Teams

The Jet Set Jugglers Withstand The Heat

The Jet Set Jugglers stormed onto stage from out of IJA nowhere to win the Teams Championship and its $500 first prize. Eastman Webber and Richard Chesbrough, attending their first IJA convention, earned a standing ovation with their energetic routine set to the frantic beat of "The Heat Is On," which culminated in a nine club pass.

They opened on a darkened stage with glo-sticks manipulated in club swinging patterns, then filled the rest of their seven minutes with various combinations of club passing and synchronized juggling.

The pre-competition favorites and 1984 team winners, The Raspyni Brothers, performed a nearly flawless and technically demanding routine, but couldn't match the high energy level demonstrated by the newcomers.

Appearing on the IJA stage the night after they appeared on Johnny Carson's "Tonight" show, the Raspynis also concentrated on clubs. Dan Holzman did some three club solo work while partner Barry Friedman did four clubs. They combined juggles for seven club passing and also did nine. They finished passing six machetes while each man spun a ball on a mouthstick and a ring around one ankle.

The Jongleur Jugglers from Gainesville, Fla., worked hard during the off- season to polish their act and came away with third place for their efforts. John Creveling, Mike Stillwell and Yvonne Wetherell recited an original poem about cooperation while doing takeaways and other manipulations with three clubs. Other tricks included weaves, back-to-back passes and a three-person line feed that turned into eight clubs passed between John and Mike.

Other acts and highlights were:

· Cabangahan Jugglers - Dressed attractively in native Philippine costumes, they passed rings in a line and clubs in a four person back-to-back box.

· Catch-It-Quick Jugglers - Comedy and patter amidst three people passing up to 11 rings and 10 clubs in a line.

· Manic Expressions - Unique passing patterns and takeaways with five people, including passing from a unicycle and shoulder stand.

· Natural Acts - Demonstration of the many variations possible with passing up to eight clubs.

· Passing Zone - Club passing and acrobatic moves including leap-frog and shoulder stand by two person team. Seven clubs back to back.

· Renegade Jugglers - Theatrical juggling presentation of "A Present-Day Global Nuclear Nightmare" about a nuclear plant meltdown.