Want to see if you can really fly? For the adventurous, flying trapeze lessons are a consideration

Let me forewarn you: if you are afraid of heights, even remotely, this is not the activity for you, at all, in any way. However, if you’re the kind of adrenaline junkie that’s looking for a way to give yourself a rush, while adding flair, drama and style to your weekend, then you may want to consider flying trapeze lessons with the Circus Fund.

Unfortunately for me, I’m one of those people who freaks out if I’m too close to the ledge of a staircase that is higher than two stories, so the fact that I was taking flying trapeze lessons immediately sent chills down my spine.

When my friends coerced me into taking these lessons, my immediate reaction was to try and laugh my way out of them; who really goes, straps themselves into a harness and then falls at will into a net 25 feet below? Apparently, my friends are some of those few who find this type of thrill riveting, or so I thought.

However, there are quite a few individuals who are interested in the “circus arts.” There are two locations that the Circus Fund teaches at: one in Escondido and the other in Del Mar. The Circus Fund offers ongoing classes, along with semi-private/private lessons available for bungee trapeze, static trapeze, silks, Spanish web, lira, hoop, cloud swing, double trapeze, and more.

We signed up for the Intro to Trapeze Level 1 class, in which we would learn how to “swing, fly and catch” with the help of the instructors. Sure, there were lines, harnesses and a net involved with each jump through the air I’d make, but the moment I saw just how high the platform was, my heart jumped into my throat and stayed there.

The instructors explained that we were going to learn the basics of flying into the air on the ground, just so we’d immediately forget them the moment we got to the top of the platform. We were going to learn how to stand so that once we jumped into the air we would be able to do a basic swing, positions and catching.

After some basic instruction, we were sent up the ladder to make our first jumps into the air with our trapezes. As I watched the first few individuals scream out “trapeze words” as they clutched the trapeze, I didn’t feel better about the choice I’d made to come to the lessons.

However, I made myself climb the rickety ladder to the top of the 25-foot platform, I was already breathing hard and whimpering as I reached the top. I clutched the platform, and began to position myself for what I was sure would be my last living action.

In order to properly execute the banana swing, which is the most basic of trapeze swing moves, you have to stand at the very edge of the platform, with your toes hanging off of the edge. From there, you have to bend your knees and lean your pelvis forward as you reach for the trapeze bar, which weighs about ten pounds and strategically placed so that you feel like you’re going to topple over the moment you grab it.

Once you’ve got the bar solidly in your hands, you have to reach out with your left hand and grab the bar with both hands, bend your knees and simply jump off the platform, gracefully drifting through the air and then jumping into the net with a gentle land.

That would have been fine with me, except that I couldn’t get past the fact that I had to jump off the platform. There was a high-pitched sound that floated through the air, and it took watching the video footage later to discover that the noise was coming from me.

Finally, I bit the bullet and jumped. I did well going down; it was the swooping up that was hard for me. In my panic, I managed to let go of the bar and try to run onto the net, then “gently” on my face, arm and shoulder. I had never been so happy to not be moving.

You’d think that at that point, I’d have quit and gone home, but I had to redeem my initial jump. I wish I could say that I defeated my fears and sailed over the net, learning how to flip and tumble effortlessly. However, I was just too plain freaked out to do more than scream as I went down.

My friends were a little more successful than I, learning how to flip upside down, hanging on by their legs and being caught by an instructor. I felt a twinge of jealousy knowing that I probably needed a dose of Valium before I tried anything like that again. The girls that I went with are excited for their next lesson; I’m excited to root them on from the safe, unmoving ground.

For some, this class will motivate them to want to run away and join the circus. For me, this class made me realize I was made to live on the ground level of buildings to ensure that I don’t ever make a high tower, death-defying attempt like this again.

More information on the Circus Fund can be found at

http://www.CircusFund.org.

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