The Lord of the Strings: A Footblog of Nathan

[C-Fan]

I was perverted.

Top post painting, from one of my favorite perverts:




Egon Schiele's self portrait as Saint Sebastian, circa 1914-15

Nice sick 3 stuff...but hasn't the deadline already passed for the collabo video?

[Nathan8]

*perturbed

Thanks for the top post painting.

And yes it is.

[jooles]

would love to see the newspaper article!
Also nice tricks and links!

@Ken How dare you calling Egon Schiele a pervert

[Nathan8]

WARNING: Following post includes emotion. Sorry, I don't like it either. Usually I don't have emotions but ya know.

Footbag has been my girlfriend for nearly three years now (Nov 17th will be 3). We have been going strong since day one, I never questioned our relationship once. Not once. I visited her at least once a week for these 3 years. But this past summer, in July to be exact, we began to have some struggles.

I wasn't progressing as quickly as I always had been. I was still practicing the same, but the results were becoming less and less. I was getting worried and thought that it was the way I was practicing. I felt I needed a breakthrough to get to that next level.

That's when I decided to reach out to some of the greatest players in the sport. One that I spoke to that specifically had an impact on me was Jay Boychuk. We spoke for about 2 hours one nigt and he shared so much insight with me that I am so grateful for.

The most important thing he did for me was be totally truthful. He didn't sugar coat a single thing. Jay told me I was experiencing the footbag learning curve. In the begging, everyone learns fast, but the better you get, the slower progression becomes. He was right, I was being slapped in the face by this learning curve. he told me that at this point ---this is very important--- At this point, I had two options, or two roads that I could follow.

Road #1: "Screw it, I'm going to become the best in the world and nothing is going to stop me"
Road #2: "I'm going to continue to play footbag because I enjoy it"

A year ago, two years ago, I wouldn't have thought twice about this question; I would have gone with road #1 without a doubt in my mind. And that is basically the attitude I had the past few years.

But the road grows steeper. When I was 15, 16, and 17, I lived for footbag. Footbag was all I did, every single choice of every single day revolved around what would make me better at footbag. I just recently turned 18. School is more demanding than ever, I am involved in multiple extracurricular activities, I have a social life (believe it or not), and most importantly here --- my film making hooping is really picking up. ---

All these factors are making me really wonder this one simple question: Is taking road #1 worth it?

This question has been constantly on my mind every single day of the past few weeks.

Let me clarify.

Would road #1 be really frickin hard and require ridiculous dedication all the time? Yes. I know that, I've been there. I have physically and mentally pushed myself to get better at footbag these past few years harder than anyone has any idea of. I know I can do it. I could get to the top level one day, I can feel it. And if footbag was still the only hobby I had, I would do just this

The problem comes in where if I took road #1, I would be making many sacrifices. Mainly, I would have to take time directly away from nurturing my passion for film making. (I know this because I currently take time away from footbag to practice film making).

What if I took road #1, made these sacrifices, and looked in 6 years and said "Wow that was dumb. I wish I had spent my time more wisely."

So here I was, totally lost and where I should be going next. Who could help me know? Well, I knew exactly who. I needed to talk to someone who had a similar footbag career to my own and made it to the top level. I wanted to here from someone on the other side if the commitment was worth it.

So that's when I decided to give David Clavens a call.

He grew up an hour away from me. We are at similar levels in our game senior year of high school. He went to Penn State, I'm going to Penn State next fall. He know has a professional career, just where I want to end up one day. I could very much relate to him. In fact, he told me "you might as well be me"

I asked Clavens quite plainly "was it worth it?" We then spoke for twenty minutes about the matter. He obviously didn't give me a yes or no answer, but he gave me exactly what I wanted; the truth. He told me, looking back on it, he felt that footbag kept him very disciplined an din line in college. His friends went to parties on Friday and Saturday nights, but he always knew he would be playing footbag. He also said that he somewhat wishes that he had gotten out more, been more sociable and attended more parties.

