Congrats to Remy Baskin on picking up a sponsorship from Duncan Toys! Hope it’s a great opportunity for both parties. Congratulations, Remy!
Yoyo used is the Duncan Orbital.
Opinion: Goodbye Duncan Crew
Duncan Crew, 2004
Word spread like wildfire over social media this weekend that Duncan Toys has made the decision to remove a huge number of players from their “Duncan Crew Worldwide” team of sponsored players, and reboot the team entirely.
It took ’em long enough.
Started 15 years ago by yours truly, Duncan Crew was a motley assemblage of who I considered to be the best and brightest players of the day. Old, young, seasoned and noobs all came together to form a worldwide group of players who inspired an entire generation of serious yoyo players and comptitors. I’ve always taken great pride in what I created, but I have to admit that I was disappointed when, after I left, someone didn’t burn the entire thing down and start over.
See, the thing about Duncan Crew is that it was my crew. I assembled it, I curated it, I managed it. It worked for me, because it was an extension of what I wanted yoyoing to look like. I could manage it, because it was created to suit my own strengths. When I left, I fully expected that the Crew would be disbanded entirely, or at least whittled down to just a tiny handful of people and then built back up later by my replacement. When Brandon Jackson was finally brought on board to fill the National Sales & Marketing Coordinator Position, I personally looked forward to him completely tearing down the entire Crew and building a new team that would carry Duncan forward with whatever vision he personally had for the company. Instead, the team got bigger.
Duncan Crew, 2014
Then Brandon shifted positions, and Augie Fash was brought in, and I got excited again. I spoke with Augie plenty of times when he took the job, about the Crew and about my recommendations for how he should manage it, and my recommendation was to kill the entire thing and start over with his team. Make it his own, make it an extension of what the brand and company looked like now, and make it relevant to the players of today. Every time I brought it up (usually over tacos at my house on Tuesdays, a standing tradition), he turned red and stuttered and got really embarrassed. Because he knew I was right but holy crap….who in their right mind wants to cut an entire team and start over? It might be the right thing to do but it’s pretty daunting to let go of that many people.
And as we can see, people really freak out when you do it. I have no idea what conversations or decisions at Duncan led to this massive carving down of their roster of sponsored players. Augie likes to chat about yoyos over tacos, but he’s always been very good about keeping Duncan’s business at the office. (Brandon did too, for that matter. Good guys, those two.) I don’t even want to get into a conversation about if it was handled right, as people are currently debating elsewhere. Maybe it could have been handled more gently, maybe it was good to just rip the bandage off quickly. I don’t know how I would have done it in his place, so I’m not going to question how Duncan chose to do it.
But what I do want to say is this: it was time.
It was time for Duncan Crew to be smashed to bits and made ready to become something else. It was time for a lot of players to get back out there and prove their worth again. It was time for a lot of the old gang to accept their new roles as mentors and advisors and organizers. And it was time for Augie to have a team that was his.
I don’t yet have the list of players who are moving forward with Duncan. I would imagine a couple of players who still have a spot might choose instead to give it up. It’s going to be a minute, I think, before things settle down and we get an official word from Duncan about what their team is becoming. But I will definitely say that I support progress, I support Duncan shaking things up a bit, and I absolutely support a Duncan team that is new, fresh, and ready to truly make the same level of contributions as the original Crew did. I’m super proud of what I created for Duncan…and I’m even more proud to see it turning in to something completely new.
Congratulations to Augie on doing a difficult job well. Congratulations to the players who remain. All my love to the players who held it down and supported one of the oldest brands in the world for the past 15 years.
I can’t wait to see what happens next.
X Division legend Shingo Terada leaves Duncan Crew
In a brief post on his Facebook page, Shingo “Terry” Terada announced his resignation from Duncan Crew after 12 years on the team.
Dec.23 2014, I leave Duncan Crew.
I don’t compete contests for a long time. it was not good for me and Duncan.
…
Still love Duncan yo-yo and Duncan Crew family. So I leave the Crew.
Thank you for all support from Duncan Toys. Thank you…
In addition to the 2001 World Title in the X Division, Terry also won UTYJ (Japan Nationals) in 2001 and 2002, always with unmatched elegance in both 4A and 5A.
