Kankeri Japan

[Tjuggles]

If they don't need to pay, then it should be very easy. You can just get random people to get their name on the list, as long as they fit the student criteria or whatever it is. It would be cool if you could get a few more people playing at the uni too.

yes and yes. I will see a bunch of people I know on Wednesday, so will hopefully get the remaining names then. I hope this is just the start of getting more people to get into the sport!

Two updates.

1. The footbag club is official! We are "Just for Kicks".

2. I have just developed a footbag dictionary app, currently for Android (iOS next). It is here:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... icktionary

I have put together tricks from a couple of sources. There are currently over 530. I am working on further increasing the list and adding more functionality. Please support me by downloading the app. This will help me to continue developing! I have more apps on the way, and seeing everyone download this will be really helpful. Pass the word around please!

[boyle]

The link doesn't work - but it looks like it got cut off midway through there.

[Tjuggles]

The link doesn't work - but it looks like it got cut off midway through there.

Haha, silly. The link has been updated. Thanks for that!

[Tjuggles]

I have created a free version of the Footbag Dictionary. It has all the functionality of the full version, but with fewer tricks (guiltless or lower). Please support me by downloading this, and if you like it consider getting the full version. Thanks!

https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... ionaryfree

[Tjuggles]

Since NZ went into lockdown for COVID-19, I have been kicking in my garage. It is wide enough to kick for sure, but I am conscious of the walls so haven't been as free to move around as I am at the gym at uni. That being said, I will be returning to the office two days a week starting next week, so if the gym is open I plan to kick there again! Even if the gym isn't open, there are heaps of places to kick.

Aotearoa has had no new cases in about 5 days, and only 3 I think since the beginning of May. That looks promising.

So worlds 2020 is online! I haven't been thinking about it at all, but recent posts from people here, the indirect push from Dave Leberknight, and paying attention to Discord are making me consider more.

The sessions I have been having are about 30 minutes. I feel that 30 minutes twice a week will not give me enough time to prepare for worlds, unless I only compete in one discipline. On the other hand, I wonder if I would regret not participating in all events considering it is online and as easy as recording a video and uploading it. I will have to think about this. I like that Ken set out some goals/a timeline to consider, so I will do the same. These goals may help dictate things like required time, events to compete in, etc.

ROUTINES

I need to find some music and then choreograph. I haven't been shredding hard in terms of adds, so I will likely emphasize artistic merit over technical. There are a handful of songs that I have listened to recently where I thought "This would be great to perform to". That being said, I listen mostly to 90s and early 2000s hip hop, meaning there is not much variation in the music itself. This may not lend itself to transitions in move variety; Classical music, for example, often has grandiose crescendos, stops, starts, and other magic that can be used as a guide for choreography. On the other hand, the kind of ideal routines I envision would be essentially a dance choreographed to the music: 120 beats over two minutes, and a trick (or pause) for each beat. As a result, I think the 90s hip hop would suit just fine.

At World's 2017 I had two goals:

1. A dropless routine,
2. A dropless routine in finals

I managed both of those and it felt so good! The dropless routine in finals was one of the best feelings I have had in footbag (another one being hitting 10 fearless). I suppose as a result of those goals, the add count of the routine was low, however I wasn't bothered by that. For this year, I suppose having a goal like "submit a routine" would set the bar pretty low for me. I mean, I don't think my goal is to win; I would want to spend some more time training for that goal. I suppose, then, for now the Routines goal is to:

1. Submit a video for routines.

To do so, I will need to:
1. Find a song,
2. Choreograph,
3. Train different key combos of the choreography.

I would like to spend some more time writing about routine prep, as I think there is a lot of potential there.


SHRED 30

As mentioned, I haven't been kicking with shred 30 in mind. One goal I have is:

1. Record a shred 200+.

My highest official shred is 204, but I can't confirm that yet so unsure (memory fails me and can't find the results anywhere upon a quick search). At any rate, that score wasn't at Worlds so I think 200 is a good starting point. For this I need to:

1. Consider my better tricks,
2. Consider combos using said tricks,
3. Calculate a 200-pt shred, and
4. practice in chunks

SICK 3

Hmm, not sure about this one. I suppose I'd like to hit a beast (I have only hit one, in Kobe, Japan). Not sure how wise it would be to chase this though in addition to the aforementioned goals. It would suck to get hurt here and as a result not be able to compete in the other events. Maybe two 6s and a 5? Hmm. So I can hit this safety pretty confidently:

p torque (5) > p blender (5) > motion (5)

So maybe thinking more methodically about this would help. If I start adding components to this safety, what would that look like?

