YoYo Related News From Around The World
Recess Intl. just dropped a supercut of all their Instagram edits, and the result is hilarious. It’s like a glorious festival of “wait, what?” for the short attention-span set (which is pretty much all of us), featuring great tricks from rookies and pros and…well, other stuff.
Yoyos used are the Recess Weekend, Joyride, and First Base.
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Tyler Severance / Photo by Tom Gralish
World and National Champion Tyler Severance got himself a nice write-up in the Philadelphia Inquirer! The photo above was taken by Pulitzer-winning photographer Tom Gralish and if you click on it you can order a print, which is pretty sweet.
Check out the video that they put together below, and head over to Philly.com for the full article. Nice job, Tyler!
Recess Intl. just announced a beautiful limited edition release, commemorating the life and general badassery of Danny Severance. These will be available in limited quantities at RecessIntl.com, tomorrow, April 1st, at 8 pm EST. I’ll let his brother Tyler do the talking on this one.
My brother, Danny Severance, was and is one of my biggest inspirations not only in YoYoing but also in life. Anyone who met him would probably say something of a similar effect.
2 years ago he decided to take his own life. As much as it pains me and all of his family/friends and the people he touched, we all know he’s in a better place and wouldn’t want us wallowing in sorrow.
So instead, I’ve made some YoYos in his honor. If you ever got to meet Danny or see some video of him throwing earlier on, you would know how partial he was to a Purple Freehand Zero with plain white caps. A clean look inspired by Seth Peterson and so many of his idols who threw Freehands before him.
This is an original Anti-Yo YWET powder coated in his favorite color way. As you may know these YoYos weren’t sold to the public due to a bearing seat machining error. This is fixed with a simple shim to adjust the gap of you YoYo, and all pieces are hand tested to perfection before shipping. Shims will be glued into place.
They’ll be funding a team who will be walking the “Out of the Darkness” overnight fundraiser, with all proceeds being used in the fight for suicide prevention.
If you’d like to donate regardless of YoYo Purchase you can do that at this link:
http://theovernight.donordrive.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=donordrive.participant&participantID=17894
YoYos will be released on Friday April 1st (8 PM EST), and be shipped in mid April after powder coating is completed. Price will be $70.
Oh hey, who’s still one of the greatest 5A players of all time? Tyler Severance, that’s who.
Check out the latest video from Ryosuke “I’m Going To Make A Video For Everyone, Eventually” Kawamura!
Yoyo used is the Recess First Base.
Recess is getting psychedelic with their newest promo videos…check out the latest from Tyler Severance’s new company.
Yoyo used is the Recess Joyride.
The Weekend is the first bi-metal release from Recess, the new company from World & National Champion Tyler Severance. The yoyo is stable, fast, and is well-suited for the highest levels of play in 1A, 3A, and 5A styles.
The Recess Weekend is a fast, stable player that muscles through most tricks with ease. The shape is comfortable and familiar, and the Weekend always seems to have a bit more spin left than you expect. The Weekend really excels at both 1A and 5A, and the stainless steel rims are in a great spot to really maximize the weight distribution and keep the Weekend moving through even the craziest of plane-bending tricks. The extra-large finger spin area inside the cup does it’s job beautifully, and coupled with the bi-metal design the Weekend is a tremendous choice for players looking to up their horizontal game.
Available in several solid colors, the look of a bi-metal yoyo never gets old. Solid color anodizing with that shiny steel rim always looks good, and the Recess Weekend has a few other nice touches that set it apart. The non-symmetrical art is well outside the box for normal yoyo engravings, and keeping the finger spin cup clear of artwork not only helps with play but also gives the Weekend a unique look. The anodizing and engraving are both well done, and the fit of the rims to the body is smooth and clean.
The Recess Weekend retails for $120, placing it out of the realm of a casual purchase but still a very reasonable price at the lower end of the spectrum for quality bi-metal yoyos. With a unique look, the backing of a World & National Champion, and plenty of play value, the Recess Weekend is worth the price for any serious competitor.
