Steel City Freestyle

Najeh · Post by **Najeh** » 03 Jul 2008 22:53

yeah dog i just got those gs todays ill hit u up tommorow about modding them

Ian Brill · Post by **Ian Brill** » 04 Jul 2008 20:10

Met up with Najeh and Tyler. I modified Najeh's G-Units and Tyler's Adidas NTRN's:

These took forever, but they seem like a cross between g-units and lavers. They have the G-unit foam, inner layer material, and similar outsides. They have very laver-like toes as well. Well, somewhere inbetween. What they didn't appear to have was the perfect, flush insides. The goes in a bit at the bottom. Also the adhesive was killer and the three layers of over-lapping layer was a pita. Fortunately I only only drew blood once finishing these.

By the time the modifications were completed it was too late to kick long and I was exhausted.

Highlights:
Ducking far swirl
lots of tiltless for demonstration purposes.
Practiced hippy atomics
Not too much else.

Ian Brill · Post by **Ian Brill** » 06 Jul 2008 16:38

Major turnout today!

Najeh brought two friends today, Aaron and Josiah. Jake was there too. Two bmx kids joined in as well. It was a huge circle for a bit!

I encouraged Najeh to hit consecutive butterflies. He was able to kick the last contact.

Josiah has a very natural net style, and seems like he could easilly learn the sport.

Aaron has barely played the game, but by the end of the day he could understand even the subtleties of consecutive inside kicks and was going back and forth with more control.

highlights:
torque bsos on two occaisons. One of the strings had a really nice twirl.
swirl bsos
Some good strings.

Ian Brill · Post by **Ian Brill** » 07 Jul 2008 14:47

Time to play footbag is suddenly becoming an issue!

I have a job interview tomorrow. Seems like a good job, with great benefits and the potential for better than decent pay. I already know that I would be a great fit, so we'll see how it goes.

My personal website is getting closer to completion. I really love how flash is halfway between programming and animation. It is priming me to learn more standard programming languages as well as advanced 3D animation software. In the interim, it is also helping me to appreciate the creative constraints of HTML. My next project, I believe, will be a footbag site, done in flash.

Also, I am taking a class on building effects processors and synthesizers at the PCA, Pittsburgh's Center for the Arts for the next four Tuesdays (not tomorrow).

So, in other words, I better get some footbag in tonight! Especially since we have both a Kids Day Presentation and a Roller Derby Halftime performance this weekend.

My goals of the day are:
Double pickup B2B
Swirl, stalled on both sides
Hippy AS B2B

First I'll have a snack, and then I'll see how it goes.

Ian Brill · Post by **Ian Brill** » 07 Jul 2008 17:15

I did not complete all of my goals, but I hit parts of them. So that's cool.

Najeh · Post by **Najeh** » 08 Jul 2008 01:24

word whatup from deutschland yo. just arrived and got situated its like 11 am here so im fixin to grab my first doner kebap for lunch pretty soon (for those who dont know what that is imagine a turkish lamb gyro but infinitely better!) i got to kick a bit at various points during my journey in airports and whatnot to stretch me legs. landed a couple more of those butterfly->butterfly kick things but for whatever reason i CANNOT get my right footed butterflies to stall unless i concentrate really hard i.e. only out of a toe stall or inside kick. but then again i wasnt wearing my g6s.... anyway ian def hit me up about those drills n shit (shit meaning chocolate) and ill be posting in this thread with my progress. hope u find the time to play with some of my crew in the near future and fo sho good luck with that job interview whatever that shit is it sounds perfect for u....
peace

mattbeall · Post by **mattbeall** » 09 Jul 2008 05:08

Definitely keep us updated on your progress, and feel free to ask bunches of questions if and when you have them. Also, feel free to keep us (or at least me) updated on life in Germany because I've never been there and I want to hear about it.

I'm excited for the Roller Derby and Kids Day performances this weekend. Getting paid to play footbag is definitely on the list of coolest opportunities I've had, especially when that payment exceeds a hundred dollars. Jake deserves mad props for seeking out/booking this stuff.