Blurry torque (6) > p blender (5) > motion (5)

Blurry torque (6) > p blender (5) > locomotion (6)

Blurry torque (6) > food (6) > locomotion (6)

That progression would get me to a beast. One issue here is that if I start on my strong side for the torques, I end on my weak stepping side for both food and locomotion. I will let this simmer for now and think about adding different components instead of stepping as I have done above. Here is another possibility,:

p torque (5) > tomahawk (5) > tomahawk (5)

This is another possible safety. However, I haven't bee practicing whirl-based moves really at all, so not sure how wise this will be. That being said, continuing the progression:

p torque (5) > mullet (6) > tomahawk (5)

p torque (5) > mullet (6) > mullet (6)

blurry torque (6) > mullet (6) > mullet (6)

That is probably the progression I would choose. That being said, at this stage I think the first progression seems more doable so let's stick with that for now.

This is probably my longest post either ever, or at least this decade and it feels GREAT. Here is a recap for my training:

ROUTINES: Submit an entry, focus on artistic merit.

SHRED 30: Consider strong tricks, consider combos, calculate 200 point shred

SICK 3: Consider the aforementioned progressions, focusing on this one:
1. p torque (5) > p blender (5) > motion (5)
2. Blurry torque (6) > p blender (5) > motion (5)
3. Blurry torque (6) > p blender (5) > locomotion (6)
4. Blurry torque (6) > food (6) > locomotion (6)

[C-Fan]

I think it's great you are entering all the events. With the current format of Worlds, I think the only legit reason to NOT enter them all is if you didn't like one of them. Like, I know some players who think routines are stupid and that's why they've never competed in them. That's their opinion and decision and that's fine. But if you are neutral or positive about events, this is the year to enter all of them. For me personally, I tried to do as many events as possible when I was young. As I got older and my body got worse at staying warm through multiple hours of competition, I began to pick and choose (and scratch) strategically from events to give me the best shot at doing well at the ones I cared about. For example, if I saw that routines and Shred30 were on the same day several hours apart, I'd scratch from Shred30 since I was prioritizing routines. With the current format though, there's no reason you can't pick just 1 or 2 events per session, and focus on those. If you went out today and hit a great Shred30, you could decide you are done with it and then spend the next two months focusing on the other events.

Every competitor is different, but to me the events offered fall into a pretty obvious hierarchy of how hard they are to plan and hit. From easiest to hardest, I have them as Shred Off, Sick 3, Shred30, and finally routines. You can do a decent shred off with 0 planning...basically just film your whole session and use your best runs as you hit them. For Sick 3 you can work on links and plan things out, but you can also just throw attempts at a wall and see what you hit. Shred30 you can fluke out a good score by just concentrating on not dropping and not repeating tricks. Obviously if you have high point goals you should plan it out some, but for a 200 point one you can easily get there by just not dropping. Routines are by far the hardest in terms of planning and then execution.

Looking at your proposed Sick 3s, my gut reaction/recommendation is to focus less on adds and more on variety. It's subjective I know, but as both a spectator and a judge (not for this Worlds, but in the past) I've always awarded bonus points to seeing a variety of surfaces, concepts, and bothsidedness. So a combo which uses both toes and both clippers is usually more varied and interesting to me than a combo where every trick ends on the same osis. I remember one Worlds where Vasek hit montage-whirlwind-spender, and people had similar criticism that the combo basically was 3 variants of the same side spinning whirl. Just my 2 cents.

