Nick "Houdini" Polini

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

Thanks man I was amped on Alpine BW!

Glad I was actually able to help you with my tip! Damn if you found a flaw in your game and you fix it, there's no telling what horror shred you could unleash. I'm excited to see what you fix and how it changes your form.

And about coming to N'awlins... I think that's going to be a goal of mine this Summer. To make it out there for the weekend or something. That would be sick to come shred and hangout for the weekend. I'll try my best to figure something out. You should throw a jam or something. I feel like a lot of people would show up.
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My legs hurt like the dickens. I hope they feel ok for tomorrow night's session with Bob. Jackson's starting to feel sick and so am I. I go on my internship this Friday to Canada and I CANNOT be sick for this. I'm gonna be so pissed if this turns into a cold or something..

Anyway, I just drilled flip Pixie 50 times under a dim street light.

I did actually hit a new trick tonight though and footed another new one. Jackson suggested I try some Quantum sets...

Highlights:

Tripwalk
Footed toe blur like 5 times. fuck.

Quantum is starting to make sense to me. I just need to lay off of stepping, atomic, quantum, and anything else that makes my legs use up a lot of energy. I plan on drilling spins tomorrow.

Good night, my fellow bag junkies.

[Jazzkid]

about new orleans.....If you came in during the week I would be able to show you around the city and shred in the day, .......a weekend would mean ...I gig wed through sat at a casino.....we could shred and swim all day.....but not see the city.

[h0ag3yb3atZ]

^livin th' life. That sounds way better then college

Good work on the quantums. They get pretty easy once you've hit toe blur/blizzard a few times.

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

Mark: Alright, that works even better for me, since I work every other weekend. I'm normally free'ish during the weeks. I'll try to work around that. And the touring and shredding sounds awesome!

Kevin: Thanks dude. It's such an odd set for me. Tonight was the first night I actually felt the set and it looked ok for once, so I tried those tricks. I don't like Quantums all that much right now, but I'll keep messing with them and try to get some toe blurs and whatnot.

Video is finally up from this week's PHILLY FOOTWORKS SUNDAY SESSION:
(Not much shred on video, but enough to give you the gist of what we're holding every Sunday here in PA):


[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7GZC-Rll6M[/youtube]

[RipWalker]

Loved the vid man -- it's awesome to see how supportive you are of new footbaggers hitting even the most basic moves (which we all know aren't "basic" to the person who's just starting out). Props for that.

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

Yo thanks Mark. I love when new people start to show interest in freestyle!

Had a small "sick" session with Jackson... we're both sick. Not in the rad way. Well, we both have sore throats.

Jackson had like a 15 contact tiltless string! Record!

I drilled and tried a new trick:


Footed Marius like 4 times!
Sounds lame, but I hit my 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th clean flipside pdx whirls. Pdx whirls are definitely not my strongest trick, but I'd like them to be, so I'm gonna be drilling them a lot in the near future.
Another new link for me: Gyro mirage> smear bs

OH YEAH! READ THIS COOL FOOTBAG STORY!

I was helping my Grandma out in the garden today and while I was weeding, something in the garden caught my eye. A tube-like animal in the weeds with 2 magnificent shining blue race stripes going down its dorsal side. "Is that a snake?", I thought out loud, because I'm weird and talk to myself. "No, too skinny and slimy to be a snake... Worm!... Damn, never seen a worm like that!" Something about that moment was so surreal. So absolutely make-believe. It felt like I was Alice In Wonderland, but I didn't feel like a lady... It was like I was seeing a Phoenix (the fire bird, not the trick). I was so intrigued by this worm. I tried to move some weeds out of the way to get a better look at it. When I pushed back some of the weeds, what I saw made my jaw drop. It was the footbag that my Dad and I kicked into the brush about 6 months ago. I was so amazed by the find. I looked at the bag for about 10 seconds, then remembered the magical worm. I looked back at the brush and it was gone. I cleared a huge spot in the weeds prior to finding the bag. There was no way it could have escaped that fast. This whole story probably sounds like, "Oh wow. Nick saw a worm and found a footbag. Great job..." But I assure you, it felt magical. Later I got home and tried to look up the work that I saw... NOTHING. NO EVIDENCE OF WHAT I SAW EXISTED ON THE INTERNET. It was so bizarre. My dad was so excited to have his footbag back though. Hope that story didn't suck.

