So you want to find out what your flying trapeze class will be like? Then read on!
First Time Flyer
You and up to 11 others will be welcomed by our team of friendly professional staff who will ask you to place your belongings in a designated space and check you’re suitably prepared to start the class. We will ask you to remove all jewellery if possible, tie up long hair securely (being upside down with hair in your face is not so helpful!) and check you are wearing suitable clothing for the activity. If you can arrive already prepared, even better as it’ll result in more time for the fun part - flying!
We will explain the key safety rules of being on site and taking part in a class, then we will start “Ground School.” In this we will do a thorough ground based warm up to ensure your muscles are well prepared before starting on any apparatus. Next we will then explain and demonstrate the trick you are going to learn on a low suspended practise bar before it is your turn to give it a try.
Following this it is time to talk take offs! Our instructors will teach you how to safely and correctly take off from the platform and have you practise this position on the ground before trying it up in the air.
You will be given a demonstration of the trick you are going to perform up on the flying trapeze and then the real challenge begins!
Usually you will get three rounds of practising the trick and the instructors will then assess if you are ready to attempt taking your trick across to a catcher in the fourth round. If you are, fantastic! If not, it just means you’ll get another turn practising instead. We would encourage all people who don’t make a catch to book into another class and try again when you have refined the skill and gained some consistency. We can also give you additional ground drills to practise both in class and at home to help you achieve this if necessary. Either way, we are confident you will enjoy the exhilaration of flying through the air and leave the class on a high, with an incredible experience to share with your friends and if you really get the bug, already looking at booking your next class!
Returning Flyer
So you couldn’t stay away; excellent! Now that you’ve had your first taste of flying trapeze, we can start to build on what you learnt in your first class.
To attend this class, you must have made a catch!!
In this class we take up to 10 people so you get extra goes! Our instructors will select a new position trick to learn and work on which they think will suit you best based on their previous experience of teaching you and your background. Take off position on the board will be looked at in more detail and you will start to learn a one handed take off. You will learn a variety of fixed position tricks and will work towards making catches from these tricks and improving your consistency and confidence. You will spend a significant portion of class time learning to swing which is a fundamental that all advanced skills are built upon. Over time, this will progress to learning a turnaround swing and eventually you will move onto a half turn trick once a strong body shape has been achieved.
As a returning flyer also you will not be repeating Ground School as you have already completed that resulting in extra time to work on a new trick or technical area instead!
Frequent Flyer
By this stage, you well and truly have the trapeze bug and will find yourself daydreaming about flying trapeze pretty much wherever you are; home, work, you name it!
To fly in this class you must be able to:
1) Swing safely out of safety lines.
2) Have caught three fixed position tricks in lines, a minimum of twice per trick.
3) Have caught a half turn in lines a minimum of twice.
The returning flyer classes will help your prepare for this level and the instructors will ensure you are competent in all areas required to do this before signing you off for this level. For the swing, this includes a proficient independent take off, being able to swing independently without an instructor calling the timing and be able to land safely consistently in the net.
In this class, there will be a maximum of 8 students, you will focus more attention on refining technical aspects of skills and tricks, both in the air and in the net. Good form, aerial awareness and building specific strength for trapeze will all be the priorities for this level in order to assist you with furthering your flying trapeze future.
Community Classes
We are big believers that flying trapeze helps strengthen your mental health just as much as your physical health. We offer twice-per-week community classes, free classes open to groups of adults or children who we believe would benefit from the mental and physical effects of trapeze who otherwise would not get the chance to experience it.
In 2019 we were able to offer classes to vulnerable groups with the partnership of organisations such as Yellow Submarine and The Porch.
Our staff have all experienced first-hand the mental health benefits that flying has had in their lives, and the feedback we have received from these classes has 100% solidified our belief in the beneficial effects trapeze has on the mind as well as the body. We are immensely proud of them.
If you think your community or organisation would benefit from this programme, please email info@highflytrapeze.com for more details.