Rochester, New York Footblog

the Executioner · Post by **the Executioner** » 09 May 2005 15:16

Yes, Yes, Yes. Rochester was brilliant. Since this is the Rochester blog here I will say THANXXX for throwing a great great party weekend to Aric and Matt and the rest of the ROCH crew. I had so much fun this weekend and I didnt even kick a bag. It was cool to kick back with the coach and watch Gordon, Jordon, Schnieder, Laroche, ect going off in fine style. Bevier threw down the dropless singles and Schnieder the dropless 30 sec shred and sick 3. Jordan was of course Jordan--insane. It was just as cool to see so many people pushing thier levels this year--particularly Aric, Matt, Chris Dean, the Diggs bros, Nate P, on and on. East coast is representing.
For me there is nothing cooler than combining footbag and juggling events, so this was a highlight for me as well. My only regret for the weekend was that a fair amount of kickers did not attend the public show on Saturday night; possibly because it cost $12 to get in; but it was more than worth it and in professional style they paid us to perform (!) plus styled us with all kinds of stuff, food, ect. In the show was Wes Peden--world junior juggling champion, Olga Galchenko--world team champion 14 year old genius juggler, Dave Nager 2004 IJA 3 ball champion, Malte and Cecile from Europe who were amazing, English juggling legend Luke Barrage--2004 IJA peoples choice award winner , Eric Girardi--NYC YO YO champion and wizard and conjurer of Yo Yo, and myself doing my original hands and feet juggling routine. It was great to be in such amazing company, in a great professional theatre. I dont usually like to talk smack but I recieved 4 standing ovations for my routine which was particularly satisfying and now it seems the cat is out of the bag. The after party at Mike Anello's house was QUALITY, with plenty of fun all around, with Eric Girardi blowing our minds out of our inebriated heads with his wizardry. I've never seen Yo Yo like that--it was beyond Yo Yo. Were gonna try to get this guy out to East Coast Championships--just for the Sat. nite party. He's very cool. The Rochester crew kicked down for a huge stack of pizza late night which went well with the beer. Particular thanx to Flash for busting out the Heresy Ale also and to all who shared their goodies. (thanks again Matt, it was a good ride home.

)
Other highlights of the weekend were the empty water bottle hack circle on Sun. which was very fun, and this summer I will be skooling my water bottle kicking. Also, watch out for Olga Galchenko...if she decides to kick she'll spank us. Ok, I could go on and on but overall if you werent there you missed out. It was a blast and I will for sure not miss this again. Huge props Rochester.

cd · Post by cd » 09 May 2005 17:25

oi, I'm a man of few words but I'll try my best to follow you all with my recap.

Sooooo friday night, Zach Hoffa and Ryan Owens arrived at my place at 10. Shortly afterwards, Matt called to tell me to get my ass up to the city for all the fun I was missing. Alas, I already had a few beers in me and it was a bit late to be making the 40 minute drive there and back. Gotta rest up for the big day.
Saturday we made it to RIT by 11. Crazy shred everywhere... you all know the story by now. A few highlights stick out in my head. Nate Pipenberg was the talk of the tourney, as were the Digges's. So good. Zach also surprised me with how steady and controlled his game was. Sounds like he is building an awesome scene where he lives. I can't believe how good Mosher has gotten.
I was overwhelmed for awhile when I arrived, seeing all the shred and familiar faces and running back and forth to say hi to everybody. Aric bullied me into competing, but my shred30 could have been much better. Oh well. Slick informed me that I have a girl's name, to my dismay. The day went by and the party came, which was a great time.
You could tell that everyone was kinda low energy the next day... telltale signs of a kickass party the previous night. Hung out most of the day doing this and that, and then went to chill at Matt's place. We assembled quite the parade and marched to the park. I was ready to get shredding again, and I wish I could've stayed longer but it was time to get to work on finishing up the semester.
So that was GRASS. Big thanks to Mike Anello for hosting the party, and huge props to Aric for organizing all the stuff on his campus.

