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| about
betty bhdt® philosophy guinness
world record hoop
4 peace reunion
with birth father meeting
hula hoop inventor |
Betty Hoops holds the Guinness
World Record in two catagories: Hooping for distance and speed.
You can find her photo on page 219 in the 2008 Guiness Book of World
Records.
In 2005 Betty set the record by running with her hoop for 10k (6.2
miles)
Her rules were: no stopping, dropping or touching the hoop. The hoop
must continuously spin from
start to finish. She had a team of 6 blockers
so that other runners would not run into her hoop.
2005 1:43
2006 1.28
2007 1.39.01
2008 1.14
Bolder
Boulder is the 3rd largest road race in the country. Over 50,000 runners & walkers at any given point in the race will
unknowingly run straight toward the hoop or stop short right in
front of it. The team’s circumference of 6 blockers, 2 camera
men & a video guy for legal documentation creates about a 20
foot barrier. This makes it extremely challenging for Team Hoop.
2008
story
2007
story
2006
story
2005 story
Betty combined the sport of hula hooping with the sport of snowboarding
in 2000. She is one of the crowd and competitor favorites at the Winter
X Games in Aspen, CO every year. She frequently is asked to join groups
of skiers down runs. Betty also hosts HoopBoard contests for local
winter events.
My Ride: Sims Sugarboard 162"
(This board has some flex for all mountain riding and is also stiff
enough for deep powder)
My Other Ride: 2 Dance Hoops taped together
with gaffer tape. The hoops’ weight and centrifugal force needs to match the down
hill speed so a heavier hoop is necessary. The gaffer tapes’ friction
helps to keep the hoop from falling slightly.
Sports Bio:
- Set the Guinness Book Record for speed and distance hoop running
a 10K.
- Broke time from hoop running a 10.3 minute mile to a 7.4 minute
mile.
- HoopBoarded for ESPN for a White Out segment Winter X Games 2000.
- HoopBoarded for Olympic skier Johnny Mosley's documentary in 2000.
- Helped in a first ascent to set a climbing route in Zion National
Park, Utah.
- Rock Climbed throughout Colorado, Oregon, California, Las Vegas
and Utah.
- Summited 14 thousand foot peaks in Colorado.
- Teaches Yoga Therapy based in Iyengar and Kundalini Yoga.
- Helps on a big game hunts in Colorado.
Catherine,
Michael’s girlfriend, offered the team to stay in her house
in downtown Boulder. It had 4 bedrooms and a furnished basement
to sleep 3 extras. The night before the race Andy and Seth made
the best pasta dinner. We celebrated Tammy and Ed’s birthday.
Around 9pm my neck started to spasm. My right side froze up and
sharp pain shot down through my arm. It came out of nowhere and
I was nervous that I would not be able to race. Siri massaged me
for and hour but it did not subside. I took a bunch of Ibuprofen
and tried to sleep. I got about 4 hours of bad sleep. I was in so
much pain that I had to lift my head with my hands each time I moved.
I kept meditating on letting go of the tension. I would not allow
myself to entertain any thoughts of canceling the race.
4:30am came too soon. We all got up and made breakfast. I could barely stand
up straight and my neck was still in spasm. I wasn’t raised taking pain
killers. If I was to overdose on anything it was going to be now. I took 6 Ibuprofen
and prayed that the spasm would go away. I decided to try mind over matter. I
couldn’t move my shoulders, neck or head. I focused on only using my core
and legs and surrendering to the pain.
The 14 of us gathered outside Vics coffee house. This is the meeting place for
most of the racers as it is at the start and the coffee is awesome. The excitement
help take my mind off my spasm and the drugs were kicking in. We lined up at
the end of our wave and did some camera testing.
And they're off… we had a slow start as usual. Allowing others to pass
us until the crowd thins. Toward the end of the first kilometer we picked up
the pace considerably. Jason was back blocker and team pacer. He was calling
to me to slow down so that we could keep a good pace. I knew I should have listened
to him, I did not want to crash early on. I felt strong though. The month of
hoop/running had really boosted my cardio and rhythm. Going faster has its price!
