Foundations: Playing with space

Before you try to learn fancy tricks and twirls, it's important to be comfortable with the space in and around your hoop. This is an essential foundation for shoulder hooping & helps to "connect" you with the hoop.
Play with the space...look down as your hooping, and dip your hands in and out. Get comfortable with where your hands can be at any given moment, without actually touching the hoop. Try this hooping in both directions, with both hands. When you feel ready, try it blindfolded (might want to bring your hoop outdoors for that one).
I promise it will help EVERY other aspect of your hooping, and help you find your "flow". Here's an example that I put together yesterday. There's some shoulder hooping and over-the-head maneuvers in the video, but don't worry about doing that stuff for now. Just focus on playing with the space...the rest will follow.

My new toy

Trying to hoop in the dark at a music festival can be slightly challenging. Sure, if it's late at night you don't have to worry as much about clocking a little kid in the head with your hoops, however this won't stop the adults from walking right into your space. A seemingly "open space" of lawn can quickly become crowded.
I've seen LED hoops before. Years back actually. This year (before festival season starts) I decided I needed one. A good one. The BEST one I can get.
Doing just a little bit of research on the internet, it wasn't long before I found the rave reviews of PSI Hoops. Patrick of PSI Hoops offers custom orders with different types of LED's, and makes all of the hoops by hand himself.
In these same places I had read good reviews about PSI Hoops, I read about the disappointment of hoopers who had bought from "other" LED hoop companies. In short, you get what you pay for.
Parick talked me through everything ensuring I was ordering the type of hoop made for the type of hooping I do, and was overall very helpful.
I did the tape job myself, asked him to ship it bare. I know I wanted some tape for traction, but I wasn't sure exactly how I was going to do it. Eventually I decided that stripes would be better than cris-cross style...I didn't want to block too much light out, but I DID want to make a definitive black space (better for trails). I ended up taping a strip of sparkly tape down the center between each of the LEDs, then photo luminescent tape over both sides of the sparkly tape. The photo luminescent tape gets charged when the LEDs are on, so when I turn the LEDs off, the hoop will have glow in the dark stripes. Cool, huh? Just to the sides of the photo luminescent tape I used cloth tape for friction.
Last night was a bit short on time, so I didn't really have a chance to break this puppy in. Soon I'll be sure to get a video up on youtube and share the happy trails.

Have you tried it yet?

Hopefully you've been inspired by this blog or any of the wonderful links I've posted, to get yourself a hoop, by buying one or making your own. I've been tinkering with my laptop's webcam, and am almost ready to prepare some videos of my very own. I'd like to do several series of videos, one entitled "Foundations". Foundations is just what the name suggests. Foundations are the movements you will need to master more advanced tricks. "Foundations" lends itself to the second series "Workout Moves". In this series I will show you exercises to tone up and target your whole body, with just your hoop. You can say goodbye to flabby upper arms if you stick with me, kid!

In the meantime, here are a couple more videos I've found that may help you learn, and find your flow.