Cass shreds - Spring Training 2024

[Cass]

I’m not sure it will be possible to put this event into words. Here is my attempt.


Thursday

I left my house thursday morning at 6am for the airport. I had never taken an international flight alone but now I feel totally comfortable with it and can definitely see myself flying again soon.

The travel there was a lot of waiting and anticipation. The three hour time difference meant that I arrived in Portland shortly after 2pm. I was SO EXCITED to see Chris Dean who offered to pick me up at the airport. He was the only close footbag friend that I would have at this event. The rest would be acquaintances or new friends.

It was a rainy day and the drive over to Chris’s place was trafficy. I was pretty tired from the travel but it was nice to talk to Chris since we hadn’t hung out since worlds last year.

After a brief stop at the home of Chris we headed over to the home of Nick Landes. I was SUPER stoked to meet him finally! I had a feeling we would get along well. Hanging out at Nick’s place was also Kyle V. who I met for the first time. He is a really cool person! He doesn’t really play footbag (yet?) but is super fun to hang out with and has amazing hair.

There is a street flea market thing that happens in Portland the last Thursday of each month. This was a really fun time to walk around and do some people watching. Everyone in Portland seems so friendly. While we were there we met up with Matt Emmings from Victoria BC. He’s a really nice guy and one of the only other Canadians at the event.

Nick spent some time street performing and I was really impressed by his skills! He is a strong juggler and is good at interacting with audiences. He explains all the components involved in doing a trick and really builds it up so that when he hits [Vortex for example] it really has an impact on people that don’t know footbag.



It was a long and eventful day much like the whole weekend! Chris and I stayed over at Nicks place since we would have an early morning the next day.


Friday

I woke up at the wee hour of 3:30am without an alarm (6:30 Toronto time so I’m used to getting up around then) and stole a quick shower before the guys woke. We left the house around 4:30 am to grab and quick bite and head to the TV studio. I was a little nervous to be on live tv since we hadn’t spent and time rehearsing or anything like that. Joe, the host of the segment we would be featured on was super energetic and cool. The whole situation ended up being pretty laid back which was great.

Chris, Nick, and I were featured on 6 live segments about 2 minutes each between 5:30 and 9am. We would take turns being interviewed by Joe and the other two people would kick during the interview. It went pretty well! I know Nick hit Whirr live and Chris was busting all sorts of nice shit. I’m pretty sure I saw him play better at the tv studio than any other time this weekend.

We played with a really big bag which I’m not used to but I think it went alright! I will have to see if I can get ahold of the footage to post at some point. There was a lot of time waiting in between the live segments. One of the news anchors tried to kick a bit and was actually decent at juggling. It was enjoyable to spend time with Nick and Chris during this time. I was fighting a pretty rough headache and probably drank at least 3 litres of water. The tap water in Portland is absolutely glorious. So delicious. I mentioned that my shoulders were bothering me (causing me headache) and Nick proceeded to give me what I’m pretty sure was the best massage of my life. SO freaking good. I tend to be the one massaging a lot of footbag players at events and it was really nice to meet someone who also likes to do that. On the drive back from the studio I sat behind nice and paid him back for that.

Nick, Chris and I grabbed breakfast and a nice little brunch place. These two guys are the best! They really made my trip. It really makes me happy to be with other souls that are so open and loving. It just feels comfortable.

Friday afternoon seems like a blur. I think Chris went home to take a nap and there was chilling at Nicks place where I ended up staying all weekend. It was weird to be at an event for like a full day without having a proper session. I’m not sure how I always manage to go on so little sleep at events but it’s just not a priority.

I do believe I did some yoga with Nick and Matt. I have never done yoga in a structured way before but I do spend 20-30 minutes per day stretching. The yoga was amazing! There was more focus on breathing which was really good. Many of the poses are variations of stretches I already do but it was good to learn proper/better/more intense ways to do them. Also got some good ideas for stretches I hadn’t thought of. I felt SO GOOD after! Wow, so relaxing

Dustin Rodes arrived in the afternoon I think. I met him at worlds last year and he has such clean style. It was nice to see him. We never seem to talk much because I think we’re both kinda shy but I think we would get along really well if we had more one-on-one time.

Brian Sherril and Derrick Littlefield arrived! It’s always great to put a personality to a name that you always hear about in the community.

I’ve never seen so much green stuff at an event! I was seriously impressed by the quality and quantity at this event. Everyone is super chill about it so that was cool. I was also pleasantly surprised that I didn’t see any freestylers smoking cigs.

Friday evening there was finally a real hack session! We played at a nearby school. I got to meet Larry workman who is a really nice guy, Jake was also there but I didn’t end up really talking to him. I was most excited/nervous to meet Flash. He is sort of a mysterious character with a fabulous beard.



