RIT Juggling Club

The 39th RIT Spring Juggle In is officially set for April 8-10, 2016. That's right mark your calendars, take the time off from work, tell your friends and get ready for another great year. We'll have more updates as time goes by. Jeff

The last day of classes for the Spring Semester of 2015, was May 13th and it marked the end of the RIT Juggling club school year. What better way to end the year then with some late night food and juggling fun.  The juggling club was invited to perform and teach juggling at Gracies from 9-11 pm and many people came out to celebrate and play.  We were well received and got Thanked by the Residential Life committee for coining out.  Greg Moss even came out and passed clubs with multiple people.

This year the Club was asked to join in the campus activities of SpringFest 2015 and provide entertainment at the Tigers Care-ival tent on the grassy knoll by Global village. Friday was a great day to be outside and multiple club members showed up during the 2 hour stretch between 1-3pm. Some of the highlights included:  Alex pulling off 7 balls with sunglasses and roasting temperatures,  Alia getting better at passing and Avery doing an amazing impromptu Diabolo Vertax routine which left everyone stunned. Present club members included Alex Rozanov, Jeff Peden, Jake Hart-Predmore, Alia Jordan, Sam Kilgore, Katlyn Clary, Avery Thompson, Jared Athias, Dan Pisarcik, Zach Miller and more. It was a great way to contribute to a great RIT cause and have fun outside at the end of the year. I'm looking forward to Wednesday nights Late Night Breakfast event just a few days from now.

If you are new to juggling then there is no faster way to instant success than taking the Juggling class at RIT. As a Lifetime Recreation class in the wellness course offerings , you can even get credit towards your RIT undergrad degree by taking the class. (The class numbers are Wrec 065.01 and Wrec 65.02)  Class meets one night a week for the semester and all the supplies you need are provided.  We'll cover balls, scarves rings and clubs as well as tips on how to perform for your friends and amaze audiences. The class is taught by master instructor Jeff Peden, who has taught literally thousands of students to juggle since he began his career in juggling.  Whether you want to learn something new and stretch your skills, or become the next contestant on America's got Talent, this is the class for you.

The 2nd annual Rozanov-Buonocore Invitational Classic (RBIC) is set to be held at the RIT Juggling Club once again this year. This year with two competitive nights.  This event caps off the juggling year with club members and friends competing against their own personal best records, and aiming to create new Club Records. We're setting the record that RIT has some beasty jugglers.  Come out and set a club record, a personal best, or just come cheer on the club members. When? This year in order to accommodate even more participants we will have record setting on Monday and Wednesday night. (May 4th and May 6th) standard club times and locations What are the categories? Categories are both classic and creative. Whether its clubs, or kendama, balls or ball spinning, rings or ridiculously heavy objects it doesn''t matter.  Guinness has their book of  records and we do too. So bring your hardcore db97531, or your insane combination trick.  Everything is acceptable.

"Teach a trick, learn a trick" has been an RIT juggle-In motto from the very beginning, and this year continued the tradition. There were 22 workshops over the three days of the fest ranging from multi-plex ball moves and club traps, to club passing, hooping, unicyling and lasso spinning.  ( the complete schedule is here) Beyond that there were countless examples of jugglers, hoopers, and spin top players sharing notes and teaching each other new things.  Our thanks to all the dedicated people who donated their expertise to teach and share the joy of juggling and movement once again at this years Fest. Kyle Johnson leads a contact beginners workshop on Saturday Acro Workshop with Joanne Wu Kyle's club manipulation workshop on Sunday morning Joe Showers and Nathan Biggs-Penton share trick Willem McGowan teaches contact Diabolo Greg Phillips teaches on how to teach people to pass clubs

Greg Moss and several club members ran a "stress release" juggling workshop at the Commons on Tuesday, April 14th, 2015.  It was very well received and they taught several people to juggle. Way to represent club!.  Present at the workshop were: Greg Moss, Luke Famillo, Alec Beilanos, Avery Thompson, Alex Rozanov, Dave Lanza and Rachel Peden

By Joe Showers: The 38th annual RIT spring juggle in had it's first 1-on-1 combat tournament, run by Joe Showers.  It all started with a free-for-all for 16 rounds, to determine who placed in the tournament bracket.  The first person to win a round was removed from the FFA, and placed in the bracket.  This was repeated 15 times, with everyone's rank determined.  Then, a best-of-3, single elimination game started, until semi-finals, which were best-of-5.  The final round was best-of-7, and it came down to the wire, with Rafi Benjamin and Nathan Biggs-Penton both having three wins a piece.  Rafi nearly eliminated Nathan in the final game for the win of the tournament, but unfortunately could not control his pattern.  Nathan fired back, and knocked Rafi's clubs down, and kept his own in the air.  The winner, with a score of 4-3 was Nathan Biggs-Penton.

