Doing Flips at the Bishop Museum “Circus”

The Bishop Museum’s latest exhibit is Circus! Science Under the Big Top which allows guests to take part in circus activities.  Kids and adults can balance on a high wire, dress up as circus characters, learn about sword swallowing and body contortionists, identify circus animal turd, and yes, even perform acrobatic flips in mid-air. Take a look as I do some flips…

Dudes, the safety harness is kinda uncomfortable in all the wrong places but hey, it’s for safety right? Doing a back flip isn’t too hard but is disorienting as your world suddenly whips around. Doing a front (head first) flip is another story. It’s harder, but I’m not sure if it’s a mental or physical block. Throwing yourself headfirst makes you automatically want to correct your balance and pull back, and physically, you need to get your legs over the top so you can rotate all the way. I got stuck halfway around on my front flips to the disappointment of the watching kids.

If you want do flips at the Bishop Museum, be ready to wait. Since there’s no time limit for this ride, it can take awhile. After a few minutes suspended and flipping in the air, I did feel nauseous but was much better after coming down and drinking water. Bouncing and doing the flips was a a surprising workout, breaking a sweat after my session.

Head on over to Circus! Science Under the Big Top, and let me know if you could do a front flip.