I was most impressed by the shred from Duston and Flash at this session. Dustin has clearly improved since we last hung out and he just has such nice form and long runs. But Gordon, just wow!!! Every run was video worthy!! I knew he was good but I just couldn’t believe the consistency. He has such command over the footbag and just hits whatever the fuck he wants and makes it looks so stylish and easy. He really inspired me this weekend.




I had smoked a lot Friday and wasn’t super on top of my game but I still had a lot of fun playing.

Friday night there was a registration party at the home of Ken Shults. Honestly by this point in the day I was absolutely beat. I tried to be social but the last thing I had energy for was to meet a whole bunch of [net] players. I ended up just sticking with people I knew. We watched the recordings of our tv spot that morning. They weren’t so bad at all! Neat.

Matt Kemmer arrived and I jumped off the couch to give him a big hug! He totally blew me off Screw that guy hahaha.

That was a really long day because of the TV spot so I we called it an earlyish night.


Saturday

Matt E and I woke up first and we across the road to grab some coffee at a pretty nice little shop. The morning was pretty chill and more yoga was done, this time with Nick and his super cool lady friend, Eudora.

I couldn’t believe it was already competition day! But I learned that everyone in routines would make it to finals so that took some stress off. I wasn’t super worried anyways, I knew my routine was well practices and it was just a matter of doing it.

I travelled to the event site with Gordon and Jake. I spend a lot of time in other peoples this weekend and Flash was the only driver that wasn’t questionable/sketchy at some point haha I was lucky because I had the choice of going with them or Matt. Matt didn’t arrive until after routines. Luckily I made it to the site in just enough time to warm up a bit and do my routine. I wasn’t super warm or ready but it went well all things considered! I think I had 5 or 6 drops. Two minute routines are exhausting! It was a really good experience though.

One of my very favourite experiences of this event was definitely circle contest! My circle was with Derrick, Dustin, and Brian. I knew my chances were slim of going through but I just wanted to play my best. Not only did that happen but EVERYONE in my circle played INCREDIBLY!!!! Wow this was such a positive experience. The music was right, the circle was low pressure and it just felt SO GOOD! I hate to see people choke in circle, but it nearly always happens. This time was so different, we all had super long nice runs! I think my shortest must have been 8-10 contacts. I had one in density that was well over 20 guiltless. I came in dead last and was so stoked about it!!! I have never played this well in circle and it just felt so good to lose to such worthy individuals We had a nice group hug at the end.

I was relieved that competition was over. I had one [net player?] approach me and mention that they really liked to see repeating tricks in my routine. It makes it easier for non-freestylers to see what’s going on. This was really useful feedback.

I seemed to be really popular at this event. It’s really cool that people know who I am and want to talk to me. It’s also just extremely exhausting. I hide it pretty well at events but I’m totally and introvert and it really takes effort for me to converse with people I’m not comfortable with or don’t know. Anyways it’s good practice I guess. All footbag people are really cool so it’s easier in this type of situation than most.

I was interviewed by a nice reporter from the local newspaper that covered the event. You can view the article here.

http://www.oregonlive.com/west-linn/ind ... on_we.html


I chose not to compete in sick 1 or 3. I guess I would have placed top 5 if I had, but it’s just not really my thing. It was neat to see Matt Kemmer take both events! He’s cool even though he was ungrateful for my hug

I’ve been really focussed on eating well lately. There was a lot of greasy bbq food at the event but I wasn’t really down for that and ended up living on fruit - mostly bananas. This treated me really well and I’m going to continue to do this at events. I felt really good overall.

There was a good amount of casual shred but it did rain on and off all day. Unfortunately a band had to set up on the covered stage and we got kicked off. That was kind of annoying.

I had a good stretch session with Justin Blotsky (cool guy!) and also Eudora. It’s nice to stretch with other people at an event for a change. I attribute my lack of soreness and ability to go all out at events to my stretching habits. I wish more people would follow suit.

I don’t remember many specifics about casual shred that day but I played with a good amount of people and it was really fun. My game felt strong. There were some neat little walks along a nearby path on a river.

Eudora was spending a lot of time sitting on the sidelines. At one point all the circles were too big so I convinced to her shred with me. This was surprisingly easy! I was immediately impressed by her skill level and approach to the game. Very both sided with good runs of stalls. I know she BSOSed Legover and also hit Mirage for the first time this weekend. She also has nice BS Clippers. She seemed to get pretty hyped so I hope she has motivation to practice more I was glad I wasn’t the only female to freestyle at this event.

I think we went back to Nick’s to shower and chill for a little while before the party over at Jakes place. Larry was nice enough to give us a ride there. I grabbed a $5 bottle of white wine which I was pretty stoked about. People gave me several beers over the weekend but I ended up not finishing/giving away most of them. Apparently liquor is tricky to get in Portland because the stores close early.

The party was pretty fun but really laid back because everyone was tired. I was a little disappointed some people (Stanford crew) didn’t come out to the party. I provided an indie party playlist for the party with my wifi and people seemed to dig it. Or at least no one complained

Nick and Eudora had left the party early with Larry but I didn’t want to go yet so I convinced Matt Emmings to stay and we would take a cab back later.