I had never hooped/ran so fast for a consistent time. Usually the hoops speed
is faster than my pace. The forward motion of my gate moves in synch with the
centrifugal force of the hoop. This time, my running pace was far faster than
the hoops speed. This put my hoop in danger of falling. The hoop becomes wobbly
as the force of my body runs forward. Keeping the hoop level take precision in
isolating the hips and core. I did not want to slow down so I had to learn to
move the hoop faster. This took a lot out of me as I was not training core strength.
I was mostly training to synch up running with hooping and increase cardio strength.
Running at such a fast pace also made it harder for the team to keep up. Water
stations were especially tricky. This is where racers and walkers hang out. Groups
gather around the drinking tables. People walk- without looking- straight across
the road, from the water to the Gatorade table.
A few members of the team were not used to running this fast. The team works
so hard. They are communicating with the outside so that we can pass. They must
run backwards at times to make sure that no one is running toward me. They also
have to use themselves as a physical barrier when racers move within inches from
the hoop. During the third kilometer Mia wanted to grab a cup of water. She did,
we lost her for a moment. Jason pulled her back in to our circle and during that
instant, she was pulled into the hoop. The hoop popped up on my chest and wobbled
as if it was going to fall. I grabbed the hoop while running and quickly restarted
it. I knew then, that my chance for breaking both records for speed and distance
combined, was gone. That moment was so surreal. I went deep into introspection.
I saw my goal flash before me. I saw myself getting angry and upset. I knew this
wasn’t what the race was about. I knew that I did not want the rest of
my journey to be with resistance and hostility toward a disappointing outcome.
I threw out all expectation and moved into a Zen like state. Deeper and more
present than I the normal hypnotic state induced by hoop/running.
A second later I yelled out “We’re going for time! Pick up the damn
pace!”
I told Mia not to worry, that things happen and now we are setting a new record
for time. As exhausted and upset as she was, she hung in there for every step.
The team was on there game. We cruised through the next few kilometers. Joe continued
to yell out “Team Hoop comin’ through, breaking records and breakin’ hearts.” Michael,
with his superhuman power kept within a foot of me to film for the Guinness Book.
We weaved in and out of crowds. Jason kept yelling, “Pace yourself” I
actually slowed down a bit because I thought that we were farther from the finish
than we were. We had never run the course this fast. Before I knew it we running
the last stretch.
Right before the last leg, I heard a loud voice which followed us. Almost like
a chant, “go team hoop, go team hoop!” I didn’t realize at
the time but it was my birthfather. I gave him directions on where to cut through
the course so that he could meet us at the finish. He is not a runner and had
just flown in from sea level.
Up the hill, through the cattle guards and into the stadium. I motioned to Jason
to tell the team to part. Every year my tongue is stuck to the roof of my mouth
and my legs feel like led weights. I have my hand motions prepared with certain
members of the group. When I see a straight shot to the finish, I break away
from the team and sprint. If the team can keep up to block, that is fine, if
not, I don’t mind going for it.
I hoop/ran through the finish and almost collapsed. This was one of the most
memorable races yet. Again, I looked around at the team. Here were regular people
performing extraordinary feats. None of the members are runners. They do not
own fancy workout clothes or extra cushioned running shoes. They are teachers,
mothers, fathers and students. And here they are, supporting my personal dream,
fundraising and adding so much love to an ordinary race.
1 hour and 14 minutes of extreme focus, strategy and faith. We broke our time
by 30 minutes! We were all running 12 minute miles! Thanks again to Cliff Bosley
for his hard work and value in thinking and working outside the box.
Blood,
Sweat and Prayers
2007 was to be the third & possibly final time that Team Hoop would be able to
participate in the Bolder Boulder. It is against race regulations for a racer
to have an outfit or team that exceeds 10 feet circumference. My hoop is 10 feet
in circumference and my team surrounded me by about 30 feet.
