how the pain began

recently, i’ve had several peeps ask about how HooppaiN came into being.  so, i thought i’d share the real story with you freaks.

last year, dbug and i were roommates in portrero hill.  both crazy, avid hoopers, we found that the weekly bah practices were simply not enough (and that we generally hated the music).  so, we started jamming together in the living room during a couple of weeknights, pounding the upbeat music we preferred at high volume, exploring the effects of intoxicants, yada, yada, yada.  one day, blazed out of my mind, i tried to say hooping, but it came out hooppain.  i laughed my ass off at the mis-speech, and how apropos it seemed to our aggressive style, and wrote it on the whiteboard we had in the living room.  we also started coming up with phrases like, “if you ain’t dropping it, you ain’t doing it right” and “total fucking control, then let go.”  the ground was set.  Hooppain was born.

and, we kept on doing it.  pretty soon, the idea of inviting others to participate seemed the natural progression.  we both had great peep connections through bah, peeps we knew would enjoy the scene without restraint.  lassoo laroo was the first person to jam with us, joined soon thereafter by shooting star. we started thinking about having some live dj’s instead of just rocking the ipod.  the four of us began making it a regular weekly event.  we started to document with pix and video.  then evil bendy and frankenpain came into the hoop circle, helping to prevent stagnation.  the six of us made it happen for quite awhile, with occasional visiting painers.  bendy introduced the joy of sharpie art.  experimental clothing became de rigueur.  more dj’s became interested in participating.  we started hooping more at clubs together.  the tribe group became a reality, as did the website and facebook group.

soon queen pain and proud mari joined us, bringing new energy and ideas. and hilly and carl and maria and jen and doug.  lately, pixie and khan and agent peach.  visiting hoopers from all over the world started making it a point to check out the scene. dj amber, dj jaiyoung, dj showman, huggiebear, and dj noah, to name a few, have spun for us and with us.  no wallflowers.  everybody hoops.

and we started firepain.  the basic elements plus fuego.

now, it is the most reliably fun event i participate in.  we always have a fucking blast.  our hoop skills have universally improved.  we have all become tight friends.  a subgroup of us has joined solar flare for fire performances and, hopefully, conclave at burning man.

we’ve gotten a reputation, kind of like the bad boys and girls of hooping, which i wholly approve of.  we are bad asses.  we throw down.  no squirrel nonsense here.

at the core, it is still about not getting caught up in copying someone else’s style, but developing your own. we still interfere with eachother’s hooping (dbug loves to throw hoops at everyone).  these days i get more bruises from these fuckers than from my own thwackiness.  and, it is still ultimately about having a great time on hump day for a few hours with quality peeps.  as long as these things remain and progress, i don’t see it ending any time soon.

so, now you know.  if you want to join us, fill out the request for pain form.  the initiation doesn’t hurt that much…