I was talking about alcohol in ‘drunk units’ and how my $5 bottle of wine was two of them (what great value!). I went a little far and consumed 1.5 ‘drunk units’ of wine. I was pretty sick for a while. I went outside to vomit in the grass on three separate occasions and spent a good amount of time face down on the carpet just listening to other peoples conversations and occasionally sitting up to give some input. I think all the smoking stuff may have contributed to my state. Worth it.


Sunday

We ended up just passing out at Jakes place that night because I was in no state to find a cab. I scored a pretty comfy couch and this might have been my best sleep of the weekend actually. The house is really bright so I was awake shortly after 6 when the sun came up.

I did a quick search and found out it is super easy to take the bus back to Nicks. Matt and I left for this mission shortly after 6:30. I was glad we stayed and ultimately didn’t pay for a cab. The walks to and from the bus stops in the early morning were really nice and peaceful.

I felt good that morning and was glad that the suffering from the wine was confined to Saturday night. Especially considering finals were today. I think we napped a little more back at Nicks and he made us some eggs for breakfast.

This time Matt wanted to leave early for the event site and I headed out with him. We ended up being the first freestylers there and I spent some time talking to net players and stuff. It’s cool to see a lot of lady net players since I was the only female to freestyle aside from Eudora.

Dustin, Brian, and Derrick were the first other freestylers to show up and I gave them shit for not partying with us the night before. I had a really good kick/hack session with Brian and Derrick for a while. It felt like we could keep the bag up forever so that was a lot of fun.

I don’t think I properly warmed up for routine finals. It’s so hard to be warmed up sufficiently but not tired. There was a pretty big audience for routines which was neat. I wasn’t nervous though. Overall my routine went similarly to the previous day except I dropped the last trick which is frustrating. I think I had 6 drops. Could be worse!

I got fourth place in routines behind Brian, Dustin, and Chris! I’m pretty content with that! I was surprised to receive a really nice 32 panel prize bag made by April Tou! We shredded it a bunch that day and it’s super choice already

Brian ended up taking first in circle and routines! Good for him, I think he really earned it

Circle contest winners:



For me, the best shred of the weekend happened when the competition wrapped up on Sunday. I was feeling super strong and shredded nonstop for hours.

My favourite circle was with Nick and Gordon, with some appearances by Chris! These guys are so great at footbag! I saw sooo many super deep double dexes and super stylish and clean torques this weekend. LOVE IT.

I got to spend some time laying in the grass with Nick. It was really nice to not be around a whole bunch of people for a while.

Gordon said something really nice to me at the end of the day. He likes my drive/intensity and the fact that I’m not afraid to get in a circle and shred it up with anyone. SO COOL. Playing with him is so inspiring because that’s what I’m pushing for. Such good trick selection and creativity.

There were some goodbyes to people including Matt K, Steve, and Alex.

Sunday evening most of people that stuck around came over to Nicks place to hang out. It was a little tight but really cool anyways. Kyle, Dustin, Brian, Derrick, Nick, Eudora, Matt Emmings and I played some cards against humanity. I think that was everyone. Chris also came over and was playing chess with Derrick. CAH was really fun over all. Pretty well the only cards I won were from Eudora. Apparently we understand each other or something Reading the person you choose the card for really makes a difference in that game.

After a while we got sick of playing and the apartment was feeling a little stuffy so we decided to go on a midnight adventure to a nearby playground at a school. This seems to be a pretty awesome staple at a lot of footbag events. The park we went to was super neat - it had swings, seesaws and a merry go round. This was so great! I feel so close to all these people.

Monday

Monday morning Matt Emmings slipped out before I even woke up! How rude

I did wake up in time to steal some cuddles and say goodbye to Dustin before he left to go to the airport.

Monday morning I went with Nick, Eudora, Derrick and Brian for a walk to a place with a really easy climbing tree! This tree is massive and on the edge of a big hill. You could easily climb so high! But you didn’t have to event go far to feel really high. It was fun but I wasn’t feeling too daring so I didn’t climb too far. We did some yoga on the hill and I got some serious head rushes from the crazy amounts of oxygen. My body is not used to such clean air. It felt really good though!

I was really glad I stayed for all of Monday because the weather was perfect and water temple shred finally happened! That place is legendary. The five of us met up with Chris to have a smaller session there. I was hoping that more people would stay for monday but it was really great anyways.

I spent some time having a one-on-one shred with Brian which was one of my favourite parts! I
was super impressed by his style and consistency. So good.

Symp Whirl BSOS - I haven’t tried this trick in ages. Back then it seemed so difficult. I did this with very little effort. I don’t really care for these tricks too much but it surprised me to do them so easily.

This was a really nice afternoon but a little sad because I knew Brian and Derrick had to leave soon. I really enjoyed meeting and hanging out with these two, they are super cool. Brian and I had a special connection. I tried not to let the goodbyes get me down. It was working for the moment.



