For the LOVE of Pole

This month, for the blog hop, we are talking about love.  That can mean a lot of things to a lot of people.  I struggle with the concept of love.  I didn't grow up with a super lovey huggy family, so I am not super affectionate and loving.  It's something I struggle with.  Don't get me wrong, I can love me the shit outta some cake, but I have a harder time connecting with people.  I have my public persona and my private persona.  And even in close relationships, I have a hard time letting that private persona out. 

So today, in order to avoid some of my issues, I'll be talking about the love of pole.  I have been struggling in my relationship with the pole.  I am not the strongest in tricks, nor am I experienced as a dancer.  So, I feel like I don't have as much to offer when I perform.  I have worked really hard on my flow and being aware of my arms and legs, so that they look "pretty" when I move them.  But most of my performances are all smoke and mirrors to hide the fact that the most advance pole move I usually do is a back hook spin. When performing in front of non-polers, I can still fairly impress people. 

This weekend was a big one for me in my pole life.

Saturday, Sean Michael took over the Triple Tease (Tricks, Twirls and Transitions) class on Saturday mornings.  I had a really great class.  He is so patient and was able to talk me into moves that I haven't been able to do before.  I also learned some new spins.  And he gave me some exercises to help with strength.  I have a list a mile long of pole goals, but I am starting with basics.  I need a strong climb and a strong sit.  I am really excited to get back into a regular class.  Since starting my job in San Francisco, I haven't been able to go to the Wednesday night class.  I want to feel like I am continuing to learn so that I can teach my Monday night class, Boys, Girls and Twirls, some new moves. 

Saturday night, we set the x-stage up for Robert's fundraiser.  I performed in front of a non-Twirly Girl audience!  I performed in front of family and friends!  It was really cool.  I will write more about that later.  It was a really exciting night, though, and it further solidified my love of pole.

On Sunday, I took a choreography workshop with Amber Richard.  I love that Amber is tall like me, and has really strong and beautiful legs.  In LA, she teaches a class called Rock Hard Bodies.  And she has one.  But she's also still very feminine.  You can tell that she's strong and in amazing shape.  But her muscles aren't so ridiculously pronounced that she looks like a man.  Anyway, we worked on a little routine.  Even though I have a lot of strength to build before I can make my moves look like hers (if I ever do...she has a background in ballet and is way more flexible than I am), I was able to struggle into each of the moves she taught, even if only for a few seconds.

I realize I come on here every six months or so talking about how I've found my motivation, but this time I really do need to stick to a fitness routine, which will help me get stronger for pole.  I did join the 24 Hour Fitness near my house and am going to start hitting up some cycle classes to help get this big ol' legs in shape.  I do love pole dancing.  Even though I have been tired and grumpy lately, I love coming to class and smiling and laughing.  So, for the love of pole, I will stick to my routine so I can meet my goals.  Finally!

Men on the Pole: Bob Zamora

Another Man on the Pole!  Meet fellow-blogger and pole brother, Bob!

"Men on the Pole" has become a popular subject. How did you get interested in pole dancing?

A female friend of mine started taking pole classes from Lori Huett at TranZenDance LTD in Denver, CO and she was totally loving it. She mentioned that Lori had worked with men and I thought it sounded like a lot of fun.

What is your fitness background?

I have played ice hockey since I was 13 and I'm still playing. I’m also a Master Level Certified USA hockey coach. I’ve coach all levels from Beginner to High School. Ice hockey is in my blood.

 What is your fitness routine (on and off the pole)?

I take two classical ballet dance classes a week, one pole class with Lori Huett a week and just lately I’ve been working with Estee Zakar twice a month. During the summer months I drop one ballet class and play ice hockey on Wednesday nights. I used to weight train but pole pretty much replaced that part of my workout.

What kind of diet do you follow?

Pretty strict low-carb. Type-2 diabetes is huge in my family tree. My major weaknesses are Starbucks and red wine.

How do you describe your pole style?

My style is a combination of the pole moves we all know and love blended with classical ballet. My style has been heavily influenced by Amber Richard and Elena Gibson. I’m totally into the artistic side of the dance.

Which competition(s) do you like to do? Do you have any title(s)?

I have never been to a competition. I never really considered it. 

Where do you train? Do you have your own pole studio? Do you have a pole at home? 

The majority of my pole dance training is with Lori Huett at TranZenDance studio. I have two Platinum Stages brass poles at home. One is 50 mm and one is 45 mm. My Christmas present this year was the 45.

What is your favorite product to help you stick to the pole?

Dry-Hands has always been my favorite.

What is your favorite song to dance to (at this moment)?

Any Other Name by Thomas Newman from the American Beauty movie soundtrack.

Do you have any other upcoming events/competitions you'd like people to know about?

I’ll be dancing in the May 2012 TranZenDance Studio open house.

What else would you like people to know about you and/or your studio?

I never danced before I took my first pole class. I’m nearing the end of a 30-year career as a research meteorologist and had never been in touch with the artistic side of my brain. Lori Huett brought dance in to my world and I will be ever grateful that she has made a place in her studio for men.

*****

Please follow Bob's pole dancing adventures on his blog:  http://manwhopoledances.blogspot.com/

Poletry in Motion: BeSpun

Last weekend, Rita and I went down to Los Angeles for the California Pole Dance Championship.  Since I was going to be in town, I wanted to take classes from different studios.  So, we scheduled classes at BeSpun in Hollywood and OC Pole Fitness in Aliso Viejo.  While driving home, I told Rita I wanted to create a little "corner" of my blog for reviews of studios I try while I'm traveling.  Rita came up with "Poletry in Motion."  I LOVED it so here we go!!