I bugged the race committee all winter to let Team Hoop race. We had broken our
record by 18 minutes in 2006 but the camera woman, who swore that she could run
and hold a small camera, tripped and never decided to catch up to us. We needed
that footage for the Guinness Book. The only footage we had was; 1 minute of
me hoop/running, then tree tops, then the camera woman yelling “Oh Crap!” The
last thing we saw was the sidewalk with sneakers running past the lens.
This 10K road race has about 47,000 runners, joggers and walkers. My idea was
to be placed in a faster wave so that we would not have to pass as many people
thereby not interfering with their time. I did not know this at the time but
a 13 year old boy from a neighboring Boulder town was inspired to break my record
and fundraise. The race committee said no, so he brought Channel 4 News down
to the race office and had a live interview with them. I knew that they would
get heat from people who thought it wasn’t fair that I could race with
a hoop and with a large team when they could not. I was so appreciative that
I drove 3 ½ hours to drop off a huge gift basket of wine, chocolates
and flowers.
Getting Sponsors
Fleet Feet Sports sponsored our team jerseys and my sexy red Fila running shoes.
They were so helpful and supportive! Cerebral Palsy from my hometown of Westchester
NY was the foundation that I chose to raise money for. They paid for text to
be added to the back of the jerseys.
The Amazing Team Hoop
Pam: who was a strong back runner last year became my front left. She also called
Joe, the steady Cam assistant, to alert him when we were coming up on each mile
marker so that Alan could film us.
Peter Steele: of Steele
Photgraphy, joined us again for the 3rd time. He took awesome pictures
while doubling as a back runner.
Tammy: who was a student in my 15 week program at Colorado
Mountain College this winter, kept the team spirit up. She would get the crowd
to cheer for every mile marker that we passed. She was a front runner.
Michelle: a student in the same class, was a valued side right. She
didn’t think that she would finish the 10K since she is not a runner and
vowed that she would quit smoking if she finished. It is now 3 weeks later and
she still hasn’t smoked.
Kettie: joined us the morning of the race and saved at least
5 people from running into my hoop. A few times I saw her grabbing the runner,
turning them toward the outside of our bubble and placing herself in between
the runner and my hoop. She then arched her back while jumping away from the
hoop.
Jason: my supportive and fun boyfriend, was a great back runner.
He is about 6 feet with a loud voice. Out of the corner of my eye, I would see
him frequently grab hold of someone inches away from my hoop. It seemed like
he just picked them up gently and placed them on the outside of our bubble. Somewhere
in the 3rd mile, Jason turned into Richard Simmons. We all laughed but responded
well to hearing his drill sergeant like commands. “Stay focused Team, we’ll
drink water when we’re done!”
Michael Conti: from FastFilm
TV was a last minute blessing. He filmed me for the Guinness Book in 2005
and I was glad to have a professional and friend taking that job. He also doubled
as a back runner while holding the video camera still.
Lisa: the owner of Crystal Dreams Bed and Breakfast in Redstone,
signed on as side left. She and Tammy were so dedicated that they ran the whole
month prior to the race. She was nervous about not being fast enough but her
training and aerobics classes made her a fast, quick to respond blocker.
Melissa: signed on as an extra. She never ran the race and was there
also there to support her 12 year old daughter who volunteered to be a front
runner (one of the hardest positions on the team.) She immediately fell into
side left and blocked well while having fun.
Mia: Melissas’ daughter is a 12 years old Hoop Dance star
at her school. She does not run & was concerned she might not finish the race.
She ran up to people and asked them to step aside. She knew that she could fall
back anytime if she needed to slow down. She ran for the whole 6.2 miles. She
even sprinted alongside me to the finish. I met Mia in 2006 when she organized
a Hoop Dance assembly for her whole school with her teacher Sue. The school board
denied her request for months but she persisted and succeeded. I then helped
her choreograph a fabulous hula hoop performance for her schools talent show.
