YoYo Related News From Around The World
Spin Dynamics re-released the Flow today at YoYoExpert! The improved Flow has new specs and weight distribution, and greatly improved performance and quality thanks to moving production to a more experienced factory overseas.
Check out specs and a new video from Daniel Dietz below. The Flow is available now at YoYoExpert.com for only $49.99.
Spin Dynamics new Alter Ego releases tonight!
Great video released by Daniel Dietz and edited my Michael Ferdico showing everyone what the Alter Ego is capable of!
Spin Dynamics is excited to announce that we are bringing renowned and respected professional yoyo player, Daniel Dietz, on to our team as our new Co-Owner.Here is what Dietz had to say about his new position:“One of my lifelong dreams in yoyoing has been to own my own yoyo company. I am proud to say that today this aspiration is coming true. With Nick Gumlaw, I could not have asked for a better partner. Nick has been a major reason I have been able to achieve what I have in yoyoing. From teaching the basics, helping me learn how to compete, guiding me in my freestyle construction, and helping me design the Prodigy, all along the way Nick has been a real mentor to me. I am beyond happy to start this new journey with him and Spin Dynamics.I also would like to take this time to thank the yoyo comunity as a whole for always being very supportive of me and I cannot wait to continue to help make the community grow even more under the Spin Dynamics brand.Also, we are already underway with the production of Dietz’s first Signature yoyo from Spin Dynamics.
All of the official Finals and Sports 1A videos from the North East Regionals (Z-Games) last weekend are now online here: 1A 2A 3A 4A 5A
This year we tried out a new multi-camera filming setup, and despite an exciting variety of equipment issues, the Top 10 of 1A are presented in this exclusive new configuration. This is the first time I’ve ever seen multiple camera angles edited together for an American contest, and these videos turned out pretty awesome.
And here are a few moments aside from the winning routines that are worth checking out:
Players compete with imaginary yo-yos to win a YoYofficer Aura. With demos by judges Paul Dang and Graeme Steller, and competitors David Kane, Anthony Federici, Gabe Carter-Weidenfeld, and Hudson Wright.
Hosted by Graeme Steller, yo-yoing legends Daniel Dietz, Eric Koloski, Jeff Coons, Mark Montgomery, and Paul Dang perform classic 1A Sport Ladder tricks, without using their eyes!
John Wolfe does awesome 5A juggling, also crazy Rei-Dragon (dual-string 5A) tricks in his 3rd place routine.
And congratulations to Adam Lord for earning the Brett Outchcunis award, in recognition for his efforts to encourage and support the yoyo community. Adam is a Yomega Ambassador and also responsible for organizing the NH State YoYo Contest, which is coming up soon on June 21st.
To celebrate the announcement and upcoming release of their new collaborative yoyos, YoYoJam and Yomega have released videos for the Odyssey and Firestorm, featuring both YoYoJam and Yomega players using the new models. Both videos were shot and edited by Ben Conde and Grant Johnson.
Firestorm video featuring Tylor McCallumore and Daniel Dietz,
Odyssey video featuring Eric Koloski, Grant Johnson, Tylor McCallumore, and Daniel Dietz.
Journey video featuring Ben Conde, and players from the Cat & Mouse Games YoYo Club in Chicago, IL.
YoYoExpert has stepped up and presented a new video featuring Daniel Dietz to promote his new signature model yoyo, the Prodigy. Designed by Spin Dynamics, machined by OneDrop, and released by Yomega, it looks like the Prodigy is intended to be a “token” high-end competition 1A yoyo that will have limited distribution and be largely part of the line for the benefit of their team.
I got a chance to throw the Prodigy for a few minutes at Nationals, and it’s a really nice yoyo. Nothing groundbreaking, just a really solid aluminum that plays well, spins smooth, and with OneDrop’s machining should be of consistent quality. Only gripe: the godawful logo makes it look like it’s called “Pro Digy”. I don’t know how to Digy, but I’m open to learning if someone wants to teach me how to Digy.
The Prodigy is available now at YoYoExpert and other specialty yoyo retailers for $115.
The best thing about seeing Harrison Lee at a contest is seeing Harrison Lee at a contest. But the second best thing is knowing that a recap video will follow shortly!
2013 Canadian National Champion Harrison Lee brings us a quick recap video of Canadian Nationals featuring CLYW Chris, Charles Haycock, Ann Connolly, Daniel Dietz, and, most importantly, Yogi.
Canada Nationals is coming up this weekend, August 17th, and it looks like there will be an all-star roster of talent in attendance. The event is being organized and judged by CLYW owner Chris Mikulin, and other judges include Matthew Fernandez (Box), Richard Buchholz, and Daniel Dietz (Yomega). The contest is being held at the West Edmonton Mall, which is the largest mall in North America.