[acxel22]

Looking at your proposed Sick 3s, my gut reaction/recommendation is to focus less on adds and more on variety. It's subjective I know, but as both a spectator and a judge (not for this Worlds, but in the past) I've always awarded bonus points to seeing a variety of surfaces, concepts, and bothsidedness. So a combo which uses both toes and both clippers is usually more varied and interesting to me than a combo where every trick ends on the same osis. I remember one Worlds where Vasek hit montage-whirlwind-spender, and people had similar criticism that the combo basically was 3 variants of the same side spinning whirl. Just my 2 cents.

exactly how I've been tought to judge sick 3, using all surfaces is a very important factor for me as well. I hit harder stuff, but personally the proudest I've been is doing bedwetter-pixie torque- wauxpin (all surfaces) even tough the wauxpin link is meh.

all clippper combos often look big, but without toes it really limits the difficulty of linking the tricks wich is part of the sick3

[Tjuggles]

If you went out today and hit a great Shred30, you could decide you are done with it and then spend the next two months focusing on the other events.

Exactly. I thought this as I was typing that last post. That gave me motivation as well; I mean, I can just give a few goes here and there, or maybe at the end of a session and see how I go. Additionally, I have taken Erik's advice to load an old phone up with music, and use the camera on my newer phone to video. Hopefully that works out.

On a side note, a few of my toes have become a bit raw from rubbing together. It is likely some combination of footbag, walking around, and shoes that don't fit quite right. I have taken the last week off of shred to help them heal. It has happened before and healed, so not a big deal. Plus, they don't hurt unless I hit them on something.

Looking at your proposed Sick 3s, my gut reaction/recommendation is to focus less on adds and more on variety. It's subjective I know, but as both a spectator and a judge (not for this Worlds, but in the past) I've always awarded bonus points to seeing a variety of surfaces, concepts, and bothsidedness.

exactly how I've been tought to judge sick 3, using all surfaces is a very important factor for me as well. I hit harder stuff, but personally the proudest I've been is doing bedwetter-pixie torque- wauxpin (all surfaces) even tough the wauxpin link is meh.

Thanks for that, boys. Good to think about. I will rethink this a bit. After reading your opinions, I was thinking in the shower last night something like:

pixie weaving flail > pixie motion > ducking p torque
(I think it would be weaving: so right foot pixie set, duck, then ss flail)

This would hit more surfaces, get some more concepts in the mix, possibly look cooler, and likely feel better to hit. That being said, I still feel like I am focusing on adds; I have never hit that first trick, and my flails aren't good. I guess in my mind the sick 3 needs to be fearless at a minimum, but not sure why I think that. I guess if I want to have a shot at getting into finals, adds will play a role in that. But based on the advice, maybe not? At any rate, was just having a think in the shower. In the end this may relate back to having a goal in mind. If my goal is to make it to finals, I think I will need to think about adds more seriously. On the other hand, if I am simply trying to get a video recorded, then the adds can be a bit more relaxed, and I can focus on what feels good, or what I can be proud of hitting. I like that.

I remember one Worlds where Vasek hit montage-whirlwind-spender, and people had similar criticism that the combo basically was 3 variants of the same side spinning whirl.

I remember that too...I think 2003ish? If it is the one I am thinking of, Ryan was still competing too, and there was a big black stage. Vasek was so young too, I remember.


While I am here, I'd like to mention two more things, the first being the Footbag Dictionary. It has been a little while since I have updated this, mostly due to other projects outside of the Footbag world. I have some information about trick history that I will be incorporating, so that is on deck. I would also like to update the user interface. Additionally, I think it would be great to have a comment section for each of the tricks where we could discuss tips for tricks, etc. This would be similar to the .org tricks page, but be more updateable, where anyone could add info to it. Not sure if the Footbag Moves app has this feature already or not, but it may pay to look into. Ultimately, I would like the dictionary app to be the source for all of the historical facts about our sport that will likely get lost in the void as we become older and people leave/die/etc. It would be able to answer questions like "who invented the name butterfly, and why?", or "When was the first footbag video released"? Hmm, that last example question isn't really related to how the current version of the app is built...but it may be something to think about in the future.

The second thing to mention is regarding Modified. I am a devout Linux user, and enjoy tweaking my setup to just the way I like it. One thing I enjoy about my current setup is the ability to bind keys to different events. One common event for example is the key combination Window-key + Shift + 1, which moves the current active window to the first screen/desktop. In terms of Modified, I was thinking a bit more in that shower last night that it would be cool to have certain keys bound to different actions. For example, two features may be something like:

"p" - post: By pressing "p" in a thread you could simply create a new post. This would be identical to clicking on "Post a Reply".
"r" - reply: This would create a new post, but it would insert the most recent post as a quote.