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I first heard about BeSpun when I found videos of the owner, Leigh Ann on YouTube.   I was still new to the pole dancing industry, so I didn't realize that a lot of the pros were coming out of BeSpun.  The current US Pole Dance Champion, Natasha Wang, is from BeSpun.  Amy Guion, a recent interviewee in this very blog, and competitor in last weekend's CPDC, manages BeSpun.  Alethea Austin, who performed at Poletential's Air Show a few months ago, teaches at BeSpun.  Amber Richard, from Poletential in Redwood City, is going to school in Southern California and also teaches at BeSpun.  Anjel Dust, who put on the CPDC, teaches there too.  I am sure I am leaving out many other important pole dancers, but those are the names currently listed on their website that I recognize. 

Rita and I made reservations to take class with Amber Richard.  Our class was scheduled for 2 p.m.  The studio is located in a pretty interesting part of Hollywood.  We didn't have to park too far away but we definitely wouldn't have made the walk if it had been dark.  You walk into the back of the building -- through a chainlink fence and a large, heavy rolling door -- into an MMA gym.  It's a big building that smells of testosterone and sweat.  BeSpun is actually inside of the MMA gym, Legends.  Two girls were standing at the front desk.  I could see Alethea sitting behind a desk.  We chatted with the girls for a minute, then realized we were actually talking to THE Leigh Ann!  She was so sweet.  The receptionist checked us in and had us sign paperwork while we chatted with Leigh Ann.  Rita asked her about whether she was offering other aerial arts and Leigh Ann said that they wanted to focus on what they did well -- pole dancing.  They were shaping competition level athletes.  Fair enough.

Leigh Ann told us to go through the pink door and watch the end of the class before ours (which was being taught by Amy).  Amber happened to walk by and we quickly said hello and then Rita and I walked to the pole room.  There were a few guys on the mats grappling.  The place definitely smelled like sweaty man (not necessarily a bad thing).  I saw the pink door and opened it.  The room seemed so small and a couple of girls turned around to look at us.  I thought I was interrupting and quickly closed the door.  We waited until Amber came back and she told us to follow her.  

It was like falling through the tree into Wonderland.  We walked into a completely different environment.  The pink door opened into a small room, which seemed to be like a warm up area.  But when you turned to the right, there was this extremely long room with tall ceilings and a bunch of poles.  There were couches set up to sit on, a fire place and cool brick walls.  There was a huge X-Pole sign on the wall.  The lights were all red.  It was no longer an MMA room.  It was a pole dancing studio.  

The class was much more advanced than Rita and I -- we call ourselves Bel's special needs class.  Yes, we've been dancing for almost two years.  But we have injuries and issues and we think maybe Bel doesn't want to push us too hard so we've spent a lot of time not advancing in pole.  I think we both walked away from BeSpun wanting to fix that.  We are ready to get strong and start really dancing!  

We started with a great warm-up and stretch, almost yoga-style, including some sit-ups.  Amber is a great teacher.  She describes a move, demonstrates it, then comes around to make sure everyone is doing it properly.  Rita and I went to the very end of the room so we could muddle through without getting in the way.  Amber checked on us several times.  We ended class with a free dance.  I took a few things away from the class:  First, I want to start warming up better.  Second, I learned how to climb prettier (and busted out a new move!!!).  Third, Amber (and I would assume BeSpun) absolutely believes that you should learn each move on both the right and left sides.  I currently only use my dominant hand (right) and only do moves one way.  So we spent a lot of time doing basic moves on our non-dominant side. That was pretty cool.

BeSpun was nothing like Twirly Girls.  Not to say they weren't friendly -- everyone was amazing and so nice to us.  But in class, they were very serious.  There was very little interaction between students.  They worked hard from the second they arrived until class was over.  The studio is definitely a place for people to train and become pro competitors.  Still, we had a great experience there and liked seeing how other studios worked.  Amber is an excellent teacher and she dances so beautifully.  I especially like that she is so tall (so many dancers are these tiny little things).  She's got these beautiful muscular and long legs.  Her abs look great.  She said she's been doing a lot of plyometrics, so maybe she can teach a class for us at Twirly Girls when she comes back for a visit!

So anyway, that is my first Poletry in Motion review, which will be my personal opinion of the studios I visit.  BeSpun in Hollywood is definitely a place you should check out if you're in the Southern California area.  Other than being a little star struck when you see famous instructors and dancers, their classes are well-taught and structured.  I am hoping to make more trips down to So Cal for Social Sonar and other pole events.  I am looking forward to taking another class from Amber and checking out other studios!

Oh yeah, before I go...when we left, Rita and I hit up the bathroom, which is really a big locker room/shower area for both men and women.  There were some lockers and one said, "E. Balfour."  I love the actor, Eric Balfour.  I was like, could he possibly train here??  I whipped out my cute little smart phone and typed in "Eric Balfour and Legends."  He does in fact train there (and may actually be a co-owner or investor), so I rubbed my body all over his locker (sorry, Mr. Balfour!!).  :-D  When I got home, I told Rob about it and he said that when he watched a recent episode of Haven, Eric's character did a martial arts type of move and Rob thought he pulled it off well for someone who supposedly wasn't trained in martial arts.  But now we know that he IS actually trained in martial arts.  Totally random piece of information...and gave me a good giggle because Eric Balfour is hot and I totally molested his locker!

 Amy Guion

 Rita twirling

 My new move...I'm not touching the floor!!!

Amber Richard

Eric Balfour's locker -- yes, I am a stalker