Fear the Addiction: My First Flying Trapeze Lesson

The author at TSNY Washington, following instruction not to look down.

Last summer I saw the Trapeze School of New York at Washington DC at their temporary set-up on the old convention center site.  Driving by, I noted to my wife, “That looks cool.”  A few weeks later I was presented with a gift certificate for the initiation fee and my first flying trapeze lesson.  Good listener, she is.  This past Saturday morning I finally redeemed my gift, spending two hours learning a few basic maneuvers on a trapeze rig 28 feet off the ground.  I took one face-plant into the rope safety net, giving me a headache and a bit of rug-burn on my cheek and forehead.  The day after, my legs were sore and my hands rough and calloused.  I can sum up my experience in three sentences, though you are welcome to read more after the jump: The experience was awesome.  The staff was awesome.  And I cannot wait to do it again.

TSNY began in 1998 when owner Jonathon Conant saw how exciting trapeze was at a Club Med vacation property. The program moved from upstate New York to Manhattan, later expanding to locations in Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Baltimore.  Baltimore’s location moved to Washington DC last year, and in February 2010 moved again into an indoor/outdoor facility on the waterfront a few blocks from Nationals Park.  There, participants can take classes in a variety of aerial and circus arts, including static trapeze, aerial silks, aerial hoops, trampoline, hand-to-hand acrobats and of course flying trapeze.  Participants need to be at least 6 years old, but no experience is required.

Saturday morning was made for flying, so I was happy I opted for the outdoor rig.  Classes are kept small at a maximum of ten participants.  We had three instructors with us for the two-hour session, which is a nice ratio to see as a complete newcomer who was even a bit intimidated by the climb up the ladder.  My class was an “all levels” class, and there were only six of us.  I and another participant were first-timers, but the other four were repeat flyers.

Our instructors — Meghan, Theresa, and Everett — have a wide range of backgrounds, none of which being life-long circus performers.  Ranging for six to ten years experience with flying trapeze, they all have an exuberance and passion for the activity that make you feel completely at ease and that you were in capable hands.  It also helps to see the very capable safety net and tight harness that each participant wears, at least that too eased my mind a bit.

How many times you are actually on the rig and flying depends on how many folks are in the class, but I would say I had about 8 or 9 turns in all.  The new folks are taught a series of maneuvers that include hanging by your knees on the trapeze and a back flip “dismount” onto the safety net.  You are patiently taught to respond to vocal prompts from the ground in the hopes of getting your motions timed right to allow for the last few attempts with a catcher.  After each try, the staff gives you suggestions on how to improve that were always extremely constructive and never condescending.  They approach with the attitude of “you can do this, and we are here to help you accomplish it.”  Everett functioned as a very capable catcher, and seeing the successful flyers being caught was quite exciting. This participant didn’t make it quite that far in the lesson as the previously mentioned face-plant into the net earlier in the lesson left me a bit shell-shocked.  I did manage to get back on the rig once more after my (safe) fall and try the trick again, and while not anywhere close to perfect I felt like I improved from my first attempt at flight.

I certainly had a mix of excitement and fear going into the lesson — not afraid of heights, more afraid of falling from heights.  But it was interesting for me how on that first attempt, I wasn’t even thinking about the height.  My thought was more, “I can’t believe I’m actually doing this.” But I did it, several times.  It was exhilarating to learn something new and feel like you can do something you didn’t think you could.

I walked back to my car after my lesson sore, sweaty, and hungry (I am always hungry).  As I started the car to drive away, I was hit with the rush of what I had just done, and knew I wanted to and will do it again.  As one of my instructors Theresa noted, taking a trapeze lesson is like being a kid again.  Whether it’s learning a new skill or just feeling like you are running away with the circus, you get to suspend reality for a few hours and be that daring young man on the flying trapeze.

TSNY Washington DC is located on the corner of 4^th and Tingey (N) Streets SE.  Classes are multiple times a day but reserve in advance.  Flying trapeze lessons are $55 each for the 2-hour sessions, plus a one-time $20 registration fee.  Discounts are available when purchasing multiple classes.