Not sure if this would be useful to others, but it may be fun to think about. That being said, the Quick reply feature is pretty, well, quick, so these features may only be useful for people like myself. At any rate, these sorts of shortcuts could be useful to make creating content/navigating the forums/etc., easier. Surely there are already features like this built into the platform, but I haven't looked through to see yet.

[Tjuggles]

Had my first kick in about 1.5 weeks this passed wednesday. I am still amazed how good footbag is to me. I finish each session reset mentally and ready for whatever comes my way. So grateful.

I wasn't expecting anything big since I had had a break, and considering my toes were still a bit iffy. I am pretty sure the root cause is bad form; I was practicing some stepping stuff and felt my feet taking a beating. After being more conscious of the form, I noticed not only was the stepping easier, but less rough on my feet.

I managed to set up my phone camera to record the whole session! I took Erik's advice and fired up my old iphone 4 for music. It isn't ideal since I can't access the filesystem to add music to it. I should remember my password, install dropbox, and then put music in there as a workaround.

I spent some of the 40 minutes practicing different links in the shred30 I made. Still some work to do there. I realized that the narrow space I have to kick in at home is limiting.

I didn't really think about routines at all.

I thought some more about sick three and practiced some stuff, but nothing came out of it other than that.

Today I will be heading to uni to pick up a plant. I will try to get into the gym for a session. Hoping for the best; they say on the website that the gym is open for group exercise, so hopefully they will let me in.

[C-Fan]

Glad you got to play!

felt my feet taking a beating. After being more conscious of the form, I noticed not only was the stepping easier, but less rough on my feet.

How often do you replace your insoles? I'm often guilty of this, and I notice it especially when I play on rough surfaces.

I spent some of the 40 minutes practicing different links in the shred30 I made. Still some work to do there.

I used to practice Shred30 by breaking it into sections and practicing each section separately. While that has some value, and can help you dial in certain links, I've found there's no substitute for doing full 30 second run throughs. Learning how your body feels and reacts when you're 25 tricks deep into a Shred30 is something you can't simulate by just doing the last 5 tricks on its own. I find the same goes for routines, but even more so.

[Tjuggles]

Glad you got to play!

Thanks. I have had one more session, yesterday, since then. I managed to kick at the gym on the basketball court. There were a handful of people there so didn't film. It was great to have more space to play. I think for recording my routine, I will have to do it at uni somewhere, or at least somewhere there is more room than my garage.

During the session I didn't really work on anything for comp directly. I have been making it a point to bring a writing utensil and notebook to make notes throughout the session. I played for about 45 minutes and made the following notes. First, I worked on the symposium-type set for stepping. What I mean is I am aware that the support leg should be doing most of the work on stepping sets. I think I struggle with that and instead try to use both feet, or even the set foot to time the set. Using the set foot in that way really just creates a race of the fastest leg. On the other hand, using the support leg to set at least reduces the speed that this race needs to happen, allows a deeper delay for the set, and gives whole-body momentum to guide the set.

Some highlights I wrote down were:

1. pixie op pickup x 4. I don't think this is my record, but it is evidence that my left toe may be gaining more control.
2. swifter bs. I watched a video yesterday of Андрей Дьяконов and remembered swifters. I made a note to do them and managed both sides. I have only hit swifter a small handful of times, and these felt more or less good. I noticed that my left side stepping set is such that I under turn my body for the swirl. Forcing myself to turn more, to get the bag behind me for the swirl, really helped. In fact, hitting these reminded me of the wow-the-pieces-all-came-together feeling I got from hitting Morpheus. It was like there was no wasted time, and no wasted effort feeling:



I made a couple of small notes on tricks to consider for sick 3:
1. ducking drifter. It is only 4adds, but a cool trick, and one I am fairly confident I can hit with a bit of practice.
2. morpheus. I have only hit this once bs so may be a long shot. That being said it would be really satisfying to get this in as part of a sick 3 entry for worlds.

The last note I made was that I hit stepping muted op clipper x4. While it is not my record, the thought to do this came from the aforementioned discussion about the support leg doing all of the work for stepping sets. I think practicing this combo a lot will really help my stepping game.

