-=Silencer=-

[Lycanthrope]

Yeah, that car accident had me pretty worried especially since it was being translated to me in polish. Anna said that they 'landed on the roof'.. and to me that could have meant something like they fell off of a cliff and landed on somebody's roof, but I guess reality was the less bad of the scenarios, thankfully. The next day, Kuba and I were listening to a motivational soundtrack and it said something like, 'if you were to die tomorrow...' and Kuba replied... "well I almost died yesterday...."

Pretty scary. Anyway, things are going my way. I've broken my personal fearless record, which felt really nice. I dropped on void which was the 19th contact. Not too shabby. Almost caught up with David 2006 in the fearless department. I guess that just shows how good he was. Well the candle that burns twice as bright... ... ...

Routine practice is going better than ever. I've come to terms with the subjectivity of judging and the biases that we have whether we're aware or not. So I'm just doing a routine that will be more fun than a chore for me, and it's making it so much easier to practice when it's fun. I enjoy doing it more than making myself do it purely for the competition. I'm curious how successful I would be with it street performing. It's pretty damn European, so I hope that will tip the scales in my favor. I actually meant to do this song last year, but I'm glad that I've saved it, and I'm excited to present it to you.

I just did my shred 30 dropless, and it wasn't the first time. I've incorporated David's 2010 shred 30 into my own and come up with a great plan for winning that event. I have a good plan for sick 1 as well. Not a new trick, but still a big unique trick. I think I'll be weaker in circle and request due to my training methods, but I'm about ready to go full viking.

Unfortunately I did hurt my leg yesterday while I was air shredding my routine.. How embarrassing. I jammed my left toe directly into the side of my right calf, and my god, it hurt so damn bad. I thought it would put me out of commission for a few days to a week, but Anńa and I ran 14 km (8.4 miles) yesterday, and it was fine. It doesn't seem to be affecting my shred at all even mentally. I figured it would be black and blue, but I guess I'm made of steel now. Well, I can't wait til this is all over and we can start drinking that jągermeister. Cheers.

[Nathan8]

Go full viking while in Europe please, so that the American landscape isn't ruined by the shock waves. A song you like with a structure you like sounds like a fun routine. All the write ups you have done about food and you'r diet has inspired me to eat more like an athlete I wrote more about it in my footblog. Keep training super hard, worlds is very quickly approaching and I really want to see full viking! .... from afar...

[Asmus]

You can't avoid going full viking when in Denmark

[Lycanthrope]

At the rate I am playing and the way I am practicing, I can see myself winning routines and shred 30. I don't think I will be able to keep my circle title this year although I'll pour my heart into it. Maybe it's just because I'm tired from training so hard, but I seldom hit epic runs like I did last year. However, I have the best routine and shred 30 that I've ever had by far. If I perform as expected, I should win both events. Not to be cocky, it's just where all of my efforts have been focused.

Asmus, is that from Diablo or something?

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

Do you still have fun playing freestyle footbag? Or are you just in it to win it now?

Like when you have a solo session during a time where there are no tournaments, do you still enjoy freestyling with no goal other than to enjoy footbag for an hour or two??

Sorry for the weird question, just curious what it feels like for you.

[Lycanthrope]

First of all, I'm glad you're on a better diet now, Nathan. Sorry to have neglected your post; that was not my intention. It's been good to skype with you, especially when you're eating a healthy meal

Thanks for posting, Nick.

Sometimes I just go into a session to push drills and try to ace my shred 30 or break some records. When Kuba was in town we had a lot of casual shred, but also some street performing, which has the whole money thing in mind, but we kept reminding each other that we're just there to have fun and to get some practice in regardless of the money.

That helped us to stay positive. I think positivity is possibly the most important thing in life. I realize that the balance is important in all matters too, but being grateful for our lives and our opportunities is so important because it's a really pure blissful positive feeling. Nobody has gone far without help of some kind. No man is an island, I suppose.

Last year on the tour, I kept having the thought that I could have fell or tripped and broke an ankle or been involved in a car accident or something. The chances of something stopping me at some point in my training or in my travels was really pretty high, and I felt that it was more likely than not, which really enforced my idea of fate and that I was the chosen one and that my destiny was success. I felt like these thoughts really propelled me forward and helped me to be grateful.

I recently reread the Vasek manual and realized how much we have in common. He even mentions cold showers as a tool to test your mind which is crazy because it's a tool I've used a lot. He constantly talks about gratitude in there as well. I think gratitude is really what my life has been missing for a long time, so I hope this post can help some people.