Chris, Nick, Eudora and I went out to a nice food place where I got a smoothie and a really tasty quesadilla. After that we went to this beautiful place:



We saw some really nice scenic things and I saw some great views of Portland. I kinda wish I had taken more photos this weekend but I was just too busy taking it all in! These three people really made the event what it was and I’m very grateful for that.



Back at Nicks place we had a random impromptu massage party. Nice.

We split up with Chris for showers with plans to meet back up later for drinks. Kyle was at the house and I spent some time chilling with him.

That evening we went to a pub that had pool, giant jenga, and jello shots. Flash made it out for a couple drinks and I was happy to see him again and get a chance to fondle that beard

We went to a nickel arcade for a while and that was pretty fun! We redeemed some ticket for a crappy crochet hack and a plastic disc gun toy thing.

After that we went to another bar closer to Nick’s place. There were yummy slushy margaritas and we played more pool. I spent a great deal of time hugging Chris because I knew I was going to have to say goodbye soon. I felt really close to him.

Nick and Kyle left the bar a little before us, and we continued to play pool.

We stopped at Chris’s car and he gave me a shirt for last years USO

Chris, Eudora, and I walked back to the house arm in arm. Lovely.

It was getting late but the four of us (Kyle was sleeping) hung out and traded massages and stuff. I didn’t want Chris to leave but eventually it was time to say goodbye. He means a lot to me.

After he left I ugly cried. It happens at some point or another for most good events.

Nick and Eudora really helped make me feel better. We had a really special time together and before I knew it I had to get up to leave in two hours! Wow.

Tuesday

Kyle offered to give me a ride to the airport and we left around 7 I think. I said goodbye to Nick and Eudora and did my best to hold back the tears. I was super braindead on the ride to the airport and I just couldn’t really think. I held hands with Kyle and that made me feel better. He is a really special person and I hope to see him again some day.

The travel home seemed shorter (doesn’t it always?) and after four different flights over the past week I feel like a pro at navigating airports.


Other thoughts

Thank you footbag community for helping me grow into the person I know I am! This trip made me feel especially loved and gave me a chance to meet other people with similar life outlooks. There was so much positivity it was just wonderful.

I feel really strong! I went all in this weekend with shred (as usual) and the soreness was kept to a minimum. I feel like I have good control over my game and I made good progress this weekend.

The west coast scene is awesome! I know this was a smaller USO but all the people that made it were so great!

This weekend has been exhausting socially. Constantly being around people for 5 days is a lot. I’ve learned to embrace a good comfortable silence and it feels good to not have to constantly be saying words to people. The social pressure in the footbag community feels a lot less intense than most situations and I’m really grateful for that. Footbag has really helped me to become more outgoing and less awkward

Portland is a beautiful place and the people there are great. The traffic seems to be the only downside. I really like how many independent businesses and things are around.


Thanks for all the love friends.

<3

[Cass]

Today I had a short drill session on my back deck with my new bag from Nick Landes. It's super pretty and choice. I worked on mostly flip side stuff which felt good to tackle. Big events always make the holes in my game stand out.

I got my first Nuke tricks! op Legover on one side and ss Mirage on the other. Hello new set! I think we are going to be friends


Leaving for Gananoque tomorrow for Epic Skydiving Footbag Adventure Camp!!! No time for post event blues when I know I get to see some super cool NY freestylers tomorrow


Oh here is my 4th place routine!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jen9n_4MqLI[/youtube]

[sidekick]

Great write ups! I'm glad you got a hold of your video too, it's was so great to meet you! Can't wait til next time

[Cass]

EPIC Skydive Footbag Adventure Camp 2014!!!



I headed eastward on Thursday evening with Nathan, the sole other Oshawa footbag player, towards Gananoque Ontario. It was a nice change to only have a 2.5 hour commute to an event that was also in the opposite direction of Toronto.

We were the first to arrive as I was hoping. Immediately we were attacked by hoards of mosquitoes. Cool.

Nathan and I spent a little time exploring the area and I spoke with one of the guys who runs the skydive place. The location consists of a hanger with a bunch of airplanes in it, a grassy area for camping with a few trees around, a whole bunch of little campers presumably owned by skydivers as well as a fire pit that was a couple minute walk away.

I set up my little tent and tried not to let the bugs get to me. Soon Jon arrived! Around this time is when the bugs got really bad! We were in like a CLOUD of mosquitoes! I have never experienced such insanity. We got Jon’s tent up and took refuge from the insects in there.

After a while Drew and David made it! It was now dark by this point. Luckily drew brought this big tent that was sort of self assembling. This was super clutch as it would be the “party tent” of the event. We ended up chilling in there for the rest of the night, drinking beers, smoking joints, and talking. It was a real good time.

At various random intervals over the weekend boats would drop a beat and someone would say a word. Nathan would do some freestyle raps over the beat about the topic given. It was so random and hilarious. Definitely a highlight.

