Extremely Busy

Sorry i haven't updated lately guys, i've been VERY busy with work. I also had the joy of my first wisdom tooth coming in at age 24 this weekend. I haven't had it out yet but it has cut and drained a good bit so the swelling has gone down alot. So, as you could imagine, i have been in pain, and busy with lots of random stuff. On to the yoyos...

I have a new CU on its way to me, and it should be arriving today. I plan on starting to review my case. I want to do some older throws because i feel like too many reviews are only on brand new yoyos, and not everybody wants to buy the brand new yoyo. Just because the Aqua 888 came out a little while back doesn't mean it's not a great throw, know what i mean? So that's combined with my lack of funds for a new yoyo (general 5 star, god i want you) sealed the deal! So you can look forward to some of these in the very near future.

This is a pic of the FHZ i modified and finally finished with the painting over the weekend, what do you think?

NC States, thoughts...

I wasn't feeling too great yesterday and pretty much slept all day. So i haven't gotten a chance to put up any of the pictures or video. I'm a bit worried because my girlfriend Kat said she couldn't get the microsd card to show up on the computers yesterday...I hope she just made a simple mistake. She said that the pictures are still viewable on the camera, so i would think its not corrupt, but i won't know until i have a chance to dig in and have a look. I got picture of Me, Ed Haponik, and Sebastion Brock, and i wan't that on my background, damnit! Hahaha...

Speaking of those guys, Ed won NC State Champion, and Sebby won 1a. They both did AWESOME. Watching Sebby just inpsires one to throw, you can't help but smile and cheer when he starts throwing. I walked up and was talking to him and Ed and i pulled out my Sebby Peak and asked, "Hey man, have you ever seen one of these?" Hahaha...Luckily, i had a sharpie on me, and he actually autographed it for me. So now my amazing player Peak has become my amazingly collectable Peak. Luckily, i have a 28 stories that i can throw still. Needless to say, i don't think i'll be throwing the Sebby much anymore. Its signed on the inside of the yoyo, so if i have a sweaty hand when i catch, it could smear it. Its freakin AWESOME to have a signed yoyo. Priceless! I showed a few friends that don't throw and they kind of looked at me like i was nuts...I said "You guys just don't get it...To me, this is like meeting Michael Jordan and having him autograph a basketball."

Everyone threw amazing. The guy who took 3rd place in 1a, i believe his name was Anthony, was amazing. He killed it. Dash also did a very fine job with his off string throwing in the open division, and Katelyn did her signature trick which is always a crowd pleaser. I don't know all the people but i recognized a bunch. I met Dash a few months ago at Ed's house and he's a great guy, i really think one of these days he'll be sponsored and one of the most well known and innovative throwers in the game.

Some of the people at the contest were kind of mean. I want to be clear, 99.9 percent of the people were just great, but a couple people shot me and another couple (Shout out to Eddie and Jodie! You guys rock!) very, very nasty vibes. I don't know names and if i did i wouldn't name them, but some people were down right RUDE to me and my girlfriend Kathryn, along with the other couple we were hanging out with. Thats okay though, i'm a firm believer in Karma. And if you were doing it because your such a better thrower and me and the others, just keep telling yourself that, and maybe it'll make it right.

I traded my Hectic and my Ogopogo for an Envy64 from a guy on team Hspin and my Hectic for a minty gold Skyline to another very nice guy. Both of these yoyos are great players. The guy from hspin actually gave me a choice of basically any hspin i wanted from his case, but once i threw the Envy it was no contest. This thing is just so unlike anything else in my case i knew i couldn't resist. He also threw a KK in it for me, and its just great. The Skyline is exactly what i was hoping for, amazing. I came with the intention of trading my M1 and Hectic to get a new Skyline for one of them and maybe something else in my case. I didn't have any intention to trade my BvM but i'm glad i did. I do love BvM's but i can always pick another one up one day if i want. The ogopogos have been in stock for quite a while. And i have seen better colorways.

So anyhow, i'll have the pic's and video's up soon. I should have the pics up tonight, and im gonna see if i can start uploading some of the contest videos while im at work today, since it takes so long. I would love to put them all on Vimeo but i think 500mb a week is the limit, so we'll have to see. Either way, they will be up soon for everyone to enjoy. Thanks again to everyone who came and made this such a great time! It was well worth the 4+ hour drive!!!

