Hacky Thanksgiving

C-Fan · Post by **C-Fan** » 23 Nov 2011 10:17

Thanksgiving in the US has pretty much started already. Every year I like to take a minute on Thanksgiving to stop and think about all the things I have to be thankful for. A subset of this list is footbag related items I am thankful for.

What footbag related things are you thankful for this year?

C-Fan · Post by **C-Fan** » 23 Nov 2011 11:47

Apparently, being grateful is good for you.

Off the top of my head, here's my (footbag) list of things I'm greatful for:

I'm running low on G-Units, but at least I have some left. I'm going to run my current pair into the ground, and then I have one brand new pair left, and one pair which is pretty new which I used at tournies last year. I'm grateful I have great shoes for footbag for the next couple years.

I'm grateful to be injury free now, and to have been relatively healthy for the entirety of my footbag career. I occasionally get neck and knee pains, but neither prevented me from competing last year and doing well. I know a lot of players who had careers cut short by injury, and I know I've been lucky healthwise.

I'm grateful that modified still exists. People hardly post here anymore, but I still prefer it as my information source for footbag. It's the easiest place to find videos, and the blogs offer a personal level of detail you don't get from Facebook.

I'm grateful for the friends I've made through footbag. Some of them no longer play, or my main interactions with them are separate from the sport. But I would have never found them if not for footbag. And then of course, there's that special joy that comes from playing footbag with friends, especially old friends.

I'm grateful that, after 14.5 years of playing, I'm still passionate about this sport. It's kind of amazing to me that not only have I not burned out yet, but I think I'm still getting better. It'd be hard for me to imagine the last 14.5 years without footbag. I'm truly grateful footbag found me.

mc · Post by mc » 23 Nov 2011 14:47

I'm grateful for the arrow emoticon on modified, which helps me make lists.

... NYFA, a great group of footbaggers and friends that I had to support me during my first year in a new place

... stitching, because it's cool to make footbags. I made my first 3 92 panels this year, once of which was the nicest footbag I've ever made (currently owned by Ben Cooke).

... ibuprofen, because my knee is starting to quit on me

... ankle crank, which helps me catch the footbag.

... Jay Boychuk, who gave me a free pre-release copy of Badassery (and watched me watch it on webcam), lets me watch him shred on uStream sometimes, and, for some reason, still looks up to me and thinks I'm cool, even though he's 10 times the bagger I'll ever be. Come visit me soon, Jay.

... Washington Square Park, where I've met some awesome people playing footbag, and where my friends and I have had the opportunity to show a lot of people that footbag is a lot more than hacky slack.

... Nick Polini, for supporting new players, keeping a fire going for the sport, and doing weird tricks.

... Adidas Rod Lavers.

That's just off the top of my head. Happy Thanksgiving.

F[uns]tylin' Eclectic · Post by **F[uns]tylin' Eclectic** » 01 Dec 2011 08:59

mc wrote:
... Nick Polini, for supporting new players, keeping a fire going for the sport, and doing weird tricks.

Wow. I'm touched. Thank you, Matt. That really took me by surprise. It gave me chills of joy to read that. Great idea for this thread, Ken.

I'm thankful for:

Dedicated players keeping the sport going and getting new players interested.

My girlfriend, who supports my sport 100% and actually thinks it's cool and also encourages me when I get down on myself if I can't hit a link or something.

Unusual surfaces

CRANKLES <333

Matt Cross being the very first person to show any form of hope in my game and for encouraging me to push myself, and also for inspiring me.

Mark Monistere for calling me every so often to just shoot the shit about footbag and life, and also for inspiring me.

Jon Schneider for inspiring me and for helping me out with dragon trick and other weird things, like teaching me how to hit Anchor.

Bob Riefer for showing me all he knows and for being the best shred partner/Sensei for most 3 years of my life.

Nathan Pipenberg for helping me improve this year and for pushing me to get better.

All of my footbag students, especially Jeremy Mellor and Ivan Iakamenko. You'll be hearing those names in the future.

All the East Coasters I've ever met, especially Kevin Hogan, John Goode, Doug Tank, Mike Toolan, Barrett Neimeth (Miss you man), and All the NYFA Ewoks.

Anyone who has ever given me props in a circle

Zach Hoffa

Peter Irish, Lon Smith, Gordon Bevier

Ultrasuede Light

Swirls, Spins, Torques, Stepping Ducking, & Blenders

Mike Marshall & John Stalberger

Kenny Shults