Elaborating further she explained, "I sat in the audience for 3 hours before they finally called my name, then I had to go in 5 minutes. That’s right, zero warm up. For me to get into my peak 'zone' I need a good 10 minutes of solid stretching and hooping. I was pretty nervous on top of that so I actually almost dropped a hoop three separate times. Thanks god I held it together. Needless to say it was not my best performance. Oddly enough, no one seemed to be able to tell I was fumbling so it actually showed me how magnified ones view is inside the hoop versus outside.. Still, I wish I could have stayed through another round so I could really rock it out and show America more of what hooping is all about. But hey, It still gave me, and hoop dance as a whole, some really great exposure, so it was all worth it!"

It was absolutely worth it, and rightfully so that it was hoopaliscious on the stage. Anah Christine (formerly Reichenbach) was born and raised in The City of Angels, and although she spent some of her later years in both Ojai and Hawaii she eventually landed back home in Los Angeles. The 31-year-old has made quite a name for herself as a Hoop Dance performer, teacher, and entrepreneur - and just in case you were wondering, hooping came to her quite naturally.

Anah explains, "I saw some hoops sitting on the side of the dance floor at the High Sierra Music Festival in 1995 and tried one out. Five hours later I was still hooping blissfully! It was the most incredible feeling I had ever experienced! That first day I got a full leaned back angle with a bit of a jump. Apparently it was pretty impressive because people kept asking me how long I had been hooping for, I guess expecting an answer of 'xyz amount of years' and were a bit taken aback when my answer was '4 hours!' It was the first and only thing that I was instantly good at."

Back in the time before Hooping.org, before hooping classes and DVDs, Anah was hooked. "The hoop didn't even come off my waist for a couple of years. Having no examples I was happy to just dance with it. Every thing I learned in those first 5 years or so was pretty much through fumbles, flow and dreams."

Today she's been hooping regularly for 11 years, in fact she hoops approximately 4 times a week. Hooping didn't just change Anah's life, it became her life, so to speak. She explains, "Hooping gave me an incredible creative focus and channel for my energy, in the beginning, and still does! It also helped me grow more confident and foster a sense of purpose in life. Hooping gives me a powerful way to contribute to people's life experience and is a spiritual sanctuary like no other! Hooping has taught me rhythm in a way that I think nothing else can. I am a much better dancer now than before I began hooping and I attribute it directly to the physical feedback of the hoop. If you are off beat the hoop will let you know instantly!"

How has being on the show made an impact on her life? She smiles, "Well, I got a ton of e-mails from new fans and 64,000 hits on my website in one night! I also had a few extra hoop gigs and a lot of people on the street have recognized me, which is odd and takes some getting used to. I also learned a great lesson on what to read and what not to read out there. It seems that even at the lowest levels of fame people like to get really mean and make all sorts of judgments about you, especially on the internet where they do not have to be accountable for their words. So, I learned not to read the blogs and tabloid-ish publications. I figure It does no good to allow others negativity to affect my sense of worth and besides, for the most part they have no idea what they are talking about anyway!"

Undenabily at the forefront of hooping, I had to ask what it's like for her being a hooping icon. She thought about the question for awhile and then thoughtfully explained, "There was this experience I had this year at Burning Man. I went to some of the hoop happenings, really excited to jump in and play with people. When I got there, I don't know if it was because the cameras were there or what but I felt alot of eyes on me in a way that had me feeling like I had something to live up to. Like people were looking at me and thinking, 'that's hoopaliscious, let's see if she is as good as they say she is.' I was not feeling like I could just play, I felt that I had to impress everyone and live up to my reputation. Plus it seemed like the energy was really intense in the circle with everyone competing for the spotlight, not much room for community play. Since then I have taken full responsibility and discovered that I was feeling insecure and not confident in my skills. It caused me to really get deep and reconnect with the simple joy of hooping, which is why I started this crazy hooping career in the first place! After realizing this I felt a bit bummed about a wasted opportunity to play with all the amazing hoopers that were there from all across the globe! I still had some great hooping highs, but not the community ones that I was most looking forward to."

When she isn't hooping she's an avid horseback rider and loves to take long hikes with her dog. She also loves to dance. Anah explains, "Music is such a huge part of my life, that if I haven't been able to dance in a while I start feeling very pent up. Right now my favorite music to hoop to is deep dirty break beats and house! Holy cow! It brings out the best hooping so far and really has a lot of space to dance in." When I asked for an example she directed me here directing me to "black out" under the mixes tab. Listen for yourself. Anah says, "The first two tracks are exactly what I have been loving the most!"

Anah also has a really tight inner circle that I love to do things with, like go to the movies. A favorite film? "The Secret! It is all about the law of attraction and it is rocking my world! It will change the way you look at your life for the better.. mmm.. good stuff!" She also has a few exciting projects that are really inspiring her right now. What are they? "More news to come, but a lot of my 'free' time right now is spent working, but it is all for the realization of my dreams, so what better way to spend your time?"

Her favorite hoop is a 100psi 3/4 inch hoop approximately 41 inches across. She usually goes with a silver/gold/yellow tape combination because "it's bright and fairly neutral so it goes with a wide range of costumes!" So what quality does she most admire in a hooper? Anah responds, "Physically I most enjoy smooth transitions and a high level of dance fully integrated with the hoops movements. Personally, I love the hoopers zest for life (at least most I have met) and willingness to step outside the status quo and be themselves. I think in general most hoopers are lovers not fighters and into play, which makes life so much more enjoyable, doesn’t it?" Indeed it does Anah.

What does Anah believe to be her most marked hooping characteristic? "Oh goodness.. I don’t know.. I am in here, ya know? I can’t ever really see what its like from the outside! If I had to guess, I think the fact that mostly I am just dancing and the hoop happens to go where it goes. Generally I don’t pull a trick out on stage until it can occur naturally as dance without a stop in the flow to execute. So, I tend to do far less tricks then I actually know, but I believe the most impactful performance is created when it is an effortless, passionate flow, with no stops to 'think'."

If she could give a hoop to one person in the world it would be George Bush. Why? "Maybe it would create some peace in him and he will stop wanting to blow up innocent countries and steal their oil." And speaking of politics, if Anah was put in charge of fostering unity and building a worldwide hooping community, the first thing she would do would be, "Create an online hooping magazine of course! Ha! Then I would create a world hooping tour bringing hooping to all classes and races of peoples in all countries!"

Does she have anything else she'd like to say, "I would like to say how pleased I am with the ways in which our community is growing and blossoming! There are so many of us now it is truly an explosion! I remember when I knew pretty much every hooper out there, now I am really dating myself, and now I will be at a party and see some hooper rockin it and think; 'Wow, they are awesome! Where did they come from and how come I don’t know them?' I can remember when the standard response to the explanation of my mission in life was skepticism and even a bit of a scoffing kind of attitude. Like, 'How can that be cool?' Now when I say what I do, the most common response, is “Wow, that must be really amazing!” I attribute it to the collective passion being expressed through hoop dance and the sheer number of people that are now hooping, loving it and consequently, spreading it! We are all so blessed to be a part of something so unique, expressive and life transforming as the current incarnation of hoop dance. I truly would not wish to be doing anything else, anywhere or any time in the history of mankind on this planet!"

So in closing, if she had one tip for a brand new hooper, what would it be? Anah thinks for a moment and responds, "If I could only give them one, I would have to say this; Put on your favorite music and allow yourself to really let go and DANCE! Even at the very beginning levels of hooping it is possible to dance and this is where the real magic begins!"

You can find out more about Anah Christine and her work at Hoop Revolution.com

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