why do people want footbag to become mainstream?

Kyle Hewitt · Post by **Kyle Hewitt** » 12 Dec 2008 01:31

do you not like the community so much you want to get rid of it? if it becomes mainstream and the players like david jim vasek etc etc start to get rich and shit when do we get to shred with them? what about the generation after that?

do we really not want to be able to shred with the top players? do we really want to give up what we have just so footbag becomes popluar to everyone?

Jeremy · Post by **Jeremy** » 12 Dec 2008 04:36

It really depends on how you frame the question.

Let me put it another way. Is footbag good because of what you personally get out of it, or is it intrinsically good for what you're doing when you're playing?

Is the benefit something personal, or is it something everybody could get if they built up the skills, regardless of their environment?

Johnny · Post by **Johnny** » 12 Dec 2008 04:44

So that the greatest people in the sport can live off of something they've worked so hard to achieve.

C-Fan · Post by **C-Fan** » 12 Dec 2008 05:29

1. Why do we assume that if footbag got popular, we'd no longer be able to play with the top players?
2. If footbag did get popular, it's not like the number of good players would decrease. If anything, it'd increase the chances of more top players being discovered. Personally, I'd be excited if in the next year 10 new players with the potential of Vasek popped up all over the world. More top players=more top players to play with.
3. If footbag became wildly popular overnight, I would still have the same friends in the community. It's not like I would lose my friends... just the opposite, I'd have more potential friends.

PoisonTaffy · Post by **PoisonTaffy** » 12 Dec 2008 08:22

I personally am trying to spread footbag here in Israel so as to have more people to play with, introduce an awesomely rewarding sport into other people's lives, and maybe a little because people appreciate what I can do much more when they've given it a go themselves

I don't think footbag is at a spot where we should concern ourselves with the problems overly popular sports have to face, and I don't think we'll get there any time soon. Right now I know that footbag could use more people in it, especially in my immediate area, therefore I am interested in spreading it. Somewhere between anonnimity and soccer there's a sweet spot called "popular/familiar enough", and that's where I'm striving.

On a serious note, I wouldn't mind footbag being bigger than soccer if it made people stop asking "Can you do that with a REAL ball?'

C-Fan · Post by **C-Fan** » 12 Dec 2008 08:30

Another thought: I play basketball. I love the fact that I can go to almost any city in the world and play pick-up ball with strangers. It's also nice that when people ask me what sport I like, I can say "basketball" and not have to defend/explain it.

If footbag became popular, I think it would be cool to see random circles on street corners and parks in every city, and be able to just jump in and play with people.

Slowsis · Post by **Slowsis** » 12 Dec 2008 08:36

Bitches. I want maaaad bitches. And bling.....and a low rider with a 32 as the hood ornament. Until I can get these things for being a mid-level guiltless/genuine player, I hope footbag stays small.

colefieldhouse22 · Post by **colefieldhouse22** » 12 Dec 2008 09:13

C-Fan wrote:Another thought: I play basketball. I love the fact that I can go to almost any city in the world and play pick-up ball with strangers.

This is true and very cool, but, you can't go to any city where there are basketball players and have an automic connection for people to hang out with and show you around the city. That is what is so exciting about the footbag community. You have friends wherever you go. You can't get that with a bigger sport.

PoisonTaffy · Post by **PoisonTaffy** » 12 Dec 2008 10:27

I've been practicing Aikido for some years, a pretty widespread and popular martial art.
I know that I can go to any city, walk into the local dojo, attend a class and make some friends. When I visited Japan, my teacher's teacher took us out for dinner and his students invited us into their homes and made us feel like esteemed guests, and not like the bunch of badly mannered schmoes we are. We're not high ranked masters, but we are their Aikido comrades.