Melissa’s friend jumped in to help out in mile 3. I noticed a glowing woman
in a purple T Shirt much farther in front of our team. I thought it was weird
that she would slow down when we did. She was kind of like Moses parting the
sea of people to make it easier for our front runners. She stayed with us until
the finish. I was so impressed at her willingness & interest in helping our team.
I hope that she can be a part of it in 2008.
Alan: of www.boulderdigitalarts.com was
our steady camera man. His camera was a 35 pound set up with floaters on a backpack
strapped to his chest. This type of camera takes really clear, steady video.
Alan jogged behind us and ran to 6 different locations throughout the race course.
Now that is talent.
Joe: offered to be Alans’ assistant. It was a good thing
that he bought running shoes right before the race because that boy had to run.
They were to be at every mile marker to film us. They ran behind us for while,
jumped fences, cut across the course & hitched a car ride to the next point.
Joe even grabbed a margarita while running from one location to the next.
Colin: flew in from Saudi Arabia 12 hours before the race. He
is an extreme sports videographer for Warren Miller. We were all so excited that
he volunteered to film for our documentary. This guy was everywhere. He would
run behind us and then we’d see him in the middle of the road and then
he’d be up on a lamppost somewhere getting a birds eye shot. I guess filming
someone who hula hoops while jogging isn’t that much of stretch. He is
probably used to catapulting himself off a cliff to film pro skiers.
Training
If you haven’t read the race stories from 2005 and 2006 you might not know
that I never really had time to train for any of the races. Getting a Teammates,
video & picture guys (all out of town) as well as finding a charity to fundraise
for & doing PR took up all my time. Not to mention working 5 days a week at my
other jobs. In 2005, MaryAnn suggested that I try to run and hoop in the race
2 weeks prior to the race. I didn’t think to by running shoes. My old running
shoes gave me blisters, so I trained for the race in my sandals.
2007 was much different. I hired BCOR, a training service out of Denver, to help
me. Two weeks into it the guy left the company & soon after, the company shut
down. Then, I went on a road trip, for 2 weeks, stopping in New Orleans to teach
Hoop Dance at a Charter School. During that week, I sprained my ankle and could
not walk for over a week. There I was on the road trip back home, driving myself
around the grocery store in an electric cart slurping down a fat coffee drink.
I arrived back home in Aspen in late April. It snowed that whole week. Having
less than 1 month to train & reacclimatize to the altitude, I designed a really
tough cardio work out with my hoop at the gym. After the first week of doing
this circuit training with the hoop I lost about 5 pounds and my aerobic strength
was much stronger. (I am currently working on a DVD that will be a 30 minute
cross training workout. It is so much fun.)
The Race is On
Team Hoop always gets a lot of attention. People say "Wow, if she can run with
a hoop, I can surely finish!" It is inspiring to be a part of and add to the
whole event. We used the 1st mile to tighten up our team positions and commands,
traveling slowly through the crowds. The second half of the race we kept a faster
pace. The Gatorade stations still remained tricky. Our team would try to pass
through as fast as we could strategically jumping over Dixie cups, people spraying
water on to the racers & racers stopped in the middle of the course. This is
when we would hear Jason’s commands from behind. He’d yell “Okay
team. Now is not the time to drink. We’ll drink when we’re done.” Everyone
laughed and then refocused. When he & Alan caught up with us, I would hear from
behind, “Yeah Team Hoop kicks ass!”
Mile 6 is the most intense and requires the most focus. The road narrows from
2 lanes to 1. There are cattle guards & volunteers directing foot traffic. The
pulse of the drums & the cheers from inside the stadium pull everyone closer & create
such an adrenaline buzz. We all kick up the pace & sprint toward the finish line.
I had stopped talking around mile 5. I was saving energy to sprint for the finish.
My legs felt so heavy but due to my indoor hoop training program my body as a
whole felt in much better shape than last year. I told Jason in mile 3 that if
I was too tired to yell out to everyone I would signal to him. I planned to break
away from the team once inside the stadium & sprint to the finish.
