We left Seattle with six passengers in a big blue van, and arrived in Cleveland with eight vehicles and 23 jugglers in tow. Highlights of the caravan to the 1981 convention included:

 

-The Rainbow Peace Gathering near Spokane, where over 10,000 joyous people hugged, sang, meditated and took care of each other on a forested mountainside. Juggling and hackey-sack were the only games in evidence.

 

-Stopping in Missoula, MT, for a quick rendezvous with Todd Bergoust in a neighborhood brimming over with juvenile jugglers. We first connected with Todd on last year's caravan.

 

-Meeting Billy Grace and Dan Bennett at Sugarhouse Parle in Salt Lake City as TV reporters clustered around and a news helicopter hovered overhead.

 

-Getting "arrested" during Jubillee Days in Laramie, WY, for "presenting a public performance without inviting the Sherriff' and being sentenced to "spend the day in town, have a great time, pass the hat and come back soon."

 

-Enduring 104 degree heat with "Pete and his pals" in Lincoln, NE, and driving all night to keep cool.

 

-Partying in parks in Iowa City, along the South Shore of Lake Michigan, and at a dozen rest stops along the way.

 

Next year we'll be taking the coast route from Seattle down to the Santa Barbara convention. If you'd ljke to explore Route 1 in "high style," join up in Seattle or enroute for a super trip. If anyone wants to organize a caravan from East to West, let me know. We'll publicize it here.

 

Thanks to everyone for having turned a radical experiment into an indispensable element of IJA conventions. This year we had 17 workshops, including a half-dozen that were organized on the spot by eager conventioneers.

 

The best workshops were those where the organizer came well prepared: John Luker on comedy and street performance; Todd Strong on stress games and challenge games; Robert Peck on three ball story telling; Ginnette Groome on multiple baton spinning; Larry Krieger on the diabolo. Some workshops had over 300 participants.

 

For next year' s effort we hope to have designated instructors covering each specific topic. If you want to nominate yourself or someone else to present a session, just let me know. One suggestion made by Henry Slack and others was for a look at juggling and health. This could include injuries, illnesses and problems with posture, feet, etc. Anyone qualifled to organize such a session, please write me. Thanks again to everyone for contributions to the learning / sharing process.

 

Ginnette Groome, multiple baton champion and all-round nice person, brought us a whole new perspective. Anyone who has leafed through Karl Heinz­Zeithen's book, "4,000 Years of Juggling"  or has seen Francis Brunn perform, or has let their imagination run wild, can see the potential for cross-breeding to create "juggling plus."

 

Where are the juggling gymnasts, foot balancers, horsemen, acrobats, dancers, singers, rope skippers, pool players, bicyclists, trampolinists, etc? How can we broaden, rather than narrow, our art form?

 

In past years we saw more use of pool cues, parasols, nested cups, spinning plates, rola bolas, rolling globes, hoops and other paraphernalia at conventions. Ideas on how we can diversify as a group, and suggestions for special workshops to help us learn about other art forms would be appreciated.

 

The most noticeable lack at the convention from the educational point of view was the dearth of contact with the general public. From now on, every convention should include classes for the local folks, so that they can be introduced to our cornucopia of skills.

 

No, my reign has not come to an end, I got re­elected again. But, in order to share the burden, Mike Vondruska has volunteered to assist me. Hur­ray! Anyone else who wants to help with the work, particularly around convention time should let me know. I'll get in touch with you when the time is upon us.