This Fixed Friday, we’re ditching the in-depth trick theory in favor of a bareknuckle no-holds barred… creep off! Huh?
In case you didn’t know, the creeper is a classic trick based on the walk the dog, with the critical difference of having to kneel down and touch your hand to the ground when catching it. Sound simple? Maybe, but its simplicity makes it one of the most fun elements to revive for a little friendly showdown. Ed has graciously agreed to battle me, even knowing that I would be a full week late (sorry Ed!), and you can view the fruits of our labor below. Check ’em out, read Ed’s comments, vote for your favorite, and be sure to let us know who you voted for and why in the comments.
Ed sez:
“That’s right boys and girls (ok, sadly, still mostly boys). We promised it, and we delivered. Ed and Drew have been going hard all year long, dropping bomb after harmless, mentos-soda bomb onto your digital doorstep. Pushing fixed axle yo-yoing into places they said SHOULDN’T be explored (or, more often, into places that just didn’t occur to anyone). But the past 5 months of back-and-forth tit-for-tat beg the question…
Who. Is. Creepier?
No stranger to ferocious catfight-throwdowns, Drew and Ed have dropped gloves several times over the years. Many (of the few) who check this column will be familiar with their first epic battle, which ended up too close to call. It’s also worth noting that they have squared off in no less than four iterations of the esteemed Fixed Axle Championship Of All The World (Drew took home the title in 2009, while Ed hoisted it in 2012). They say you don’t know a man until you’ve walked a mile in his shoes. These warriors might argue you don’t know him until you’ve received more shoe-votes than he.
For this battle, the theme is Creeper, a classic move which can be found in trick books dating back to the 40’s. Though it might resemble Walk the Dog, controlling the yo-yo’s response and the path it takes back to the hand can be dicey. You have to lower yourself to do Creeper properly (both figuratively and literally), and often scratch the bajeezus out of your yo-yo. Sadly, most modern players consider it the province of novices, if they ever bother to learn it at all. This outmoded stigma makes it the perfect proving ground for fixed axle battle. You’ve got to step off that pedestal to do an old-timey trick like this, and to doing something new with it takes a certain audacity. It’s like having a best-trick skate session in Barcelona… but at the Sagrada Familia instead of at the X-Games park.
So who won? Who has left the more indelible mark on this hallowed ground? It’s on you to decide. Vote, tell your friends, and then get up and go breathe some new life into a classic trick.”
