Spokane Valley’s Badass Backyard Brewing combines pints and poses in boga classes

Even if you don’t do yoga, you’re probably familiar with poses like downward-facing dog and crow. But what about cheers pose? Or the one that involves balancing a cup of beer on your head?

At Badass Backyard Brewing, boga (beer + yoga = boga) classes are changing how people enjoy both pints and poses.

Badass Backyard Brewing hosts boga classes every Sunday from 12:30-1:30 p.m. Classes are $11 for one pint and $16 for two pints.

Boga classes started after an out-of-town college friend of Badass Backyard Brewing owner/brewer Charlene Honcik posted an article about boga classes in Europe to Honcik’s Facebook page, saying “If you do this in your taproom, I will come visit.”

Another friend saw the post and mentioned she knew someone willing to teach the classes.

Honcik set up the inaugural class, not knowing what to expect. To her surprise, the class sold out within 12 hours.

“When we first started, it was every once in a while and then people were basically begging us,” she said. “They were like ‘You do this next week, right?’ ”

The first class was in February, and the Spokane Valley brewery held a second class the next month. Since that second class, boga has been offered on a weekly basis, with some bogis driving all the way from Bonners Ferry to participate.

In a recent class, participating bogis waved in women who glanced into the brewery. Turns out, they were on a road trip from Missouri and had found Badass Backyard Brewing after a Google search.

Yogis themselves, the women grabbed their mats and joined the class.

“Everybody meets new people doing it,” Honcik said. “They’ve all become friends.”

Instructor Sara Murphy, who also teaches yoga at Mellow Monkey Yoga and co-owns SUP Spokane, leads the 20-person-capacity classes for bogis of all experience levels. Bogis hold onto their beer for a majority of the class, but for more advanced poses, they place their beer on the ground.

Bogis can choose any of the nearly 20 beers Badass Backyard Brewing has on tap to drink while in class.

Honcik said the Daring Diva Raspberry Wheat is a popular choice, and the One Tree Cider is a popular gluten-free option.

What started on a whim has now become a staple event for Badass Backyard Brewing, one the brewery plans to continue as long as boga is well-received.

“We thought it would diminish towards the summer when it got nicer out, but it’s actually getting busier …” Honcik said. “We’re going to keep offering it and go from there.”