Drew would say “that’s what she said” often and at completely inappropriate times. It then became a game of trying to make the statement it was said about a joke somehow.

At one point one of the skydive guys (Jason) came around and was stoked to find a party tent. He was pretty chill and hung out with us for a while.

I think it was decently late when we got to bed thursday but my tent is too small and I just couldn’t get comfortable enough to actually fall asleep. I lied there until the sun finally came up and then gave up on the idea of sleep.

I grabbed a shower and went on an early morning adventure to the nearby town, Gananoque. I got some food/coffee and drove around town aimlessly. I found myself at a park with some neat sculptures and then the waterfront where there was a cool spot that had really good shred potential. Then I set out to find a water pipe of some sort. This turned out to be much more difficult than expected and I went to four different convenience stores before I found one. I was glad I found it though cause it turned out to be super clutch.

By the time I returned to the camp site I think people were starting to get moving. Friday was a super chill day because no one else arrived until that evening.

I spent a bunch of time juggling on Friday, and the rest of the weekend as well. This is the first time in a while I’ve actually spent enough time juggling to make noticeable improvement which was really neat. I qualified four ball for the first time.

We had a decent session in the hanger that day. I think this was my best session of the weekend. I was pretty run down and busy overall so I didn’t end up playing a huge amount after that. Dave is playing in the new heavy lavers and still manages to kick some ass. Nathan is rocking nucleus shoes but he drops a lot in them. Drew pointed out that if he had better shoes he would never drop. I realised he’s totally right, hopefully Nathan will find something better cause he has crazy potential.



Chrissy was first to arrive Friday evening! Props to her for making the trip all by herself. By this point I was pretty tired I think due to lack of sleep. I ended up napping for a couple hours that evening.

I woke up to the voices of some new guests! Ianek, Mathieu, and Tom K had arrived! I greeted them groggily. It was so cool that all these people made it out!!

Some more shred happened in the evening but I didn’t partake. A bunch of skydive people were around and they thought it was cool. I was happy everything worked out. There was space to shred and we weren’t imposing on anyone.



The mosquitoes weren’t nearly as bad thankfully!

The weather was perfect!

Here is a view of the hanger from the fire pit.



We had a massive bonfire with some skydivers! This was super fun!! Jon had gone with one of them to find firewood - they came back with a trailer full of big wooden skids and stuff. The skydive people are crazy! They were all about throwing gasoline on the fire. It was MASSIVE.

Tom brought a ton of really fun fire works! Seriously crazy amounts. The skydive guys lit some of them by pouring gas on them and lighting a trail of gas to the firework.

Hell cat was the most EPIC firework. I’m not even sure it was called this but it’s what we ended up referring to it as all weekend. This thing was a cat that spit fire and did all kinds of other crazy stuff.

Jon brought a fire hack that we ended up dipping in gasoline and hacking with. The skydive guys were all “dont shake it off, leave the fuel on it” and then the first person to kick it would get covered in flaming gasoline. At least 4 people got set on fire this way. It happened to me and I was seriously scared it wasn’t going to go out. My ankle was on fire for a good 10 seconds and we got it out just as Jon was preparing to pour a bucket of water on me. I was out after that haha.



Fire hack was fun and more difficult than expected. It was definitely worth a try even with getting set on fire.

Johnny, Kristin, and Alex were supposed to arrive Friday evening but they got caught in some bad traffic. Most people passed out by around 1 but I was determined to be awake when they arrived despite lack of sleep. I convince Drew to hang out with me until passed 3am when they finally made it!!

Jon brought an extra tent which I ended up sharing with Alex for the remaining two nights. That was really lucky. My tent is clearly intended for children. I should probably invest in something a little larger..

Saturday morning I was first awake again. Took a quick shower and a jaunt to town for two large coffees which I shared with others.

Saturday morning flew by fast! We were scheduled to jump between 10 and 1 and things got a little hectic. Originally I collected 13 deposits total and you need 10 for the discounted tandem rate. Drew was refusing to jump even though he had paid the deposit and I already had three people drop out so we were down to 9. It would have been $50 extra per person if we didn’t have the tenth so we decided to fund the jump of someone who was willing but didn’t have the money. This way it should have only worked out to about $20 extra per person. Johnny was nominated and I covered his jump. I managed to collect about half the cost of the jump for him from others and decided to just take the hit for the rest. I half expected this to happen so it wasn’t that big of a deal.





Find the footbag trick!


Everything went by so fast! I was in the last of our group to jump with Alex and Tom! Since it was my second dive i got to wear an altimeter and pull the cord myself! The flight up was really surreal and I don’t really remember much. I was okay until it was time to jump. I watched Alex and Tom leave the plane and shit got real! This is when I experienced PURE TERROR. But it was too late. No going back now. That didn’t last too long anyways. I left the plane with Will strapped to my back and we did 2 back flips in the air! We stabilized and it felt like we were falling for SO LONG. I remember struggling to breath and feeling like we were barely moving and yet we were moving soo fast!! We pulled the ripcord and were jolted into a much slower pace. The scariest part was over! I got to steer the parachute and we did some fun spins and things. It cool how you can control your speed and direction. The view is incredible.