Yeah, so today's weather was too good to squander so I had a nice little session. really relaxed paradox torque bsos, plus sumo>legbeater>matador twice on each side, first attempts. midstring swirls are feeling better and pdx whirls back to back are becoming smoother. Summer vacation starts tomorrow for me, and GRASS was the best start to it possible. Footbag season has officially begun.

mc · Post by mc » 11 May 2005 18:51

special thanks to the Executioner for making post 420 in my blog about an awesome weekend of GRASS!!!!!!!!!

KronoKicker · Post by **KronoKicker** » 12 May 2005 16:50

ugh... what a day.

kicked with matt and chris today over near matt's house. started warming up with some tiltless runs and taking it really easy. first cool thing i try, dont even remember what it was, and i pull a muscle in my leg. That sucked, so i took it really easy the rest of the day. I couldn't hit anything anways, but I did manage to pull this stuff off somehow.

pdx drifter > pdx torque
vertigo
ducking pdx torque
little apple (i like this move

)

mc · Post by mc » 13 May 2005 06:22

yesterday's session was okay... definitely not the top of my game, stuff just wasn't working for me... not enough energy, and I didn't consult the coach before playing... I'd hate to think that that actually threw me off. All those moves that Aric hit yesterday were very clean and caught solidly. and he just pulled little apple out of nowhere, first try, I believe. His strings were long and controlled with good variety, and I saw more ducking butterflies than I have before.

Aric is now officially better than me.

This is sweet! It's a level of being pushed that I'm not quite used to in the Rochester area, but Aric shreds, drills, and busts (and organizes events

) harder than me. Time for me to PUSH, I gotta represent at S/S and ECFC!

I'm having a more solid lunch today, and my legs feel good. The Lilac Festival starts in Rochester today, and I look forward to getting down to the park to represent some freestyle for all the passersby. Plus, seeing all those amazing lilac plants blooming and smelling great will be a trip. It might just be the morning coffee hitting me, but I'm PSYCHED for shred later. Hopefully, playing with a large group of people around will encourage me to go for long strings of solid moves with lots of styliness, and I can crank out the shred here and there.

I'm moving from Rochester to Rome for the month of July to save up some money for my super Europe trip. I can't believe I'm going to be playing with lots of Euro stylers in just a few weeks! It's going to be one of the most incredible times of my life, I'm sure of it. I guess I need to start arranging places to crash for the events and the downtime... Anyone in Wroclaw or Helsinki want to host me? also, what's going on in the between time? I heard about a footbag camp, but I don't want to burn out for worlds.

So, being in Rome will be fun so I can encourage the Central NY state shred scene a little, we had some talented young folks 2 years ago when I was having the class. I think Yoobin Jin will start again (Smog after playing 5 weeks, Double ATW first day of playing, fairy set up to his chest first try ever, anyone?), and I know of some other rockin' hackers in Rome. Good times...

Aaaaaaaaand that's enough. Can't wait for S/S, ECFC, Euros, and W2k5!! wooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!

mc · Post by mc » 13 May 2005 13:30

solo sesh outside. I did lots of ducking clips both sides, some consecutive diving clips, 2 more fairy gyro mirages (with lots of attempts. the second was really solid). Then I did nice, comfortable gyro mirages both sides, and ducking paradox / diving mirages with all the foot switching and dex preparing done before the head dex both sides. I also hit a really clean double over gyro toe, and came really close to vertigo with no plant on both sides. I'd say I played for about an hour and 45 minutes. my footbag is dirty

I played with my felix bag today, and it worked really well. The ducks felt really good and tight. I hardly shredded at all (which is good, for me) but when I did, it was longer strings. I'm feeling like I have a bit more confidence and control, and Nick said I was looking better at GRASS. Life is good.

I'm going to go drink a beer in the shower.

ted · Post by **ted** » 13 May 2005 14:40

Matt Cross wrote:I'm going to go drink a beer in the shower.

YES. Stouts are nice because they get better when warm. I have also gone for the Sapphire tonic in the shower.