Dr Joanne Wu We're excited to have Dr. Joanne Wu , an integrative-holistic medicine and rehabilitation doctor who specializes in wellness, leading two separate AcroYoga workshops at the 38 th RIT Spring Juggle-In this year.  An experienced fitness and yoga teacher, she describes AcroYoga as "a fun way to challenge your body through partner based conditioning. It incorporates elements of yoga and partner acrobatics to create a dynamic challenge filled with laughter." She is a certified AYFit teacher, and trained in acrobatics with SeattleAcro, Acroyoga Montreal and Yogaslackers! Her passion for wellness (see her website at www.fit2bwell.com) has also led her to become a certified  Acroyoga Jambassador, and she does workshops with groups of all ages. Dr Joanne Wu acts as base to Joe Showers Workshop 1 Fri night April 10th 7:00-8:30 pm I ntro to juggling with acrobatics: flight and balance with fun and laughter. Cost :Special Juggle-In  discounted rate...

April 10-12,2015  marks the 38th year of Juggling workshops, competitions and shows at RIT. Sponsored by the RIT Juggling Club and RIT Student government, this event draws hundreds of talented jugglers, unicyclists, yo-yo players, hula hoopers and more together for one fun filled weekend.  Whether you are just curious and want to learn more, or are a long time juggler this is the place to be. The weekend activities start when the Gym opens Friday at 6:00 pm, and continue until the Gym closes at 3:00 pm Sunday. Highlights of the weekend include the Free shows in the Gym , Like the The Big Open show on Friday at 9 pm and the Saturday Morning show 10:00 am, as well as Free admission to watch the Juggling competitions , and attend the juggling workshops Some people simply choose to reserve their Saturday night to attend the Gala Public Show because of it's reputation for incredible variety acts year after year .  This show features some of the best talent from around...

This years 38th RIT Spring Juggle-in is slated to have it's first ever Lasso workshop!  That's right, our first workshop will also be the first time we've had an official Lasso workshop. Led by Ward Hartenstein at 7:00 pm, on Friday night, this workshop will give you the basics of spinning a flat-loop in just a few minutes.  For those who aspire to more, stepping in and out, wedding ring, and butterfly are also ideas to share.  Best of all, Ward is bringing plenty of practice ropes so you can "learn the ropes" without even owning one! Ward has long been interested in all sorts of toys and manipulations including diabolo, spin-top, yo-yo, and is thrilled to teach others. Yes, he can do tricks with a hat as well. Remember to keep an eye on the RIT Spring Juggle-In schedule, because this workshop may get repeated over the weekend from popular demand. Jeff Peden (left) and Ward Hartenstein work on their Lasso skills.

The early bird gets the...dinner and lots of extra fun. Rachel Peden, Patrik Elmnert, Wes Peden, Bonnie Booth at the 2014 Friday night Dinner That's right, as part of our recent tradition we have a group Friday night dinner @ 6pm at the RIT Spring Juggle-in. If you're joining us on Friday here's what to expect. 1) It's a "bring a dish to pass dinner" also known as bring something to share. Options and ideas: Salads and healthy snacks, munchies like chips and pretzels, desserts like cookies brownies,  drinks in cans or 2 litre bottles, (no alcohol please)   Want to make a statement?   Here are some people who have made their mark in the past. Ward Hartenstein - 3 years running with his incredible spicey thai noodle salad Kyla Ciranni and Ross Lancaster - for bringing 50 deviled eggs Austin Levesque - carefully made and delicious oreo cookie troufles Avery Thompson - a full case of bannana's 2) If what you are bringing isn...

Some of the most difficult things in the world are of course, speaking in public, riding a unicyle, and escaping from a straight jacket.  Larry Rundle can do all three.  Actually he can do them all at the same time as in his hilarious straightjacket routine.    Larry started juggling as a freshman in college, which had a profound effect on his pursuit of a degree in American Literature. In 1998, he began street performing in a small tourist town in upstate NY.  Since then he has has performed at countless venues and events throughout New York. Larry is the consummate variety artist, and with the combined performing skills of  over 17 years on the stage and street there a few things he cannot do. Juggling Torches, Whirling Devil Sticks, 6 foot unicycle with machetes, or Classic side show stunts are just a few of the things on his long list. Known for his crazy high-energy blend of stand-up and  physical comedy, as well as his ability to improvis...

