YoYo Related News From Around The World
Check out this promo video for the Pilsner 1, a new yoyo from Plzen in the Czech Republic. Nice to see more small manufacturers coming from outside of the US! Wish I could have tried one while I was there for Worlds. Hit the comments section below if you’ve played one and have some feedback.
Yoyo used is the Pilsner 1 by Pilsen YoYo.
No Limit, the yoyo lifestyle brand from Poland, has a new promo video out for what appears to be a new metal yoyo they’re producing called the “Vinci”. Demonstrated by Patryk Nawolski, this promo video is super clean and a great look for promoting modern yoyoing to new players.
The Kengarden hosts a weekly meetup at their pop-up shop in San Franpsycho every Tuesday…and when you have a bunch of top level kendama and yoyo players hanging out, things are bound to get silly.
On a related note; I want a new Guy Wright video, dammit.
San Franpsycho
505 Divisadero
San Francisco, CA 94117
(415) 829-7874 f: 415-896-4979
Mon-Thur 11-8 Fri 11-9 Sat. 10-9 Sun 10-7
Coca-Cola and A Bathing Ape have just released a new collaborative capsule collection, and one of the accessories in the collection is a yoyo! Featuring the A Bathing Ape mascot drinking a glass bottle of Coke, the yoyo looks like the iconic Russell yoyo from decades of Coca-Cola’s history…but it’s not. After confirming with Riki Russell that Russell Promotions didn’t manufacture these, we’re definitely a little bummed that Coke would knock off the supplier they used for 65 years!
The capsule collection features a bunch of apparel in both mens and womens sizes, as well as a G-Shock watch, drinking glass, and more. Head over to High Snobiety to check out the full line.
Taiwan yoyo player Ayoun Kuo is getting ready for this year’s World YoYo Contest by going on television and having skill battles with a pen spinner.
Go ahead and read that again, and then let’s all discuss how much more awesome TV is in Taiwan! The first part of the battle is above, and the second part (where Ayoun rocks out a kendama routine) is below.
RecordSetter.com is a site where you can view, submit, and break existing “world records” in a variety of categories. None of these seem to be official records by any existing governing body, and a lot of the yoyo records are so trivially stupid that we have a hard time seeing them as anything other than a joke (“Longest Time Juggling A Pair Of Socks, A Yo-Yo And A Small Toy While Holding A Banana In Mouth” wins the prize for most ridiculous) but the site itself seems like it could be a fun clearinghouse for people to have a platform to log and break legitimate records.
Best way for the yoyo section to gain some respectability would be for people to submit records for actual established yoyo tricks….Most Loops, Most Two-Handed Loops, Longest Sleeper, Most Shoot The Moons, etc etc. Practice up, and submit a record!
One of my favorite things about being in the yoyo industry for nearly two decades has been watching the way the industry and community have spread to so many other countries. So it’s particularly exciting when I get to announce that another country has come on board with a national organization and player presence.
The country of Jordan now has an official yoyo presence! YoYo Jordan is run and coordinated by Hossam Shatnawi, and you can check out their Facebook page and YouTube Channel. An official organization is the first step, and we hope to see more players and events coming from Jordan soon!
Enjoy a little hey hey from Clint Armstrong and Cory Hendon in this new video featuring yoyo, kendama, and ball + cup. All the skill toys, you guys, just put all of them in.
Looks like we have another boutique yoyo manufacturer!
Whimsy is a new yoyo manufacturer based in Hong Kong, and they’re kicking things off with some really nice branding and packaging for their first model, the Pokerface. The finish is an acid wash anodization, but the side art appears to just be a sticker is a printed plastic sidecar that is friction fit in the side of the yoyo (see below for better image). There are three variations of this same model; the Spade, the Heart, and the Joker, each with different color ano and different side art, at a retail price of $125 $90. There are also flocked versions of each, which sounds cool but as we learned from the folly of the Duncan Velvet, flocking on yoyos doesn’t hold up very well. The flocked versions also retail for a whopping $185, which isn’t going to see them flying off the shelves anytime soon $120, which is better but still going to be a tough sell in today’s metal market.