Ian Brill · Post by **Ian Brill** » 09 Jul 2008 05:32

Najeh wrote:... im fixin to grab my first doner kebap for lunch pretty soon (for those who dont know what that is imagine a turkish lamb gyro but infinitely better!)

I knew I forgot to do something while I was in Cologne!

Najeh wrote: i got to kick a bit at various points during my journey in airports and whatnot to stretch me legs. landed a couple more of those butterfly->butterfly kick things but for whatever reason i CANNOT get my right footed butterflies to stall unless i concentrate really hard i.e. only out of a toe stall or inside kick. but then again i wasnt wearing my g6s....

Alright. Here is a list of tricks and combos to try, to fine-tune the motion, etc:

Left toe delay-right toe delay-left toe delay- same side butterfly (If I remember right, this is the one that is weak)
Now try Right toe-left toe-opposite side butterfly (again, this should be the same side as before.)

If you try this trick from these two different sets you should start to identify subtle but informative differences. It may even help you to right them down, one at a time if you feel like you are getting frustrated and not getting past a stage.

Here are some of the things that I can see happening in this situation:
If you set the butterfly from the same side toe, you have the advantage of starting the trick in a position closer to where it will end. However, you also have a much bigger advantage- the stage between setting the bag and stalling it requires that you get your leg quickly and accurately, out of the way, before you drop your weight down and match the speed of the bag to stall it. As long as the dexing leg was originally pulled to the side (after the toe set, which should not be within waste height or lower) and you drop into a low inside stall- your hips should naturally close in as your support leg's toe hits the ground. All that you need to do is emphasize this motion to complete a solid dexterity. Remember to hold your weight on the toe, and to distribute your arms and upper body for balance.

Now if you try this from opposite toe, it can be argued that the trick is entirely different. Again, you want to set the bag close into you- raising your knee straight up, so that the bag starts to rise up underneath it. Make the motion not too fast, so that the bag does not hit the bottom of your knee, but efficiently enough that you can set the bag waste height (or a little lower) and get your foot back on the ground. Here comes the
important part:

There is going to be a dynamic exchange of momentum. So bare with me. As your toe comes within a few inches of hitting the ground, You want to lift the other foot a few inches off of the ground. This is not intended so much to save time for the dex, but to increase the rate in which your setting to hits the ground, allowed you to spring right back up and into a butterfly. The other nice thing about having the dexing toe pop slightly off of the ground, is that it gives you a split second to aim its knee (which does much of the guiding) slightly inward, so that you can pivot from an inside stall to a cross-body stall position. The dexterity should just naturally happen, with out too much conscious preoccupation.

Everything I just said sounds crazily detailed, but it is really just a natural rhythm. You will see. It feels sort of like a hop, as you are redistributing your momentum. It's a feel that you will get you used to. You will notice it when you are doing consecutive toe stalls, consecutive clippers, and consecutive legovers. Overtime you will realize that when you are setting a bag with one toe, that although you are physically raising the bag with that foot, that leg is really your aiming leg. It is when you simultaneously start changing the direction of that leg and start jumping off of your support leg that the bag A) first clears the toe box, and B) gets it's last little pop. The most extreme example of this would be a hippy (propper) style atomic set. If you look at an atomic set carefully it almost looks like an uptime butterfly, set from toe.

Alright, so there is some theory, and some ideas. But, for now I want you to try these drills while keeping all of that in mind. Rushing rhythms is not a great way of learning them. So, again, here are are the drills for now:

Toe to other toe X 50 contacts
Toe to other toe X 100 contacts

As you are doing these, think about the hop in between each. As you are coming down with the original setting toe, spend the last few inches pivoting it to the ground by raising the opposite toe, and then hopping so the opposite toe is just underneath the bag as it is coming down. This will allow nature, or, well physics to do the work of stalling the bag for you. You will see that the consecutive motion can become increasingly refined to the point that you are popping toe stalls bag and forth like you are doing a sort of Kevin Bacon, Flashdance thing.

Toe to opposite inside, to opposite inside, opposite toe, repeat. As many contacts as you feel is appropriate. The more time you invest in this the better, though (imo).
This can be executed as a repeatable drill, enabling you develop a rhythm and a hop. This is crucial to muscle memory, just like practicing scales.