The final minute arrived! My team surrounded me exhilarated by the intense focus
it took to accomplish this feat. The looks of amazement & hope were all I needed
to go into a high speed sprint. I looked back at Jason and gave him the signal.
It was quite funny. My right hand swept across my neck as if to say “I’m
done with the bubble” Then my hands motioned in front of me, showing that
I wanted to split the team in half. He yelled “ Watch out guys, she’s
coming through!” I didn’t realize this at the time but my team sprinted
along with me to the finish. And then we were done. 1 hour 36 minutes and 1 second
later.
When asked by the Boulder Daily camera 3 hours later how I felt, I said “Like
I am brain dead and have been punched in the guy for 6.2 miles.” I forgot
to add that I felt so blessed to have such heart and soul in my teammates every
single year. I forgot to tell the reporter that the willingness of the race director
Cliff Bosley, creates greater national awareness to heal through the hoop. And
I am sure I forgot to explain that if it were not for all of you, my supportive
customers and students, I might not be so inspired.
Catherine, Michael’s girlfriend, offered the team to sty in her house in
downtown Boulder. It had 4 bedrooms and a furnished basement to sleep 3 extras.
The night before the race Andy and Seth made the best pasta dinner. We celebrated
Tammy and Ed’s birthday. Around 9pm my neck started to spasm. My right
side froze up and sharp pain shot down through my arm. It came out of nowhere
and I was nervous that I would not be able to race. Siri massaged me for and
hour but it did not subside. I took a bunch of IBprofin and tried to sleep. I
got about 4 hours of bad sleep. I was in so much pain that I had to lift my head
with my hands each time I moved. I kept meditating on letting go of the tension.
I would not allow myself to entertain any thoughts of cancelling the race.
4:30am came too soon. We all got up and made breakfast. I could barely stand
up straight and my neck was still in spasm. I wasn’t raised taking pain
killers. If I was to overdose on anything it was going to be now. I took 6 IBprofin
and prayed that the spasm would go away. I decided to try mind over matter. I
couldn’t move my shoulders, neck or head. I focused on only using my core
and legs and surrendering to the pain.
The 14 of us gathered outside Vics coffee house. This is the meeting place for
most of the racers as it is at the start and the coffee is awesome. The excitement
help take my mind off my spasm and the drugs were kicking in. We lined up at
the end of our wave and did some camera testing.
And there off… we had a slow start as usual. Allowing others to pass us
until the crowd thins. Toward the end of the first kilometer we picked up the
pace considerably. Jason was back blocker and team pacer. He was calling to me
to slow down so that we could keep a good pace. I knew I should have listened
to him, I did not want to crash early on. I felt strong though. The month of
hoop/running had really boosted my cardio and rhythm. Going faster has its price!
I had never hoop/ran so fast for a consistent time. Usually the hoops speed is
faster than my pace. The forward motion of my gate moves in synch with the centrifugal
force of the hoop. This time, my running pace was far faster than the hoops speed.
This put my hoop in danger of falling. The hoop becomes wobbly as the force of
my body runs forward. Keeping the hoop level take precision in isolating the
hips and core. I did not want to slow down so I had to learn to move the hoop
faster. This took a lot out of me as I was not training core strength. I was
mostly training to synch up running with hooping and increase cardio strength.
Running at such a fast pace also made it harder for the team to keep up. Water
stations were especially tricky. This is where racers and walkers hang out. Groups
gather around the drinking tables. People walk- without looking- straight across
the road, from the water to the Gatorade table.
A few members of the team were not used to running this fast. The team works
so hard. They are communicating with the outside so that we can pass. They must
run backwards at times to make sure that no one is running toward me. They also
have to use themselves as a physical barrier when racers move within inches from
the hoop. During the third kilometer Mia wanted to grab a cup of water. She did,
we lost her for a moment. Jason pulled her back in to our circle and during that
instant, she was pulled into the hoop. The hoop popped up on my chest and wobbled
as if it was going to fall. I grabbed the hoop while running and quickly restarted
it. I knew then, that I my chance for breaking both records for speed and distance
combined, was gone. That moment was so surreal. I went deep into introspection.