I can't explain why Aikido is like that, perhaps partly for the non competitive nature of it. But it does go to show that a sport can be big, yet community oriented!

richardabshire · Post by **richardabshire** » 12 Dec 2008 10:41

C-fan is right. Footbag would only spread. You might be able to play with top players more since they could quit their jobs and make a living at footbag. There would be more events, better products and RESPECT for the sport of footbag. Nothing wrong with walking down the street and runnig into a circle of shredders. Richard Abshire

Frank_Sinatra · Post by **Frank_Sinatra** » 12 Dec 2008 12:05

Johnny wrote:So that the greatest people in the sport can live off of something they've worked so hard to achieve.

C-Fan wrote:[...] and not have to defend/explain it.

I think that would be great.

Kyle Hewitt · Post by **Kyle Hewitt** » 12 Dec 2008 13:05

im talking about if it gets something like the NBA for competitions. whens the last time you played basketball with one of those huge players?

C-Fan · Post by **C-Fan** » 12 Dec 2008 13:33

I still don't understand why you wouldn't be able to play with the top players, even if footbag got as big as the NBA. Couldn't you just train hard enough to be able to play at that level? I'll never be able to play with NBA players because I'm simply not built for it (too short, small hands, etc). But with footbag, people with bodies as different as Pinkus and Chad can get to top-player levels.

I guess I just don't see what you are worried about.

Frank_Sinatra · Post by **Frank_Sinatra** » 12 Dec 2008 14:51

There's such a big gap between where we are, and NBA level of fame, ego, money & hype, that it is silly to worry about said fame, ego, money & hype destroying the community.

professor · Post by **professor** » 12 Dec 2008 15:31

I honestly will be happy with footbag whether the same amount of people play it in 10 years or it explodes and it reaches NBA status. But I wanted to respond to one thing:

C-Fan wrote:But with footbag, people with bodies as different as Pinkus and Chad can get to top-player levels.

I think different body types can be top-players now because we're so small (community wise, not body size). I don't think we really know what the ideal body type is yet because so few people play it. If it were "NFL-popular", I think we'd see the optimum body type players rise to the top. I honestly believe there is a optimal body type (leg type is actually more likely), we just don't know what it is.

Chim-Chim · Post by **Chim-Chim** » 12 Dec 2008 16:35

There might be people to kick with if it were mainstream, more places to play in the winter.

habitat · Post by **habitat** » 13 Dec 2008 15:08

I dare footbag to become mainstream. Come on, do it!

Oh wait, it can't. Ever.

(in USA)

mosher · Post by **mosher** » 13 Dec 2008 21:54

I sorta hate having to go on a 20 minute sidetrack any time footbag is brought up around strangers. I'd love to just say 'I play footbag' and continue on with the discussion.

It's easy to conclude that if the sport got big then you wouldn't get to play with the big names, but that logic is just an extrapolation from the fact that you don't get to play with NBA players. But they're very different worlds and situations.

Anyways, footbag is fun where it's at right now, but I sure wouldn't mind a little more recognition and respect, so Richie, go right ahead and make a quality product that helps to spread the name of footbag!

hacksterbator · Post by **hacksterbator** » 14 Dec 2008 08:50

Slowsis wrote:Bitches. I want maaaad bitches. And bling.....and a low rider with a 32 as the hood ornament. Untill I can get these things for being a mid-level guiltless/genuine player, I hope footbag stays small.

Agreed.

in all seriousness...
I didn't get into footbag for the community, or to play with the pros, i got into it for the love of the game. If footbag exploded and became widely popular and as a result the community we currently have died out with it, i wouldn't really care, as long as i still had a regular shred session to attend. And if it ever got that big, i imagine there would be a local league with multiple shred spots every night, which in my mind would be even better.

Jorden · Post by **Jorden** » 14 Dec 2008 14:48

I want footbag to become popular insofar that future generations are at least aware that freestyle exists.

Footbag needs to be a legitimate option to people of all ages who are in need of self expression, a sense of belonging, or an alternative form of physical exercise.

Footbag needs to be popular not for monetary gain, but for those who haven't found their place in the world.

JM

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why do people want footbag to become mainstream?

why do people want footbag to become mainstream?

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