The RIT Spring Juggle-In is one of the longest running juggling festivals in North America, and we are proud to carry on the tradition of great workshops and shows once again.  Hosted by the RIT Juggling Club with assistance from SG, last years attendance for the entire weekend was over 700 people! (based on  signatures at admittance) We’re looking forward to another banner year with 3 separate shows and our legendary Juggling games and Best Trick of the convention competition. In addition to great fun, this event also acts as a fundraiser for The Dystonia Medical Research Foundation, which will receive a portion of all profits. Admission to all events in the Gym are free. The Public Show Saturday night is $18 adults and $12 for children For complete information go to our main page, or check the fbook event page When:   Friday, April 10–Sunday, April 12 Where: RIT campus, Clark Gym How Much : All juggling events and workshops in the gym are free! Th...

Famous Female Jugglers pt 2 by Ward Hartenstein Jenny Jaeger (1909-1986) was a Russian juggler who joined her father’s juggling act at the age of five. She was a child prodigy, juggling 8 balls at the age of nine and 9 balls at the age of 12. She performed 10 balls in her act at the age of 15 and continued to feature the trick for four years. Her father insisted that she stop including it in the act as it required too much practice. To this day, no other performer has ever included 10 balls in their daily act. Her act also featured amazing balances of up to five objects at the same time, six rings while bouncing a ball on her head, and a unique trick of bouncing a prop on her head that consisted of a stick with large rubber balls on each end. The prop would flip 180 degrees with each bounce. She continued to perform until 1960. *Ward Hartenstein is a collector, creator, musician, historian and juggler. He will also be attending the 38th RIT Spring Juggle-In , you can catch up wi...

Company McQuiggs is taking their thrilling three person show on the road and going south of the border this spring.  For most United States citizens, "South of the Border" is Mexico, but for these three, who are currently studying at École de cirque de Québec in Canada, they only have to travel South of Mexico New York..(Yes, there is a city called Mexico, New York) Company McQuiggs, will be presenting their act PLD at the RIT Spring Juggle-In Public Show on April 11th. In PLD , Nathan Biggs-Penton, Willem McGowan, and Kellin Quinn join together to create a show filled with tangled arms, uncomfortable catches, and a routine that involves 48 props in the air at once.  Nathan and Willem will also be teaching workshops during the weekend. Kellin will be going to the Mighty Taco down the street form RIT to get some of that famous "South of the Border" cuisine Juggling acts aren't really created to be described with written words though, they are created t...

More Yet-to-be-approved Juggle-In events by Ward Hartenstein INTROVERT ENDURANCE COMPETITION Contestants will gather in a large dimly-lit sparsely-furnished space. A silent signal will be given to commence the event. From this point on, competitors will avoid eye contact and limit verbal interactions to monosyllabic murmurs. Meanwhile, intense mental activity must be maintained, as monitored by neural electrodes attached to each contestant. Physical juggling is permitted, but is not required. Whether or not juggling is overtly displayed, contestants must exhibit pronounced activity in the intraparietal sulcus area of the brain. If the level of intraparietal activity falls below a level of 2.3, the contestant is eliminated. Prolonged eye contact or conversations are also grounds for elimination. The participant who maintains a pristine introverted juggling mental state for the longest duration will be declared the winner. Please note that this event may last much longer...

 FAMOUS FEMALE JUGGLERS! by Ward Hartenstein Lottie Brunn (1925 –2008) is generally regarded as the fastest female juggler of all time. She and her brother, Francis, were born in Germany and came to the United States in 1948. She performed 8 rings at the age of 14 and had a phenomenal career performing all over the world. Her act featured ball spinning, combination tricks, and toss juggling with balls, rings, and spring head clubs. Lottie was given the IJA Historical Achievement Award in 1992. *Ward Hartenstein is a collector, creator, musician, historian and juggler. He will also be attending the 38th RIT Spring Juggle-In , you can catch up with him there.