I saw my goal flash before me. I saw myself getting angry and upset. I knew this
wasn’t what the race was about. I knew that I did not want the rest of
my journey to be with resistance and hostility toward a disappointing outcome.
I threw out all expectation and moved into a Zen like state. Deeper and more
present than I the normal hypnotic state induced by hoop/running. A second later
I yelled out “We’re going for time! Pick up the damn pace!”
I told Mia not to worry, that things happen and now we are setting a new record
for time. As exhausted and upset as she was, she hung in there for every step.
The team was on there game. We cruised through the next few kilometers. Joe continued
to yell out “Team Hoop comin’ through, breaking records and breakin’ hearts.” Michael,
with his superhuman power kept within a foot of me to film for the Guinness Book.
We weaved in and out of crowds. Jason kept yelling, “Pace yourself” I
actually slowed down a bit because I thought that we were farther from the finish
than we were. We had never run the course this fast. Before I knew it we running
the last stretch. Right before the last leg, I heard a loud voice which followed
us. Almost like a chant, “go team hoop, go team hoop!” I didn’t
realize at the time but it was my birthfather. I gave him directions on where
to cut through the course so that he could meet us at the finish. He is not a
runner and had just flown in from sea level. Up the hill, through the cattle
guards and into the stadium. I motioned to Jason to tell the team to part. Every
year my tongue is stuck to the roof of my mouth and my legs feel like led weights.
I have my hand motions prepared with certain members of the group. When I see
a straight shot to the finish, I break away from the team and sprint. If the
team can keep up to block, that is fine, if not, I don’t mind going for
it.
I hoop/ran through the finish and almost collapsed. This was one of the most
memorable races yet. Again, I looked around at the team. Here were regular people
performing extraordinary feats. None of the members are runners. They do not
own fancy workout clothes or extra cushioned running shoes. They are teachers,
mothers, fathers and students. And here they are, supporting my personal dream,
fundraising and adding so much love to an ordinary race.
1 hour and 14 minutes of extreme focus, strategy and faith. We broke our time
by 30 minutes! We were all running 7.4 minute kilometers! Thanks again to Cliff
Bosley for his hard work and value in thinking and working outside the box. Team
Hoop breaks their World Record in 2006!
May 29th, 2006 7:30am was the first time that Team Hoop would meet & practice.
This was 1 hour before our start time. Our schedules were just to busy to have
group trial runs prior to the race so I hoped that the team would understand
the tasks. The morning was a beautiful 65 degrees & sunny; typical mountain weather.
We all gathered in front of Vics coffee house on 30th St. This was across from
the start & a great place to do some run throughs.
I should mention that the night before Siri & I hooped for a few hours at the
local Creek Festival to a tribal rock band, Kanal. The wind in Boulder can be
fierce & that night they created a few really bad dust storms. Shortly thereafter
I had trouble breathing & realized that I might have a sinus infection.
Team Hoop consisted of 2 front runners; Mary Ann Briggs & Nick Sorge, 2
back runners; Siri Schubert & Hans. Paula was the camera woman, Peter Steele,
took still photos & Pam Harvey was an extra, handling fundraising for LAF & handing
out my business cards. I put the team in a much faster wave than last year so
that we would not have to pass as many people. We were the MD wave which is the
middle wave of joggers. There are tons of waves from running to jogging, to jog/walking,
to walking. There are about 50 thousand people in this race. It is one of the
2 biggest road races in the country! As in any team race we had to use strategy
to do well. Mary Ann was a front runner last year who has an awesome way of physically & kindly
moving people out of the way. We briefed the new team on the many possibilities
of someone entering the bubble & knocking the hoop down. We got into formation
at the start line & had our prayer circle. 8:27am. The hoop started spinning & did
not stop until the finish at about 9:54. The start was a bit scary because there
were so many joggers behind us that wanted to pass. Siri, Hans & Pam held hands
to make sure that no one ran into my hoop. The back end had to run backward at
times to communicate with the passing runners to let them know to go around.
