FAQ
Q: What is Hooping?
A: Hooping, also known as Hoopdance, is a contemporary dance movement which grew out of the jam band and West Coast rave scenes of the 1990s. In the beginning, large, heavy, hoops made out of PVC–cousins to the smaller, lighter kids’ hoops of the late 1950s–were given out at String Cheese Incident shows, which attendees incorporated into organic dance forms, accentuating the beat with the hoops’ powerful rotation. As the hoop craze slowly spread throughout the festival circuit and the Burning Man community, new techniques began to transform the casual waist-groove hoop dancing of the jam scene into an increasingly complex amalgam of street dance, circus tricks, object manipulation, and the flow arts (these last two categories incorporating a wide range of disciplines including juggling, contact ball, fire spinning, poi, and staff). Hooping is now considered both a flow art and an emerging dance form.
Q: What is the HoopPath?
A: HoopPath is a hoopdance curriculum, founded by Jonathan Baxter, which contextualizes hooping as a meditative Practice. HoopPath is also the origin of several fundamental and widely practiced hoop techniques, such as Breaking and Reversing (changing the direction of the hoop as it revolves around the core), Paddling (assisting the hoop’s revolution around the core with the arms or hands), and Samurai (a constellation of off-body techniques in which the hoop is held stationary in a tight grip with one or both hands). HoopPath hooping is characterized and often recognizable by tight planes, quick changes of direction (”current changes”), and overall speed and precision. Baxter co-leads HoopPath with his student and partner Ann Humphreys.
Q: How do I get a hoop?
A: For an adult to begin a hoopdance practice, s/he must buy or make a handmade hoop. Mass-produced toy hoops, made for children, are uniformly too small and light for beginning adult hoopers. Fortunately, it is very easy to find or make a hoop. To make your own hoop, follow the easy directions in the upper left hand corner of the homepage of Hooping.org , the nonprofit, all-purpose site for hoop enthusiasts everywhere. On this site you will see a sampling from every corner of the world about what is going on with hooping. We appreciate all the valuable information this site has brought to the hoop community since 2003!
If you would like to buy a handmade hoop online, we recommend several online hoopmakers:
These are a few of hoopmaking companies we know and trust. Soon we will be offering many of these products through our store. Stay tuned.
If you are a local hooper in the Triangle area of NC, contact our favorite person in the world, our Booking Manager Natalie Shaw, to make you a beautiful handmade hoop: http://hoopingfun.weebly.com
**IMPORTANT NOTE** If you are just getting started on your hoop practice, we highly recommend that you start with a hoop whose diameter is equal to the height of your sternum, the bone right in front of your heart, when you measure it against your body from the floor. This is the ideal ratio for an adult beginning hooper. Trust us.
Q: I have never hooped before. Can I come to your workshop?
A: If you have never hula-hooped at all before, as a child or an adult, we highly recommend cultivating the skill of waist hooping for at least the length of one song before you attend a HoopPath workshop. Taking this approach will ensure you get the most out of our workshops. Most adults struggle during the first hour of “flight time” (a HoopPath term meaning the actual time, measured in hours, that the hoop has been spinning around you) to attain a consistent rhythm hooping at the waist. If you have to spend an hour or more or your first workshop trying to find this consistent rhythm, you are likely to miss out on some important instruction. If at all possible, try to make sure you have a basic waist groove down before attending your first workshop.
Q: I am attending your next workshop. What do I need to bring?
A: For most of our workshops, you will need both a core (larger, heavier) hoop, as well as an off-body (lighter, smaller) hoop. If you are attending a Fundamentals level class or workshop, most likely you will end up using your core hoop only. For Master-level, Warrior, and Deep Water workshops and classes, you are likely to use both your core and off-body hoops.
Because we practice and teach in an organic way that integrates the immediacy of every unique gathering of hoopers we join, we do not have a rigid plan to every class and workshop. The above serves as a guideline to you if you are attending your first HoopPath class or shop.
We also use blindfolds in every class and workshop. Bring one if you have it–any old cut-up t-shirt will do–but we always bring extras in case they are needed.
Q: I would like to attend a local HoopPath class. What do I need to know?
A: Check here for a thorough guide to first-time HoopPath class (or workshop) attendees!
Q: Will hooping help me with my depression/weight loss/anger/anxiety issues?
A: Though we cannot guarantee specific results from your hoop practice, we can personally and passionately attest to the ways that hooping has liberated us from self-defeating patterns of behavior in our lives. Dancing with the hoop is one way to carve out quiet, solitary time and space from the busy world, shouting its demands. The hoop practice is one way of bringing body, mind, and spirit together in one moment, so that they may encounter and inform one another. When all aspects of self are integrated, we are more likely to find balance, and peace.
The one thing we feel a bit more comfortable asserting outright is that we can teach you how to be a badass hooper. Our conceptual framework, concepts, terms, and exercises are all specifically designed to make you a badass. See our testimonials here!
Q: What is the HoopPath Retreat? Do I need to be an advanced hooper to attend this event?
A: The HoopPath Retreat is our annual tribal hoop gathering in Carrboro, North Carolina: the birthplace of the HoopPath. In June of each year, our entire local HoopPath community comes together to host visiting hoopers and share our ways of practicing and sharing hoop mediation in community. Baxter and Ann, assisted by HP star Beth Lavinder, teach each year, alongside exceptional guest teachers like Brecken Rivara, Rich Porter, and Khan Wong.
The Retreat is open to ALL adult hoopers (21 and over) of ANY skill level. You will get more out of the retreat experience if you can waist hoop at least the length of one song–preferably in both currents (directions), but apart from that you will be offered techniques and exercises to work on no matter what your skill level or “flight time” (actual time in hours spent interacting with your hoop–for example, Baxter has over 6,000 hours of flight time. Ann has over 2,500 hours. You get the idea.)
If you would like information on the 2011 HoopPath Retreat, click here!