I was high on adrenaline for a good 30 minutes after we landed. It was such a crazy feeling. I didn’t enjoy this the first time I jumped. Last time it was really hot and I was dehydrated and just felt sick after. This time I felt SO GOOD. I hugged everyone and it was super great. After the adrenaline wore off I crashed and was completely drained. It took me two energy drinks to get through the rest of the day but they did the trick.



I think we chilled out for a while and ate some food after the jump. The weather was just perfect! Our camping set up was amazing too! We had our own little footbag tent city going on.

This wasn't even all of it:


I did a raffle draw for one of the prize bags and had some other smaller door prizes. David ended up winning the Eskimo Joe bag!!

Johnny and Kristin did some acro-yoga which looked really fun. Tom asked me if I wanted to try and I was totally down. They make it look easy! We weren’t quite as graceful but we managed a couple neat poses!

Tom left Saturday afternoon. It was so awesome that he made it! Too bad he didn’t get to stay longer.

Chrissy, Alex, and Drew left for a while to get supplies and pick up Camille from the Kingston bus station.

More shred happened later Saturday afternoon in the hanger. I played a little but mostly just watched.

I ran the weird three contest which was pretty interesting. I decided to give everyone 10 tries cause I wanted to see some cool stuff. This was probably too many in hindsight. Some people hit a lot of different combos though which was cool. I asked Drew to help me judge and it ended up being pretty close. Several people hit neat combos but we ended up with Ianek in first since his three had good variety of concepts.

Ianek ran a request contest for us which I participated in as well. The top three were myself, dave, and Mathieu. Mathieu got out on some combos that were pretty easy for him and he ended up hitting both of the combos in one string no problem after.

I hit some really difficult combos for me in request which I was stoked on. I think one was Legbeater>Pdx whirl which I got on the last try. The last two combos for Dave and I were Pdx DLO>Pixie Whirl or Paradon>Dyno or something like that? We both missed in our first three tries so we got three more tries. Dave managed to hit the second combo and then it was my turn. I got soo close to DLO>Pixie Whirl, just barely missing the last clipper! I was happy that Dave won anyways though because I didn’t really want to win a bag at my own event.

That evening was a lot of fun! There were a lot of silly games and things going on. Jon brought a mini net and there were some fun games of football-net with a soccer ball. For a while there was a circle of us throwing a disc and kicking the football at eachother, then we added another disc and things got REAL CRAZY. It was super intense and fun. I remember laughing SOO MUCH. Pure bliss.



Ianek helped me learn mills mess which I’m starting to get the hang of.

I also did some hooping stuff for a while and Kristin taught me a few things. I bought my first proper hoop from her this weekend which I’m super stoked on! Its a really nice two-tone green colour. I had SO MUCH FUN screwing around with it this weekend and I have some nice arm bruising to show for it. I hit a bunch of new stuff and screwed up a lot but it was hella fun. Hooping is great.



We spent some time in the party tent Saturday evening as the sun went down to avoid the bugs. Jon asked us some neat trivia questions which was a lot of fun! It was a little rough but I think it went pretty well for a first time trivia event thingy. Ianek was kicking everyone's butt but then Drew nearly came back to beat him by the end of the game. It’s funny that the four nice prize bags I had ended up going to Dave and Ianek. I also raffled off two less nice footbags which both ended up going to Drew haha.

Later Saturday evening we ended up having a more reasonably sized fire, this time it was just with footbaggers. This was really nice but I was pretty beat by this point. I left to try and get some sleep around 1 but the bugs in the tent and my allergies kept me up for quite a while so I might as well have stayed up.

Sunday morning was pretty chill and mostly just consisted of packing up and trying to eat leftover food and stuff. I saw Chrissy off first.

I spent a lot of time Sunday morning hooping and juggling. I hacked in the grass with Drew for a while which was really fun and I think Mathieu joined us for a while also.

Drew and Dave had to leave next. Definitely the hardest goodbye for me this time. I really had to fight to hold back the tears. HUGS!

Early Sunday afternoon some shred went down in the hanger but I missed a good amount of it because Johnny, Alex, Kristin, and Camille were getting ready to leave. I wish I could be everywhere at once! More hugs!

I played one on one with Mathieu for a bit. He hit Fairy Mobius. Cool.

I was mostly distracted by my hoop for the remainder of Sunday’s session. Two events in a row is a lot of shred and I was feelin' it.

Before long it was time to say goodbye to Ianek and Mathieu. So awesome that they made it!!