The packaging is great, just a small box that perfectly mimics the box that a deck of cards comes in. The art and layout look to be really well done…great presentation for a first release! Hopefully the yoyo plays as good as it looks.
Richard Nixon & Roy Acuff at the Grand Ole Opry, 1974. Photo by David Kennerly
The Grand Ole Opry House is holding a huge celebration for their 40th Anniversary, and YoYoNashville will be part of the festivities!
On March 15th and 16th, 2014, the Opry is throwing a party that will include music, backstage tours, and live entertainment and Nashville’s yoyo club has been invited to partake in the festivities. To commemorate the legendary Opry patriarch, Roy Acuff, and his on stage yoyo antics, the venue is hosting a 2 day yo-yo-a-thon and 1970’s-era fixed axle contests. In 1974, President Nixon made a visit to the grand opening of the new home of the Opry where Roy Acuff gave him an impromptu yo-yo lesson. The President jokingly offered to Acuff ” I’ll stay here and try to learn how to use the yo-yo; you go up and be President, Roy!”
From opry.com/
“As part of the event, the Opry will partner with Hands On Nashville and Habitat For Humanity of Greater Nashville to celebrate the Opry House’s iconic Nixon/Acuff yo-yo lesson and raise funds in support of both organizations with an Opry House Yo-Yo-A-Thon. Opry staffers, artists and volunteers from Hands On Nashville and Habitat For Humanity of Greater Nashville will take turns yo-yoing in the Opry Plaza throughout the weekend. “
There will be commemorative wooden yo-yos available to use and buy. All yoyo players are welcome to come and help raise funds for Hands on Nashville and Habitat for Humanity of Greater Nashville (and throw a lot of fixed axle yo-yo). Contact Mark Allen or join the YoYoNashville group on Facebook for more details and to sign up for these events.
The YoYoNashville yoyo club is free to attend, and generally meets every third Saturday each month at Rocketown.
The 2014 International Toy Fair will be taking place in New York City this weekend and Yomega will be there showcasing their latest products for 2014. Here is a preview of what they will be showing.
First up from Yomega’s licensed line of Star Wars Yo-Yos we have the String Bling and YoMen. These were first announced last year, but are finally now in full production and available in retail outlets.
The String Bling are Fireball yoyos with all-new Star Wars designs featuring Yoda, Boba Fett, Darth Vader and Clone Trooper. The yoyo comes with a collectable Star Wars character rings that are used to protect your fingers while yoyoing.
The YoMen are display stands that showcase your yoyos with the characters Darth Vader, Clone Trooper, Yoda and General Grievous. A Yomega Fireball yoyo is cradled on the stands and sculpted in the character’s likeness.
Next up we have Yomega’s range of kendamas. Yomega was the first yoyo company to manufacture and market a kendama, and their response to the growing popularity of kendama in the United States has been to steadily improve and refresh their line of kendama offerings.
They are also introducing an addition to their Pro line called the Coyote Kendama
“Inspired by the American Desert COYOTE KENDAMA is an all-new special collection from our premium KENDAMA PRO line. This first assortment includes Painted Desert, Malachite… and of course, the Trickster! He is the Coyote, the legendary “Trickster” in Native American folklore. Kendama players demand high performance and the coolest new looks, and COYOTE KENDAMA delivers!”
Also relating to kendamas, Yomega is introducing a new skill toy called the Ticayo. Similar to the traditional bilboquet, the Ticayo should appeal to kendama players, and anyone interested in another challenging skill toy.
“The Ticayo is a classic ball and catch game originating in Mexico. Yomega’s Ticayo is crafted in Germany of premium hard wood. The style of play is similar to the Kendama, but the shape of the ball and the handle areunique,creatingitsownchallenge. Packaged in an environmentally friendly kraft paper box, the Ticayo comes with its own cubed-styled stand for display. The Ticayo is available in four colors and natural. Available in the US and Canada only through Yomega.”
For Yomega’s higher end pieces we have the Raider, Maverick, Dash, Yo-Mods, Glide, and my personal favorite the Prodigy!