If you are running in a race & are told to go around, your reaction time is not
quick. Everyone basically jogged the whole race with their arms out to block
others who were unknowingly running straight for the hoop. Runners came from
all sides as the race started to thin out & I hoped that my choice to be in a
faster wave would work. Pam assigned herself as a much needed middle blocker
in the back & she was still able to hand out the cards. There were many times
were I saw her, out of the corner of my eye, physically get pushed by racers
who wanted to pass her rather than go around the bubble. She held strong & did
not let anyone through.
As for what it looked like ahead of me, there were just as many racers that had
no idea the Hoop Secret Service was approaching. We would have to slow down to
let Mary Ann, Nick & Peter (who was taking pictures & front running at this point)
until they got people out of the way. I was in constant communication with the
back runners yelling commands as they might not hear or see what the front was
doing. WAIT meant that we were slowing down to wait for the front to clear so
that we could move forward, HARD RIGHT & HARD LEFT meant that a corner was coming
WATCH meant that someone slipped into the bubble & I needed them out, KID meant
that a kid running right toward me as they can move fast & not be seen, RUN mean
let’s run for as long as I can endure or until we come up to another crowd
of runners & have to break them up to get past. And my most popular phrase was
always IM SORRY-THANK YOU FOR LETTING US PASS.
Within the first mile we out ran the camera woman. She was not really trained
for this although she knew the drill. She is a nice lady who took a digger, managed
to save the camera & catch up to us once. It would have been nice if she handed
off one of the cameras to us but she did not. So other than the pre race drill
we have no live coverage. I used my standard one liner in the first mile to see
if everyone was paying attention & said that I needed to stop to tie my shoe.
Nick laughed every time I yelled “sorry” to people as we passed.
Siri had made an artistic sign which said WIDE LOAD in glitter. People were of
course running to fast to process words but I’m sure they enjoyed the image.
This race is awesome because there are so many teams running to promote businesses & causes.
There are people running in wigs, people sporting pretty underwear on top of
their shorts & families running together. What really makes this race such a
strong community event are the Boulder locals who entertain on their lawns & the
sidewalks. Boulder is known for attracting many entrepreneurs & what better way
to get exposure than to set up your band & play for the racers. We passed a number
of bands, DJS, belly dancers, & groups of people cheering everyone on with water
hoses. There were a number of water/ Gatorade stations & at one point I slowed
everyone down so that Mary Ann could hand me a cup of Gatorade as I hoop/jogged.
I never drank it before but I think it really helped.
Team Hoop hugged the left side of the road to be out of peoples’ way as
best we could. The water stations were sometimes on both sides of the street
so moving straight through the crowd was tough. Racers would run across the road
rather than go forward so it was hard to plan a course through these sections.
For a good ¼ mile after these stations the road would get sticky from
the tossed Gatorade & would become a land mine with hundereds of empty cups.
This was another obstacle because it was much harder to initiate the hoop rotation
when my feet were sticking to the ground. The cups were actually a fun thing
to maneuver. I ran over them & hoped that my foot would not get stuck in an open
cup, which almost happened many times. The problem with this was that I could
not stop short to fix anything or catch my breath. If I slowed down quickly or
stopped, the back runners would hit my hoop. If the front runners stopped because
they were having problems getting people out of the way, I would have no place
to run & would hit them, so there were a lot of factors that kept all of us on
our toes.
I had only trained the week before the race as I was teaching in California & sick & making
a few hundreds hoops for upcoming festivals & web orders. This was fine except
that I could not breathe out of my nose from the dust storms the night before
so my breath was very shallow & labored. There are banners posted over the street
marking each kilometer & then each mile of the race. We cheered as we ran through
each one. As we approached the last 2 miles I was too out of breath to communicate.
I would look over at Nick & give hand signals for when I wanted to run or slow
down or when I saw a person coming toward us. Mary Ann yelled out that we were
already 12 minutes ahead of last years’ time. I told her not to clock it
because I didn’t want to feel pressure & knew that I could still drop the
hoop.
