Flippin' great fun | Auckland Sport | Surfing, Rugby, Soccer, Football, Cricket in Auckland

Hannah Sanders meets a Shore brother and sister bouncing their way to the top of the trampolining world.

Joshua and Natasha are already bouncing as they run through the gym, although not on their trampolines yet. They climb excitedly on to the big blue and white rectangles and jump high into the air, twisting and turning at stunning speed.

The siblings are at a training session of North Shore Trampolining Club. Ten-year-old Joshua and his sister, Natasha, 8, love sport. Joshua also plays soccer and softball, Natasha dances and plays netball. But trampoline is their favourite.

"It's fun to just bounce," they explain. They've been at it a few years. Joshua started when he was 2  and Natasha's been bouncing since she was four.

North Shore Trampolining Club was founded in 1994 with only half a dozen children. Today, it has about 300 active members and is the biggest trampoline club in Auckland.

About 60 athletes compete, says head coach Leo Kimble. Many have been successful at local or national tournaments, including the Adams kids. The pair participate in six or seven competitions a year. Their latest achievement was in July at the South Island Championships in Christchurch. Natasha got first place in synchro and second in double-mini, while Joshua won silver in all three of his events.

Neither is nervous before competition. "It's really exciting," says Joshua, "but it's always so much fun."

As for their favourite move, Natasha likes them all but, pressed, concedes "flips are the best". Joshua thinks "Rudi is pretty cool". For those unfamiliar with trampoline terminology, the Rudolf or "Rudi" is a single-front somersault with one and a half twists.

The kids trust their skills. Their mother knows the risks of serious accidents are very low as all measures are taken to ensure safety. Still, when she sees her children doing the "crash dive", a three-quarter front somersault to land on the back, she says it's not always easy to watch.

"They've got a lot of potential," says coach Kimble. The Adams children will try out for the national championships in September and he thinks they might  have a chance to represent New Zealand  internationally one day.

Love on the rebound

Although quite a young sport, trampolining has reached Olympic status and is a recognised discipline of gymnastics worldwide. It's divided into four specialist disciplines. The most common of these is trampoline, when the athlete performs a combination of 10 tricks, earning points for difficulty and form. When two athletes on adjacent trampolines show identical routines is called a synchro.

Then there is double-mini, in which the athlete runs down a track and performs two moves on a special trampoline. Lastly, is tumbling, a series of eight tricks on a sprung track.

All disciplines, except tumbling, are taught at the North Shore club.

To find out more, see: www.northshore trampoline. co.nz