Wyrmfyre's Blog - Size 12 Lavers?

[WyrmFyre]

As this is the first time ive had a chance to get a good full weekend of practice in, i figured this is also a good time to start tracking my progress.

My name is Ian, im 27, and I live on the east coast of the UK in a little seaside town called Mablethorpe. Ive been playing footbag in its various forms now for something like 8 weeks, usually just some circle kicking with friends, but we invented our own rules for net on the fly one night, so ill be learning all the official rules at some point. I love watching the freestyle vids that crop up on this forum, so im practicing that too, in hope that one day I can get a jaw dropping vid posted myself. Well I can but dream

By day, im a website designer / developer with the added perk of being able to work from home When im not doing that, and im not in a circle, Im usually found getting beaten sorely on the PS3, or more recently, biking. I took some pics of where i live as well as some prosective shred spots while out on a ride this morning http://twitpic.com/photos/wyrmfyre

As far as progress goes, as it stands, im still hammering the basic stalls (toe, ins, out) on both sides. Toe and inside are very good now, my ankles and legs in general are a lot more flexible than the used to be. Outside stalls, well, theyre a different story, but i wont give up until im hitting them at least 80% of the time.

At the moment, one basic drill i keep repeating (and exscuse me, I dont quite understand the trick notations yet ) toe stall > toe stall > inside stall > inside stall > outside stall > outside stall alternating feet as i go through. At the moment, Ive only hit this little routine cleanly once, the problem being my offside out stall, so ive already got myself a challenge to aim for. Take out the last stall in that routine and i can run through it two or three times before dropping.

Anyway thats about it for now. All this talk and no footbag make Ian... something something

[WyrmFyre]

What a weekend

Hot, sunny weather, beautiful beaches, its been great. Admittedly at the moment there are muscles in my body that ache, muscles I didnt even know I had let alone could use but I feel absolutely great. I always knew I was a little (read : a loooong way ) outta shape, so I knew there would be some work involved if footbag was to be something I took seriously.

To that effect, I must have racked up 20 or so miles on saturday, biking along the seafront between my town and the next, Sutton On Sea (http://www.suttononsea.info). Every other spare minute was spent drilling alternate stalls of various descriptions, or jumping for the net with my friends, or being stood in a circle kicking with them... heck I had to shave my head just to keep myself from overheating. Now thats dedication

Id like to say that this has lead to plenty of progression, and though im sure that my general stamina is on the up, and my balance is better, im still just shy of hitting the sequence i mentioned in my post above, having still only made a handful of flakey completions of it. Hopefuly Ill have a vid ready for my next post, it would be great to get some feedback on my current if not all that impressive form.

Footbag is also leading me to consider giving something up too, something i started just over ten years ago that perhaps I shouldnt have, and thats smoking. Its hard enough remaining active in this heat as it is, add in the lung capacity of a 10 year old and im pretty sure im looking at a recipie for disaster. Is footbag going to be that thing, that trigger, that leads me to make a long overdue and more than likely life altering desicion?

Our survery says most likely...

[EDIT] If anyone is reading this, and has had to go through giving up smoking, please post. In my mind, im probably making a bigger deal of it than it actually is, so please, tell me your story, and how you managed to do it.

[the_8_bit_kid]

Hey dude, sounds like your making good progress. I found getting the basics down first before trying any dexing moves helped alot. Alot of peoe seem to just try and pull off harder tricks before they have the basic stalls down sound. The drills are a good idea to cos they get u used to playing in and out of stalls!

As for smoking, I gave up two months ago. I just made up my mind and stopped. Probably dousnt help but once I realised I wanted to stop it wasn't to hard, I craved pretty bad for about two weeks but just stayed strong, good luck!

[WyrmFyre]

@8_bit_kid : he he, thanks. Its not fantastic progress, I had hoped to be hitting my six stall sequence before the weekend was out, but so far, though ive hit it, its not been as clean as I would have liked, and im finishing waaay off balance.

And congrats on packing up, three days is my current record :S

[WyrmFyre]

Last night was the first time i dared play outside the comfort of my own back garden. In the local supermarket, I got talking to a couple of the guys I used to work with. When they asked me what I was upto I told them all about footbag and how its recently become an obsession.