How often do you replace your insoles? I'm often guilty of this, and I notice it especially when I play on rough surfaces.

Interesting point. My first pair of Lavers I ever had were purchased after meeting Greg Nelson. He never wore insoles and so I took that on. In other words, I never change my insoles because I don't use them. Maybe I should. Fun fact: Greg also used to drill about 4 holes in his soles, parallel to the ground, to increase cushion, and decrease weight.

I used to practice Shred30 by breaking it into sections and practicing each section separately. While that has some value, and can help you dial in certain links, I've found there's no substitute for doing full 30 second run throughs. Learning how your body feels and reacts when you're 25 tricks deep into a Shred30 is something you can't simulate by just doing the last 5 tricks on its own. I find the same goes for routines, but even more so.

This is very true, thanks for that. I suppose the reason I was practicing links, as opposed to the entire shred 30 is because I don't have it memorized. That makes me wonder if I should adapt typical strings that I do in casual shred, instead of creating a shred 30 from the ground up. Will have a think about that.

[Tjuggles]

Kicked again at the gym yesterday. I have to be conscious of the fact that at any moment a basketball could come my way, and in fact a few did. It isn't a big deal in terms of stress, and I am happy to stop to throw it back. Just have to be aware.

Here are the notes I made. I warmed up for about 5 mins or so with tiltless. Mirages, legovers, pickups. I also wrote down atws and illusions, however noted that I only did 1 or two. I should do more of those.

I hit pixie op legover x 10. Not a PR but it was first try and my left toe was feeling a bit stronger.

I also considered some more sick 3 combos. I am enjoying trying to think up three tricks that would be fun to hit, while maintaining a good amount of adds, but also surfaces and concepts. The strategy this time was to first think of a trick I can do relatively well. From there I tried to think of another trick that includes different concepts and/or ends on a different leg and surface. I then thought of a third trick in a similar matter. Then it was a matter of thinking of the best way to link them.

On another note, I hit hatchet, ps whirl, and mullet bs. I have gotten out of the habit of throwing whirls. I guess in 30-40 mins of kicking you can only do so much.

I noticed that the way I do tricks like drifter and torque often end with my toes lightly smashed up against the front of my Lavers. I think that means I need to really focus on landing in a balanced position.

Finally, New Zealand is now at the lowest alert level for Covid-19. We are essentially open for domestic business. This means that in the next couple of days the long room, where I usually kick at the gym, will be reopen. That will mean I can kick and film at will. Hopefully I will be able to get some stuff recorded for worlds soon. I don't think I will be able to record before that unless I kick outside somewhere. With Wellington being the windiest city in the world, and us being in winter, that option is less than ideal.

[Tjuggles]

Had another kick today. As hoped, the long room was open and so I kicked in there! I had forgotten however that there is patchy wifi, and so my old iphone was really no good for music. As a result, I set up the iphone to record and used my newer phone for music. I didn't capture anything good, but that was mostly a result of chatting with someone else in there about an Okinawan form of martial arts that they were practicing. This was after we spoke about hack for a few minutes. I had started to warm up (with atws and illusions, as I mentioned I should in my last post), when the gentleman entered and started doing his thing. We then started chatting about how he used to hack all the time, but his health and life stepped in and it just phased out of his life. About 10-15 minutes of conversation later I realized I was still recording so stopped. We then finished our chat and I got back into it.

Some highlights I noted were bs parkwalk bsos, and that I hit each trick of my sick 3 safety (but not all together).

Next week I will be at the office Mon, Wed, and Fri so will be kicking each of those days. My goals for next week:

1. Record a safety for sick 3,
2. Record a shred 30,
3. Consider routines.

Time is running out! It is an interesting thing this year because, as mentioned in my last post, I hadn't planned on attending Worlds this year. As a result, time was not on my side. I was thinking during shred that even recording a low shred 30 and submitting that, instead of scratching, would make me feel better than vice versa.

[boyle]

yeah, I think just getting in an entry at all, particularly for Shred 30, and sick 3, which may end up you chance a good one, is better than nothing. Routines is a bit of a different story as there's a lot more prep in that. Maybe that guy will get back into the hack too!

