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2018 SEC Halftime Shows

Started by jbcarol, January 14, 2018, 08:08:32 am

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jbcarol

Curated SEC Infotainment and aggregated college sports updates where it just means more on Hogville.net

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A conversation with Red Panda, America's favorite unicycle riding, bowl flipping halftime act


QuotePerhaps the most beloved intermission act in all of basketball, Niu travels the country flipping bowls from her foot to her head from a unicycle. It's frankly incredible.

Swapping the day clothes for signature leotard and white heels, the Red Panda needs just 5 1/2 minutes for a mistake-free show to blow the top off a gym. She hits the arena's four quadrants, placing the bowls on her foot and flipping them onto her head.

Before the show, the Red Panda sat down with AL.com and revealed some of the tricks behind this magic act.

There are 16 bowls. They're metal, painted white. Custom made, these aren't found in your local big box store. This set has seen better days, too. Some are chipped with white athletic tape hiding the blemishes.

This all started when she was 7. It was her dad's idea. Growing up in China, this was a traditional act.

"I love it. I love performing," she said. "When the music starts, it's so familiar. I get so excited. I'm really into the act. The beginning is much more enjoyable. It's fun later the act goes on. It's only five and a half minutes with no mistakes. The later the act goes on, the minutes and minutes and the pressure gets higher and higher."

It's not always that perfect. There are off nights even for the Red Panda.

"I would say about 75-80 percent chance that I can make it," she said humbly. "Sometimes is a really bad day. And three times I couldn't make it. Ahh. It's so upsetting."

The whole thing is mesmerizing. Coleman Coliseum halftime food sales certainly suffered since few people left their seats at the break. There was a buzz in the building about her before the tipoff -- a love the Red Panda doesn't take for granted.
Curated SEC Infotainment and aggregated college sports updates where it just means more on Hogville.net