Back to Back, consecutive inside stalls: Start with 5, then ten, then twenty. If you can do fifty that is great. I sometimes can, but you need to stay in practice for this sort of thing. This is a very good drill to prepare you for clippers. Once you learn clippers you may find them easier than inside stalls, but don't put the carriage before the horse.

Now you are ready for clippers.

Try to work your way up to 10 or 20 consecutive clippers on both sides. Remember to hop in between each. This means that after each set, you start to immediately put the setting foot to the ground. Like I have said before for other moves, as your setting foot nears the ground, start raising the support foot up, just enough that it adds momentum for the final hop (back into the next clipper delay) but also so that it is freely in the air, and you can use your knee to guide direction (in case the set was slightly off, or to ensure that the landing is smoother).

Regarding consecutive clippers from one side to the other:
There might as well be a dance pattern on the ground. Think of it as a beat, cut into fourths.
After you set the bag (perhaps a few inches to the other side, rather than, or if not perfectly straight up) you should put the setting foot back down, a little bit behind you, and outside. The thing is, if you started to raise the support leg as you put the setting foot down you will find that rather than having your toe awkwardly on the ground to your side, it will have cause you hips to pivot. Now your toes should be parallel to each other, and the bag should be somewhere near you opposite hip. All you have to do is hop into it, relying on the raising of the knee for initial aiming (uptime component of the hop), and the hips for tracking through to completion of the stall (downtime).

The first half should be a quick one-two, leaving the bag near the opposite hip
The second half should be a quick three-four, resulting in a completed pass of one clipper to the other.

I would try practicing this with music. I would recommend practicing with music all of the time.

Regarding chocolate: My GF and I will reimburse you for whatever chocolate you can get us. I would say that we don't need more than 50euros worth, but that we would be happy with any. Maybe 20 is reasonable, though I don't know what size luggage you all having. So, to paraphrase, we will pay you back, and the amount is in your hands.
We like:

Ritter Sport:
Chocolate with yogurt, chocolate with strawberry or other yogurt, with hazelnuts, almonds, peanuts, the lemon one, the white chocolate macadamia one (I think it's macadamia- it's her favorite)

Giotto: Mmm. But the packaging is tricky. A couple would be nice.

Kinder: She really likes the Kinder Country ones. Those would be very well-received.

On top of that, I trust your taste and judgement. This was a long post. I will end it with some highlights from yesterday.

Yesterday Jake, Matt and I met up to plan our events for the weekend. Afterwards we briefly kicked.

Matt: Busted some very impressive strings. The only reason I don't give him shit about not expanding into more of a cross body game is because I feel he knows what he is doing. And, that imo, is mastering the disciplines of toe game. Simple domination. I have a synaesthetic reaction to each time I watch it. It's like listening to Atari Teenage Riot for the first time. Everytime.

Me:
I hit some consecutive swirls. Though I still am not in control of it, I am learning it.
I had a few strings with 3-4 hippy atomic tricks in them. They were paced, but the were both-sided.
I toed double switch over on my left side, and landed it first try (if I remember correctly) on my right.

Najeh · Post by **Najeh** » 09 Jul 2008 09:18

ok i didnt kick much today but i might have another go after a rest. i did mostly drills, consecutive stuff, and i also relaced my shoes like regular ones so that theres less of a toe-box, but so far its actually helped because i have that big soft hackey sack and it tends to get caught on my toe box if its too pronounced. other than the drills i didnt try too many tricks but i noticed that butterflies are quickly becoming more natural than clippers and im coming suprisingly close to landing a swirl (something i attempted just for fun but almost pulled of first try) and my osiseseses are getting better on both sides, too. you guys should get someone to videotape the roller derby thing so i can watch it later.