There was a good turn out to club on Wednesday despite the wind and cold. Some highlights of the evening include the following: Everyone was excited to see Alex Rozanov back at club, and Tim Peterson stopped by to say hi before he headed out on 5 week touring job with a Theater company. Harrison continued his new fashion look of mixed business casual, which started at the beginning of the semester.  Always unique, his own special look is comprised of shirt, tie and tail. Not a "tails" like a tuxedo, rather a more casual fox tail. Alia set a new personal best for 6 club passing with 10 passes in a row.  Yasmeena was feeling adventurous and had Luke and I teach her multiple things relative to club passing.  She learned how to walk through the center of a 4 count pattern. how to stand in the center of the pattern and walk out and how to do club take-outs and steals from the 6 club pattern. Solomon brought his latest pair of whips and demonstrated some 2 handed...

Grace Alexander is coming to the RIT Spring Juggle-In, April 10-12, 2015.! It's often said that a picture is worth a thousand words. That being the case, what would  you say about Grace from this picture?  I'm thrilled that she is joining us at the Juggle-In this year.  Due to restrictions on campus Grace will not actually be using a lit Hula Hoop in the show, but she is sure to burn up the floor with her moves. More about the show here

That's right, Kyle Johnson , a Bay area resident and native to the West coast is slated to travel to the Far East ( of the continental U.S) to perform at the 38th RIT Spring Juggle-In on April 10-12, 2015. Arguably many people would say that the "Far East" was the Orient, but from here that would be farther East.  We do at least have a really good Sushi Resturant in town. ( Osaka Sushi) A prolific contributor to the IJA ezine with countless " trick of the month " videos, he was also recently listed in the Top 40 Jugglers list for the 4th year in a row. His incredible ball juggling and mind blowing contact skills are mesmerizing Most importantly he's coming to Rochester for the Juggle=In and we can't wait to have him here. Kyle will be performing in the Public Show of The 38th RIT Spring Juggle- In, April 1-12, 2015 In the meantime you can catch up with him on Facebook Kyle Johnson at his website http://www.pullingshapes.com/ or just ...

Last night the RIT Juggling Club rocked it's first ever performance at a major sporting event, doing a 9 minute set for the RIT basketball halftime show with an audience of over 300 people.!  It was a great representation of the skill we have at club and a huge success.  Present were club members who came out to cheer on the group (Danny, Dave, Harrison and Michelle) and Yasmeena who became our official photographer for the night.  The show included pinball style juggling by Jake Hart-Predmore, diabolo by Sebastian Ferlo, Rings by Alex Rozanov, 3 and 5 club work by Sam Border, club passing with Luke and Jeff, numbers ball juggling with Sam and Alex and a diabolo routine from Avery Thompson.  Greg Moss also came out to help keep things in order and make sure the performers had what they needed for sound and microphones. Pictures from the event will be coming soon.

Everyone at RIT is psyched about the return of Sky King as our house DJ this year at the RIT Spring Juggle-In. This will be her third year now driving the music, and just like getting your first internet smartphone, once you have Sky playing your music you can't imagine doing it any other way. Many of you know that Sky brings a magical touch to her music playlists, but you might not know that she actually does magic on the side as well. Last year Mark Hayward was filming his great 365tricks series and he got Sky to do a trick for the camera. check it out at his site., or just click the link Sky's Magic . Here's a picture of Sky working her magic from the laptop at the 2014 RIT Spring Juggle-In.

  It's SuperBowl Sunday, which got me thinking about competitions.  Don't get me wrong, I'm no hardcore sports enthusiast, in fact I even had to look up the names of today's teams.  However, I have recently become a fan of competition. Po Bronson wrote a fabulous book called Top Dog which focuses on the science of winning and losing.  (great NPR piece about it here ) In the book he covers what makes winners different, and what the benefits of competition, even in the arts, can have. Competitions help drive people to be better, to strive harder and to take risks and go beyond their comfort zone.  Competitions are also just fun to watch, as we all love seeing someone pull off that impossible last minute shot, or impeccable high dive. At the RIT Spring Juggle-In this year we will continue our tradition of competition with games on Saturday afternoon.  Whether it's 3 ball blind, 7 ball endurance or Best Trick of the convention it's always amazing to watch the...

