st time w/an Angel return OOM. See, we're all learning.
The adorable & sweet Suzanne M. is gonna be quite the flyer! She played w/her Layout & B/E Splits catches before fatigue set in. So, I suggest she try a "Kill & Build". At 1st, she was a little confused, but after seeing a demonstration, Suzanne implemented a great pull & found a better tempo. She was building height in her swing like a champ! Mark my words: she's gonna be one of our flyers avoiding the ceiling...!
For some big news: We had two flyers making certain catches for their first times! The feisty Galit E. caught her Half Turn OOM for her 1st times. Even though they were solid & smooth, she still couldn't help but sound surprised when we 1st caught it! And, the powerful Lex R. is really ramping up his flying. His swing is looking SO powerful & fluid now! For a long time, the Turn Around on the bar to force out over the board was the bane of Lex. But, no longer is that true. He can not only "touch brick" when forcing out over the pedestal, but he did his Turn Around for his 1st times OOM this night! Great work, great progress, Lex.
And, right after class & late into the night, I met my Catherine & our friend, Luis, at the nightclub, Cielo, to hear the tunes spun by DJ Benny Benassi.
The whole scene w/the fast music, thumping bass, moving bodies, swirling lights & high energy made me dream of having a party w/aerialists on silks, static, straps, lyra &, of course, flying trapeze strutting their best stuff among a crowd of dancing watchers. Imagine the fun we'd have flying through the air in front of friendly eyes, everyone moving to the same music...!
Recently, I've tried one of those high bar & uneven bar moves that I was hoping to translate to the fly bar: a free hip circle into a force out. It didn't go so well. I found that we can't do it at the top of the swing when a force out would normally come b/c the bar doesn't have any more force for us to push against when we drop through the hip circle. So, I tried it at poles. That didn't go so well either. At that point, as we all know, is when we're heaviest. So, do fall through a free hip circle at that point is like trying to hold a lever under great centrifugal force.
On the bright side, I found out that one of the other moves (Layout w/half turn to re-grab the bar) is called a "Gienger". And, the other one (Cut Away flip to re-grab the bar) is called a "Jaeger" or "Yaeger".
"The dream was always running ahead of me. To catch up, to live for a moment in unison with it, that was the miracle." - Anais Nin
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Looking back...
It's fun to look back to older videos of ourselves & see how far we've come...!
Here are views of my latest Cut Away Half (03/04/08):
Tivo view:
"Change alone is eternal, perpetual, immortal." - Arthur Schopenhauer
Here are views of my latest Cut Away Half (03/04/08):
Tivo view:
"Change alone is eternal, perpetual, immortal." - Arthur Schopenhauer
Wednesday, March 5, 2008, Brooklyn, NY
It was a fun & casual Wednesday night as our Lizzy H., Whit C. & I fly & caught the students...!
My Catherine held on as long as she could despite the pains in her hands to make progress w/her swing. Renee F. took a "bonus day" for herself on the rig as she once again diligently worked on her B/E Splits OOM. Taking the leap (pun intended), newly engaged Brian & Sharon celebrated their commitment & Brian's b-day by taking their 1st flying class ever & making their 1st catches ever! Talk about dedication: Allegra G. did dbl duty by taking her classes 2 days in a row. Her hands were ripping w/huge holes in her palms, but she toughed it out really well as she made progress w/her Pirouettes/360's! Charles was finding the tempo of his swing before catching his Set Planche once again.
Once we slowed down his apron work, Ace finished a full round trip w/his sky-high Uprise Shoot! Sam G. stopped by for a few swings & to practice his Back Mount again.
Denise M. practiced her Straddle Layout & dusted off her "go to" B/E Straddle Whip.
Our Dap & Matt T. are developing great swings! For the big news this night: After committing to his training, our Matt T. made his debut performance as a flying trapeze catcher for his 1st time ever! And, after repeated attempts, Brittany S. kept w/it & caught her Cut Away for her 1st time! Her reaction is priceless!