In a time when 4A yo-yos were thinner than today’s 1A average, his technique was flawless.
5A play also owes immensely to Terry’s innovations, such as e-fans and beestings, which allowed counterweight play to move from its experimental roots to an established yo-yo division.
See you around, Terry!
5A May Throwback Thursday – Andrew Lin’s Pure Freehand
We can’t do 5A May without a 5A Throwback Thursday! Instead of going back all the way to the birth of 5A, let’s take a look at one of the unsung (or rather “less-sung”) heroes of 5A, Duncan Crew Singapore’s Andrew Lin.
His Pure Freehand video series, released over a couple of years, were some of the first clips to feature 5A exclusively, and were most influential in the early 2000s counterweight play.
The first video explored some new concepts in 5A. While aerials and e-fans were commonplace back then, Andrew introduced new mounts and transitions, and opened the path for complex combos in 5A. His shirts were also unreasonably big.
The second video, a true 5A classic, is where the see where the first video’s path led to. While not terribly difficult by today’s contest standards, all the counterweight releases and mount transitions in the video were previously unheard of, and it’s easy to see how those concepts influenced some of today’s greatest combo builders, such as JonRob and Ryota Torigoe.
Finally, the last video of the series explores sliding dice, triangles, and adds a healthy dose of complexity to 5A. The last trick in the video is pure genius, a brilliant finishing touch to the series.
Andrew was not limited to releasing videos, of course, and his 3rd place finish at the 2005 World Yo-yo Contest was a well-deserved highlight in his 5A innovator career.
Put down the metal and grab that good old plastic Freehand today. It doesn’t get any purer than this!
Jan Paprštein Joins Duncan Crew
Jan Paprštein has officially joined the Czech Republic arm of Duncan Crew! Jan took 7th Place at the 2012 Czech Nationals, and 8th Place at the 2013 Czech Nationals, and is a rising talent in the Czech yoyo scene. Congratulations, Jan!
Ladies and gentlemen, please join us in welcoming the newest member of Duncan Crew Worldwide, specifically Duncan Crew Czech Republic…Jan Paprštein! When you see Jan you cant help but notice his commitment to yo-yo play, his support for the Czech yo-yo scene, and love for the Duncan brand. We couldnt be more excited to have a great guy represent for us in the Czech Republic! Welcome to Duncan Crew Jan!
Duncan Crew Worldwide 2013 – Chapter 2
Duncan Toys has released their second Duncan Crew Worldwide video, showing off the talents of their international roster of talent. This second volume features David Bolgarfalvy, Maya Nakamura, Sean Perez, Chris Makita, Mimi Makita, Ondra Sedivy, Adam Hříbal, Alif Izwan, János Karancz, and Gergő Domonkos.
If you missed it, check out the first one here: Duncan Crew Worldwide Chapter 1.
Tomáš Bubák joins C3yoyodesign!
Former European and Czech YoYo Champion, Tomáš Bubák has announced his departure from Duncan Crew to join the ever-growing C3yoyodesign team!
Tomáš, who finished third yesterday at the Czech National Yo-yo Contest, is the first Czech member of the Hong Kong-based manufacturer’s team, a very welcome presence in a country where yoyoing is experiencing a big surge.
“Ninja” Yoshihiro Abe joins Duncan Crew Japan!
Yoshihiro Abe is the newest member of Duncan Crew Japan!
Photo by Duncan Crew Japan.
Yoshihiro, who delighted us with his unforgettable 3rd place winner freestyle at this year’s Japan Nationals, is the first new player to join Duncan Crew Japan in several years.
With a North Japan 5A title already under his belt, we’re excited to see what the future holds for this young player!
Duncan Crew Worldwide 2013 – Chapter 1
Duncan Toys has a new video showing off some members of their worldwide team, featuring Paul Escolar, Jeff Coons, Lim Aik Hwee, Gabe Lozano, and Bryan Jardin. Since this is listed as “Chapter 1” I think we can expect more installments, probably featuring Hank Freeman, Rafael Matsunaga, Janos Karancz, and more.