The race started to narrow as we ran up the last hill to the stadium. I knew
this was the trickiest section of the race. Last year I hugged the rail so closely
that my hoop hit it & it almost fell down. I decided to go slower. The view from
inside a hoop is as some hoopers know, can be mind altering. The hoop can spin
so fast which makes things on the outside look like they are moving so slowly.
Perception of space & time can change if you have an awareness of what is outside & inside
the hoop.
By this point I not only had a runners’ high but also had a hoopers’ high.
It felt so Zen to me. To be so focused but relaxed at the same time. To have
control in the muscles but surrender & release in the breath. To be aware that
things could change in an instant but be so fully present in every moment. I
watched in amazement as my bubble closed in on me as the race narrowed. The energy
outside became frantic as all the other racers busted out to the finish. Our
bubble was unshakable. I saw Mary Ann, Nick, Pete, Hans, Siri & Pam all hold
hands guaranteeing that no one would enter. I knew that any mistakes which occurred
would be mine. I had about 4 inches on all sides of me so there was really no
room for error. This was the final stretch!
Within this tight little circle I felt so safe. I trusted that if I just breathed & moved
one step at a time everything would be okay. At this point the racers were running
in a frenzied state. They did not notice my green neon hoop spinning within feet
from them as they ran toward it from all sides. My hoop is 10 foot circumference.
When spinning, it takes up about 5 feet on all sides. Add 6 people to that, making
a circle of about 12 feet. I saw my bubble as another hoop. This hoop although
larger than my hoop, moved with me to protect me from all the other racers.
Although we don’t have any pictures to show this, during most of the race,
my bubble would be within inches of my hoop on all sides. There was little room
for error & in the 5th mile, 1 mile before the finish, there was no room for
error.
We entered the stadium where the racers started to thin. Our bubble expanded
so that we could pick up speed. I noticed that no one was in front of us & the
finish was only a few hundred feet away. I decided to sprint. I yelled RUN RUN
RUN! Mary Ann & Nick started to run but I think I passed them. I was taking long
strides as if the hoop wasn’t even there. It is so much harder to take
long strides while hooping because the widened stance minimizes flexibility & control
from the belly & hips. My gate was so fast that I broke out of the bubble & sprinted
toward the finish! 9:55am all of Team Hoop finished. I was surprised again. My
teamed rocked! Without their awareness, communication & group dynamic I doubt
we could have succeeded.
For any of you who actually use the hoop as a tool for deeper meditation & holistic
practices you may understand this. The hoop is like a prayer wheel. It provides
the physical space to mark your energetic space. The rotation of the hoop can
be controlled by quickly moving your hips & belly. As the hoop speeds up you
can feel it push & pull you as it hugs around your belly, waist & lower back.
You have a choice at this point to play with the controlled aspects of the movement
or to play in the surrendered state of movement. You literally cannot have one
with out the other. There is a peace that is experienced somewhere between & inside
the controlled force & the surrendered result. Stillness can be felt within the
midst of the chaos. Willingness to move, breath & think in an integrated way
becomes a sixth sense. I hoop & teach Hoop Dance with the intention to integrate
External with Internal , Universal with Self, Earth with Sky & my heart with
God. This is Zen, this is Nirvana.
When people ask me how I can hoop/run or hoop/snowboard or just hoop the way
I do, I usually give the abbreviated answer which is that I connect to the simple
physics of Hoop Dance. I am the axis & the hoop is my wheel. When asked by Channel
4 news after the race, “How do I train for this & how do I actually do
these things” my answer was this: “Zoom those cameras in & be sure
to use a wide angle!” I am a real woman with real curves who is doing nothing
out of the ordinary. I do not starve myself so that I can beat my time. I do
not obsess all year & train until my body starts to get injured. Hooping is a
weekly part of my life which has increased weight loss, muscle tone & flexibility
but most of all, hooping has inspired me to celebrate my body in a youthful way.
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