The Recess Weekend is available now at YoYoExpert.com.
Tyler Severance just finished up some school shows in the Bay Area, fresh off the heels of the US National YoYo Contest. He took a little time to film some new tricks at Alcatraz with the First Base, the first plastic yoyo to be released by Recess. Pre-production models were available in limited quantities at Nationals, and full production will be available in stores later this month.
Check out some new tricks from Tyler, inspired by Zach Gormley, Shota Saga, Kenta Kushiro, Dennis Cinquegrani, and Chris Rodrigues.
Yoyo used is the Recess First Base.
Tyler Severance and Ky Zizan got in some good throwing time with the new Recess Joyride during their trip to Japan for the 2015 World YoYo Contest. Two amazing players at the top of their game…enjoy!
Yoyo used is the Recess Joyride.
Recess Intl. has been non-stop since they announced the new venture, teasing the big release of their first two models at the 2015 World YoYo Contest in Tokyo! Here’s another video, featuring Tyler Severance and Ky Zizan, with a guest appearance by Boyd Seth and our first peek at the plastic release by Recess!
Tyler Severance is gearing up for a run at the 2015 World YoYo Contest, and with the launch of his new company that means we get a new counterweight video. Which is most definitely a good thing.
Yoyo used is the Recess Weekend.
Recess Intl. has posted a new video teasing their budget aluminum yoyo, the Joyride, featuring Recess owner Tyler Severance. Both the Joyride and their bi-metal release the Weekend will be available for the first time in limited quantities at the 2015 World YoYo Contest. Can’t wait!
Well, we didn’t see this one coming.
World and National Champion Tyler Severance has announced that he has left YoYoFactory and is starting up his own new company, Recess, with aluminum and bi-metal yoyos that will be available first at Worlds, and a plastic yoyo that will debut soon after! And he’s announced his first three team members….Patrick Borgerding, Ian Johnson, and Ky Zizan! Whoa, right?
Check out his first video with prototypes of his new yoyos. I’ve already bugged Tyler for samples, so we’ll get pics and specs to you as soon as possible. Congratulations Tyler…this is a HUGE step forward, and we wish you the best of luck!
Join YoYoFactory’s Tyler Severance, Clint Armstrong, and Ben McPhee as they visit and perform for a school….located at the bottom of the Grand Canyon!
This epic video shows off YoYoFactory at their best…bringing yoyoing to everyone they can, and finding adventure everywhere.
YoYoFactory has a goal of spreading yo-yo. Often there are commercial aspects that must be taken into account for this to be sustainable (i.e. we need to make money to be able to afford to do it in the future). In the middle of 2014 we reached a cross-roads. We weren’t doing it right. We faced a change. In the face of this we decided to go back to our roots. Take yo-yo to the people. We considered somewhere exotic, perhaps a sparsely populated island? Maybe on top of a high mountain chain like the Andes? How about a tribe so remote the mail is still delivered by mules…. a mere 5hrs from our office?
Supai Arizona was this place. Its beauty contrasts by the difficulties facing its residents who despite their isolation (6hrs by mule to a car which is hrs again from any significant town) are right in the middle of everything wrong with the modern age (diet, fashion and media expectations). These kids grow up in a fishbowl which is funded by tourists who walk through looking into their lives on their way to see the areas most precious resource; the blue water that cascades over some of the most beautiful water falls in the world.
The Crew was built around our pro, Tyler Severance. Clint Armstrong came in as pro #2, Reece Schofield came as our web designer/camping support/ /r/throwers moderator. We set off at 3am, getting to the cliff top at 8am. The route down was either a 6hr horse ride, 8hr hike or 10min on a helicopter…. yes we took the chopper.
Checkout the visuals from our adventure!
The 2014 US National YoYo Contest was the high-point of this years US contest season, with a 1A Division that was absolutely stacked with top notch talent and had some of the best 1A freestyles we’ve seen all year! YoYoNews correspondent Matt McDade tracked down most of our new US National Champions for a Q&A.