Still none the wiser I showed them the bag I was carrying around at the time, and started happily showing off the limits of my skills (toe and inside stalls then ). It wasnt until I looked up that I realised the group had grown from two to four, and they were all watching me

At that point I gathered my shopping and left, but what a rush. Its even bought me an invite to go play some five aside football this wednesday.

I love you footbag!

[WyrmFyre]

Befriend Thy Curtain Maker....

Off chance I visited the local curtain maker / furniture shop today to ask about Facile and Ultrasuede. The lady kindly showed me the various samples she had available and asked me what I was going to be making, so of course, i whipped out my sack (fnar fnar), gave a little demo, and just talked more about the hobby in general.

Well either she was very impressed or she fancied me but i bagged me some freebies

http://www.twitpic.com/aiymf
http://www.twitpic.com/aiylr

The bottom pic shows my size ten hoof just to give some idea of how much she gave me, and in return, i have to stitch a bag for her grandson. Not a bad day in the promotion of footbag methinks!

Incidnetally, im not entirely sure this is Ultrasuede, the woman in the shop refered to it as a "suedey material" that she'd recently used to make some cushions. It feels slightly stiffer than I was expecting but once ive cut and sewn a few panels ill know for sure. The timing couldnt be better either as It means I can get some quick-and-cheerful bags sewn up for the upcoming Shred Mablethorpe (im loving that name...) and as the material cost me jack all, Im not bothered if anyone who happens across us takes one away with them.

Must remember to go back in a few days, she said she had some offcuts of other colours (darker shades of brown, nothing exciting, but free!) thats she'll dig out for me

[mc]

dude! sick! This could mean lots of weird materials on a regular basis... you might have to take this girl out or something. I hope you've got access to glover's needles, they make the stitching process a whole lot easier!

[WyrmFyre]

Its too thick....

Such a shame. Im still not entirely sure, but the free stuff I got mentioned in my previous post is suede, but I think its too thick for a golfball sized bag at least. Im determined to make at least a handful of kicky-sacks, which I'll be giving out to anyone local who takes an interest. The footbag scene in the UK can seem a very lonely place, so if my investment of time gets me a few new and local players, itll have been worth it.

Tonight ill be starting on a slightly larger version of the 12-panel I normally make, im hoping with a very low gather and a better filler (sand at the moment) they will at least be useable. Whatever the choice of filler, itll have to be cheap. Im eyeing up BB pellets at the moment.

In other news....

Last night, I managed what for me has been something of a holy grail, and that is the humble clipper. I have in the past managed the delay, but probably through luck rather than skill. Last night (on my good side) though I progressed from set > clipper > random direction to set > clipper > handcatch and even the occasional toe > clipper > toe. I have to admit, I have been somewhat hesitant of late to blame my shoes for my lack of progression, but perhaps i have been neglecting to consider that more focus and persistance on my part would also produce results.

[WyrmFyre]

The past few days have been kind to me. I now have a fairly reliable good side clipper, which im chuffed to bits with considering my handicap (read : Airwalk skate trainers ). My flipside is still some way off but getting there. The only issue i have so far is that my set from clipper tends to come across my body, meaning im bailing out to toe on a regular basis, and means that getting clipper > ss clipper drilled isnt possible at the moment Still, a week ago I seem to recall that I had no control whatsoever over the bag coming out of clipper, so to me thats progress.

Also, I hit a few rakes too, something ive seen in a few vids and is one link that id like to have in my repetoire. Im still drilling the crap out of my toe and inside stalls too, aiming for records but more importantly I think, training my legs and muscles to "know" how to set the sack perfectly everytime without having to think too much about it.

Just for fun....

Altenating Toe Stalls Record : 42 (could have probably done more, but got kinda bored)
Alternating Inside Stalls Record : 15
Clipper > op Toe rpt (good side) : 4
Clipper > op Toe rpt (flip side) : 1 but working on it

[the_8_bit_kid]

hey dude, it's sounds like your coming on loads! I also saw your vid on YouTube, the whole epic fail stuff was realy funny, but also your technique actually looks realy good, and your setting nce and straight and high. When your settng from clipper are you setting using the support leg or stal leg? U need to try and use a combnation of both. I had/ have the same prob with setting straight and it all comes down to technique. Have u seen the David clavens vid on clipper? That helped me loads.