Nathan and I sat and talked to Jon for a bit. I was totally beat! Jon was planning to stick around and shower but I really wanted to get home so we said our goodbyes and Nathan and I hit the road. I had to make an extra stop and buy a red bull because I couldn’t focus on the road. I’ve never had to drive that tired and it’s sketch as hell. The red bull helped enough to get me home. At one point I was driving in the fast lane and totally got cut off by someone in the lane next to me not paying attention. This was a SUPER sketchy moment but I somehow managed to hit the brakes, miss the car, and still keep control enough to stay in my lane and not swerve off the road. Crazy.

I’m still totally sleep deprived and still haven’t unpacked my car from the trip.

This has been such an INTENSE week and a half!!

I’m super pleased about how successful this event has been! It seems like everyone had a good time and things went fairly smoothly. It was stressful at times and took quite a bit of work to run but asking for help from others was beneficial and it was totally worth it in the end!!!

I’m not sure there will be another event like this one. Skydiving is pretty expensive and most people only really want to do it once. I do really like the whole idea of footbag camping events though!! I really want more of these to happen because they are hella chill and fun! The only issue is finding a shred spot I suppose. Being able to play in the hanger at this event was SO clutch. Playing near cool airplanes is just super rad too!

The one behind Dave and Mat in this photo is the one we jumped from!



I’m kind of relieved that I don’t have any footbag events planned for the next few weeks. I’ve been doing so much lately which has been absolutely incredible! I definitely need a break though and so does my wallet.


<3

[h0ag3yb3atZ]

jon wearing a parachute doing a flapper is the best picture i've ever seen on this forum.

[boyle]

Awesome. Sounds like such a great time.

[acxel22]

thanks for the good times in gananoque!

Even tough I couldn't afford skydiving I had a super fun time playing footbag with those who managed to come!

[Cass]

A few days ago Nick Landes challenged me to hit rubberman. I thought it was still a little far off but doable. Today was my first solo session since the skydive event and I dedicated a good portion of it to that. After about 30 minutes I had the first three contacts both sides and was like “I can totally do this!” And then I did! It felt so epic!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zv3Naf0ltoU[/youtube]

Nothing too exciting other than that today but it was an enjoyable session. The weather is absolutely perfect here lately It almost makes up for the brutal winter we had.


My new GPS came in the mail today! Stoked


I think I’m driving to PSU Saturday morning because I'm an addict. Gotta get my next fix..



<3

[Max Power]

Awesome rubber man! That was sick!

Three weekends in a row? You crazy. I actually did three in a row one year and much like you my club hosted the middle one. The first was ecfc in Washington D.C. area then we hosted NYFA 4? maybe 5, then Montreal spring jam. I injured myself at the NYFA jam so I couldn't play in Montreal but I went any way . Have fun yo

Oh, and nice write up. I really enjoy how you detail your travels with no delay. Always a fun read.

[boyle]

Saw that on Facebook. ...looks like you did it with ease....despite the shaking! It's awesome that you're going to all these events. Makes it much better with guests.

[Cass]

I made the semi-last minute decision to visit PSU this past weekend for the Annual Art Festival. This is a HUGE party in state college with tons of vendors and performers. I was not expecting it to be that big!

I wasn’t able to convince any friends to travel with me but I decided to make the trip alone anyways. My new GPS definitely came in handy there.

I hit the road by 5am Saturday morning. This was a pretty great choice because traffic was a breeze and border crossing at 7am is super quick. I actually quite enjoy driving and the highway to get there is pretty low key so the 6 hour drive alone wasn’t bad at all. Two stops along the way and I still arrived in State College ahead of schedule. Awesome.

I planned to park in one parking building near old main but when I got there it was madness. So busy! And the parking garages jacked up the prices for the event which was annoying. It ended up taking me a solid hour to finally park my car.

I was worried I would be the first to arrive at Old Main but I saw some familiar faces when I got there. Ryan Thomas, Nick Polini and April greeted me! Sweet.

Lots of other people came out that afternoon to shred. I was really pleased to see Ivan even though he can't play right now. He did a bunch of filming.

State college was super humid which I’m not used to. We’ve been spoiled with the weather in the Toronto area recently. Between the humidity and the lack of green stuff I was slightly less amped than I normally am the first day of an event. Maybe it’s also the fact that I’ve been to so many lately. The stage was playing some music for a while that I wasn't really feeling. That really makes a big difference for me when I comes to shred.



I still had a great time shredding with a bunch of different people. Matt Kemmer hit the most perfect Whirr I think I’ve ever seen. I was really impressed by how much everyone in the PSU club have improved since I last visited! So cool.



I snuck away at some point to check out some of the art. There was some really neat stuff there. I really love it when people find ways to make ordinary things extraordinary.



State College has kind of a weird vibe. I like visiting but I wouldn’t want to live there because I feel like it is really lacking in originality. So many bro’s..

I played footbag on and off for several hours and it was fun. I think I played pretty alright. I don’t think any of my best runs were filmed but I’m not sure.



At one point I hit Osis>Drifter and Ben asked if that was pdx Drifter. I said no but I’ll try. I managed to hit Osis>Pdx. Drifter BSOS first try. Those used to seem so difficult.