(Editors Note: The 2014 5A National Champion, Tyler Severance, couldn’t be reached for the last two weeks. So instead of his answers, we’ll be giving you lyrics from his favorite song: “Wrecking Ball” by Miley Cyrus.)
Zach Gormley (1A): I certainly felt that it was possible to take first, however, knew the competition would be fierce. The day of it all just comes down to who hits their freestyle the cleanest. While many other competitors this year made mistakes, it appears that I made the fewest.
Joseph Harris (2A): Yes, without a doubt, I expected to take 1st place. Unless I had a major screw-up in my freestyle, I had little doubt about defending my title. Rumor was, Party Rick (aka Pat Mitchell) was not competing, so I had nothing to worry about…he makes me worry. Like. A LOT. P-Mitch is so gee-whiz good!
Alex Hattori (3A): I always go to a competition to have fun and to do my best. I never bring any expectations. There are many great yoyoers, and anything can happen.
Zac Rubino (4A): No, there are so many good players that could have won. Going into a contest, I don’t think in my head, “I am going to win this contest.” I just have the mindset that I want to hit my routine and put on a good show for the audience.
Tyler Severance (5A): We kissed, I fell under your spell. A love no one could deny.
Zach Gormley: Typically, I try to get in around an hour to two of practice each day, starting a month before the contest. This doesn’t need to be all just freestyle-practice, though. Much of my time is spent perfecting my tricks or finding ways to hit them more consistently for when I’m on stage.
Joseph Harris: Non-existent. I selected a freestyle song a week before the competition. I did a true “freestyle” on stage, meaning what the audience live at Chico, and watching online, saw was the first time I did a full run of my freestyle performance.
Alex Hattori: I didn’t really have a set practice schedule because I’ve been extremely busy with my rigorous high school curriculum, which includes marching band and robotics.
Zac Rubino: At home, I practiced 2-3 hours a day, and for those hours, I only practiced my freestyle. The way I went about it was to practice 30 min-1 hour at a time, a few times though out the day.
Tyler Severance: Don’t you ever say I just walked away, I will always want you.
Zach Gormley: I had two goals for this freestyle. I wanted to improve my performance, as well as have a really dominant tech score. While I achieved the latter, my performance wasn’t where I wanted it to be. I think the mistakes I spent time correcting took up time I could have been looking at the crowd, yoyoing to the music, etc.
Joesph Harris: Have fun, and go clean. I would have ended my routine early if I felt like I did not have fun or go clean. 2 minutes in, I felt comfortable that I had accomplished both goals.
Alex Hattori: I really just hoped to show my best tricks and put on my best performance.
Zac Rubino: For this freestyle, my goal was to win a National or World title.
Tyler Severance: I came in like a wrecking ball. I never hit so hard in love.
Zach Gormley: Lately, many yoyoers have caught on to trends that I’ve set in the past, so it can be hard to adjust my style or stay unique. Sometimes, I’m not too sure about what it is that sets me apart, but whatever it is seems to be working. I always try to do something different and bring new ideas to the table!
Joseph Harris: Swag. And the clothing line helped. It was hot that day, so the tank top my cousin gave me while we were celebrating his marriage in Vegas freed up some arm space. So, I could move around with ease and not feel so sluggish on stage. If you watched the others, you could tell that my wraps separated my freestyle from everyone else.
Alex Hattori: I think all of us 3A players are unique in our own way. Whether it’s bringing through some mind-boggling double Double or Nothing combo or by incorporating bangers, I think we all stand out from each other.
Zac Rubino: I think what sets me apart from other competitors is my tricks. I try to make tricks that are hard, flashy, and score high. My favorite type of trick is a “banger”. I love snags, regens, grinds, and just about anything that looks cool. I know my performance evaluation scores are my weakness, so I try to make up for that with big, risky tricks.