NC States on Saturday! (6/6)

Just updating to let you guy's know i'll be at NC states on Saturday. I will be blogging the whole thing so expect plenty of video, picture, and bloggy goodness by the end of the weekend! I might even compete in sport ladder! Too bad Ed Haponik is gonna kick everyones asses!

Baby steps : Yoyo making

Okay guys. I have 2 potential investors at this point. Of course we all want to make our own custom yoyo and make a living out of what we love. I for one plan to do everything i can to make it work. I am currently in the very, very early stages of getting the process rolling. I am begining to learn auto cad and am talking with a couple different machinist who are interested in producing a run for me. I have not decided whether the first run will be metal or delrin but i am definitely leaning towards metal. It just has a better profit margin, and i like metals much better then delrin. Although the costs for delrin will be initially lower, in the long run metal is just more profitiable and cost effective in my opinion. My goal is to have a prototype ready by the end of Fall '09. I will be keeping everyone updated on the status of this project.

Review - Hectic (small bearing)

Specs :

Shape H Shape

Weight (g) 65.40

Width (mm) 34.78

Diameter (mm) 50.08

Gap Width (mm) 4.26

Bearing Size (Inside x Outside x Width) 5x10x4 mm or .250 x .500 x .187 in

Gap Type Fixed

Stock Response System Kentaro Pad - Medium Sized Turning Point K-Pad YoYoFactory Sized

Has YoYoFactory made another smash hit with their 2nd release in the Fundametal line, with the Hectic? The first release in this new line was the DV888 which has been all around well received for the most part. The price point on the Hectic is 64.99 which is right around the price of the DV888. YoYoFactory is doing something with this new line that has not been done yet with metals, giving the player several options at a price point that most people can afford. Onedrop did it first with the M1, but what is different about the Fundametal line is that there will be several different styles of throws available to the player, giving you not just a great price, but a great choice as well. So, has YYF done it again? Lets find out.

Upon first picking up the the Yo I noticed that it has the same matte finish as the DV888, almost a rubbery feel. It Is a good feeling, very smooth and silky. The yoyo is very attractive and the ano is well put. There is several different color options available for this yoyo and I decided to go with the black and red model. As usual, the colors cannot be appreciated via pictures, but to see one for yourself is the only true way to notice it’s beauty. It is a very simple finish with tasteful laser engraving that says economical but also attractive.

As most of you have probably realized by now YYF has had to cut out some features in the new line to cut down on costs. The Hectic is no exception. There are no stacks, and also no IRG. Thumb grinds can still be achieved; however they obviously require greater control and tend to slip off. I am not a big thumb grinder so to me this isn’t very important, although to some it may be a bad choice. However, removing these 2 simple things that many players do not care for too much gives us one of the reasons why the price point is so low and affordable for the Hectic, which is the idea behind the Fundametal line.

Low price point, however, does not mean low performance, as all of you who have a DV888 should know by now. The Hectic is no exception. The small bearing in this yoyo comes stock cleaned and spins very, very long. I was quite impressed with the spin times, it reminds me of when I got my first ball bearing yoyo as a child and was amazed at how long it could sleep. Combos seemingly last forever, and I had no problem pulling off the more complex stuff I’ve been working on which requires good balance and spin time to be had. All in all, I’m very glad I got the small bearing version, and not the large bearing.

The difference between the two yoyos, is the schmoove rings and size of the bearing. The schmoove rings are nice and lower the friction greatly as far as I can tell judging by the spin time. I also like the look of them. It’s my first throw with schmoove rings, and I have to say that I will buy another with them in the future if and when the opportunity arises. This is definitely not a gimmick, but a legitimate feature that indeed does improve performance noticeably. The shape of the yoyo is very interesting. The rims angle downward into the gap very dramatically and it somewhat reminds me of an H shape type yoyo which is always a good feel in my hand, and hopefully yours. The yoyo is undersized, being just about on par with an M1 or 888. The width is a bit narrow however I had no problem catching the throw on the string, I just had to concentrate a bit more on some of my tricks. The only thing that is missing here, again, is the IRG. I am not a yoyo maker so I do not know how adding one affects the price point, but from my perspective it just doesn’t seem like it would cost too much to add that one small thing that is so important to many players out there, but again, I’m not doing the budgeting and some things must be lost to get the price right. All in all though , the shape is very nice.

