After setting new records at last year’s provincial championship, the Nelson Rhythm Ropers will play host to five other skipping teams during B.C.’s biggest competitive jump rope event of the year.
The provincial competition comes to L.V. Rogers high school from May 13 to 15, and will bring clubs from Mission, Abbotsford, Penticton, Victoria and Chilliwack. Skippers will compete individually and in teams, showing off their prowess in both the speed and power and freestyle skipping events.
The top eight skippers in each age category qualifying for a place at the Canadian National Championship.
While there are several speed and power events held throughout B.C., Roper head coach Brenda Reid says the provincials are the only freestyle event of the year.
“In freestyle they’re judged on the musicality of their number, on their movement on the floor, the difficulty of the tricks and combinations that they put together and on what they call the ‘wow’ of the music,” Reid explains.
“Basically it’s the interpretation and whether they can come up with a really neat, cool move that no one’s seen before to do in relation to the music.”
The competition also features a large group synchronization category — a Roper specialty — where teams must skip together to a two-to-four-minute piece of music.
“We’ve been winning gold since pretty much 2003,” Reid says. “We’re really well known now for our large group work.”
While the Ropers have taken provincials by storm for about a decade, Reid says there’s still fierce competition, especially from arch-rivals the Abbotsford Skipping Sensations. Like the 35-member Ropers, the Abbotsford club is large enough to field teams in a variety of age categories, something that’s relatively rare elsewhere in the province.
To cover hosting costs, the club will host a fundraising spaghetti dinner from 6 to 10 p.m. April 8 at Finley’s. Reid is also putting out a call for extra volunteers to help with marshaling, entering results, running sound systems and working the sale table on the weekend of provincials.
To volunteer with the Rhythm Ropers call Reid at 250-352-3756, or Theresa Segstro at 250-354-4140.