The Greatest of Ease
In the mid 1800’s Jules Leotard thought it would be a fun idea to connect a bar to some cords and swing above his father’s swimming pool. And so the art, or sport, of flying trapeze began.
When the opportunity to take a trapeze lesson came up, it sounded like fun. I immediately checked the rules to see if I qualified:
Under 200 lbs – check
Between the ages of 3 and 82 – check
Wear shirt that covers shoulders – um ok, check
I then signed up at the New York Trapeze School (NYTS) in Santa Monica. As the date got closer, I began to worry. I considered my wrists, hips, back and knees. What was I thinking? I could really rack myself up during the two hour lesson. I decided to bring wrist braces just in case.
Upon arrival, you’re fitted with a belt. During the safety lesson you learn that you can never really free fall with this belt hooked into ropes that are controlled by a professional on the ground. NYTS keeps the class size to a maximum of 10 so that everyone has plenty of chances to swing from the bars.
Climbing up the ladder to the 20’ platform, my heart is racing. I am the oldest person here by far and what if my body doesn’t do what I tell it to? Or more precisely, what the instructors tell it to. There’s a lot to remember; grab the bar with one hand and hold onto an affixed bar on the platform, grab the bar with your other hand, lean out (which is the most counterintuitive thing I’ve ever done), squat, then push out. And voila, I’m swinging! But before I can enjoy this moment, orders are being barked at me: Legs up! Good! Let go! Good. Arch your back (at this point you’re hanging upside down as you swing with your legs bent at the knees over the bar), hands on the bars! Good. Swing your legs up, back, up! Let go! And down you drop, with ropes making the fall slower than it would be normally. You softly land on a net, crawl to the edge and flip out of the net.
Piece of cake. The next time we do all of the same but add a flip to the dismount. The next time while hanging upside down the ‘catcher’ grabs you by the wrists, you let your legs let go of the bar and you dangle, swinging wrist to wrist with the catcher.
And so it goes, jumping swinging, flipping, being caught. And it’s fun! Not one part of my body hurt from the experience. I thank those nice ropes hanging from my belt for that. It was not hard at all. The only person in our group that had trouble was the boy from Germany, since he couldn’t understand the commands, he never fully understood what to do. And then two little girls, maybe 5 or 6, stopped half way through the lesson because the commands sounded like yelling and they didn’t like to be yelled out. Other than that, super fun, super easy and a great experience.
If you go, wear sunscreen. You’re literally on the pier with a million dollar view of the ocean and not much shade to protect you. Other than that, try it! You don’t have to be in shape. You just have to listen to directions. The success comes from the timing more than anything. Go to www.trapezeschool.com for more information.
And, if you want some other inexpensive activities for a Southern California weekend, try hiking Runyan Canyon for a magnificent view of the area, and go to the Getty Museum where it costs $15 to park and admittance to the displays are free. By sure to check out the Van Gaugh, Gougans and Monet’s – photographs of these works of art can’t reveal all of the beauty seen in person.
In the mid 1800’s Jules Leotard thought it would be a fun idea to connect a bar to some cords and swing above his father’s swimming pool. And so the art, or sport, of flying trapeze began.
When the opportunity to take a trapeze lesson came up, it sounded like fun. I immediately checked the rules to see if I qualified:
Under 200 lbs – check
Between the ages of 3 and 82 – check
Wear shirt that covers shoulders – um ok, check
I then signed up at the New York Trapeze School (NYTS) in Santa Monica. As the date got closer, I began to worry. I considered my wrists, hips, back and knees. What was I thinking? I could really rack myself up during the two hour lesson. I decided to bring wrist braces just in case.
Upon arrival, you’re fitted with a belt. During the safety lesson you learn that you can never really free fall with this belt hooked into ropes that are controlled by a professional on the ground. NYTS keeps the class size to a maximum of 10 so that everyone has plenty of chances to swing from the bars.
Climbing up the ladder to the 20’ platform, my heart is racing. I am the oldest person here by far and what if my body doesn’t do what I tell it to? Or more precisely, what the instructors tell it to. There’s a lot to remember; grab the bar with one hand and hold onto an affixed bar on the platform, grab the bar with your other hand, lean out (which is the most counterintuitive thing I’ve ever done), squat, then push out. And voila, I’m swinging! But before I can enjoy this moment, orders are being barked at me: Legs up! Good! Let go! Good. Arch your back (at this point you’re hanging upside down as you swing with your legs bent at the knees over the bar), hands on the bars! Good. Swing your legs up, back, up! Let go! And down you drop, with ropes making the fall slower than it would be normally. You softly land on a net, crawl to the edge and flip out of the net.
Piece of cake. The next time we do all of the same but add a flip to the dismount. The next time while hanging upside down the ‘catcher’ grabs you by the wrists, you let your legs let go of the bar and you dangle, swinging wrist to wrist with the catcher.
And so it goes, jumping swinging, flipping, being caught. And it’s fun! Not one part of my body hurt from the experience. I thank those nice ropes hanging from my belt for that. It was not hard at all. The only person in our group that had trouble was the boy from Germany, since he couldn’t understand the commands, he never fully understood what to do. And then two little girls, maybe 5 or 6, stopped half way through the lesson because the commands sounded like yelling and they didn’t like to be yelled out. Other than that, super fun, super easy and a great experience.
If you go, wear sunscreen. You’re literally on the pier with a million dollar view of the ocean and not much shade to protect you. Other than that, try it! You don’t have to be in shape. You just have to listen to directions. The success comes from the timing more than anything. Go to www.trapezeschool.com for more information.
And, if you want some other inexpensive activities for a Southern California weekend, try hiking Runyan Canyon for a magnificent view of the area, and go to the Getty Museum where it costs $15 to park and admittance to the displays are free. By sure to check out the Van Gaugh, Gougans and Monet’s – photographs of these works of art can’t reveal all of the beauty seen in person.