Okay, sorry to blab, but if there is a place for me to blab, I suppose this is the most appropriate place. So to further answer your questions, Nick, sometimes I have a session just for the fun of it, and sometimes fun is not my intention going into the session. I think my idea of fun has changed a bit from the beginning as well. I enjoy accomplishing goals as if unlocking all of the extras in a video game or something.

And about winning; my goal has always been to win, but furthermore it's more recently extended to having my own era, my own decade, and creating a legacy. When I listen to Arnold Schwarzenegger talk about how his goal was not just to be a body building champion, but to be the greatest body builder of all times, I think that I want the same thing. Then I look at how steep of a goal it is to have a greater impact than Vasek has had, and it's really daunting.



So that pushes me to just try to have fun with it more instead of take it seriously, because if I was just straight business when it came to that goal, I would probably just find a different hobby. haha

[Asmus]

Great post!

Vasek is definitely the greatest player of his generation but to me he is still just the second greatest of all time.

Number 1 in my book is Ken "The Enforcer" Shults.

45 World Championship Titles:
6 Singles Freestyle
3 Team Freestyle
Original Big Add Posse Member

Featured on Guinness Book of World Records, Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated, National Geographic World Magazine, Young Athlete Magazine, Stuff Magazine, ESPN, Good Morning America, Prime Sports, CNN, Bob Uecker's Wild and Wacky World of Sports.

Main man behind the Tricks Of The Trade videos, which after the internet is the most important teaching tool in the history of footbag!

He invented Around The World in 1982 and then 20+ years later he hits Whirring Swirl and Blurry Whirling Swirl first!

http://worldfootbag.com/interview-with- ... e-1-and-2/

Sorry for the takeover I love geeking out.

[Lycanthrope]

Wow, that was a really dense and awesome post, Asmus. Thanks for the even more daunting challenge... hahaha

And valid point..

Ken Somilinos and I talked a little bit about relative greatness vs. net greatness. So relative being how good you are compared to other players and net being total skill level. As far as relative greatness, in 2003-2007, there was such an obscene gap in skill level from Vasek and other players that Vasek was not even playing the same game as other people. I'm definitely not discounting Kenny's accomplishments, but Vasek has had some very recognizable successes. I doubt there will ever be such a relative gap ever ever again, but net skill level is always up for the taking.

The inventing and still inventing 20 years later thing is absolutely robust. I hope to have such accomplishments one day. The publicity is ridiculous too. And being able to change with the times like that.. I can't imagine.

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

I know what you mean about unlocking all the extras in a video game. I treat footbag in a similar way, but I think.about it as a giant, endless puzzle... But the problem is just that... It's endless. Or do you feel like it does have an end? Like you said, you're not paying much attention to your circle game and more on routine and 30. Do you think your shred/freestyle is as good as it can get now? But then I also remember you saying that the "peak" of anyone's game is all in your head. Do you still feel that way a year later?

Sent from my C6916 using Tapatalk

[max]

It's funny I always thought that Vasek could have created / invented so much more. What did he actually invent? Smiling set, symp whirr, triple swirl come to mind, I'm sure there are many more. But that's not really what defined his game, he was more about taking everyone's hardest tricks and then linking them into obscene combos. It's a different skill set entirely. While I feel like someone like Kenny was pushing the boundaries in thinking up and doing a spinning mobius (to outside kick), Vasek would be the guy that would hit a furious set out of it. And then you had guys like Jorden. He really was in a different league. His creativity was hard to match in that he would be creating entire new concepts (both up and down time). I wouldnt be surprised if Jorden is still dreaming up new concepts in 10 years time

[Lycanthrope]

Yeah, there is no end, Nick. If you train a little harder or a little longer there's no reason you shouldn't be able to break your previous skill level. There could be mental blocks as well, but there are no obstacles that are immovable.

Max, how about the furious pdx flail and furious pdx mirages from 2007 and the phasing gyro stuff from 2004? It's definitely not all about inventions, and in fact sometimes it slows down players a lot. Focusing on a few concepts is the fastest way to cross the ocean. Straight line method vs continually changing directions

Jorden and Jay have probably more inventions than any other players, but their tournament results don't really show the great things that they showed us are possible. I think their tactics were too sporadic. They were really entertaining, but not a solid and sustainable strategy to win. Then again, we all have different goals.

