Since I was a kid I’ve always had a weakness for hula-hooping; I even bought my own a few years ago. Little did I know that hooping is more that just rolling the hoop hula-style around your waist.

I started noticing hoop dancers at shows and festivals. These girls could wind the hoops over their bodies so that they'd flow like water, from head to ankle, out to their arms, and back again.

Abby is one of those girls; I met her at the St. Pete Saturday Market. She is a certified Hoop dancing Instructor, and is president and founder of St Pete’s own Hoola Monsters. She invited me to photograph some of her Hooping classes.

This article appears in Jun 10-16, 2009.