Grinds are great. The matte finish on the yoyo is similar to the DV888, which has no problem zipping across my arms, legs, fingers, nose, whatever. The yoyo definitely plays fast, as its smaller size and weight are made to do. I love just doing a few pseudo around the worlds with this thing to see how fast I can get them going while holding the string with my non throw hand and making little circles through the air…the thing just flies. Binds seem solid, although I did have a few slip occasionally. Nothing that gets aggravating or anything, but you may notice an extra piece of string occasionally. Also, I was surprised to find a very small, albeit noticeable amount of vibe in the yoyo. YYF is known for having dead smooth yoyos, and my DV888 is just that. However I do feel a tiny bit of vibe in the Hectic. To be perfectly clear, this is by no means something that affects play at all, but I did feel it was necessary to point it out given YYF’s generally dead smoothness. That being said, you can’t really expect 888 smoothness for this price, and it should not be expected. The saying “you get what you pay for” definitely need not apply here: you get much more then you pay for with the Hectic. I absolutely love the design on the Hectic. It is very tasteful and on point, a large Bat-a-rang-esque H with the name of the yoyo and inside of it. Simple, elegant, and sharp. That seems to be the idea behind the Hectic, and YYF has hit it right on the head.

If you have an opportunity to grab one, I would recommend doing so. If your trying to decide between this and the DV888, I’m going to have to recommend that you try each of them before making your final decision. There is nothing I could write about either of these yoyos that would justify you buying one over the other. For me, they play completely different from one another, but this is a subject for another day. I will be doing a comprehensive Hectic VS DV888 soon which will also be available on ReYoView.

Thanks for taking time to read, and as always, keep on throwing! Please feel free to leave comments/suggestions on this review so that I may take them into account for future reviews.

Click this link for more pictures : http://s449.photobucket.com/albums/qq216/thatisandwas/

What it takes to get one to throw - Part One

What would it take for you to throw a yo?
Welcome to the first exciting edition of "What would it take for you to throw a yo?". This is a series i am starting that will dive headfirst into the outsiders of our communitys thoughts and ask them about their experiences with yoyos (if any) and why they stopped, never started, and what it would take for them to start again. It seems that many people in our generation have bypassed this wonderful little toy, and i would like to understand why exactly. Availibilty? Geek factor? Too "grown up" to play with toys? Price? Stereotypes? Lack of advertisement? Afraid of difficulty? All of these are valid reasons why someone may feel that they don't want to try throwing a yoyo. What i am going to do is try to find out exactly what is stopping the YoYo from returning to the glory days of yore. For this first part in the series, i will speculate on my own thoughts as to why the yoyo is not more popular in the main stream society as it once was. And as i make it through the next few parts i will ask those around me what their opinions are. I will be polling people of all ages, races, sexes, and every other " 's " that i can think of.

First and foremost, let's start with the children of today. They are clearly the main group of people who are most likely to play with a toy. I believe that the most obvious thing attributing to the lack of physical play of any kind with toys today has to be video games. Video games have grown to a ridiculous popluarity over the last decade and you would be hard pressed to find a single child that has parents that are in the lower class all the way up in our society that do not have a gaming system in the home. Of course there is always the exceptions, some parents are strict and do not allow games in their home, some parents don't because of religious beliefs, and of course some kids just don't like them. These are far and few between or course. If a child is constantly playing their games then its quite obvious they are less likely to try and learn a skill toy that takes time to learn and lots of practice to become proficient with. I personally like video games and own an Xbox360, but let me say this, since i got back into throwing last year, i have not ONCE turned on my Xbox. It has literally been a 300 dollar paperweight over the past few months. I'm sure there are plenty of players out there who devote an equal amount of attention to their throwing and their games, but i am not one of them. I think part of this has to do with the fact that none of the games that have been released over the last 6 months have greatly interested me.

Also, i think that most of the companies in the yoyoing business do not take advantage of advertising enough. I have yet to see a single commercial since i got back into throwing last year. I have heard on some of the forums that YoYoFactory did a campaign for the F.A.S.T 201 a few years back that got lots of people interested. Also, i have heard that Duncans commerical campaign is basically every 5 years. 5 years is a very long time to go between marketing campaigns. Why not advertise more? Why not throw up a few banner ads on youtube, or yahoo? These kinds of things to me are what is going to make the rest of the world begin to see yoyo'ing as more then just a 2 dollar toy that was made a long time ago to kill time for children. I was very pleased that Fox Sports Network recently showed the World YoYo Contest from 2007(?). However, the rebranding of it to "The Best Damn YoYo Contest" really did infuriate me. Now given, the people supplying the film and rights have got to be willing to make some sacrifices to get it put on cable television for thousands of potential viewers to see, but to me all this does is confuse people as to what the WYYC really is. Does Fox Sports hold a yo yo contest every few years? Is this just a group of people doing this strange thing and Fox Sports decided to do commentary over it a la Ninja Warrior? Or is this a legit contest that draws hundreds of people every year and all major manufactuors in the game for a gathering of players of epic proportion? Most people see the film, and are very impressed. But still, they don't know what it really is when it's all said and done, and the people who sold the rights to FSN need to make sure next time that once can differentiate.