KronoKicker · Post by **KronoKicker** » 14 May 2005 14:25

Lilac festival. Today was beautiful, I got to see a part of Rochester that I didn't even know existed. We have a gorgeous park just outside of city.. I had only seen the outskirts of it before, but we played in the middle of it today. Absolutely amazing!! Felt very great to walk through the trees and flowers, reminded me of my home.

Shred was good, tons of people walking by rubbernecking, lots stopping and watching. Even had quite a few stop ask question and talk with us. My shuffle was really weird today, really relaxed and flowy kind of cool. Had one string ripwalk > sidewalk (rpt) > blur > dimwalk (rpt) > parkwalk > stepping ss mirage > parkwalk it just felt really good and controlled wasn't even slightly tired at all from it. Normally longer shuffle strings wind me a bit. It was a really short session, around 1.5 hours, due to the rain. But I did manage to hit:

diving clipper > ducking clipper (rpt x 10 approx) > diving butterfly > ducking butter (rpt x 6) > about 10 or 12 ducking/zulu butterfly

that was tiring but felt really good. Time to cook some pasta.

mc · Post by mc » 14 May 2005 15:20

WOOOOOOOO!

today was SERIOUS.

I woke up at about 10, got a call from Paul A, shredding at a coffee shop downtown. I buzzed over there on my skateboard and did some shred and styliness and my friend Phil played in his pants and brand new Lavers. Paul modded them for him, with a pen barrel and a brotch-kut (did you know that's how it's pronounced?) and I'm not sure if he cut the insides out.

Then me and paul came back to the house and played two square while Phil went to the local Goodwill to buy some shred shorts. he came back with some serious shorts on, and we went over to Highland Park to shred. The lilacs were in full bloom, and so was humanity... everyone was out, so many people to look at.

We played in an out of the way place, and did some kicking. at the start of the day, Phil was doing his toe stalls by hopping back and forth on his toes, and doing really small sets with little control. In no time, he learned to set, plant, and then stall with the other foot, and he was getting his alternating insides back and forth. Clipper was elusive, but he got it to come straight back up, and I'm sure he's got the principle, so he'll have that in no time. I'm excited for him to play, he's got super long legs and huge windows and he's really nice and really likes to play hack, and is very enthusiastic about being a better freestyler. takes advice well.

Then Paul twisted his ankle AGAIN trying a tootsie roll variation that I recommended (never seen THIS one from the Dragon Slayer... might be a Roch original. We went back to the house and consulted the coach on his injury, and the coach felt Paul should keep playing.

So, we chilled for a little bit and Paul iced his ankle with a generic Vanilla Coke and then played some two square. Aric arrived for our pre-arranged 3 o'clock shred, and we went back to Highland Park, this time in a MUCH more public area. We both busted long genuine strings with lots of both sidedness, mostly shuffle / tripless, lots of headwork, and some spinning. Aric's head stuff was unreal, he's got so much control, and is really inspiring me to drill harder so I can have that stuff as dialed as he does. As my own game goes, symp whirl now happens midstring both sides out of many different moves. I am VERY pleased about this.

Paul represented guiltless freestyle really really well, and his toe walls are making all the difference in his game. he's not getting rolloff on solid catches, but he's doing his pixie sets comfortably and controlled. I'm proud of him and his progress. He does unplanted infinities repeating at will, and he's getting midstring ripwalk very well. During our first session at the Park, he said "I want to do flip ripwalk today", and I said "okay, do it. RIGHT. NOW." and he didn't even pause to say "I've never done it before", he just looked down at his foot, dropped it on, and busted it perfectly first try. It was AWESOME. Very impressive.