Tyler Severance: I never meant to start a war. I just wanted you to let me in. And instead of using force I guess I should’ve let you win.
Zach Gormley: I chose to use the Arctic Circle 2 in the Northern Lights colorway. Gotta represent CLYW! Best of the best.
Joseph Harris: My signature series yoyo, the YoYoJam Unleashed, which has been used to win back-to-back Nationals titles.
Alex Hattori: Duncan Barracudas, one red and one blue, with Dif-e-Yo Konkave bearings.
Zac Rubino: The yoyo that I used in my freestyle was the Duncan Skyhawk.
Tyler Severance: Buy Miley Cyrus – Bangerz on Amazon
Zach Gormley: Anthony Rojas has consistently placed top 3, and I would have loved to see him take the Nationals title. Gentry’s freestyle was top notch as always, and he definitely could have taken the title as well. It was also cool seeing Andrew Maider and Michael Kurti really step their game up.
Joseph Harris: Of the people not competing this year, I would have liked Ian Lawson, Patrick Mitchell, and Grant Johnson. For those that did compete, I would have loved it if Josh Yee won.
Alex Hattori: I would have liked to see the person who brought their best game take first. To tell you the truth, I really enjoy watching all 3A players.
Zac Rubino: The other person that I would have liked to see take first place is Ian Johnson. Ian is a good friend, and an amazing yoyo player.
Tyler Severance: All I wanted was to break your walls. All you ever did was wreck me.
Zach Gormley: 44Clash and Las Vegas Open are right around the corner, and I’d love to win one of those! Potentially, even both would be cool! Next year, I have my eyes set on Worlds in Tokyo, but I’ll cross that bridge when it comes.
Joseph Harris: Chronologically, the next title would be the Las Vegas Open in Vegas which seeds the winners into semi-finals for Tokyo Worlds 2015. The big competition goal for me is to be World Champion before I retire from competing in two-handed.
Alex Hattori: I don’t usually plan my life according to upcoming competitions. Instead, I work on improving my technique or creating new tricks after I’m done with Nationals. Then, as time rolls along, I see if I’m able to attend any more competitions based on my school academic schedule.
Zac Rubino: The next contest I am looking to win is the 2015 World Yoyo Contest. When I started competing, there were 4 contests that I really wanted to win, which were Cal States, BAC, Nationals, and Worlds. This year, I won all of those contests except for Worlds. That is the last contest on my list, and the one I want to win the most.
Tyler Severance: Yeah, I just closed my eyes and swung. Left me crashing in a blazing fall.
Zach Gormley: Outside of competitions, I’d love to work on some new videos. Charles and I have been tossing around the idea of potentially getting me up to Canada to work on some Cabin Tutorials. While it is likely, nothing is set in stone yet.
Joseph Harris: The main non-contest related endeavor for me is to get yoyos mainstream! In my eyes, it starts with grassroots efforts, such as the two new yoyo clubs I am helping run here in the San Francisco Bay Area. New yoyoers, like hundreds to thousands of them, is the first step to making yoyos and the yoyo community more popular.
There will always be the next Gentry Stein, Zach Gormley, Anthony Rojas, Ahmad Karisma, Harrison Lee, Tessa Piccillo, Takeshi Matsuura’s of the yoyo world. My goal, as it has been since I was booted off America’s Got Talent Season 4, is to get the next generation of yoyoers to experience more positive exposure OUTSIDE of the yoyo community than the current yoyoers! Don’t YOU want yoyos to be mainstream???
Alex Hattori: Well, I’m always actively volunteering in my community with yoyoing, whether it’s teaching, or performing for charitable causes. I perform at schools, fundraisers, libraries, convalescent homes, and all sorts of charity events.
Zac Rubino: Besides contests, I have been filming a lot of videos with the Duncan crew. Be on the look out for those videos coming soon! Other than that, I don’t know what the up-coming year has in store for me.
Tyler Severance: All you ever did was wreck me. Yeah, you, you wreck me. Yeah, you, you wreck me.