In attendance will be a ton of players looking for a shot at a seeded position in the finals in next year’s World YoYo Contest, including Harrison Lee (CLYW), Luckey Li (King Yo Star), and Charles Haycock (CLYW). Defending Canadian National Champion Alexis JV will not be attending, leaving the top honors up for grabs by a new player!
International visitors include Ann Connolly (YoYoFactory), JohnBot (CLYW), and Ky Zizan (Werrd), who will be doing a demo of new new Double Dragon tricks. Canadian Nationals is shaping up to be an amazing event!
Check the Facebook event page for more updates, and check out the YoYoNews Instagram feed for updates from the event!
Another weekly roundup of original yoyo tricks from 365yoyotricks.com….MY GOD, WILL IT EVER END!?!?!
No. No it will not.
This is what happens when I watch too many Spencer Berry videos.
And this is what happens when you are Spencer Berry.
Jacob Jensen gives us the cure for the common bind.
I’ve been working on progressions from the concept of 7-Fisted Mantis…here’s the first one I’m happy with.
Daniel Dietz!!
Moar Daniel Dietz!
And Rafael Matsunaga gets his old school on.
See you next week!
Yomega is back and here to stay when it comes to competitive yo-yo play. The Glide is Yomega’s first yo-yo in the Elite Metal line. With the Glide, Yomega has proved that not only do we make some of the best yo-yos to learn on but we are ready to take back the world of true high performance yo-yos. It’s time to get back to your roots and check out the new Yomega Glide.
The Glide has incredible splash patterns and one of a kind prints and engravings that are sure to make your friends jealous. It not only provides unusual color styling, but a unique design that took a year of testing and re-engineering to make this perfect entry level competitor. The weight is centralized then thrown outwards towards the rims to create a balance between casual and competitive throwing. Comes stock with an official Dif-E-Yo KonKave bearing for dead smooth and completely unresponsive play. Take the time to check out the Glide by Yomega and see what is missing in your life! If that’s not enough watch Daniel Dietz with his collection of Glides in this exciting video. The Glide is Daniel’s weapon of choice for the 2013 contest season.
News from Yomega on their new light up transaxle yo-yo coming early July:
The Spectrum is the newest yo-yo from Yomega. It features LED lights that make for explosive colors and instant entertainment with just one throw of the yo-yo! Part of Yomega’s Player level yo-yo line, the Spectrum features a transaxle and a starburst response system, which allows any level of player to use. As Daniel Dietz demonstrates, the Spectrum is a colorful yo-yo that can brighten anyone’s day!
It will be releasing in red blue and clear colors to begin with.
Congratulations to all the contestants at the 2013 MA State YoYo Contest! The event got some great press, too, and had coverage from two TV stations including WWLP Channel 22 (embedded below) and Channel 3 Springfield.
Top Five for each division are listed below, and full results are available on the MA States website.
This video is recommended for audiences 18 years and older.
Youtube version here.
Because it is my regional contest, The Bay Area Classic is dear to my heart. Currently held in San Francisco, CA, the BAC always manages to bring together many of the world’s greatest players.
Since I personally never compete, I am always a spectator on the sidelines. I don’t mind this. In fact, I embrace it. Very rarely do you see me without my trusty camera. Since 1998, I have shot video at pretty much every yoyo event I’ve gone to. Some people have said that my work has documented the growth and change of yoyoing over the past 15 years. While I don’t feel I’m worthy of such high praise, I do feel that my videos have made a large impact in the yoyo community. That is why when the BAC committee asked me if I was willing to help shoot freestyles for the event, I gladly accepted. This acceptance, however, came with a downside.
This year, BAC ran freestyles throughout the day (as opposed to the end of the day). While this made everything run much smoother, it meant that I was unable to film tricks for a clip video since I would be busy with freestyles all day. I was pretty bummed, as I really enjoy making clip videos. So, to get my “documenting fix” in, I decided to shoot photographs and maybe hope that I could grab some good video footage at the Official BAC BBQ on Sunday.
My initial video plan was to make a video that showed people hanging out at the BAC BBQ. I wanted to make a sequel to last year’s BAC video, but this time focus on the players themselves, instead of their tricks. I wanted to show all of us hanging out, laughing, having a good time, making up and sharing tricks, and relaxing after a tough competition. This was the plan until I got home and realized that the photos I had taken all weekend showed a much more interesting story.
Over the course of the weekend, I shot approximately 2000 photos using a combination of my iPhone, Lumix LX7, and Sony NEX-5N using (primarily) a 8mm fisheye. If you were in my vicinity at any point this weekend, odds are I took your picture.
Inspired by Kohta’s EYYC 2012 video, this BAC 2013 video shows a different side of the contest filled with friends, family, spirits, camaraderie, yoyoing, and kendama.