also in the beginnning stages of planning our trip to amsterdam... im fucking psyched

edit: played some more tonight thought id post about it before i sleep because it was crazy, its like 4 am here yeah jet lag still owns my ass. ok, its wierd as hell but i took a nap earlier after kicking and when i got back up it was like i was in a different universe or something, because i was freezing clippers on both sides out of pretty much anything but my butterflies were utter crap (especially on my left side which is what ive been working on) and out of nowhere my left foot was feeling really comfortable doing wierd shit like outside stall around the worlds and osiseses which until now ive only been able to do even halfway decently with my right foot. it was actually nice but at the same time a little discouraging because earlier today i was finally feeling pretty consistent or at least i thought i knew what shit i needed to work on and now i feel like all the time that i was practicing butterflies with was not time well spent or something... whatevs peace

Ian Brill · Post by **Ian Brill** » 10 Jul 2008 01:51

I wouldn't be too worried about forgetting butterflies if you are learning clippers well. They are far more important for now.

On another note, today was the trickiest day I've had in a long time. First off I did not get the job, which is the first time in in over 6 years that I did not ace an interview. Then I had a great time kicking with Matt which seems like a real step up, but afterwards my family had this melodramatic breakdown bickering about politics. Half of my immediate family is mad at each other. Like, perhaps permanently. It fucking sucks. Nothing like watching the people you love and admire act like children. Fuck.

Anyway, I finished editing footage from todays session with Matt and put some music to it. The music is sort of influenced by how I feel about life at the moment, but don't get hung up on it. I'm am mostly just happy that I get to share some Matt footage with the internetz. I will post it as it is available. I hope you like it, Bob. We made it for you.

Edit: I will have to resubmit it in the morning after all.

Ian Brill · Post by **Ian Brill** » 10 Jul 2008 08:56

I meant to post the second half. Coming up!

mattbeall · Post by **mattbeall** » 10 Jul 2008 10:04

Part 2. This is the better one.

Bob, this is for you. Sorry it took a billion years. I still hope to make a real video before the end of the summer, but posting raw footage is a good idea in the interim.

Thanks Ian for staying up all night (most likely) and getting this done. You are the illest.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOOsHGdzdlY[/youtube]

Ian Brill · Post by **Ian Brill** » 10 Jul 2008 10:56

The first clip:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKDTXO5nC6g[/youtube]

I took liberties of using a very distopic song, in an effort to evoke a response from the footage. I pulled it for a bit, but hey- The world needs more Matt footage.

The second clip, the one you will see above is a window into the footbag skills of Matt. The footage I edited out was mostly redundancy, and not weak strings. If you want to entertain yourself, try asking him what is a bail for him, or where he stands on stringing Bop.

Sorry, about my farmer's tan.

Najeh · Post by **Najeh** » 10 Jul 2008 11:10

badass vid yo ur both sick! im finally at the point where i know enough about footbagging to be able to decipher what tricks u guys are pulling off without even seeing the bag (damn youtube bringing down vid quality like a mofo). havent kicked yet today but i proly willl and edit this post later.

Rieferman · Post by **Rieferman** » 10 Jul 2008 11:38

YAY! Thanks for posting this!

Matt - You're one of those punks that's just a natural

Really though, your game and athleticism look really good. Spins, get that arm down. Tight like a figure skater. Ducks, very nice and tight. Stepping/pixie/atomic/fairy.. All look good to me. I think all the whirling concepts will be good in your game, so there's a challenge for you. Also, your sets are good enough it's time to build certain triple dexes more. I saw tapping DLO. How about all the other DLO variations? etc. Definitely get those spins though, it will look great with your shuffle. Can't wait to shred with you next time I go visit my folks in the burgh.

Ian - good to see your game again! Good to see I'm not the only 30+ year old playing footbag WITH a farmer's tan! ha ha. Twirls look like the set is getting away from you a bit making you have to lunge a teense for the catch. Can you keep it in more? The consec whirls looked good form, but a teense thin, I think again the set was getting away was the only problem. I like the way your torque looks. Swirls too. I'm looking forward to your next raw footage vid, because I know there's a ton that you hit that you didn't show us in this one.

Ian Brill · Post by **Ian Brill** » 10 Jul 2008 18:58

Something had to be said for Matt's intensity, unstoppable momentum, consistency, form and appreciation for distopia. So with the best spirits, I have suggested that we start referring to him from now on as "The Machinist".