On another note, matt gave me a load of dates he can and can't do fr shred mablethorpe, but I forgot and then he pissed off to worlds! When he gets back I'll sort out a date with work and we can shred the shit of the place!

[WyrmFyre]

@8_bit : Id forgotten about that vid actually. Here it is in all its glory. There was a lot more footage, all of it was filmed so could see myself playing but a few friends had asked to see it As for the clipper, I am trying to set using both legs, but I think my problems stem from just before that. I feel like im hunched and leaning forward after ive caught the sack on my foot, and therefore feeling a bit offbalance, so im trying to remain more upright. I think, again, ill video myself doing it, it helped last time.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GaT5TvSL5A[/youtube]

Went out running last night. Not entirely sure of the distance we covered but it took us 12-13 minutes each way with a couple of stops (im so drastically out of shape :S ) but I would have gladly done the whole thing twice, I felt so good by the end of it. Im also looking at my diet now too, getting more fruits and veg into my system, and getting decent breakfasts in too. My mornings usually consist of waking up around 830, crawling out of bed downstairs to my little under-the-stairs office and getting as much caffine into me as is needed to stave off the urge to sleep at my desk. No more.

Theres a reason behind it all. My boss told me that if i were to attend and compete in worlds next year, he'd sponsor me Thats travel and accomodation covered i reckon then Its something I really, really would like to do anyway, but now there's an extra incentive, and an extra reason to push myself that bit more.

[PoisonTaffy]

Hey Ian, glad to see you're progressing! I'm away from twitter for a week and you're hitting clippers already.
I met Matt Bailey at worlds, he's awesome both in personality and game. Get that joint shred thing going.

[WyrmFyre]

Anothr fantastic weekend, or half of one anyway. Saturday brought some decent weather and with it lots of opportunities to be outside!

Saturday started with some casual weeding, the back garden had slowly been taken over by every known weed going. I started this year with the best of intentions and have bee growing some of my own veg. Now the areas a bit clearer and accessible, i feel more encouraged to continue with it (though I do have lettuce and green beans growing out of my a**e at the moment )

After that, went to play some net. Jamies bargain basement badminton set had a great net in it, and weve got just enough back yard space at his to have a decent sized court for two v two. Shame its always 1v1 at the moment Introduced a friend-of-the-families son to the game though, I think he's only around 11 but he was engrossed in playing net with us, joined in on a quick circle, and was quite happily off on his own trying to nail toe stalls by the end of it all.

Speaking of that circle, I played what for me would be considered as "out of my skin". Multiple 10+ contact kickless runs, hitting clippers both sides MID RUN which is the biggest achievement for me. Its the first time i ever felt that what I was actually doing could be called "shred" and i loved every minute of it. Its taken me nearly three months to get here, but I cant wait to see what Im doing by Christmas.

Then, we spent about three hours giving Jamies new car a full valet service. That guy is meticulous when it comes to cleaning a car.....

And then Sunday, the british summer showed what its capable of and basically rained off play. That didnt stop me having some casual sessions on the lovely laminated kitchen floor, but I was so damn stiff from Saturdays efforts I probably couldnt have hit the floor if i fell on it.

Missions for the week :

1. Sew up two or three new bags for net. Been smacking seven bells out of some old crochet sacks, theyre now so empty its like kicking a hanky around.

2. Buy some USL on Friday (payday woot)

3. Sell off anything of value on eBay and get some damn lavers! Does anyone still collect Warhammer / Games Workshop figurines these days?

[WyrmFyre]

Just got done filming and clipping this, jsut a few of the better bits from a lunchtime shred again. Having missed the opportunity over the weekend to get me on tape doing clipper, I gave it a go during my break

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jj5Zqcn8ow4[/youtube]

[WyrmFyre]

Last night I must have spent, once again, a good 30-40 mins non stop trying to hit my first dex move. So far, still nothing

All the advice Ive read says to try for ATW first, but I seem to be able to get closer to legover than I do with that. I dont know what it is, is it the trainers? the sack? or am I really that far out with my timing? Grr... Either way, last night, I was feeling very, VERY defeated.