Many people see someone throwing a yoyo and are immediately turned off and intimidated. "These trick are far too complex for me, i could NEVER do that." I for one thought the same thing the first time i saw someone do a Kwyjibo, but now i know better. The advertising needs to promote a more simple style, and more responsive yoyos need to be made. Its all well and good for us who only play unresponsive but the average person who picks up an 888 will let it drop from there hand with no throw what so ever and when it doesn't come back they look to you and say "It's broken". As yoyoing grows and becomes more and more complex, we need to find ways to simplify things for the common person so they can feel that they can join in as well. I do not feel that i have all the answers for this problem, but if the community comes together as a whole and comes up with ways to draw others in we will have our community ultimately grow much larger in the long run, which is always a good thing.

One thing that is defnitely helping right now is price. Ben and Hans from YYF should be commended for their recent releases of the new Plastic Grind Machine, the DV888, and most recently the Hectic. These are truly great and high performance yoyos that most people can afford. I am not advocating that someone who has never thrown a yoyo other then an imperial when they were 5 go out and buy a DV888, but i will say that people who may have a ProYo and are thinking of stepping it up to the next level after a couple of months of play are certainly being given more options for quality built yoyos at a fair price these days, and this is a truly remarkable thing. It really isn't fair to have all metal yoyos be priced in the 120 and up category, as there is a lot of people in this world who simply cannot afford it. A very lare percentage of our community is under the age of 15 without jobs, and therefor most of their money comes from their parents. Please tell me what a parent from any walk of life is more likely to buy? A 29.99 Plastic Grind Machine? Or a 119.99 Skyline? The answer is obvious, and it benefits everyone. I applaud all of those responsible for making great yoyos more affordable for everyone.
Now that we have covered advertising and affordability, we should touch on availibility. Google'ing "YoYo Store" brings up about 6 (!) results throughout the entire country of the United States. Now given, yoyos are definitely sold at many more places then the 6 listed, but i will say this: If you are in Charlotte, North Carolina and decide that you want a high quality ball bearing yoyo, you are not going to find one, anywhere. This has recently changed with Toys R Us having their new YoYo endcap in all their stores. I visited the local store last week and was very impressed to find not just imperials and butterflys, but also Speed Beetles, Pulses, Dragonflys, and Reflexes. While i was disappointed at the lack of showing for 5a, this is certainly better then anything else i have seen since the 90's boom. Its pretty simple, get more yoyos in the toys stores, demonstrate more often, and more people will take up the sport. I am thrilled that Duncan and Toys R Us have teamed up for their demos that are taking place this summer, its a wonderful start to a new campaign to spread the word.

I've read a quote from someone on the YoYoNation boards in their signature that goes something along the lines of, "The happiest adults are the ones who are still doing what they were as kids." This really couldn't be said any better. Thanks for your time today, and remember, the next time someone asks you about your yoyo, give them some good discussion. The next time you see a child in the drug store whose mother has told them they can pick out a toy, bust out your throw and show them a trick or two, and point them to the 2 dollar yoyo on the rack. You never know, you could be looking at the next Yuuki Spencer.

Awkward places to throw

Do you ever notice how some places are just a pain to throw at, or around? For example, this morning on my way to work on the light rail i was throwing a bit. The problem with this is that the train is constantly moving and you have to readjust your footing at every brake and turn and acceleration along the way. A few onlooker look at you and think "This guy is nuts for throwing a yoyo on a train, if he hits me in the head with it im going to beat him up." The other problem is that it's so confined that i can only throw straight sleepers, forget about a breakaway. This leaves me with the problem of being limted to very, very few tricks. I was trying to think of some sleeper tricks, Split the Atom, Mach 5, Plastic Whip, Braintwister...Other then those though for some reason i was at a loss. I'm sure many of you have the same issue at various places you travel to on a regular basis. So i ask you, dear reader, what is the most aggravating place for you to throw, and why?