Archive for February, 2006

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Inventor: Steve Brown

Video Shot at The National Yo-yo Contest in Chico CA, 2004

1. Gravity Pull
2. Throwdown/Power Throw
3. Forward Pass
4. Outside Loop
5. Inside Loop
6. Sleeper
7. Walk the Dog
8. Rock the Baby
9. Breakaway
10. Around the World
11. Trapeze

Choosing a Yo-yo

The brand new National Yo-yo Contest video from Takeshi.  Check it out.  Exclusive.

The Flying Squizzel, and his less famous brother the Earthbound Squizzel, went on a killing spree in Tokyo today. Apparently outraged by the misspelling of his name on the new Duncan yo-yo called “The Flying Squirrel”, the Squizzel brothers saw no option other than violence. It is unclear why they decided to trash Tokyo, although there is a long history of giant monsters destroying the city, so they may have just thought it was the cool thing to do.

No one knows the origin of the Squizzel brothers, but all agree that they are unstoppable when angry. “This kind of misspelling has been plaguing me ever since I was a larva!” said an exasperated Squizzel as he smashed an apartment complex. “RRRAAAUUUGGGG!” said his brother, also while smashing.

Duncan Toys could not be reached for comment.

How to yoyo exclusive

Takeshi edited 12 hours of video footage in a mere 6 hours to make this video.

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download it here

Mark Hayward is a World Yo-yo Champion, a Midwest Spin Top Champion, a member of a World Champion Juggling Team, and a self-proclaimed Cool Guy. He has been a yo-yoer since he received a Hummingbird Hol-yo-gram yo-yo in his stocking for Christmas in 1988. Mark is a full time, professional juggler and yo-yo guy, a member of the Duncan Crew, and he lives in Pittsburgh PA.

In addition to yo-yoing and spinning tops, check out the other cool stuff that Mark likes.

Carving a pumpkin for Halloween? Check out Mark’s Pumpkin Carving Tips and Tricks.

• Websites: www.markhayward.net, www.MarkHaywardIsMyHero.com and www.RenewNews.com
• Favorite yo-yo(s): Spintastics Technic, Duncan Freehand Zero (usually w/recessed sticker mod), Yo-yo Factory Velocity, and Yo-yo Factory Loop 720.
• Favorite Trick: I have three. Kwijibo, Darth Vader, and Eefel Hammel Goofus.
• Favorite Joke: What’s brown and sticky? A stick. (Get it? A stick? Ha HA! It’s better when told to you in person.)
• Favorite Bands: Tool, A Perfect Circle, Clutch, Beastie Boys, Soundgarden, Rage Against the Machine, Hanson
• Favorite Movies: Star Wars Episodes 4-6, The Shawshank Redemption, Oh Brother Where Art Thou?,The Royal Tennenbaums, Pulp Fiction, Dark City, City of Lost Children, Blade Runner, The Usual Suspects, Hero, Shaolin Soccer, Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo
• Quote: “The man’s brain is a national treasure.” – Jerry Martin, Juggle Magazine

Mark and Harper had decided to redo HowToYoyo.com about a year ago and had all these grand ideas… but nothing ever materialized. Finally we decided to focus on what we are really good at: talking. (…and we are REALLY good at talking.)

The new and improved Howtoyoyo.com has all the same features it had before – but now it has an easier to read, and easier to use format so you can spend less time navigating the site, and more time on important things like yo-yoing. Of course things will need tweaking for a while, so please have some patience, and tell us if things aren’t working the way they should.  As always, we welcome your comments.

Mark and Harper

The date has been changed for the Midwest Regional Yo-yo Contest! Mark your calendars for June 10th 2006 at the Mall of America… and don’t forget to bring Dazzling Dave a Dr Pepper.

I found this hilarious commercial on google videos. Awesome!

 View This Video on Google

Pull up on the string with your yo-yo hand, put the thumb of your non-yo-yo hand on the gap of the yo-yo and push down. You should be able to get the yo-yo to wind up at least a little bit. Then just yo-yo it back up to your hand.

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This is some people’s favorite winding method, but only because it is so bizarre. You actually wind the string a few times around the entire yo-yo, perpendicularly across the gap, and then wind it in the gap like normal the rest of the way. It doesn’t seem like it would work, but it does… mostly. This method definitely works better with rubber-ring yo-yos, or other types that don’t have a smooth surface that allows the string to slip off.

Place the yo-yo on the ground so that it can roll. Hold your hand near the ground and walk backwards pulling gently on the string. Keep walking backwards with your hand near the ground until the yo-yo winds all the way into your hand.

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Basically, all you are doing is turning the yo-yo with your thumb and fingers.  The reason this is the Snap Wind, is that once you get good at it, you can put enough force into it to wind the yo-yo AND snap your fingers.  For many players this is what sets the serious players apart from the beginners.

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If you are having trouble getting the yo-yo to wind at all try this. Wind the string over your finger once, then wind under your finger three or four times, pull you finger out of the loop and continue winding normally.

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It is absolutely vital that you can do a PROPER bind if you are using an unresponsive yo-yo (which is what you need for new-school tricks). If you don’t do the bind right the yo-yo won’t wind as well, leading to reduced spin time, and you will dramatically increase the chance of getting a tangle when you throw. Tangles lead to yo-yos colliding with your head very hard when you make your next throw. It hurts. Bad. We know from experience.  Learn to do the bind right.

Standard: On a regular throwdown you do a reverse bottom-mount, pinch the string with your free hand, and then pull up with your dominant hand. Follow these instructions exactly and you will get a nice wind that won’t tangle.

Side-style (Poyzer Bind): On a trapeze throw you unmount the trapeze, bring the string into the gap, pinch the string with your free hand, and then pull up with your dominant hand. You can also get into the mount by doing a reverse trapeze. It’s all the same in the end, because really both types are the same thing, it’s just that you get into them a little differently.

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