Making time go faster, or slower, going back in time, going back to the future,  these are things that fascinate people everywhere.  Of course when we look back in time it's always described as a "flash". For example that great quote from Babs in the movie Chicken Run, "All me life flashed before me eyes, It was really borin'."  Well a weekend at the RIT Spring Juggle-In is never boring and now you can relive the entire 3 day event in under 6 mins!  Jay Ko of the PhillyJugglers has created a time lapse footage of last years event and you can watch all the action flash by and remember your favorite parts. Of course being there live is even better, so make sure you reserve this years dates for the 38th RIT Spring Juggle-In on April 10-12, 2015, and check out the Fbook event page , or the RIT club web site

   RIT Juggling Club Night - Wednesday 2015/1/28 Jeff Peden   Ball juggling, club juggling, diabolo (Avery and Sebastian), devilstick (Luke), club passing (Luke, Jeff, Alex), beginners learning(Ashley), staff spinning(Harrison and friends), "pinball" style 3 ball (Jake), fast hand speed 3 ball(Quinn), it was a pretty full night if you missed out. Speaking of "missed"  we happily welcomed back Susan Aikman, and Yasmeena  who had both been away, and we missed the presence of Danny Buonocore. Planning for our performance at next weeks half-time show for the RIT women's basketball game on  Feb 6th. got started as well. Alex Rozanov did a run of reverse spin mills mess with clubs for the camera . I also got photo proof of Sam Border doing nice 4 club moves with his new white clubs. "He could teach you, but he'd have to charge".   Photos -Alex Rozanov, Sam Border

That's right just 71 days until the Juggle-In!   71 is actually a pretty awesome number . 71 is the 20th prime number. 71   is also a permutable prime with 17. And... If we add up the primes less than 71 (2 through 67), we get 568, which is divisible by 71 , 8 times.   Notice that...  8 times!  just like 7+1 = 8 71 is the number of different characters that can be used with a standard English Keyboard, excluding uppercase letters. 71 is the form number for the United States Office of Personnel Management for requesting a leave of absence. (credit to Wikipedia for much of this trivia ) The SR- 71 , a high altitude, high speed reconnaissance aircraft had an unrefueled range of 3,500 miles, and its two Pratt and Whitney J58 turbojets generated 60,000 pounds of thrust while guzzling 8,000 gallons of fuel per hour. The 19 71 Ford Mustang  A 1971 Mustang Mach 1 was featured in the James Bond film, Diamonds Are Forever (19 71 ) which was t...

Ward Hartenstein submitted this to the Facebook Event page today Yet-to-be-approved Juggle-In events: OZZY SAYS Of course the only reason that it's yet to be approved is that we are waiting Ozzy Osbourne's availability to attend the 38th RIT Spring Juggle-In event (April 10-12, 2015) Yet-to-be-approved Juggle-In events: OZZY SAYS Based on the ever popular “Simon Says” competition, this juggling event would feature iconic utterances from Black Sabbath lead singer, Ozzy Osbourne, such as: Ozzy says, “Juggle with boots of lead to fill your victims full of dread.” Ozzy says, “Rocket engines burning fuel so fast, juggle in the black sky so vast.” Ozzy says, “Now you know the scene, juggle until your skin starts turning green.” Ozzy says, “Juggle now and I will sigh and you will laugh and I will cry.” Ozzy says, “Robot minds of robot slaves, juggle to atomic rage.” Ozzy says, “Big black shapes with eyes of fire, juggle as the flames get higher!” Ozzy says...

Well the saying goes " the more things change the more they stay the same" .  The 38th Juggle-in, on April10-12, 2015  is no exception. For example I was backtracking through facebook and discovered promo for the 31st RIT Spring Juggle-In getting started this weekend as well.  The other thing that stays the same is all the great times people have connecting with friends. Thats why the logo back in 2008 showed two jugglers facing each other as if they were passing 

One of the many things I love about the Juggle-In is seeing the wide range of talents and skills all sharing the same space from beginners to pro's. Everyone gets a chance to learn something new. As usual we'll be having workshops for beginners and intermediate to advanced levels. If you'd like to lead a workshop get in touch with us at RITjuggle@gmail.com, or post something here. This photo from the 2005 Juggle-In features a young Olga Galchenko trying out a diabolo, and a younger Rachel Peden doing rings.

The 38th RIT Spring Juggle-In is coming ! Below is a picture of the toss-up photo from 2005, 10 years ago. 10 years ago marked the first RIT Spring Juggle-In that I coordinated, along with the help of many other people, most notably Jeff Lutkus.  It was in 2005 that we had Olga Glachenko, Wes Peden, Malte Stienmetz Luke Burrage, Dave Nager and more.  It was a great show and fest.  I'm looking forward to another incredible year once again.  

The 38th RIT Spring Juggle-In  April 10-12, 2015 It's been sometime since this blog was active, but with the sudden deletion of the club website from the RIT servers, I'm going to start posting here again. The 38th RIT Spring Juggle-In is set for April 10-12, 2015 at the Clark Gym on the RIT campus. If you are on face book you can see the event page here: facebook event page