I had a really good time hanging out at Old Main that afternoon. I went with Marc and Chrissy to get ice cream which was soo refreshing.



We split up for showers and stuff once everyone was tired out. Went to the liquor store with Ben and Ryan Thomas. Ryan and I split on a 26 of tequila. On the way back to Ben’s place we passed the pool and it looked so refreshing. I couldn’t pass that up so I convinced them to jump in with me. It felt SO GOOD after a day of humid, dirty shred.

April made us spaghetti with two different kinds of sauces and garlic bread for dinner. It really hit the spot and I was thankful to not spend money eating out.

Shots!

I took the bus with Ben, April, Chrissy, and Ryan over to the ShredHaus to meet back up with everyone. I had some really good conversations with Ben and April along the way.

Footbag Party!

I was super happy I made the trip at this point. So great.

The party was pretty low key and some people went to bed early. I hate being the only one down to party so I was really stoked that Marc was even more amped to party than me! He got really loud but also really fun haha. At one point there was house music blasting and the two of us had a mini dance party in the living room. Noone else joined us but it was great anyways.



There was a mission to the store with April, Ryan and Marc. It was nice to get out of that hot apartment.

Lots of rowdy people out and about for art fest.

More chilling and partying. Nick trying to sleep and Marc being super loud.

Tap water in the kitchen with Marc.

Smoking from an apple.

Shots!

We took a cab back to Ben’s around 3am I think.


Sunday Ryan, Chrissy and I were up and moving decently early. I was pleased about this. We left in Polini’s car ahead of April and Ben and grabbed breakfast at the Corner Room. This is the same place I went with my Canadian friends at Jamps and I really liked it. I’ve decided to make it a tradition.

We were still a bit early for shred and did some walking around looking at cool art things.

Ben and April arrived at old main and we hung out and I did some juggling stuff and foot juggling. It started raining and we ended up meeting up with the others at a nearby building/bridge that has really nice architecture.



I shredded well at the beginning but lost steam pretty quick and my run length really took a hit. I think I was pushing for more dense shred than normally too so that might have been a factor.

Time flies!

It was so great to see everyone! Soon it was already time for goodbyes. This was a short and sweet event.

I brought my awesome new hoop with me this weekend. When I was on my way back to my car I put it down, totally spaced and forgot it on the street somewhere in State College. Didn’t realise until two hours into my drive. Damn.

The ride home was longer as expected. Got caught in a crazy thunderstorm for a few minutes and had to pull over and wait it out. It cleared up pretty fast thankfully.

The drive gave me a lot of time to reflect. There are some topics I would like to address but I’m not sure how I will do that yet.

The drive was pretty positive for me overall. I am really focused on my mental health and I’m trying to overcome getting sad after events. It worked out pretty well this time.

Love!

<3

[C-Fan]

I love that you go to so many events and document them so well. For us schmoes who don't get out often or get to play with anybody, it's nice to vicariously share those experiences.

[Cass]

This isn't going to last forever so it's really important to have these wonderful memories to look back on

[krustykrakk]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThlhSnRk21E[/youtube]
N'am Say'n

[boyle]

I love that you go to so many events and document them so well. For us schmoes who don't get out often or get to play with anybody, it's nice to vicariously share those experiences.

That's just what I was thinking...

[Cass]

Haha Ben! The censored version of that song is weird.


Played solo for an hour today. Drilled lots of stuff. Felt good.

38 guiltless including Whirl, Pdx Whirl, Swirl, Spinning Clipper, Ducking Clipper, DLO all BS.

Gonna play with FAT this weekend and not go anywhere exotic for a change. Should be chill

<3

[boyle]

Is 38 your best? Looks like plenty of variety in there.

[Cass]

It's my best as far as I know aside from all-BOP runs. It felt really easy though


It's cool to look back on one's progress. This video is from 11 months ago. My best guiltless runs from this particular session were about 11, 15, and 23 contacts and pretty sloppy. Crazy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnBIzmt ... e=youtu.be


When I was looking back at my old blog posts I saw this quote from Jay that I just had to repost because it is great advice and has done amazing things for not only my game but also my personal well being.

My advice to you, if you want your motivation to keep making you feel like a pimp: Make plans, all the time, to do *something* with another real live footbagger. Even if you plan a trip 6 months from now, it will do wonders when you say to yourself "It is cold, and I would rather sleep than play footbag", you'll instead say "Shit, in one month I have to play with Vasek. I better school" and be so excited, that you don't even consider sleep.

Also, sending Johnny presents in the mail is an option. I suggest small tools, gift baskets and love.

[boyle]

That is awesome advice. It's good to have "footbag stuff" coming up on the horizon, and I hope to have a few blips coming up in the next year, as it has been far too long.

[pips]

Awesome write-ups and pictures! I had a blast getting to hang out with you and the others so much lately. That is all