Aerial silks drops are so stunning and dramatic, it’s definitely a crowd-pleaser for sure! It can be super frightening to practice a new drop, as it’s such a natural human reaction. But rest assured, with enough practice of the basics and progressions, you’ll definitely be able to perform them with ease.
With so many variations of drops out there, below are a few favorites and tips for each. Make sure to watch the whole video to see them in action!
Spiral Two and a Half Star Drop
Prerequisites: Catcher’s lock, S-wrap, single star drop, double star drop
Wrap: Start with any type of S-wrap entry, Catcher’s lock, then wrap the silks from front to back. From there, climb your hands under your top hooked knee and pike toward the right side, kind of like a hip key. Split the fabrics on your hands and open into a big star shape!
Tips for fear: Star drops are one of the first basic aerial silks drops. You can C-shape your way down a double star if you are unsure of the height of the fabrics and are worried about the wraps. As a general rule, only attempt a drop if you are 110% confident in your wraps. Really learn the basic prerequisites first!
Bullet Drop
Prerequisites: Opposite side inversion, Knee hook to Catcher’s lock
Wrap: Invert into a Catcher’s lock and pull some slack using your left hand. Let go of the right hand and hold onto the tail with your left hand.
Tips for fear: Start with a small amount of slack, so it’s like a mini drop. This drop is super secure as long as you keep your top knee hooked!
Back Dive Double Star Drop
Prerequisite: Catcher’s lock, S-wrap, single star drop, double star drop
Wrap: Start with any type of S-wrap entry, Catcher’s lock, then wrap the silks from front to back. From there, climb your hands ABOVE your top hooked knee. Sit up in between the fabrics and cross your feet tightly. Open your body and lean back. As soon as your feet clear the middle fabrics, open your body into a big star shape!
Tips for fear: The back dive of this double star drop is the most intimidating one! You can walk down the back dive portion by using your hands to slowly guide your body backward and C-shape the double star portion down for height control. If your point is tall enough for a double star, you’ll definitely have enough height for the additional back dive. This is because adding the back dive only adds height on top instead of the bottom tail portion.
Tick Tock Variation Drop
Prerequisite: Inversion with silks apart, crochet feet, Fallen Angel drop
Wrap: Start with silks split apart and invert in between the silks. Crochet your feet in between and twist around the tails twice. Keep fabrics in the armpits and sit up above your knees while pushing those hips upward and opening. Hold each tail in each hand and bend your knees to pike backwards. Once you’re upright, place the fabrics on your shoulders and invert again into a pike position. The fabrics will catch on your upper thighs, and bend those knees to go into a knee drop!
Tips for fear: Walk down your first try, any type of back dive can be intimidating if you haven’t done it before! Use control and slow movements to invert again and hold the pike tightly to make sure the fabrics rest on your upper thigh.
Pencil Drop
Prerequisite: Catcher’s lock, Single star drop
Wrap: Start with an opposite side inversion, Catcher’s lock, then wrap the fabric from front to back. From there, wrap the tail twice around the left/bottom leg. Unhook your top knee and pike over the right. Open your body into a hollow position and drop!
Tips for fear: There’s not too much you can do to go down slowly, since this is a no handed drop. The one tip I do have, is to make sure that your single star drop is SUPER CONFIDENT. It’s essentially the same thing, except you wrap your bottom leg twice and it’s for sure going to hook. It feels scary, but it’s actually very secure.
Hope this helped you learn more of the progressions and basics needed to master these drops!
RELATED ARTICLES:
Have fun flying!
– Katelyn