Lots of people were stopping by, many people of all ages very impressed. We did great strings and invited lots of people to play. A few groups stayed and watched for 10-15 minutes at a time. I think we represented footbag very well today as a fun group activity and a respectable sport / activity. Only got one stupid comment, "It's 1980 all over again!", but I think she was just joking, and she didn't really get a good look. I busted a huge string right as she said it, so it didn't really bug me. Stupid comments bug me less and less these days, I just feel sorry for people who can't perceive the awesomeness of footbag.

okay, time to shower and shave, going out for dinner in a bit. Footbag!!!!! good day!!!!

once again, thanks to all GRASS attendees. That was a dream come true for me, and I mean that. I can't wait to see you all at the next Rochester jam, whenever it may be.

zachatree · Post by **zachatree** » 14 May 2005 16:33

sounds like a great day. hope paul heals up fast.

mc · Post by mc » 14 May 2005 20:11

ps:

from today, during the third session, these three little girls stopped to watch us kick, and their dad kept walking. The girls enthralled, the dad began to get more and more frustrated with them not coming along. Finally, he yelled, "Ho! Victoria! Other one! GET OVER HERE!!"

That got them.

zachatree · Post by **zachatree** » 14 May 2005 20:17

they where probley like, "ooooh sexy sweety men"

Paul Agostinelli · Post by **Paul Agostinelli** » 16 May 2005 00:47

zachatree wrote:they where probley like, "ooooh sexy sweety men"

#@!#$%^&shudder&^%$

they were between the ages of 6 and 10!!! (est.)

mc · Post by mc » 18 May 2005 05:17

awesome session yesterday at highland park. Paul could have come, but I've been a little lazy about calling all available freestylers for sessions lately. We arranged one for today, though, and Paul and Chris will be here for that with me. Good times.

Yesterday was Aric's last session in Rochester before going home for the summer. We busted out during the Lilac Festival, and lots of people stopped and watched. I think we represented very well with lots of long strings, good playing to the beat, and good crowd interraction. I hit vertigo for the first time yesterday, first try. I was really proud because I did the duck easily and cleanly, standing almost straight up, and I didn't plant my set foot. I was close on the flip, I'll have it soon. Flurries were NOT happening yesterday... I just didn't have the energy to crank them out. I'd better figure out something better to eat for lunch today so I can have some energy. Wish I'd done better on breakfast... All I've got now is a cup of coffee...

Can't wait to kick later... I've been playing a lot more lately, and I think it's starting to show in my game.

Yesterday, Chris hit blister (whirling gyro mirage) while I was explaining facile to a passerby, so I didn't see, and Chris was spaced out when I hit vertigo, so he missed that. That was the only bummer from yesterday.

Uranos · Post by **Uranos** » 18 May 2005 05:49

Go Matt!

Keep up the good work and props on the Vertigo!

mc · Post by mc » 18 May 2005 10:59

regarding the guy who was asking about facile...

American Chopper XL sweatshirt, scruffy, old football team hat, timberland work boots... Chris, Aric, and I were shredding, and he came up and watched for a second, and the first thing he said was, (you guessed it) "You guys have way too much time on your hands!" To which I gave the best response to that statement that I ever have... I joked, "Nah man, too much time on our *feet*!" with a smile, and he laughed, and watched a bit more. Then he asked me how I pay my bills, and I told him, straight up... "Day job, short rent, no kids... so I like to play hacky a lot." So the skepticism was waning... He stayed for at least another 10 minutes watching intently and asking all kinds of interested questions about the sport, the players, the local scene, footbags, footbag shoes. He left impressed and appreciative.

and I came to a new conclusion based on that experience.

When people come up and make some comment like, "wow, you guys must have too much time on your hands", it's because they're genuinely impressed with what you're doing, but they're not familiar enough with you to say an outright compliment... it's a social thing, I think. They must think what they see as exceptional, or else they wouldn't have anything to say about it.

I'm glad I didn't snap at him or give him some dry retort, like I usually do to handle that kind of situation. That never turns out right. The best possible outcome to that is that they just walk away feeling snubbed by the stupid hackyball kids, and that's not really a very good outcome...

So, all I wanted to say was, for all of you out there getting in a twist because of the stupid things Joe X says about something amazing that he doesn't understand, get used to it (because it's NOT going to go away) and take it with a grain of salt (because they don't mean it nearly as offensively as we take it).

