The following are perfect for experienced skippers to try. As with all partner skipping skills, they need great timing, positioning and a mutual trust between skippers and bouncers.
Skill #10
Chain Skipping and Crossover
This skill is the same as normal chain skipping but the skippers cross and uncross their arms at the same time as each other.
Skill #11
One Handed Swap
Starting position: skippers face each other and the bouncer takes the handle out of the skippers left hand with their right hand. They then skip together with one skipping backwards and the other skipping forwards. Then swap and use the other hands. The direction of the rope can be changed, too.
skip-hop tip: A common mistake is the skippers moving offset against each other. They must stay facing each other as they would usually do with partner skipping.
Skill #12
Running Into a Turning Rope from 4 Sides
Try entering the rope from the front, back and sides. When entering the rope from the back, the bouncer runs in as the rope passes their nose on the way up. In order to feel comfortable entering from any angle, children should practice entering via the front and exiting by the left or right, entering from the back and exiting by the left or right.
Skill #13
Round the Houses
A similar exercise to the Windscreen Wiper (Partner Skipping Skill #6) The aim is for the skipper to work their way round the bouncer, always facing the same direction and end up where they started.
This is where perfecting skips such as the Bell, the Slalom and combinations of the two, really pay off. Partners start face to face and the skipper jumps to the left (Partner Skipping Skill #6 Windscreen Wiper), jumps forward so they are shoulder to shoulder, jumps forward again and then to the right so that they are both now skipping inside one rope but back to back. Skipper then jumps out to the right, jump backwards to be shoulder to shoulder, backwards again, and finally to the left to end up back where they started, face to face.
skip-hop tip: The bouncer must maintain a solid rhythm in time with the skipper throughout the entire move as the skipper will, for three parts of the move, be out of their eye-line.
Skill #14
Mexican Hat
The skipper and bouncer stand side by side. The skipper brings the rope over their head and steps round so that they are in front of their partner. The rope is scooped underneath the bouncer backwards and one or two backwards partner skips are performed. This means that the bouncer must be watching the skipper to know exactly when to start jumping.
Once the skipper has decided to, he or she comes out of the face to face position and stands next to the bouncer, facing the same way and is once again skipping forward but on the other side of the bouncer.
This move is the same move performed by skippers when they are turning from forwards to backwards skipping in a 180 degree turn (Side Swing Reverse Skipping Skill #10) The skipper then jumps backwards, then sideways so they are behind the skipper skipping together, then sideways again continuing in the same direction, then forward to end up back where they started, facing the same way as when they started. They will have travelled in a complete circle, around the bouncer.
Skill #15
The Pass
Firstly, perfect the One Handed Swap Partner Skipping Skill #11. Once skippers can skip comfortably holding one handle, they give one of the handles to their partner whilst skipping. When the rope is in the possession of one of the skippers, they do the opposite and pass it back to their partner. In the end, the rope can be passed back and forth between skippers.
skip-hop tip: The more economical the skippers can be with their hands, the easier they will make it for their partners to take the moving handle.
Skill #16
Buddy Skip
Skippers face each other and the bouncer attempts to make his/her way around the skipper until they reappear from the other side. This requires the skipper to be prepared to extend their arms as far out to the side as they can to make room for the bouncer to get under their arms and around the back.
The bouncer must get as low as they can and stay as low as they can to get round the back and under the skipper’s arms. The entire move takes place inside the rope and is an ideal move for the older children to try with younger or smaller children.
Have Fun – Keep Skipping
The skip-hop Team