[Dio]

Yo Nick! I just got internet at my new place but PROPS for mobius b2b (sorry I'm late haha) that vid is sick. Can't wait to shred with you again bro - you in Canada yet?

[worldbound]

About the story: You using toxic footbags man? Try to avoid sleeping with toxic footbags under your pillow

That is cool you found an old sack and that you found a new species of worms!

[Drew]

Nick, I hope your internship starts well and you have fun! Learn about some seagulls and help make them prosper!

I have finals today and work here in the city thurs/friday so I won't be back in Pville til Saturday

[h0ag3yb3atZ]

Learn about some seagulls and help make them prosper!

lol.

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

Dante: Yo man! Thanks for the late props on Mobius b2b lol Better late than never As for Canada, I'm leaving tomorrow morning at 3 am :\ Should get there around 10 or 11. I planned a session or 2 with Cassy Taylor, who lives about an hour away from camp. Nathan Deschamps might join us and same with Erik Chan. When we sesh, I'll give you a call, just in case you can miraculously find a ride and make it out. (I'd ask you to call me if you could sesh, but my phone won't be working in Canada where I am staying). Can't wait to kick with you again either. Hopefully this upcoming week! If not, then, we'll catch up sooner or later.

Mike: haha yeah, When I fill up the footbags I stitch, I use very toxic lead fill, then I close it and for good luck, I drop it into the filler can, and shake it around a bit, just to be certain I cover the entire outside with the lead shake at the bottom of the can, then I sleep with to it. And don't worry, I NEVER put it under my pillow... It's right next to my face, so I can be sure I breathe in the fumes, ya know, for good luck. That's how you make a good footbag. I don't see anything wrong with that lol But glad you enjoyed the story. I think it would be awesome if I discovered a new species.

Drew: Thanks, but it's an ENDANGERED seagull, which tends to make things a little cooler I'll help them bastards real good. I'll see ya next Sunday then man. SUNDAY SESSIONS!!!
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So, my username of modified used to be Sick*Nick, but I hated it after not too long and changed it to what it is now, which I think is much better. But now, I'm really living up to my old name. I've been sick for the past 2 days and I guess I'm more addicted to footbag that I've ever been in the past, because I started to have insane footbag delusions while ill. I'll highlight on some of them:

When I sneezed I thought "Pdx Symposium"
When I would get a shower, I thought "Phoenix"
When I took a pill, I thought "Blender"
When I felt dizzy, I thought "Mobius"
When I put my shoes on, I thought "Ripstein"
I realized that the old video game "Spyro the Dragon" has 2 footbag terms in the title, therefore it was probably created by footbag players
And I created a new way to eat Oreos... I hit and get video of this sooner of later.

There were so many more, but I forget the rest. These last 2 days, I've played so much footbag... In my head. I just wanna shred. Hoping I feel better tonight so I can go play kicky bags with Bob and Jackson.

EDIT: Since I can't shred right now, here is some footage that was submitted to Modified's Sick 1 & 3 comp a little while ago. I never uploaded it onto youtube until now...

Sick 3: Hyper Flapper> Spinning Flapper> Torque:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IokVOb5IUk[/youtube]

Sick 1: Flapper Ripwalk:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akc2qw_hCVU[/youtube]

[sen]

I realized that the old video game "Spyro the Dragon" has 2 footbag terms in the title, therefore it was probably created by footbag players

How do you THE a flapper?

[h0ag3yb3atZ]

i dont know what the fuck you just said little kid but you special.

torque out of spinning flapper is nice. I'm sick too, it sucks.

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

Kevin, you talkin to me or Tony? I presume it's Tony because I don't understand what you meant by that either That comment will be in my head confusing me for a week and a half lol Thanks for giving me something to ponder about, Tony haha

Thanks for the proppage on the link, Kevin. I was so amped on that one.

