Tips For Close Quarters
It's not every day that you can take your hoop to the park, and hooping inside takes up a lot of space. Here are a few tips (mostly common sense) for hooping in close quarters like clubs or homes:
1. Always do a pre-spin
Hold your hoop around your waist and slowly step in a circle. Is there at least a foot or two between your hoop and all furniture, people, and walls? If not, you're prone to bumping, breaking, or bonking something. Might not be a good place to hoop. Doing a hoop-held pre-spin also gives people around you a visual cue that they might want to watch out.
2. Start slow
Start with a cautious waist-only spin. Check all around you to make sure you're not too close to anything. Don't pitch into the tricks right away — you will break something. TIP: Be sure to check ceiling height before you take your hoop overhead! Hitting a lamp with a hoop is a bad way to introduce yourself.
3. Watch for pedestrians
Keep your eyes constantly peeled for people who may need to pass through the space you're in. Constant vigilance, hoopers! As good as it feels to those of us in the loop, there's nothing more frustrating than an eyes-closed blissed-out hooper blocking the way to a bathroom. People really appreciate a hooper who, unprompted, stops hooping and lets them pass.
4. Share the space
Be hyper-considerate of those around you — you're taking up WAY more space than most dancers, and whatever you do: DO NOT assume that everyone wants to stand aside and watch you do your thang. In other words, no hogging the dance floor! If several hoopers are present, and there's limited space, be sure to graciously offer the space up every few minutes.
5. Collisions
If you bump someone with your hoop, stop hooping! Check in with them to make sure they're ok, maybe offer them a chance to give the hoop a spin as an apology. If your hoop hits other bodies more than once, it's time to seriously re-asses whether the space can really accommodate hooping. Remember, you can dance without the hoop. It's fun, actually. Give it a try! The last thing you want is to be a dancefloor hog, so if there's really not room — put the hoop down!
...Any one else have any "close quarters" tips, learned in the school of hard hoop knocks?
Comments
I like to use the term "Hoop Shway" to refer to the feng shui of good hoop spaces. If a place has lots of room, and no dangerous obstacles or drunk people, and is particularly lovely for hooping it has good hoop shway. It defintely pays to be aware of the hoop shway. Hoopers are not going to get along well if we knock out lights in bars, clear tables, and wipe out kids on playgrounds. It's also a good idea to give a basic heads up to people who borrow your hoop for the first time in crowded spaces or whom are slighty inebriated.
Posted by: Kara | March 22, 2004 11:09 AM
Ariel, thanks for writing on such an important subject matter. Hooping in tight spaces can be a real challenge. Your tips are very good and I agree with all of them. We all know that a good hard whack with a hoop can leave quite a bruise. Us hoopers should expect to get hit every once in a while, it is part of the game. But, audience members and clubbers don't always understand, especially if you knock thier drink out of thier hand. If this should happen, buy them a new one and make sure that the floor gets whipped up, so no one can slip. And, be extremely careful and aware of those intoxicated individuals that simply aren't looking where they are going. Fortunately, I do have insurance if anything were to get truly out of hand. But, it never has and never will because I follow all the rules that Ariel has so eliquently put.
Posted by: Kandice Bishop | March 31, 2004 1:12 AM