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Skyler also does a lot of what she describes as “meditating.” Not only does her body have to be in good shape, her mind has to as well.
“Before I go, I really like to envision the flight as I’m going. I like to watch old videos just to make sure that I am in the right headspace.”
She says she checks and re-checks her rocket to make sure it’s in top shape for safety purposes.
“It gets kind of cold because it’s made completely out of metal,” she says, explaining that the temperature can affect her flight.
“If it’s too cold, I will go a little shorter. If it’s too hot, I’ll go a little further,” she says. “It’s like a newborn baby. I’m constantly checking it the whole day just to make sure that it’s ready for showtime.”
Much like her dad put trust in her mom to work the cannon from the ground, she also has to trust her co-star. The woman who operates the cannon for Skyler is also part of the trapeze act.
A three-ringed destiny
In 2006, journalist Peter Carlson interviewed Skyler’s parents for The Washington Post.
“What about Skyler? Will she grow up to be a cannonball?” asked Carlson. Her mom Tina said “I hope not,” and her dad said, “If she wants to.”
Decades later, Skyler reflects on her choice to enter the circus world.
“There was no question in my mind at all. I knew that this is all that I ever wanted to do. And so when Ringling shut down in 2017, we were at the very last show that they had. And it was a very emotional thing. I remember watching the last show and just crying and telling my mom ‘I’m so upset, I’ll never be able to work on Ringling’. And then six years later, here we are.”
The Ringling Brothers circus shut down in 2017, but made a comeback in 2023.
Skyler signed her contract in an old Ringling train car that her parents had bought when they closed.
“It was so surreal, I had to keep pinching myself. Even sometimes I’m like, this isn’t real life. Like I still feel like I’m dreaming.”
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