I can just see it now-
Dick Fosbury changed the high jump forever with his revolutionary method of jumping backwards over the high jump bar.
John Heisman virtually re-invented American football when he introduced the forward pass.
And Ashrita Furman changed the art of spinning a hula hoop forever with his unprecedented underwater hula hooping! Uh, well maybe not, but the idea certainly sounded like fun, and quickly became my focus for a new Guinness Record!
The concept first came to me last November. I knew right off the top that I would have to use something other than plastic, because a plastic hula hoop floats! My friend, Udar, loves these kinds of off the wall challenges, so I asked him to design a few prototypes of metal hula hoops. True to form, he came up with some amazing configurations including a 4-foot hoop made from thin sheet metal with sharp edges. I confess, I was a bit nervous about that one. I could just see myself getting sliced in half (like a bagel) as I practiced for the record! Anyway, I hung the prototypes off my shoulder and, with great anticipation, cycled down to the nearby YMCA to test out my new toys in their pool.
At first, the folks at the Y were a little taken aback by my request to use their pool. Fortunately, Chris, the fellow at the front desk, remembered me from when I set the Guinness record for underwater pogo stick jumping at their facility. It seems that I made an indelible impression on Chris and I am grateful to him for getting the approval I needed.
I was psyched and ready to jump in the pool when I came across my first obstacle. In my excitement, I forgot to pack a bathing suit! The pool was due to close in 10 minutes so there was only one choice. There was nothing else to do but jump into the water with my pants on. (Fooled ya, huh!?) This was probably a blessing in disguise because, instead of getting cut in half by Udar’s sheet metal hula weapon, I only incurred a few nasty purple bruises. On my way home, I also received some amazed looks from pedestrians as I cycled past them sporting dripping wet pants on a freezing New York winter day!
Unfortunately, none of Udar’s hula hoops worked and it was back to the proverbial drawing board. After much trial and error, Udar and I finally came up with a new and promising hoop which I practiced with while on vacation in Turkey a month later. I was able to keep the hula spinning for about 30 seconds while standing in a pool in chest high water. Someone commented that my style reminded them of a waddling hippopotamus, but so what! I felt ready to submit the idea to Guinness to see if they would establish a new category.
Over the next few weeks, I became more and more proficient at my technique so you can imagine my shock when I received the answer back from Guinness. While they accepted underwater hula hooping as a new category, the rules specified that the participant had to be completely submerged under water! My hippopotamus style of hula didn’t work with my head under water. Not only was my technique obsolete, but I was now challenged with figuring out a way to breathe without carrying a bulky scuba tank on my back.
Fast forward 2 months. My old hippopotamus technique was now transformed into the new and radical dolphin technique. I found that by doing a full body dolphin kick motion, I was able to keep the hula spinning for short periods of time, all the while breathing through a hose attached to a scuba tank at the side of the pool. It was exhausting but, at the same time, an awesome workout. After another 5 weeks, I was ready to make an official attempt on the record. I thought it would be not only exciting but appropriate, to do it alongside some dolphins. (Thank God I was no longer using the hippo technique!)
My friend, Ketan, got in touch with Dolphins Plus in Key Largo, Florida. Thankfully, the manager there, Art, was totally into the project. In fact, I have to say, everyone in his company is filled with an incredibly positive attitude. Dolphins Plus is a wonderful organization. They schedule small groups of people to interact with the dolphins, and it is obvious that the staff has a tremendous love not only for the dolphins but for human beings as well. They also have a nonprofit branch called Island Dolphin Care where dolphins swim with disabled and special needs children. I was fortunate to witness one of these therapy sessions as soon as I arrived. I was deeply moved and couldn’t wait to get into the water.
With the media, an underwater cameraman and official timers in place, I was lowered into the lagoon on a platform and, when completely submerged, I began hula hooping. I knew that I had to keep the spinning for at least a minute for the record to count. Almost immediately, I heard some high-pitched noises in the water. I couldn’t take my eyes off the hula hoop, but I sensed the dolphins were swimming by to check me out. They turn on their side to emit their sonar and I’m sure they were a bit confused by the images that emerged in their brains!
I was able to keep the hula spinning for 2 minutes and 20 seconds, considerably longer than I had ever done in practice! I was elated. My joy increased even more afterwards when I was invited to get back into the water to meet two of the dolphins up close. Meghan, the trainer, told me that the smaller of the two dolphins, Bela, a six-year old female, was a real live wire. She was always getting into trouble with the other dolphins as evidenced by all the teeth marks along her back. I loved her mischievous energy and, now that I think about it, I’m sure Megan could train Bela to hula hoop underwater and break my record! And then, who knows? Maybe Bela could master the forward pass. I hear the Miami Dolphins are looking for a new quarterback!