[Tjuggles]

yeah, I think just getting in an entry at all, particularly for Shred 30, and sick 3, which may end up you chance a good one, is better than nothing. Routines is a bit of a different story as there's a lot more prep in that. Maybe that guy will get back into the hack too!

Yeah for sure.

However that being said, my session yesterday was not a productive as I would have hoped. It started off bad as Amateur Andy forgot his water bottle. The long room is on the ground level and is the only place I can kick knowing that a basketball won't come flying my way. That is fine, except the closest water fountain is 3 floors up and I couldn't be bothered waking up and down every few minutes for a drink.

My goals for the session were to
1. record a sick 3 (safety at the very least).
2. revise my shred 30.

Regarding the first goal, I spent about 30 minutes trying to hit this and just couldn't do it. I ended up getting the first two, but couldn't link the last trick. Maybe Wednesday. Looking forward to seeing how the practice yesterday affects the shred tomorrow.

Regarding the second goal, I wrote down about 6 4-move combos that I can do. I figure I better way to prepare for shred is to execute these combos, with a link on either side which incorporates other tricks I am confident with.

That being said I did have some good runs that were quite bothsided.

Still no routine practice. Feeling the pressure of time for sure.

[Tjuggles]

Regarding the first goal, I spent about 30 minutes trying to hit this and just couldn't do it. I ended up getting the first two, but couldn't link the last trick. Maybe Wednesday. Looking forward to seeing how the practice yesterday affects the shred tomorrow.

Well, the practice paid off; I managed to hit the safety on video! It was right at the end of the session. As soon as I hit it (and ensured it was recorded), I stopped kicking. It feels great to know that at the very least, I have one entry for Worlds this year. I had a couple of attempts where the bag rolled off my foot on the last trick, which led to a few good loud sighs. It would be fun to make a vid of those outtakes. I think that has been done before if memory serves.

As Ken mentioned, progress is anything but linear. It is good to keep that in mind for sure. On a similar note, I think another thing about progression is that it is really important to reassure yourself that the things you do today will affect your game tomorrow, hopefully in a positive way.

So, the next goal is to record a safety for shred30. Subsequently, routines. Maybe I am going at this backwards by leave routines, which requires the most planning, to the end. However, given time constraints and the fact that I hadn't planned on attending Worlds let along competing, I think I can rest assured that I am on the right track. I would rather spend some more time thinking about routines and have tighter choreography than just record myself shredding for two minutes. In the end however, as a last result I will just do the latter.

[cammel]

Nice! Congrats on getting a safety entry recorded. I'm stoked to see all these entries, no way would I have gone to worlds in person, but it will be really awesome to be able to see what the scene is like from the comfort of my couch . Sounds like a lot of work though!

[Tjuggles]

Sounds like a lot of work though!

Yes it is a lot of work, but enjoyable work no doubt.

That reminded me to note that on Tuesday I was quite sore from shred on Monday. I haven't had sore muscles from kicking in ages so that was good. It was nice confirmation that I am doing something different to the normal shred I have been doing (where I didn't get any sore muscles).

[C-Fan]

Congrats on banking a safety sick 3. There's something empowering about having an entry banked, that takes the pressure off when you're trying for your "real" entries afterwards.

So, the next goal is to record a safety for shred30. Subsequently, routines. Maybe I am going at this backwards by leave routines, which requires the most planning, to the end.

The schedule has been helpful to me for deciding what to tackle next: https://footbag.online/player-info/schedule/

Shred30 isn't due until a month from now, but routine qualifiers are due in 2.5 weeks. As you say, routines require a bit more thought, so if I were in your position I'd spend the next 2 weeks on routines, and then the 2 weeks after that on Shred30.

[Tjuggles]

Congrats on banking a safety sick 3. There's something empowering about having an entry banked, that takes the pressure off when you're trying for your "real" entries afterwards.

Agreed. In this case, even if I don't manage anything else I have a sick 3 that I have never hit before so am thankful.

Shred30 isn't due until a month from now, but routine qualifiers are due in 2.5 weeks. As you say, routines require a bit more thought, so if I were in your position I'd spend the next 2 weeks on routines, and then the 2 weeks after that on Shred30.

Yeah good point. With 2 weeks before routine qualifiers are due that gives me six sessions...enough to put something together. I think I will do that, thanks Ken.