With a little clever verbal fanangling, a cool demeanor, and a few awesome strings of sweet tricks, you can get some from skeptical to appreciative pretty quickly.

mc · Post by mc » 22 May 2005 17:38

started training my routine today, I see it going in 3rds, and I did the first third a few times dropless today. now I just have to think up the rest of it. I think I can put something interesting together by the end of the week... The choreography is going to be the selling point... certainly not the difficulty, I can't maintain high difficulty shred for 2 minutes, I just lose my strength. I might want to start running in the weeks before worlds to build up some endurance. It's been getting better lately, I did about a billion repeats of sidewalk > infin at the session before last.

can't wait to see you all at spike n shred!!! 6 days!!

mc · Post by mc » 23 May 2005 11:22

whenever I want to have my mind blown, I just think to myself,

"Johnny has hit toe fury"

and I just get like

for a few minutes...

damn.

mc · Post by mc » 24 May 2005 06:27

Worked more on the routine yesterday. The first 30 seconds are pretty comfortable, and I've got ideas for the rest. Hopefully, the weather will clear up by this afternoon, and I can get in another few hours of practice.

one of my main concerns about this routine is that I might go up and bomb, and the title of the song (another one bites the dust) will be just too ironic for me to handle, and the universe will implode... or I'll look like a fool, one of those two.

The good thing about this routine work is that it's great for endurance, but it doesn't totally destroy my legs for the next day. I haven't drilled shreddy stuff in a few days. This is good, because it's saving my legs for the weekend.

Today, I'll focus on part two of my routine. I'm thinking, lots of head stuff (which I can also do right on the beat) and maybe a little shuffle. I haven't decided how I'm going to end it yet, maybe I can think up something really cool and styley. Considering that I can't win on technical merit, I just want to put together the best show possible and play with the beat well. I've even weighted all my footbags to right around 45 grams so they all play just about the same, timing-wise.

Still psyched, still can't wait to see everyone

mc · Post by mc » 05 Jun 2005 09:08

it's been a while... fell back to page two for a while there. I'm in Rome now. I'm freestyling with a few kids tomorrow, and one of them is going to be going to Geneseo in the fall, so he and Chris Dean can shred. He's a really cool kid, too. I'm glad he wants to play.

a few things from Spike and Shred...

Somerville is on it's way to becoming the footbag capital of the world. The Major knows how to throw one serious party that just happens to have a footbag tournament going on

I finally got to spend some real shred time with the Cleaver, we busted hard. that kid is INSPIRATIONAL!! I could not believe how amazing and clean his BRAND NEW surging set was. I'd never seen anyone do it like him, he did it like gyro pixie. Some of the sets he did were textbook, and he did them clean on both sides!!!! Couldn't believe it...

Willie D has incredible style, all his own. he and clavens were my favorite to watch and shred with. Will is my travel buddy for my next two tournaments (ECFC and TOFU) and i'm excited to see the little changes that happen in his game over the next few weeks.

I used one of my own songs for my Routine (which, I was told, was unprecedented), and I think that worked out really well for me because after my routine, I sold all of my CDs! Thanks to everyone who bought one, anyone want to post a review or some thoughts or something?

What about me... jani walkers were working out pretty well, i think I hit it BSOS once on request. My shreds were long, good control, and I've got my midstring flapper delays happening, so that's cool. I also hit Backside Tapwater (tapping swivel), which I've dubbed Bidet. yes, I'm the founder of CROTCH (Coalition for the Reduction of Terminology Concerning Hacky) but the overwhelming perfection of the name forced me to act. Hang me as a traitor

I dunno, in general, I was playing well. The Cleaver has given me some nice compliments on my game since then, and I don't think he'd bullshit me, so I'm feeling better about playing. I'm psyched to kick later... too bad it's so warm out. Better warm than cold, though. I think I'll go kick now, actually. my goal for the day is to do 15 ducking clippers and frontside jani walker both sides. later people...