One of the things I told was I felt like all the cards were lining up for me to get great at footbag, and I feared that if I didn't push through that I would lose that opportunity. Then he told me something very interesting. He said that I should always be pouring myself into something. I didn't always have to be footbag. If I was getting that same thrill that I get from footbag while film making, then spend some time working on your film making hobby! He told me that too many go through life without ever investing themselves in anything and that people like him and I should consider ourselves lucky because we GET to choose how we want to spend our time (He listed his own interests as footbag, magic, and marketing). He told me out in the world it doesn't matter so much what your talent is, just that you have one.

He told me it wouldn't be a bad idea to take 2 months off of footbag, invest myself in my film making hobby, then go from there. Footbag will always be there for me, it's not going anywhere.

So where the heck am I now? Running frantically through a field in circles with no conception of time or space.

Seriously, I don't know where I stand. I am running back and forth between road #1 and road #2. As I sit here, drinking water and eating an apple after a footbag session, I am much closer to road #2 than I am road #1. 95% of me wants to take road #2 for two months (and I don't mean stop completely, but play like once a week), and 5% of me is telling me I will regret it if I don't take road #1 right now.

glad that's off my chest

/end emotions

[Asmus]

Great post.

Not gonna give you any advice, because I can sense you are just about to get there on your own.

[boyle]

You have come to an interesting point in your footbag development, and you probably have the base that will make you a reasonably good player without even putting too much more practice in. I like that line from Clavens, that you should be pouring yourself into something, and I think that's really important, otherwise you will be feeling vacant if you're not putting those same hours into footbag.

You can also party and play footbag at the same time.

[bustinjustin]

Many players have taken road 1 and it broke them. Guy's like Byrin who never return to the game. For a long time I was on road 1. It took a back injury (not footbag related) that kept me from playing for over a year (I never thought I'd play again) to get some perspective. When I came back, I was on road 2. Footbag has never been more enjoyable, and I love spending as much time as possible pushing as hard as I can. The difference is my goal is different. I'm not playing to be the best ever. I'm playing to be my best and to have fun getting there. Part of this is coming to terms with my own limitations but also understanding what it takes to improve, like focusing more on my form than my shred. Looking back over the last several years I think the change in perspective has allowed me to get better than I ever could have on road 1. I've never lost my passion to play or my drive to improve because I'm focused on the journey not the result.
It's important to note, road 2 can lead you close to the end of road 1, because you will work harder on the things you enjoy. You may never win a World Championship, but you could win USO, place top 10 at World's, make final circles, do dropless routines and make BAP. In the end, there may not be that much difference in what you accomplish, but a big difference in how you get there.

[C-Fan]

I liked Justin's post. Pretty similar to my path. I was on path 1 for one year, and it made the sport no fun. From 2001 until now I've been on path 2, and no regrets with my career.

I also agree with the advice to channel your passions into something, even if its not footbag. I think that's the only way to live a satisfying life.

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

Haha I posted in my blog before reading this. You should read my blog. It's pretty related to what you are talking about here. Also, we'll talk about this topic when we hang out next week.

I have a lot to say about this, so clean your ears out before our session.

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

My parents brought this and surprised me with it last time I visited them at our vacation home. Proud teacher moments of our lives.

[Nathan8]

Thanks guys for all the cool posts and respecting my decision. I've been cruzin down road #2 since I made that post and quite honestly lovin life.

Today I hit spender twice on strong side and three times on flip in gym class. Also hit double spinning clipper in very tight quarters in a classroom. - note. - add me on Snapchat: pdxwhirl. for occasionally footbag goodness. There's no period after it, modified is forcing me to put it there.

Listening to the song I'm using for my Christmas Calendar video as I right this post. Stoked for that.

[christisgodlike]

Really enjoyed that post Nathan. Im at a Similar crossroads in my life but not with footbag. I think this is relatable to most people who want to get the most out of their life.