[Lycanthrope]

So Daniels point system has made me a bit curious about other shred stats and since I've been working my routine, I've decided to do some simple math for average drops / routine.

So worlds last year I had two drops in each my first two routines and none in my finals routine so 4/3 = 1.33; the other day I was training my routine I did 2,1,0,2 drops in four of my practice routines respectively. So 3/3 for the first three is 1.00 drops/ run which is better than my previous worlds average drops, but the fourth one would put me at 5/4 or 1.25 drops/routine. Either way, I'm glad to have a better routine than last year. I'll try ten today and see how much of a limiting reactant that my endurance is. I would expect to see less drops after the first couple and more drops later on. Let's see.

[Lycanthrope]

Alright, just a couple thoughts on today's first session. I decided to do the easy math and just run my routine ten times today to get the average drops, but I got some additional random data that I was curious about.

Setting: just in a room with adequate space and laminent floor. No spectators.

1 1
2 0
3 2
4 2
5 1
6 0
7 1
8 1
9 0
10 0

So is drop count. 1 drop routines are interesting. They don't always win, but there are many winning 1 drop routines based on others' drop count. Jim won USO this year with a 1 drop routine this year. Gielnicki worlds 2008, etc. So for easy math, I'll just give myself a slight advantage and assume that each of my dropless routines are winners as well as half of my 1 drops. So I'd assume a 60% chance to either win or compete with another dropless routine at worlds. There are a lot of assumptions there.

Some less ambiguous data: 4/10 dropless, 8/10 1 drop or less, 2/10 2+drops. The ten routines were performed in less than an hour, but I didn't time them. I took a few minutes of breaks in there, probably about 2-5 minutes in between. I meant to do

My routine has about 90 tricks. A little more, but I dig the easy math again. So I hit 892/900 tricks assuming I hit all tricks in each routine, which I didn't. So that's a 99.1% chance to hit a trick. I don't know if that's good or bad since I have such limited info, but I think it's on the adequate side..

I was dropless 20% in the first 5 tries, but 60% in last 3 tries which shows some warm-up indication. I had 8 drops in 10 routines which is a 8 drops/ 10 routines, .80 dpr or drops per routine.

I try to compare myself against myself to see if I get better as opposed to taking everyone else's stats and seeing how I look against them. Last year at worlds under competition conditions I was averaging 1.33 dpr, and based on my last ten in this session, I've been averaging 0.80 dpr. It's nice to see progress, although I feel the need to better that stat with my next ten tries...


There are a lot of assumptions, but I just wanted to see how much progress I've made instead of being so in the dark about things. Let me know what you guys think of this simple analysis. Maybe there is something to it?

[C-Fan]

1. I think its good you're doing as much routine practice as you are.
2. Its hard to compare practice data with your comp results. For inexperienced players, the comp results can be worse because they feel the pressure of competition more than the relaxed practice environment. For experienced players like you, I think you do better in comp than in practice, as the competition motivates you.
3. When I evaluate my routines (practice or otherwise) I don't view all drops as equal. For example, if the bags collide on a juggle, that's technically 2 drops, but only one mistake. I basically consider that a one drop mistake. I also try and analyze the nature of the drops, and not just the number. If I do 10 routine run throughs averaging only one drop each time, but the drop is always in the last 10 seconds and due to fatigue, there's something to be learned there beyond the dropcount. I'm sure you do this too.

Are you doing multiple routines at Worlds, or just one? Excited to hang out with you and meet Anya this weekend!

[Lycanthrope]

Hey, Ken. Miss you brotha. I've been schooling the routine pretty hard. I made myself notes about when the drops were and where I felt the most doubt was in my routine. I just wanted to choose one piece of my data and analyze it. Yes, just one routine at worlds this year. I'm making each decision based on what will help me prepare for my finals routine, and practicing it twice in comp seems like the most beneficial path. The other train of thought is that you wouldn't want to reveal the finals routine so early, but I think it builds anticipation and helps people see patterns or lack of patterns more easily.

Yeah, man. Can't wait to chill. My mind feels good and I'm more confident and prepared this year.

[h0ag3yb3atZ]

good luck champ.

someone posted a vid of you starting a string with double blender>flurry>fairy whirling swirl. you are the man.

[Kylescook]

Thats a nutty combo

[Lycanthrope]

Well that was a hell of a ride.