Well, this will be my last post for a week and a half. I'll be leaving for my internship to do research the Common Tern (a species of endangered bird) in Canada tomorrow morning. Hopefully I'll be shredding with Cassy Taylor and possibly some other Canadian players while I'm there. We'll be in touch through out this week.

I'm coming home on May 24, which is also my birthday. I'll be 21! Legal drinking age in PA! I'm gonna get FUCKED UP! Well, not really.. I don't plan on drinking a lot, but every now and again would be nice to go out for a drink.

Sensei Bob, I'm treating you to a beer when I get back home!

Alright well, I'm out til the 24th. I'll be shredding as much as I can in Canada and I'll write down all of my highlights to later blog about. Hopefully I can film the session I have with Cassy. We've talked a decent bit and from our conversation, she sounds really cool. Real pumped on meeting her. I love meeting new people, especially people who play footbag.

Cya later everyone, keep shredding.

[crazylegs32]

Are you thinking some crazy shit like that worm will catch a carp?
Today the carp were spawning, jumping around letting out eggs. Chicago has harbors full of some true gigantic carp and they just roam around all summer long... 30 lb mirror carp...

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

I'm not the carpy one, that was Zach Hoffa

So I just got back from my internship in Canada today... Today is my birthday... I spent around 12 hours of it in a car back to PA... It really sucked. Total downer. When I got home, my mom had gotten me some bottles of liquor... but all I wanted to do was play foootbag with Jackson lol

Anyway, here is a big list of my highlights from my trip to Canada...

May 13:

Swirl> Whirl BSOS
Blender b2b
Mobius> Osis
Flip Mobius
Osis> Ripstein
Toe Blur

May 14:

Dense stepping run
No plant Infinity: 29 (Bob's Goal for me = 50)
Drilled Swirl & Pixie, 50 sets each bs

May 15:

Whirl> Spinning Clipper bs
Magellan> Butterfly> Ducking Osis bs

May 18:

Flip Mobius
Fairy Reverse Swirl bs (First time on each side, inspired by Evan G. & Ken S.)
Ducked a lot of Pixies

May 19:

No Plant Infinity: 34 (Bob's goal for me= 50)
5 Guiltless strings starting on flip Smear with 10 contacts or more
Flip Mobius
Whale Tail bs (First time on flipside)

May 20:
Stitched this little beauty... #21 (Just in time for my 21st b-day) Fun-Bag from me (I've decided on the name "Fun-Bags" for the bags I stitch)... Just in time for my session with the Canadians the next day!:



VERY pleased with how it turned out. I understand stitching now, thanks to Waylon's awesome tutorial diagram he drew me up at PA Jam. This thing plays like a champ. Sure, it's not PERFECT yet, but practice makes perfect. I hope to stitch with Drew K soon.


May 21:

Had a session with Cassy Taylor, Nathan Deschamps, and Justin Hall. They drove about an hour to come shred with me. I love those guys. I was happy to make some new footbag friends (VIDEO COMING SOON!)

Ducking ss Swirl! (1st time hit... Been a dream trick for a while)
Swirling Gyro Mirage (3rd time hit)
Sumo (2nd time hit)
Nuclear ss Butterfly (1st time hit)
Ripstein> Rev Walkover
Reverse Career-Ender
Smog (2nd time hit)
Eye Socket Stall> ss Whirl

May 23:
Some friends we made wanted to see what footbag was, so I put on a demo showing 1-5 adds... tried 6 adds, but alpine bw and food don't work well in pants lol

Blurry Whirl (in pants for an audience)
Mobius (in pants for an audience)
With footbag already going through mmy brain, after my performance, I was haunted by the fact that I have a shitty flip pdx whirl, so I went on the deck and practiced toe whirls. I feel as if I may have reached Tora (for those of you who have read Vasek's manual) for a hot minute. I have only hit about 4 semi-successful toe whirls in my life... I hit about 20, nonstop. Hit> catch rpt. I felt like this may have been a state of or similar to the Tora Vasek talks about in his book. Also, as if you couldn't tell, I finally finished reading Vasek's book and I took so much out of it... and I got a lot of really good tips from Nathan.

