Chicago – A jump in sales after New Year’s is common for Jumprope.com, as folks attempt to fulfill fitness resolutions. But this year, the online retailer is doing a double take at the bump and the catalyst: “Jump In,” a new Disney Channel movie about a young boxer who discovers he loves being in between the double Dutch ropes.
“I figured it would give us something,” said Irene Henderson, spokeswoman for Heartbeat Enterprises, which operates Jumprope.com.
“I didn’t expect it so quickly.” The movie – featuring Corbin Bleu, the best friend in last year’s Disney cross-marketing juggernaut “High School Musical,” and Harvey native Keke Palmer of “Akeelah and the Bee” – highlights the competitive side of a sport often dismissed as a playground activity.
But the athleticism of the jumpers in the movie is stirring more than a few bodies to get involved, say instructors and competition organizers.
“Kids are talking about (the movie) on message boards and calling us asking questions about it,” said John Fletcher, operations manager of USA Jump Rope. Fletcher said most of the callers are interested in joining teams or starting their own.
As calls and e-mails stream in to jump-rope groups, organizers are not only feeling the power of Disney’s marketing muscle, they’re also using the movie as an opportunity to introduce and explain the sport to those intrigued by its speed, grace and excitement.
“This will be another tool we can refer people to,” said Jean Hodges, secretary general of AAU Jump Rope. “Up until now, we’ve referred to the ESPN airings of the national championships, which have been televised the last 10 to 12 years.” Hodges’ organization and others have touted the movie on their websites and in “e-blasts” to members, many of whom held viewing parties for the movie’s Jan. 12 premiere.
“There’s a buzz about it in the jump roping community,” Fletcher said. “It’s a real visual movie … especially in the last 10 or 15 minutes, when they’re showing the competition. You can’t help but look at it. … When they show national competitions on TV, people always say to me, ‘I had no idea you could do that with a jump-rope.”‘ That buzz started several months ago when Disney began airing music videos from the movie. Jump-
rope organizers and retailers believe the fuss will continue as Disney repeats the movie, which drew 8.2 million viewers, making it the most-watched Disney Channel telecast ever.
Columbia, Md.-based Heartbeat Enterprises typically sells about 10 ropes a day online, Henderson said. But after the “Jump In” premiere, about 50 ropes, mostly for double Dutch, sold through the website over that weekend. “Normally, we sell a lot of the fitness kit that consists of a rope, DVD and a manual,” she said.
“This is kind of different to see so much double Dutch going out the door.” An AAU Jump Rope workshop held in Alsip, Ill., the day after the movie aired drew about 160 participants – adults and children – five times the usual number, said Sheila Kellogg, coach of Chicago Heights’ Steppin’ Higher double Dutch team.
Jump-rope history is a little fuzzy, but some believe the activity dates to ancient Egypt and China, when ropemakers who were twisting hemp would jump over them to retrieve strands, according to the International Rope Skipping Federation website.
In the 1600s, Dutch settlers brought rope-skipping to America, where it was mainly done by boys until the 1800s, when girls were also encouraged to take up the activity, the website says. Today, girls and boys participate in competitions. USA Jump Rope says its membership is about 60 percent girls.
Interest generated by the movie is leading Kellogg to keep open registration for her teams. “Every practice session, we’ve had new kids coming in,” she said.
Now that the spotlight is on jump-roping and the gymnastics-inspired moves top-tier competitors pull off, how will the sport’s backers maintain interest after the “Jump In” buzz wears off? Five-time jump-rope world champion Rene Bibaud, who performs and instructs through her Seattle-based Ropeworks company, thinks enthusiasm and encouragement are the keys.
“It all comes down to a wonderful facilitator, … a coach, a teacher or a parent,” she said.