Maya vs. Drew: 5A Showdown
YoYoNews battles return with a Duncan deathmatch! This week, old school 5A hero Maya Nakamura is taking on new school 5A upstart Drew Tetz in a Duncan Crew Deathmatch. Who will survive? Well, probably both of us, but it’s a bunch of exciting tricks so you should definitely check it out and vote. Maya brings the style & grace that we’ve come to expect from Japan’s counterweight queen with two high-level manuevers, one making a cheeky reference to classic trick Rock the Baby and the other a slick new triangle entrance, and I brought out the longest pinwheel/wrap combo I’ve ever done.
Not bad, eh? This battle is especially exciting for me because Maya’s winning 5A freestyle at ’05 Worlds was the first thing that made me want to take 5A seriously. It’s an honor to throw against such a talented & influential player. Vote below, and make sure to tell us who you voted for and why in the comments!
…also, if you wanna see my trick in slow motion you should click here, and if you wanna download the song you can do that here.
Try This Trick #4 – Suicide Hook
Malcolm Chiu (recent Bip Bop Cliff winner) released another “Try This Trick” tutorial that’s worth checking out. “Suicide Hook” is a really subtle but great-looking trick…nice work, Malcolm!
Chris Makita – Chri$tyle
Duncan Crew Philippines heavy hitter Chris Makita proves once again that he’s one of the most formidable trick composers in the 1A game with a one throw combo just shy of two minutes long. There are more than enough modern slack elements here to keep you busy for a couple years.
Chris is using Kohta Watanabe’s new signature yo-yo from Duncan, the Strix. Very excited to see what else the crew is going to do with it!
Malcolm Chiu X Duncan
Malcolm Chiu from Duncan Crew Singapore shows off a decade of amazing tricks. Inspired by Janos Karacz, Ryosuke Iwasawa, Takahiro Iizuka, Plamek, and several others, Malcolm demonstrates and amazing aptitude for technical string tricks and amazing lacerations, hooks, whips, suicides, etc. Malcom’s Suicide to Star was one of the most amazing tricks of 2012. This video goes above and beyond.
How To YoYo On TV w/ Bryan Jardin
Bryan Jardin, the 2012 Asia-Pacific Champion in the counterweight division, just popped up on Hero TV, a cable channel based in Quezon City, Philippines. It’s a great appearance for a yo-yo player (8 minutes long!) and also VERY instructive for any player out there who wants to be on TV for their yoyoing. A few things to note:
1. They flashed his titles across the screen, and managed to turn his 7th Place finish at the World YoYo Contest (a big deal) into 7th Place National Champion of Florida. If you’re a yoyo player and you’re on TV, they are either going to screw up whatever you give them, or they’re going to ignore it and call you a World Champion. Just be ready to smile and nod and be totally fine with whatever they make up.
2. The hosts of a majority of the programs that are willing to book a yoyo player are generally going to be of the loud & wacky variety. Look at that guy’s hat! They are going to exaggerate everything and go out of their way to act loud and wacky. DO NOT try to match them. These people are loud and wacky for a living, and if you try to match their volume it’s going to look awkward. Bryan did a great job of being dignified and reserved, and that gives him a degree of gravity unmatched by that woman’s shorts. It makes him look like the calm in the eye of the storm, and as a result he stands out way more and in a positive way.
3. Keep your tricks simple, and stick with single tricks. What Bryan did was give them individual tricks, with names, that featured a specific and singular movement. Too many players get on TV and just start talking and playing, and the host inevitably asks for the name of the trick and they mumble “It’s, uh, well, it doesn’t have a name really” and it’s super hard for an audience to relate to that and latch on to it. If you’re showing something to people that they’ve never seen before, you need to package and label it for easy consumption so that they can process the information better. Otherwise, it’s just “Did you see that one swingy thing that he did that was like a swingy thing?” and they will automatically assume that it’s completely beyond their reach to even try. Keep it accessible…demonstrate mastery without making it look beyond the reach of the average person.
Bryan did a fantastic job with this interview, and it’s a great reference point for any of you who might need to be on TV to promote your sponsor or a contest or your local club.