In second grade, I was terrified when my mom signed me up for a jump rope club at my elementary school. Little did I know, the sport would forever change my life and shape who I am today.
My PE teacher, who also ran the jump rope club, was a former member of the Skip It jump rope team. By forth grade, I was obsessed with jump rope enough to take the leap and join Skip Its too. Over the years I spent hours at the gym, practicing my skills, making lifelong friends, and learning to work as a team.
I began teaching through a program that enabled younger jumpers on the Skip It team to learn from more experienced jumpers. I also taught before and after school classes at multiple local elementary schools as well as numerous workshops, locally and nationally. My mom started a jump rope club at her elementary school, where I’ve been helping out for 14 years.
In 2006, the PE teacher at my mom’s school wanted to do a unit on jump rope in his PE classes. Because of injuries from his football career, he was not able to do any jump rope skills himself. He asked me to record myself teaching the skills on the skills levels that I had developed for jump rope club, so that he teach jump rope in PE. I compiled these videos into a DVD which became the very first version of Skipping Skills. I went on to create four DVDs which I sold on a popular jump rope website, at workshops, and to PE teachers and aspiring athletes across the world. Over the years, I perfected my instruction and re-recorded the program into what it is today.
Through the Skipping Skills app and web program, I hope to share the sport that has made such a positive impact on my life.
- Megan Leahy Friesth
Founder and creator of Skipping Skills