"The irony of commitment is that it's deeply liberating -- in work, in play, in love." - Anne Morriss
My Catherine held on as long as she could despite the pains in her hands to make progress w/her swing. Renee F. took a "bonus day" for herself on the rig as she once again diligently worked on her B/E Splits OOM. Taking the leap (pun intended), newly engaged Brian & Sharon celebrated their commitment & Brian's b-day by taking their 1st flying class ever & making their 1st catches ever! Talk about dedication: Allegra G. did dbl duty by taking her classes 2 days in a row. Her hands were ripping w/huge holes in her palms, but she toughed it out really well as she made progress w/her Pirouettes/360's! Charles was finding the tempo of his swing before catching his Set Planche once again.
Once we slowed down his apron work, Ace finished a full round trip w/his sky-high Uprise Shoot! Sam G. stopped by for a few swings & to practice his Back Mount again.
Denise M. practiced her Straddle Layout & dusted off her "go to" B/E Straddle Whip.
Our Dap & Matt T. are developing great swings! For the big news this night: After committing to his training, our Matt T. made his debut performance as a flying trapeze catcher for his 1st time ever! And, after repeated attempts, Brittany S. kept w/it & caught her Cut Away for her 1st time! Her reaction is priceless!
"The irony of commitment is that it's deeply liberating -- in work, in play, in love." - Anne Morriss
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Saturday, March 1, 2008, Manhattan, NY
Spread throughout Madison Square Garden, a disparate bunch of us watched the Tyson American Cup Gymnastics Championship...!
In various parts of the large arena, Ann W., Marcie B., Jason F., Amy G/W, Molly G., Emma S., Nicole A., Samantha W., Dawn (last name?), my Catherine & I watched world-class gymnasts from the U.S., Canada, China, Venezuela & Columbia. These champions included Canada's Allysa Brown, 2007 all-around world champion Shawn Johnson; 2004 all-around Olympic champion Paul Hamm; 2007 balance beam & team world champion Nastia Liukin; 2007 all-around world silver-medalist Fabian Hambuechen; 2006 pommel horse world bronze-medalist Alexander Artemev; 2007 all-around world bronze-medalist Hisashi Mizutori; 2006-07 Tyson American Cup champ Jonathan Horton; 2001 & 2003 team world silver-medalist Raj Bhavsar; and 2007 team world champions Samantha Peszek & Shayla Worley.
My first personal favorite was Raj B. who I felt was a sort of underdog w/his solid performances even though the judges were hard w/his scores. The crowd actually booed the judges after Raj was given a much lower than expected score for his high bar routine! It was funny b/c the sound of MSG filled w/booing spectators was washed w/the high pitched sound of dozens of very young, aspiring gymnastic girls! My other personal favorite was Shawn Johnson who performed solidly through every event & did so w/a great, winning smile the whole time. My heart went out to Canada's Allysa Brown b/c I feel like my Canadian wife was one of the few really cheering her on. And, I was rooting for the champion underdogs from Columbia & Venezuela, too.
Here's Allysa Brown on the balance beam:
I was keeping my eyes & mind open for new ideas to try on a flying trapeze bar. So, w/that in mind, I took some videos of these incredible gymnasts on the uneven bars & high bar.
Here's Paul Hamm on the high bar:
Here's Nastia L. on the uneven bars:
Shawn Johnson on uneven bars:
I'm thinking of various bar tricks. Imagine a bar release trick involving a Layout w/a half twist to re-grab the bar. Or, imagine an B/E Uprise to a free hip circle casting up to a handstand/force out! Or, imagine a straddled Cut Away to re-grab the bar! Let's keep these in mind & develop them together...!
"I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it." - Pablo Picasso
In various parts of the large arena, Ann W., Marcie B., Jason F., Amy G/W, Molly G., Emma S., Nicole A., Samantha W., Dawn (last name?), my Catherine & I watched world-class gymnasts from the U.S., Canada, China, Venezuela & Columbia. These champions included Canada's Allysa Brown, 2007 all-around world champion Shawn Johnson; 2004 all-around Olympic champion Paul Hamm; 2007 balance beam & team world champion Nastia Liukin; 2007 all-around world silver-medalist Fabian Hambuechen; 2006 pommel horse world bronze-medalist Alexander Artemev; 2007 all-around world bronze-medalist Hisashi Mizutori; 2006-07 Tyson American Cup champ Jonathan Horton; 2001 & 2003 team world silver-medalist Raj Bhavsar; and 2007 team world champions Samantha Peszek & Shayla Worley.