After I suggested it to him, I googled for an appropriate "Machinist" image to post, but they all freak me the hell out! But it is that same kind of intensity that I tend to attribute to him. Hopefully you all will get to know him a lot better. Scary cool.

I can't wait to kick tomorrow.

Nils, if you get this message- could you let your crew know that we are down to kick with them? Let them have my phone number too, if you have a chance. This weekend we will be performing a bunch, but next week is all open, with the exception of Tuesday.

yacob · Post by **yacob** » 10 Jul 2008 19:33

nice videos guys, way to get them out there. I've still got some raw footage kicking around on my desktop, maybe one day.

SCF is fucking representing in Pittsburgh this weekend. I'm just sayin'

word up

Ian Brill · Post by **Ian Brill** » 10 Jul 2008 19:49

yacob wrote:SCF is fucking representing in Pittsburgh this weekend. I'm just sayin'

I just got a PM from Pips. She is gonna be in town next weekend. Let's find out about our schedules and get back to her.

Nils, man- Here are some drills that will tighten up your game:
for clippers
Toe stall- same side clipper, repeat X5
Other side

Toe Stall- opposite clipper, repeat X5
Other side

Toe-stall-op. Clipper- Same side toe- Op. Clipper- repeat, at least once
Other side

for osis:
clipper-osis-clipper-osis

Consecutive clippers is still a major first step though.

I think you should try to ease yourself back into butterflies by trying them out of toes or clippers from the opposite side, though clipper-ss butterfly really helped me develop them. Consecutive ss butterflies are a weird kind of drill that I can do all day. It really helps you develop them. If you start doing them you may notice two things:
That you will progressively start to turn in a circle. This is because you have to move your hip a little bit out of the way for each one.
The other, is that you are falling more than jumping into the delays

Don't forget to practice mirages, legovers, and around the worlds, on both legs, and in both directions.

Remember that legovers can be done two ways: midtime and down

Midtime will make you really learn how to force yourself to hold still on the stall. Downtime will make you develop accuracy, speed, muscle, and alertness. Make sure to stretch when you are doing these moves.

Shin splints are a major concern when doing these moves. Making fists with your toes for a while is supposed to help if this happens. There are other ways too. I forgot 'em.

More later!

Najeh · Post by **Najeh** » 10 Jul 2008 20:05

the machinist... i like it! lol

kicked today. didn't do anything special except for that double legover thing i was screwing around with last week, i hit it a couple times pretty smooth man it felt good. in general i feel like all the basics are coming together for me. been doing a few consecutive alternating clippers, not more than 5 or so, but its still nice. ull also be happy to hear that i contacted a few german footbaggers in frankfurt/mainz and im gonna kick with them next week! not that im the best candidate to be representing us but im sure itll be a blast. about contacting my crew, itd be mad easier if u just called them, because i have neither their phone numbers nor your phone number with me. its all good i had already told them before i left that one of u guys "ian or jake" would call them about kicking at some point so just go ahead and do so day of or the day before u plan on kicking. trust me tyler, josiah, dave and even aaron are all really interested in getting into footbag, they just need a little push from u guys to actually come out and kick (we are all lazy ass stoners). i will however send them a little facebook message of encouragement. i hope all goes well at that performance or whatever, and dont overlook the opportunity to hook up with potential new kickers at this thing, although im not sure of what kind of people will be attending.

edit: hey i started writing this before i read ur message (ian). could u explain downtime and midtime again breifly?

Ian Brill · Post by **Ian Brill** » 10 Jul 2008 20:38

You got it.

Downtime: As the bag is coming down the foot or leg starts to come around it

Midtime: as the bag is at it's peak the foot or leg is starting to come around it

Uptime: Before the bag reaches it's peak the foot or leg has already gone past it. This could be interpreted as a "set", because it is easier to add another downtime (or perhaps midtime) component to it.

I would recommend doing lots of consecutive downtime legovers. They are a really good foundation to have. I would think of them like pushups. 10 one day, 15 the next, so on, so on.

On another note:

BIG props to Jake for this hook-up at the Parks Conservancy, and to Margee for the Roller Derby.