Last Sunday, 19 March, Bernadette Smith, Katrina Muir and I (Janine Lattimore) hoop-walked the 6km version of the Christchurch City to Surf.  As far as we know, this is the first time anyone has hoop-walked this event.  Unfortunately, none of us made it the whole 6km without dropping our hoop, but this was mainly due to issues with space and interaction from other participants rather than lack of ability on our part.  If our path had been free and clear the whole way then I think we could have hoop-walked continuously from start to finish.

However, for us it was mainly about participation, and the personal achievement of hooping for 6km.  It was a warm, sunny day and much of the walk included beautiful scenery of the port hills.  I think we all felt very positive about being involved, and a great sense of satisfaction as we crossed the finish line.  My goal was to be an inspiration for my two children and my daughter said that she would do the walk with me next year so I was happy.

Just for interest sake, I couldn’t find any officially set records for hoop-walking.  There are some records for hoop-running.  We hoop-walked 6km in about 1 hour 40 minutes.  Paul “Dizzy Hips” Blair from USA hoop-ran 10km in 1 hour and 6 minutes, and Sasha Kenney from Great Britain did it in 1 hour 5 minutes.  Sasha Kenney also holds the record for hoop-running a marathon with a time of 5 hours 5 minutes.  She must have been one very fit woman!

In light of that, what should our next goal be?  Bernadette and I tried hoop-running for short distances during the City to Surf.  It is very challenging but like anything, it is probably just a matter of practicing enough that your body finds the rhythm of it.  When I first started hoop-walking to train for the City to Surf I found it very awkward and frequently dropped the hoop, but by the time I was doing the actual event it felt quite effortless.  Maybe we could work on setting a New Zealand record for hoop-walking or running as a start.  I did find it motivating to have a desired outcome to work towards.

What is your next hooping goal?