Things to note from this part of the catalog is that the Star Wars line is featured on the Glide with Boba Fett, Darth Vader, the Imperial insignia, and the Rebel insignia. The Maverick is also getting a new look, and the yoyo itself has undergone some design tweaks to improve performance. Better balance and weight distribution has made this my new favorite carry-around yoyo; it’s a must try for 2014! And the Raider is being released with th original logo, for fans of that classic Yomega look!
The biggest announcement for Toy Fair is the new collaboration between Yomega and YoYoJam! Three performance plastic yoyos, designed and manufactured by YoYoJam and distributed by Yomega!
The Odyssey, Journey, and all-new Firestorm will begin shipping to retailers in March. We’ve got full pics and specs on all three models….click through for details.
[button color=”light” link=”https://yoyonews.com/2014/02/13/yomega-yoyojam-announce-new-collaboration/” target=”blank”]Click Here For Details On The New YoYoJam x Yomega Releases[/button]
Were you hoping the kendama invasion would be just a fad? Or that it would be safely contained? No sir, not when the mod bug bites kendama and yo-yo people alike, leading to some of the funkiest mashups on Instagram!
Apparently, kendama folks over at Kendama Custom Kreations were the first to have a shot at it, with their “Ken-Yo”, featuring a custom ken, holes on both sides of the yo-yo/tama, but with the string tied to the yo-yo, defeating some of the purpose:
http://instagram.com/p/ZujUDUJzZB/
Next, ninja modder and all-around awesome dude Takeshi went ahead and cut a string groove on a Duncan Komodo tama for Drew Tetz, the “Groovedama”!
http://instagram.com/p/jZ_sb_sIZX/
Here’s Drew shredding that beauty:
http://instagram.com/p/j2YU8JyNds/
http://instagram.com/p/j5aDq9SNSr/
Inspired by Takeshi’s work, but not quite hip enough for fixed axle, Red printed a tama hubstack, turning a perfectly fine yo-yo into a bizarre-looking contraption:
http://instagram.com/p/kCGf_YsVm9/
http://instagram.com/p/j_exf1MVqt/
http://instagram.com/p/kEoFyisVue/
Turns out Takeshi is a mind-reader, and had turned his own hubstack from a screwdriver handle, transforming his own yo-yo into a ken!
http://instagram.com/p/j_7NvWsIUA/
http://instagram.com/p/kFomm4sIcm/
(Obligatory Terrorgade mount tricks above in honor of Paul Escolar’s birthday!)
And finally, Takeshi — deciding he was cooler than everyone else — came up with the Blitz, an all-wooden version of his previous mod.
http://instagram.com/p/kIOuYWsIeT/
And kendama folks also seem to enjoy it quite a bit! (Dominic Calimquim feeling right at home below)
http://instagram.com/p/kIOCiyMIdT/
This is just the beginning!
Follow us all on Instagram for more awesome (and sometimes questionable) mashups!
When yoyo players started complaining about kendamas infiltrating the scene, the good folks at Duncan Toys really listened, and immediately got their best people on the job! Now, just a scant few years later, Duncan Crew member and modder Takeshi Kamisato has turned one of their kendamas into a yoyo so everyone can go back to only liking yoyos and being fearful of other skill toys.
Enjoy the awesome!
The Hildy Bros have announced a special deal…Mystery Curriers! Just order through their website and you’ll get a totally random mystery version of their popular Currier fixed axle wooden yoyo. And if you buy two Mystery Curriers, you’ll get $5 off. Sweet! Details below!
We like to experiment with different kinds of woods and glue ups but we don’t always release them into the wild. Here we offer a mystery Currier for a steal. Multitones, glue-ups, various woods exotic and domestic, engraved, and bare. We’ll reach into the grab bag and ship you the Yoyo you didn’t know you were gonna love this much.
On top of this deal, if you order two, you get $5 off! Enter code mystery at checkout.
If you are ordering for Christmas we reccommend you place your order by Dec 20. (US)
If you are outside the US an Canada or would like express shipping please contact hildybros@gmail.com