My first personal favorite was Raj B. who I felt was a sort of underdog w/his solid performances even though the judges were hard w/his scores. The crowd actually booed the judges after Raj was given a much lower than expected score for his high bar routine! It was funny b/c the sound of MSG filled w/booing spectators was washed w/the high pitched sound of dozens of very young, aspiring gymnastic girls! My other personal favorite was Shawn Johnson who performed solidly through every event & did so w/a great, winning smile the whole time. My heart went out to Canada's Allysa Brown b/c I feel like my Canadian wife was one of the few really cheering her on. And, I was rooting for the champion underdogs from Columbia & Venezuela, too.
Here's Allysa Brown on the balance beam:
I was keeping my eyes & mind open for new ideas to try on a flying trapeze bar. So, w/that in mind, I took some videos of these incredible gymnasts on the uneven bars & high bar.
Here's Paul Hamm on the high bar:
Here's Nastia L. on the uneven bars:
Shawn Johnson on uneven bars:
I'm thinking of various bar tricks. Imagine a bar release trick involving a Layout w/a half twist to re-grab the bar. Or, imagine an B/E Uprise to a free hip circle casting up to a handstand/force out! Or, imagine a straddled Cut Away to re-grab the bar! Let's keep these in mind & develop them together...!
"I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it." - Pablo Picasso
Thursday, February 28, 2008, Brooklyn, NY
It was Layout central this evening w/our IFW...!
Both Suzanne M. & Maggie F. were both making very smooth Layout catches w/our Jeff L. I didn't have to bolster their swing heights nor kill it at all at catch point! They earned those catches all by themselves. I still have high hopes that Suzanne & others will adopt & adapt to my new swing technique. Kristy M. has the height & distance just right w/her Layout, but her pesky legs are still swinging right under her at catch point. No worries, Kristy, you'll conquer that soon enough.
Fresh from her trip to California where she flew w/Stephan G., Simon & (my very tough but wise, highly talented & highly experienced mentor) Janene D. She was making some nice catches OOM w/our Jeff. Prodigal flyer, Brandon R., recreated his B/E Straddle Whip catch & is gaining valuable experience w/his swing as well as w/his aerial & body awareness on the rig. Thais K. was successful in recreating her B/E Splits catch OOM. And, for the big news of the night: Molly G. made her 1st ever catch OOM! And, it happened to be her great Layout! LOL
Molly's 1st Layout catch OOM (Tivo view):
Molly's 3rd Layout catch OOM:
Molly's 3rd Layout catch OOM (Tivo view):
"To fly, we have to have resistance." - Maya Lin
Both Suzanne M. & Maggie F. were both making very smooth Layout catches w/our Jeff L. I didn't have to bolster their swing heights nor kill it at all at catch point! They earned those catches all by themselves. I still have high hopes that Suzanne & others will adopt & adapt to my new swing technique. Kristy M. has the height & distance just right w/her Layout, but her pesky legs are still swinging right under her at catch point. No worries, Kristy, you'll conquer that soon enough.
Fresh from her trip to California where she flew w/Stephan G., Simon & (my very tough but wise, highly talented & highly experienced mentor) Janene D. She was making some nice catches OOM w/our Jeff. Prodigal flyer, Brandon R., recreated his B/E Straddle Whip catch & is gaining valuable experience w/his swing as well as w/his aerial & body awareness on the rig. Thais K. was successful in recreating her B/E Splits catch OOM. And, for the big news of the night: Molly G. made her 1st ever catch OOM! And, it happened to be her great Layout! LOL
Molly's 1st Layout catch OOM (Tivo view):
Molly's 3rd Layout catch OOM:
Molly's 3rd Layout catch OOM (Tivo view):
"To fly, we have to have resistance." - Maya Lin
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