How old are you? 28
When did you first start hooping? I first picked up a hoop in late summer 2008, but really started learning hoop dance in august 2009
Would you call yourself a beginner, intermediate or advanced hooper? intermediate
How often do you hoop? In the warm weather, everyday... right now, i'm aiming for 5 days a week
Do you have an indoor hoop space? That's the challenge... if I move all my furniture out of my kitchen into my hallway and take all the brakeables off the counter surfaces, I have enough room to do some moves
Is there a hoop group where you live? yes
Did you start it? no
Would you say that you are obsessed with or addicted to hooping? Yes, my addition is getting worse by the day!
Have you posted hooping videos? How many? My friend has posted a couple on her youtube page with me in them, and I've taken a few of myself, but nothing I've posted yet... soon though I'm sure!!
Do you have friends nearby to hoop with? YES! Nicolita and Beccaboo
Do you teach hooping? I've started teaching a hoop yoga class with my two friends above... pretty fun and unique!
If so, how many people have you taught? 15-ish
What kind of songs do you listen to while hooping? wow... the whole range! I love everything from jam to electronica to ballads, and hoop to them all
What is your favorite song right now? Hmmm...Today? 'Martha Ann' by David Carsten Daniels. Haven't tried to hoop to it yet though... hmmmm guess I'll work on that now...
Do you buy hoops or make your own? make my own w/ my sister
Have you lost weight since starting to hoop? Nope, but my body definitely shows some improvement from hooping!
What size is your favorite hoop? 34"
Are you comfortable hooping by yourself in a public place? Most of the time. I live right by Prospect Park in Brooklyn, so I hoop there almost every day when the weather is nice
How did you learn the majority of the tricks you know today? combination of online tutorials, playing around, watching videos of other hoopers and desperately trying to mimic what they did... also I have taken a few classes... some from Kaytibunny and some Groovehoops at the 14th St Y
Who is your favorite hoop teacher? Currently-- Stefan at Groovehoops
What advice would you give to to beginner hoopers? Stick with it, the learning curve is exponential once you get going!
Do you fire hoop? If not, do you want to? yes and no... I am a little clutzy, and feel like fire might be a bad idea for me... at least to own a fire hoop. I'd love to try it out though! But overall, I'll stick to hoops that won't scorch off my eyebrows if I'm not careful ;)
Do own an LED hoop? Where did you get it? AHHHHH!!!! Not yet. I've been saving up and am going to be ordering a PSI hoop soon... the 2 circuits of LEDs really sold me... its like having 2 hoops in one! Golly gee i'm super excited!!!
How much time do you spend on Hoop City Hooping Community? At least a couple of hours a week... I get sucked in to watching people's videos!!
What was the first trick you learned (besides waist hooping)? lift from the waist to over the head
What is the last trick you mastered? The flamingo! Though I'm still playing with what to do with my leg. Time to stretch out more-- really hoping to get an arobesque!
What trick so far was the hardest for you to learn? The longest time I've spent on anything is chest hooping. I spent 2 weeks learning it (and had a disgusting nasty shoulder bruise), and its taken me another couple of months to really master it. Now I can do chest reversals pretty well! Also knee hooping back up to the waist took me quite a while to master... but one day it just clicked!
Which one are you finding is almost impossible to get? Leg reversals! I can hoop both directions on my knees, but can only bring it up to my waist going one direction right now. I accidentally did a reversal at my knees when I was playing around with the flamingo, and since then have tried it with zero success. But I'm still working on it!!! ALSO-- starting the hoop from the ground. I'm hesitant to practice this one, because the first time I did it I slammed my ankle so hard and had one of the worst bruises ever!! I cringe at the thought of kicking the hoop now. Also its something I don't have room to do at home which kills the learning curve too.
How many hoopers would you say live in your town/city? a few hundred... but surprisinly less than I'd think for a city as big as NYC. I bet it explodes over the next year though! (espcially if I have anything to do with it!!)
Have you performed hooping in front of an audience? I went to Electric Zoo festival with 5 other hooping friends. We were dressed as 'rave animals' the first day (and I was Rainbow Brite, my signature costume, the other day). We basically ran the show... everyone was fascinated! We were in all the pictures posted of the festival. The woman who ran the festival asked us if we could hoop next year, and if all goes as planned, may be giving us free tickets and potentially paying us... we're pretty psyched! Hoping for more of that next summer...
Has anyone told you you were too old to be playing with a hula hoop? Not directly, but I've gotten a lot of interesting looks and questions...
What’s the worst injury you’ve acquired from the hoop? nasty bruise on the front of my ankle after an attempt to start the hoop from the ground
Have you ever hooped naked? yes
Have you been to a hoop camp/retreat? Which one?… none yet, can't wait to try one though!!!