CP students at practice last Thursday Photo Sophie Braccini

Did you feel the earth move? Hear the thunder of hundreds of little feet? On February 1st, from exactly 9:00 a.m. to 9:10 a.m., 338 students at Camino Pablo Elementary School (CP) in Moraga jumped rope, without stopping. At stake was the Guinness World Record for "Most People Jumping Rope at the Same Time." The prior record was set in Australia, where 59,000 people jumped rope. CP joined with more than 360 other schools in California for a total number of jumpers unofficially estimated at over 80,000. (When the official numbers are posted and the World Record confirmed, we'll publish an update on our web site at www.lamorindaweekly.com.)

At precisely 9 a.m., the entire backdrop of the school was covered with children neatly lined up by class, from first to fifth grade. When the music started, an uninterrupted ballet of multi-colored ropes began, swirling over the flying hair of hundreds of happy children. The neat lines did not last long, but although the students sometimes struggled with the plastic ropes they still managed to continue jumping, cheered on by their teachers and school staff.

"The children have been preparing for days," says Amber Petersen, the CP P.E. teacher who started it all, "the school bought all the jump ropes with which we've been practicing during P.E. classes, and the kids have been jumping at recess and sometimes even in class."

The program is supported by the California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (CAHPERD), in partnership with the American Heart Association and Governor's Council on Physical Fitness & Sports. The rules of the contest required that at least two independent judges be present on site and that participants stopping for more than 10 seconds would be disqualified. At CP, the judges included firefighters from the Moraga Orinda Fire District.

CP Principal Deborah Roden was very supportive of the event. "This is a worldwide event and that fact alone has gotten the children very excited," said Roden, "and I am very favorable to anything that has to do with fitness."

The children shared the same enthusiasm. "I'm very excited because I want to be in the Book of Records," said 2nd grader Ariell; her friend Sarah added, "I practiced a lot and I like to jump a lot." The same enthusiasm was shared by the older students. Sean, a 5th grader, described the experience as being a lot of fun. For some, 10 minutes seemed like a long time, "It felt like I jumped for an hour!" said 3rd grader Isabella as she sat on the floor with her friends, catching her breath.

"Our efforts have been a good reminder to the community that maintaining a physically active, healthy lifestyle can be achieved at any age and ability," concludes Petersen, "We are so proud of our students who made this a great success."