About Nathan... A lot of players underestimate Nathan, I feel. Also if you saw that he set the record for inside stalls and maybe you think that might be lame. Check yourself... Nathan got really good since last time I saw any of his videos. I suggested he try Furious sets because he was good at symp whirls... He almost foots Jani-Walker and Fury first try. That kid's got madd potential. And he's only 18. He gave me a lot of great tips. Wait til you see the video. Nathan rips it up. So does Cassy. Justin was just a beginner, but he still had fun and played well. I'm really stoked on my new Canadian friends. Some of the nicest players I've met.

Anyway...

May 24: Today... My 21st birthday:

I guess I brought something with me from Canada, because I played better tonight than most days. Actually, I fell like some strings I had tonight were some of the best I''ve ever hit. I now have a semi-trusty flip pixie.
Double Pickup> Toe Whirl ALMOST bs (I still need to work on my flip toe whirls, but I dexed it on flipside tonight. SO CLOSE. I'll work on them, then try again)
Whirl> Ripwalk> Whirl
Magellan> PLO> Magellan> PLO> Smear> Run

Tomorrow, I start my intense new form of training.

I'll be uploading the shred video soon, as well as the video that shows the work I did on my internship. I liked Canada, especially my new Canadian friends (who I plan on visiting again sometime this summer), but it's sofa-king nice to be home finally. Shredding with Bob tomorrow!

[sen]

Welcome back, Nick. Nice highlights and nice bag!

[Muffinman]

Do yo have any tips for Reverse Career Ender?

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

Tony: Thanks dude! Glad you like them, especially the bag. I'm most proud of that actually

Erik: Yeah, don't break your ankle hahaha

K so, my day was filled with footbag. I was cleaning out my apartment today and before every chore, I would throw down a bag and hit some link... only then could I begin that chore...

Spinning Clipper> Whirl BSOS> mop bathroom
Ducking Butterfly> Whirl BSOS> clean tub scum
Whirl> Blender bs> clean up trash in my room
Whirl bs with car keys> pack the car

Then after I cleaned out my apartment, I had a really fun session with Bob. He had some really clean Mobius hits along with some really clean quantum sets. We just drilled a lot tonight.

My highlights from this were:

Flip Pdx DLO (1st hit)
Ripstein> Stepping op clipper (First time stepping out of Ripstein)
Blur> Toe Whirl bs
Spinning Clipper> Whirl BSOS x2

Then later on, my non-footbag friends took me out to a dive bar to buy me my first beer. Before I walked in, I hit:

Whirl> Butterfly> Whirl, just for good luck

GOOD NEWS! I'M GOING TO NYFA JAM!!!!! FUCK YEAH!!!! I just need crash space now (anyone? please? I'll give you money... and candy...)

Been thinking about footbag a lot. It's kind of like my religion. I want robot legs. Welp, going to bed now.

[F[uns]tylin' Eclectic]

So I didn't kick all day. I helped my grandma out in her yard the whole day. It was hot out so I took sporadic dips in the pool to cool off... where I ghosted flipside whirling swirls and flipside ripsteins It actually helped both a little bit. I tried a few real quick in her parking lot and came really close to both.

Anyway, no hits. Then at night, I tried to clean the last of the crap in my apartment out. When I got there the power went out. Fuck. So I worked in the dark... with a footbag in my pocket.

Whirl bs in almost pitch dark with nothing but the light of my iPod

Then I went home and I was dying from lack of shred, so as soon as I got out of my car, I walked under a streetlight and started kicking a little. I'm so thankful I decided to kick...

Flipside Blurry Whirl!!!!!!!!!! (Brand new on flip! Hit it strongside many times)
Flipside Spinning Pdx Whirl!!!!!!!!! (Brand new on flip! Hit it strongside many times)
I'm racing Mike Angeski to Motion Sickness (Spinning Motion), and I had a few good looks at it, to my surprise.
Also came so close to another pretty sweet trick on my flipside that I don't want to reveal yet. I'll try to hit this one next session.

I'm pretty pumped right now...







PHUNK YEAH!