Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2013 • Outdoor yoga class offers a new experience

Publisher’s note: This story originally appeared in the Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2013 edition of the Lassen County Times.

Yoga may be a mystery to some, but in recent years it has become a curiosity to many.  According to one source, since 2001, the number of people who practice some form of yoga has grown from four million to 20 million in 2011. And the little towns in Lassen County are no exception. Lotus Path Yoga studio in Susanville is now offering an outdoor Hike, Yoga, Hike class at 6 p.m. every Wednesday evening while the weather remains warm.

Local yoga teacher, Kelly Fairbank teaches an intermediate level class at the yoga studio located at the Best Western Plus Trailside Inn on Main St. in Susanville.

“Since attendance is usually low in the summer because people prefer to be outside, I was going to take the months of July and August off,” said Fairbank. “Then Cas (Ellena) kind of came up with the idea of the helipad.”

Fairbank said Ellena, who runs the studio out of her family’s hotel, and the other yogis decided to rotate teachers so everyone had a chance to attend the plein air class, which features a quarter-mile hike up to and back from the helipad on a steep trail.

Fairbank said the hike might prove too difficult for people with physical limitations or injuries. But, if you can make it up the trail, you will thoroughly enjoy the beginning/intermediate vinyasa style yoga class.

Vinyasa yoga, also called flow yoga, synchronizes movement and breath into poses that run together and become like a dance. This style of yoga allows for a lot of variety, and will most likely include sun salutations. You can expect movement, not just stretching.

“You feel like you’re in a special place up there (at the helipad),” said yoga teacher Prairie Rose Burt.

The instructor rotation for August is Aug. 14 – Prairie Rose, Aug. 21 – Jill Poulsen and Aug. 29 – Jim Reichle. Burt said attendance to the outdoor class has been growing as more people find out about it so the yogis have decided to offer the class through September. Look for the September teacher roster in the At a Glance section of an upcoming issue of the Times.

All instructors are independent contractors who donate their time to teach and are not paid by Lotus Path Yoga or the hotel. There is no set fee for attendance, but donations are appreciated and enable the yoga program to continue. The suggested donation per person per class is $5 to $10.

To join the Hike, Yoga, Hike class, meet at the Susanville Ranch Park parking lot at 6 p.m. to hike up to the helipad as a group. Bring a yoga mat you don’t mind getting dirty and water to drink.