Story by Chris Brooklier
Multimedia by Alissa Barry & Alicia Greenwell

Coach Paul Bunson jokingly says that the key to juggling is “all about letting go.” With the look of an old hippie with a big salt-and-pepper beard, tie-dye shirt, and green bandana, Bunson has been juggling since he was a teenager. He joined the UO Juggling Club as a graduate student in the 1990s, and five years ago returned to begin the club again.
On a good day, fifteen to thirty people show up to the club’s practice, which takes place from 7-10 p.m on Mondays in Gerlinger 220. The group makes for an eclectic bunch. One guy wears red short shorts between white spandex and a white tank-top to go with his blond hair in a pony tail. Another member has long dreadlocks tucked behind her bandana. A third member stretches while wearing polka-dot tights.
Bunson is hesitant to call himself the coach since the group doesn’t actively compete. Instead, the juggling team performs in showcases, basically a forum where a member can show off new skills and perfect old techniques.
Team member Mike Seager first joined the team five years ago upon moving to Eugene from Iowa. Seager’s hair is a mix of pink, blue, black, and silver, a combination he says he no longer takes note of. He has been juggling for twelve years, five of which he has spent as a member of the local troupe The GreyMatter Jugglers. Seager’s show is composed of a lot of audience participation, staffs, knives, fire and unicycles. His speciality is riding a seven-foot tall unicycle while juggling fire torches with the other greymatter jugglers.
“Juggling helps with performing because I’m a high school special education teacher,” he says. “Every day is like a performance with my students.”

A Personal Account of Juggling

To truly know how it feels to be a juggler, I had to try my hand at learning the skill. At the start, juggling looks complicated and intimidating because of the number of balls going all over the place. But, as Bunson told me: “You’ll look silly at the beginning but most people get it within twenty to thirty minutes.” I had a lot of tools at my disposal including clubs, poi, and hula hoops.
Bunson always chooses to start off new jugglers with the same routine: one hacky sack and a couple of simple directions. Keep your elbows down, throw the ball to opposite sides, and when one ball is at its apex, throw the other ball. After you’re comfortable with one, move on to two, and then three balls. During the night I steadily increased the number of items I was juggling, and it became progressively harder.
While I never became fully comfortable with three balls, I tried my hand at it. By the end of the practice, I found the two most important parts of juggling to be hand-eye coordination and swagger. If you’ve got that extra confidence, you’ll succeed.
Originally published on March 2, 2011.