However, Jamie always sits in with me when im drilling, and he can be such a help sometimes without even realising it. He reminded me of the times Ive been trying for clippers, the times Ive sworn blind that Id never hit them in a million years, and then two days later pulling the exact same trick I said Id never do. "Thats the thing about you" he said "you'll keep trying until you get it right".

He is right, Im damned if im gonna just give up now. My game may only consist of the basic stalls right now but thats 200% more than what I could do three months ago. Im in a slump, but I will get out of it!!!!!

[matt_bailey]

Ian the newest video was sweet, clipper both sides one string was so good, can only imagine what you could do with proper equipment!

for atw i would try drilling toe stall > same side toe stall. when you set the bag hold your foot in position ready to catch the bag again (ie dont move your foot up to set the bag then let it drop to have to bring it back up again to catch the bag, sorry if thats confusing)

once you can do this you should have the timing and then you should have time to dex in between

plus for legovers plant the setting foot as quick as possible to start the dex straight away, and dont try to get your foot over the bag, this takes too long, instead try to push the foot in front of the bag to dex bringing it back under it

but also playing in big clumpy shoes wont help you with dexes, have you been looking for lavers on ebay?

anyway if we ever get shred mablethorpe sorted it would be easier to see any problems in person

[WyrmFyre]

@ Matt : yeah Im checking on a daily basis. If id been size 7 or 8 i might have snagged a bargain by now, but im a 10, so it looks like getting them in from overseas somewhere. My significant other gets her first pay day on the 7th next month, so if all else fails Ill have to bite the bullet (or rather, she will ) and fork out the full £40 odd and get them full price. I dont mind it too much, after that all i need is some not-too-short shorts and im sorted

On a side note, im ordering some USL tommorow, gonna stitch myself a few better bags. My current "good" bag is a 32 panel but sand filled, and over a month of use its lost nearly 10 grams in weight (stupid impulse buying, must pay more attention in the future ) taking it down to a floaty 45 grams. I have to admit, i much prefered it when it was a bit weightier. That, combined with my canoes.. er.. Airwalks, makes me think that equipment is 75% of my problem.

The other 25% of me believes the law of averages dictate that for the number of attempts and sessions ive had drilling it, I should have landed ATW/Legover at least once now though, even if it was by accident.

Chin up Ian, keep smiling!

[WyrmFyre]

Persistance is key....

Before i go on, I want to thank Matt Bailey for his dexing advice, breaking down an ATW into its components and slowing things down really helped, and also a big thank you to Frank_Sinatra aka Nathan Andersen for taking time out to write me a detailed and constructive PM full of advice for all the components of my game. I took time out to read through some of his blog too, I was especially interested to read that he too also had, in his words, a "week long existential crisis".

Last night, I must have drilled ATW for a good two hours in total, taking time to learn the time I had to make the dex move, shadowing the move without the bag and focusing on control over speed.

The result... I managed to land ATW seven times on my good side.

I think i might have startled the neighbours a few times with my overly joyous screaming and celebrating, but i dont care. I hit it, and then, just to show it wasnt a fluke, hit it six more times over the course of the evening. I feel godlike I had meant to capture it all on video, but I just got so wrapped up in what I was doing it slipped my mind.

I have to say I was quite shocked at the amount of time that you do have to get back under the bag again. It really isnt as rushed a maneuver as Id first expected, and thats made me look at the other fundamentals such as legovers in a whole new light.

For now, I think Its time to take stock of what I am capable of, and drill nothing but that so that I have all the basics down with absolute conistency, the overall aim being to be able to produce 20+ contact kickless runs whenever I want to. My drills over the next week are likely to be

clipper > ss clipper > rpt
inside > op inside > rpt
atw's both directions, both feet.

Ill get some more footage over the weekend too, I reckon my next big struggling point is likely to be clipper > op clipper, but unless im getting 10 out of 10 on my same-side drills I wont be going there just yet.

Looks like we're in for a sunny weekend here in the UK, so im looking forward to a whole weekend of freestyling, more than likely some net, and fingers crossed, a few hours up at the beach introducing a few friends to my latest and favouritest obsession

[PoisonTaffy]

Awesome news, Ian

[mc]

sounds like fun! don't neglect your kicks, gotta have those too!