Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jenny Anderson RaineDanceHooper on May 17, 2011 at 4:36am

would OMG!!!! cover it? Wow, it was an awesome, transformational experience. I deeply recommend any hoop retreats, but HoopCon is incredibly special. The beautiful (inside and out) people, the gorgeous environment, the camraderie in the cabin!, the WORLD CLASS INSTRUCTION, the amazingly talented hoopstars... They get that status for a reason, they are ALWAYS hooping, first and last ones on the hoop floor. I'll post all my vids and pics in a picasa albumn, but be ready when you see us, HoopCon has changed us all. We think we can fly.......tomorrow though, I've got a full day of work ahead. Sigh... where's my bucket of kale salad? My first HC is memorable for soOOoo many ultra cool reasons. Stephan is great, we loved Little L and Alicia, made lots of new friends from Alabama, a derby chick turned hooper... oh, next year Bryana, I hope you'll come. You would rock the joint. OMG, the hot Brits!!! they are so skilled. And funnneeee!!! And I became friends with Lara from Superhooper - oh, just you wait till you see my LEDs!!! But alas, I can't come to jam this Friday (argh, frustration and spoiled stomping). Gotta pick up the rest of the fam at the airport :O( Trish, any space in the DC calendar for an afternoon jam this weekend? Oh, and the Showcase at the Arts Centre! OMG!!! Rubbing shoulders with Safire and Shakti and so many others dedicated to this hoop life. Tooo much, it's just... OMG

Permalink Reply by SpinintheSpark-Bryana on May 17, 2011 at 5:33am

I'm so glad it was such a wonderful experience for you!  It sounds amazing.  I am so definitely planning on going next year.  I was certainly thinking of all of you, so I feel I was there in spirit at least.  We did have a great hoop class with Robyn though on Monday, so there was still some good Ottawa hoopiness happening while you were away. :)

Aaah...no jam for you, I was so looking forward to seeing some of that convergence hoop bliss in action from you Jenny.  Well, I'm sure it's going to last awhile. :)

Permalink Reply by Jenny Anderson RaineDanceHooper on May 17, 2011 at 6:20am

I can't wait to see all of you and share the bliss too - I can come earlier on Friday night, and we could chat in the lobby? what about 5:30ish for post-HoopCon debriefing and slide show everyone? Is it totally busy there at that time of night? I'll have to leave by 6:45 though

Permalink Reply by SpinintheSpark-Bryana on May 17, 2011 at 7:07pm

I could be there for 5:30ish.  Anyone else?  No idea about Dovercourt traffic patterns at that hour though. :)

 

Permalink Reply by Robyn Brehaut (HulaDoula) on May 17, 2011 at 7:23pm

I can try to be there for that time if there's space for us too!

Permalink Reply by Robyn Brehaut (HulaDoula) on May 17, 2011 at 6:36am

Heeheehee! I can't wait for all the juicy details. I am booking HoopCon on my calender for next year Jenny. I'm SO happy you had such a fantastic first experience, YAYAYAY!! :D

 

Permalink Reply by Brigitte "Hooperella" Ethier on May 17, 2011 at 7:27pm

I second that! OMG barely covers it...and the feeling of breakthrougth, breaking patterns and creating new ones, the sharing really brings you to new heights!  The cool tricks are fun to learn, but the best part is the sense of community, the friendships, the love, the sharing, the laugther, the circle that brings us together, the no limitations...but we really can`t forget an important part of going to Hoop Con...the shopping!!!!

 

May the power of feathers be with you hoopsista :-)

 

Permalink Reply by Trish of Sirenhoops on May 19, 2011 at 10:25am

Here's the blurb I put on sirenhoops.com:

My good intentions to live-blog from Hoop Convergence were foiled by limited WIFI at the Retreat Centre, and -- let's be honest -- too much great stuff going on, including workshops, forums, jams to live music, performance showcase, the Renegade Show, shopping for cool hoop clothes, fabulous meals & more!

For a concise and witty daily account of Hoop Con, head over to www.hooping.org and read Lara Eastburn's write-ups. Lara is a regular contributor to hooping.org and a well known hoop maker, through her company Superhooper.

Kudos to our hosts Julia & Scott: it was an outstanding Hoop Convergence! They have all been special (this is my third), but I think this may have been the most fun, or at least the funniest. The longer workshop times were appreciated, though it did mean for the first time that we wouldn't attend every workshop, but instead had to make a choice (more on the workshops in another post). Forums were held in the afternoons; some were active, some were discussions-based. There were opportunities to try new props including trapeze, lyra and silks.

The food produced by Nicole and her team in the retreat centre kitchen was healthy and delicious (Kale salad with Japanese peanut dressing will become a new staple in my household!). There was more vending this year than ever before, with clothes from Nomadz, Melodia, Om Body, Annie Land, Dervish to name a few. Coloured Polypro hoops were offered by Superhooper. Feather hair extensions were a major trend, with numerous ladies set up to adorn Convergers' locks with colourful feathers.

The music at the nightly jams was varied and terrific. The trip into town to the Carrboro Arts Center to see the Performance Showcase was a treat, and the show itself was outstanding, with more than 2 hours of solid entertainment. Such variety, such talent! It was breathtaking and inspiring. The after party at the FlowJo, Jewels' and Scott's latest project, was a wonderful way to christen the recently opened space. Impromptu performances with poi, hoops and silks gave way to dancing en masse to Michael Jackson and other rousing dance tunes. There were opportunities for fire spinning every night, in a circle lit by red LED lights.

The final night costume jam, to sounds of Diali Cissokho & Kairaba, gave way to the Renegade Show. It hurt to laugh so hard for so long. So many great moments: Caroleeena's poem about a randy female white grub, Nick diving (pant-less) through a fire hoop suspended on Poki's face, many of the men doffing their clothing, Kayti Bunny's tongue hooping, Anne, Angie & Bitty's sketch about the 'male energy' present at HC 2011 (which included great parody's of their performance styles), Gail & Emma's dazzling hoop skills and even more dazzling verbal riffs (All together now: "That was s__t, do it better!"), the hilarious rendition of "Poop Technique", narrated by that funny lady, Revolva, and lively heckling by the audience kept us in stitches until the wee hours of the morning.

Though the clouds, rain and thunderstorms were more present than we would have wished -- and meant that the traditional fire ceremony couldn't be held --  when the sun burst through on Sunday we all basked in the glow of those warm rays and the general hoop love.

 

At workshops and hoop events (and parties, holidays and…), I'm always torn between my need to document through photos, take video as a memory aid, and to participate so that I live the experience. I have come home from past HCs with close to 1000 photos, but this year I didn't take as many, partly because I forgot to bring a backup battery for my flash, so didn't take any photos at night. To see the pics I took you can to to my HC 2011 Picasa album; and I have it embedded as a slide show on sirenhoops.

Permalink Reply by SpinintheSpark-Bryana on May 20, 2011 at 12:45pm

Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences. :)  Nice photos Trish.  That's Caroleeena laughing so hard beside Malcolm isn't it?

It's fun to look at your photos and spot the hoop celebrity faces in a sea of amazing hoopers. 

Permalink Reply by Serenity Spins Sheena on May 28, 2011 at 7:01am

I know I wasn`t there, but I found this on Youtube and thought it would be appropriate to put here. Look at Brigitte and Sophie go!