Just got back from worlds. Anna is mad at me. I think the tournament was hard on her. It's really hard to fight for everything at the same time it seems. Life is exhausting.

I know people only get snippets of worlds, from only a couple perspectives, so I'll try to share some thoughts about it.
I felt like my level was high this year regardless that the outcome was not my ideal one. I like to focus on wins and losses and try to use both in my favor.

Losses:
Circle third place
Bronze
I did expect first or second, but I can accept third because I didn't make things unambiguous between second and third.

Routines fourth place
I really am pretty happy about my routine. It's definitely a personal best regardless of a poor finish at worlds, but fourth place was pretty much the floor of my expectations, so it's definitely in the loss column. Basically what happened was that my ending had a drop and it didn't allow me to upseed.

Wins:
Shred 30
Gold
256
personal record, 2 tricks away from goal of 280. Whirlygig and spender. I've hit the record 5-10 times before and even added on to the combo, but 256 definitely falls within my realm of win. You can keep your hundred bucks until next year, Jeremy.

Request
Gold
I don't feel like it's necessarily a great accomplishment to win a request contest, but since everyone got out in round 8/15 except for me and Vasek, and then I ended up going until round 14/15 alone, I do consider this one of my greatest accomplishments. Each request contest is really unique, but to get so far ahead of vasek on this one really made me feel like I've done something good for the sport.

Sick Trick
Gold
Just because I hit 5 big tricks in a row, doesn't mean that I won the competition, but since I beat Vasek's symposium whir, the impossible trick, I get a really good feeling about this one. To be honest, I think symposium whir is far harder than swirling double blender, but maybe I'm just missing out on a small trick to help me hit it somehow.

Sick 3
Silver
I think Vasek's sick 3 might be on par with Olav's epic big 3 from worlds 2008, I think as far as skill level and I'm not ashamed to have taken second place in this one so side to side, here they are:

Olaf's:
Nemesis > food processor > gangster party

Vasek's:
Montage > furious flail > double over down swirl

Each of them has 7 dexes and 1 extra hard link. The zoom to gangster party from food processor in the first one is an extra concept, and I think the montage to furious flail is something additional as well because its more than just a stepping from symposium whirl. The timing has to be impeccable. I don't know which is harder, what do you guys think?

[C-Fan]

Anna is mad at me. I think the tournament was hard on her. It's really hard to fight for everything at the same time it seems.

Yeah, its a challenge doing a trip where you try and balance footbag comp with tourism/romantic quality time. You have to make sacrifices on both ends, which makes it hard to keep everybody happy. At least she got to meet your friends and the community, and see you do something you're passionate about at the highest level. I'm not going to lie though; even after going to something like 6 tournaments with my wife, I'm still figuring out this balance myself.

Routines fourth place
Basically what happened was that my ending had a drop and it didn't allow me to upseed.

Out of curiosity, where do you think your routine finishes if you hit it exactly the same, just dropless? Do you think you finish in 2nd? 3rd? 1st?

Sick Trick
Gold
Just because I hit 5 big tricks in a row, doesn't mean that I won the competition,

I agree. I hope they gave it to you based on your best trick. Number of entries you hit shouldn't factor in it at all. If somebody blows all their turns but hits a nemesis swirl on their last try, that should beat somebody who hits an easy 7 on each try, but not a single trick as hard as nem swirl. Who judged this year?

Sick 3
Silver
I think Vasek's sick 3 might be on par with Olav's epic big 3 from worlds 2008, I don't know which is harder, what do you guys think?

Hm. My gut says Olaf's, but I could be persuaded either way. I like that Vasek's uses toe and clipper, instead of Olaf's which was only clippers. That said, Vasek only used one clipper and one toe, and Olaf not only used both clippers, but he also did osis tricks with both. I think that Vasek has the hardest link (montage-bs fission), but his combo is like a hard link to a bail (dod swirl), whereas Olaf's links are harder on average (step out of nemesis with a 6, zoom out of food to a 7). I'd give a slight edge to Olaf.

[Add Block]

Main word in judging had Aleksi from what Dominik told me. If you hit multiple tricks, the easier ones will be taken into consideration if the judges are undecided between your best and someone else's best one.

On paper, Vašek, with video, Vašek every time. Due to execution, form and style. Why Vašek on paper? Because Montage > Furious is insane

Also congratulations! I enjoyed your Routine, the music was great and the timing was too. I don't like Routines so this is a big compliment