Bucks Happening Soars to New Heights

Over the past year, we've written about tons of interesting & fun happenings in Bucks County, but we may have just experienced our greatest adventure yet! This past Saturday, Angela & I traveled to Upper Black Eddy to take flying trapeze lessons at Fly School Circus Arts.

Upper Black Eddy resident, Mary Kelly Rayel

Bucks County native Mary Kelly Rayel has spent the last 20 years performing in the circus arts. After growing up in Upper Black Eddy & later graduating from Ithaca College with a Bachelors in Theater, Mary Kelly was accepted into the prestigious Ringling Bros. Barnum and Bailey Clown College in 1990. It was there that she fell in love with the circus arts. Lucky for us, she recently came back to Bucks to share her passion for the flying trapeze, founding the Fly School Circus Arts location in Upper Black Eddy in 2009.

We arrived at Camp Kirby for our first trapeze lesson bubbling over with excitement, our breakfasts sitting just a bit unsettled in our bellies. Seeing the trapeze equipment before our eyes, we still couldn't quite believe that we'd be up there ourselves in just a few minutes. As our other classmates trickled in, Angela & I were surprised to find a group of ten very diverse trapeze students, ranging from a 63 year old woman back for her third class to a middle-aged neuro-scientist. Everyone had their own unique reasons for taking class, too- one woman was a horse-back rider looking to push her comfort level in order to improve her jumps while another was inspired by Doylestown-native Pink‘s performance at the Grammy's. Flying School limits class sizes in order to provide personal attention to each student & allow for numerous attempts in the 2 hour class, which was really fantastic. Not only did we get to learn more, but the small group bonded immediately in our shared anticipation. Throughout class, everyone cheered each other on, celebrating the successes & encouraging each other through mistakes.

Mary Kelly and her outstanding team of flying trapeze artists- M.J., Ross, and Randy- are true professionals, somehow managing to put minds at ease while leading the group to succeed in tricks no one thought possible. We began class by practicing how to hang from a trapeze bar just a few feet off the ground, and thirty minutes later I was climbing the ladder! I knew that I was safe, being harnessed in from the second my feet left the ground, but that didn't stop my nerves from kicking in. Any butterflies I felt on my way up, though, were put to rest with the exhilaration I felt after completing each trick. As soon as I'd land in the cushy net, I was already thinking about my next trip up.

The high I felt from flying on the trapeze still hasn't worn off! I'm already planning my next trip back with friends when Fly School re-opens in August after a brief hiatus. Check out their site, follow them on Facebook, & get ready to fly!

Check out Bucks Happening's trip to flying trapeze lessons!