Might be a little late on advising and I can use a bunch for myself, but the question that clarified a lot for me was: what do I want my life to look like right now (not in some distant future)?

Answer that and strive for that.

Good luck with your journey through this wonderful existence!

[Nathan8]

Hi there. A lot of time has passed. Much has transpired. A small/medium amount of footbag has been played. No "training" has occurred. Film stuff has been going great. Currently considering Worlds 2017. If I decide to go (which I'm leaning heavily towards), I am going to go all in and this blog will see a rebirth.

[Nathan8]

It's been nearly a decade since my last post. I just re-read my "emotional post" from 2016 a few posts up on this page. Kinda cringe, but kinda fun to reminisce.

It's 2026 now. When I was posting here last it was 2016/2017 and I was at a crossroads with how seriously I wanted to keep pushing footbag. I was also about to go to my first worlds in Portland. Since then I have:

Attended -
Worlds 2017 in Portland
Went to Europe where I spent 4 days in Munich with Ivan, 3 days in Prague with Krystof and recreated old Vasek Shred videos around the city and even Kicked with Honza at his shred pad, then attended Worlds 2019 in Warsaw.
Competed in the online worlds of 2020 and 2021
Went to Montreal for worlds 2024
Just got back from spending 3 weeks in Japan and a week in Thailand as part of my worlds 2026 trip to Tsukuba.
USO at Skillcon in Vegas 2017
Countless East Coast Footbag Championships
Two Canadian Closed jams
A New Years Jam in Michigan (shoutout Whirlyball)
Two New Years Jams in LA
That Jam Nick hosted, the Camp Jam I hosted, and many other smaller jams.

I went to Penn State Berks where I graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. I absolutely hated every minute of that, but along the way I discovered a passion for entrepreneurship. I started a business in college where I designed sleeping platforms for car camping (now cartocamp.com). It got a lot of attention and support from the university which helped me jump start it while in school and go into it full time at graduation. 5 years later and I'm still running it full time with two cofounders, employees, and investors. It has been such a wildly fun and fulfilling journey so far.

I have partied a fair amount. A perfectly fulfilling amount if you ask me. Live music, dive bars, clubs. I've hosted big house parties and now factory parties. I love social events. In a world with less and less in-person interaction, I try to do my part to bring people together.

I don't have a girlfriend. Haven't had one serious relationship in this time period. Still working on that.

I still somehow live in my hometown. Not thrilled about that, but I've basically opted to travel a lot rather than live somewhere cool. Traveling has been amazing, and with my business runner smoother without me every year I plan to continue to increase how much I travel, in a digital nomad style. Shoutout Tuan Vu.

I've made the most amazing friends through footbag. I literally tell people all the time that footbag is most impactful thing that has ever happened to me. It's taught me how to get good at something. It has taught me so much through traveling around the world and meeting people of different cultures.

Footbag skill level wise - re: Nathan in 2016 - I took path two. I balanced getting better at footbag with other aspects of life. I'm happy I did too. Because it felt good just now to write out that I graduated with a tough degree, started a business that allows me freedom to travel, hosted parties and brought people together, travelled, and am excited about my future.

Did I stop getting better at footbag? No. My first peak was in 2017 at worlds. After that I didn't peak again until 2019 Worlds. My next peak was in the 2021 online worlds shredoff challenge. I threw down some truly nasty stuff in those videos. That brings us to now. After spending a month in Asia playing footbag, I can say I've reached a new peak in 2026. Right now I'm sitting on two edited videos that I'll save for Joulu 2026, but let me just say, it is my finest work yet, and I am very excited to click publish.

[boyle]

You were playing great at Worlds. How was Thailand?

You should look for some start up funding for your business in an accelerator or similar. Look into ones that don't take any equity - Start Up Chile that I did some years back is still running and these days they are pretty much all around.

That sounds great that you're doing the events - you could put in a little footbag thing into a live music etc thing. That's a pretty solid list of footbag achievements you've got there in that 10 year period. Great to see you posting on here.