Closing in on continuous behind-the-back throws

This month I'm trying to master continuous behind-the-back throws in a 3-ball routine. So far, the most I've done has been 4 catches. But I think I've got the process dialed in...I learned I have to throw the balls quite a bit higher than I expected to gain the time needed to free my hands for the next throw and catch.

I'm actually doing this mainly as preparation to do continuous behind-the-back throws with clubs. Oddly, on my first attempt at that, it didn't occur to me to work with balls first and it took a suggestion from someone at a Texas Juggling Society meeting to give me that little breakthrough. I mean, if I was telling someone else how to learn to do anything at all with clubs, I'd suggest that they learn the trick with balls first....but I didn't figure that out on my own, when it was me.

Of course, part of that is because I can already do individual behind-the-back throws in the middle of a club pattern, so I felt like I ought to be able to move forward from that. But continuous behind-the-back throws is a whole 'nother animal.

Jugglefest 2008 Montage Video

Here is a sort of montage-video someone made of Jugglefest 2008.

Jugglefest 2008: first thoughts

As usual, Jugglefest was really inspiring. I've got tons of ideas for tricks and routines now. Some highlights:

• It's now becoming a sort of annual routine to take one of my kids on Saturday and then tak e a different one on Sunday. Neither really juggles yet, but they're starting to try some things out.
• Nothing is as cool as watching some fantastic juggler from out of town, like the Belgian guy who performed Saturday night, Stijn, do his public show...and then getting to walk right up to him at the festival the next day and talk to him, get some pointers, and try out some tricks.
• Someone had a 3' diameter walking ball. I used to use one of these way back in ... sheesh, 1989 or so... when I was working at a summer camp that had a circus program.
• I tried a 4-man box-shaped club passing pattern. I wasn't very good at it but it was a lot of fun. There was a lot of rotation involved. I don't know why we don't see more of this on the public stage. Oh, wait, I do: because 4 people would have to practice it. Still, it was really neat.
  

Jugglefest is this weekend!

I can't believe I forgot to post about this. The Texas Juggling Society's annual Jugglefest is this weekend. It gets bigger and better every year.

There's (at least) two ways to enjoy:
- Go visit the festival itself, on the UT campus at the Belmont
building ($8 admission for the whole three day spectacle)

- Attend the public show. Saturday, Feb. 16, 7:30pm at the Texas
School for the Deaf (free)
Details are on the web site.

http://juggling.place.org/jugglefest/

Balance and Motion show coming up

I'm going to do a Balance and Motion show for my daughter's 2nd grade class. The 2nd grade curriculum includes a unit on Balance and Motion, which is what inspired this show in the first place...my son's teacher asked me to do a piece about this a few years back, and then I took the show to some other schools.

All juggling shows use balance or motion in some fashion, so the props make a fun way to demonstrate some of the principles that the unit covers, like counterbalancing, forces, gravity, spin and roll, and an axis.

Learning to use a devil stick, for example, is all about balance. You allow the stick to fall to one side of the control stick, then tap it above the centerline to throw it to the other stick. You start a propellor trick by catching it below the centerline and following it as it rotates.

Blue & Gold Banquet

I'm juggling for the Pack 90 cub scouts this February 28, at their Blue & Gold Banquet.

Answering questions about juggling, in a classroom

Last week I went to spend the day at my kids' school. I visited several different classes, and mostly did basic school volunteer things, as part of a dad involvement program called Dads of Great Students (D.O.G.S.).

One of the teachers had me bring some juggling equipment and answer questions about juggling. It was a lot of fun. These were second graders. The teacher said she was trying to show the kids that you can grow up and get a job and still do interesting things too. :)

It's hard to remember any of the specific questions they had, but I tried to show them that juggling involves breaking motions down into small, easy-to-master movements.

Oh and there's this thing school-ages kids always seem to do, where they raise a hand to ask a question? But it's not really a question? Because they just want to tell you something? Something that they thought was cool? I think that's hilarious...except when you're in the middle of a question-and-answer session. :)