Poll: How Many Hours of Practice Does it Take to Be Proficient at Freestyle Frisbee?

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Bob Boulware Inverted Roll

One of the things I love about Freestyle Frisbee is that there is no end to learning. There are literally an infinite number of tricks, skills, and combinations to be mastered. This type of continuous growth it what keeps me engaged. But I recall being a new player and feeling frustration. It seemed like the most basic skills were far out of reach. Getting that disc to stay balanced, making good throws to my friends, knowing when to try the next trick vs going for a catch, and not hitting myself in the face with the disc all seemed impossible.

I stumbled across this Ted Talk video. The speaker, Josh Kaufman, says any skill can be learned with 20 hours of practice. Certainly it takes more than 20 hours to be an expert, but Josh claims you can be proficient enough to be past the frustration phase. To prove it, he learns to play the ukulele for his talk.

Now, I didn’t log my practice time when I was becoming proficient at Freestyle but it sure seemed like more than 20 hours. Then again, I didn’t exactly follow a plan. I just grabbed a disc when the mood struck and tried whatever skill I was interested in at the time. 

This is an interesting question as we try to initiate new players into the sport. How long should they expect to work at it? The poll for this week:

How many hours of practice does it take to be proficient at freestyle Frisbee?

[poll id=”43″]

Matt Teaches the Flamingitosis Catch

Video

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The flamingitosis is one of the most challenging catches. To understand it, it helps to break down the name; Flamingo – Gitis – Osis. A flamingo is when one plants on one leg and catches the disc behind the planted leg. A gitis is a variation of under the leg where the disc is caught around the outside of the leg opposite the catching hand. So right hand catches on the outside of the left leg and vice versa. So, a flamingosis is catching around the outside of the planted leg with the opposite hand. An osis is when one spins away from the catch so body rotation moves the hand in the direction as the disc is flying. Check the links for more details on each. Now put it all together and you have a flamingitosis.

Of course Matt, being the incredible jammer that he is, decided to add a double spin before he caught it. This is not a requirement. To fully understand the body mechanics involved, watch the video. There’s even a nice slow motion section. After Matt’s second spin you can see how he looks over his catching shoulder for as long as he can before his body blocks the view. Watching the disc as long as possible is the key to making this catch.

Another thing I find helpful is falling into the catch. The fall is not required, but for me it opens the window just a little more. You can see in the video, it works for Matt as well.

Episode 38: Jake and Randy Talk About Frisbee as the Great Connector

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Randy Looking HeinIn this episode Randy takes an opportunity to share some of his old stories. It sounds like Randy’s road to the Rose Bowl in 1980 was a crazy one.

  • First there was getting to the NAS Tournament in Boulder, hear how Randy used his frisbee prowess during a hitchhiking adventure to avoid going to jail; a great example of how Frisbee can be such a connector.
  • At only 16 years old, Randy worked hard to prepare for his solo routine at the Rose Bowl that never came to fruition, but not all was lost. The routine is linked below.
  • Jake and Randy talk about choreographing solo vs. with others and they discuss the pros and cons.

Poll: What is the Best Type of Bag for the Jam?

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Megan Arrives to the Jam with Her Bag

A common experience shared among jammers is packing one’s jam equipment into a bag before heading to the jam. The bag the holds the equipment can be integral to the process. It must hold everything; the discs, whiz rings, nails, glue, slick, shoes, etc. It must be easy to pack and unpack and easy to carry without being too bulky or heavy. Sometimes it must also protect the gear from wet grass or rain or possible worse…the sweat from the dirty clothes after the jam.

When Charles Kuske recommended this poll to me, I took a moment to reflect on the history of my jam bags. I used to use a duffel bag but switched to a backpack long ago for the ease of carrying. At one point I had a special backpack with a Sky-Styler sized disc pouch. I found that I carried more discs than would fit in the special pouch and so moved on to a water-proof backpack so my clean clothes would stay dry. Still, I am not convinced that my bag is the best. It doesn’t quite fit all my stuff, especially on a cold day where I need warmer jam clothes. I’ve seen people use rolling suitcases, and other custom bags that are tailored for Sky-Stylers. So now, Charles and I want to know:

What is the Best Type of Bag for the Jam?

[poll id=”42″]

If you have a favorite bag, please leave a comment and let us know.

Word of the Day: Taco

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Failed leaping UTL attempt, resulting in a TacoTaco (verb):

  1. To accidentally bend a flying disc in half, creating the shape of a taco shell. This usually happens during a drop. The player attempts a leaping under the leg catch but misses. As the disc hits the ground the player’s extended leg comes down on top of the disc and forcefully bends it in half. To taco a disc is especially disheartening because the disc will probably have a wobble from then on. 

Example: Oh no, you just tacoed our competition disc!

Episode 37: Dexter Struz from Prague

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Dexter Strunz
In this episode we talk to Dexter Strunz, one of the original tournament directors for the Famed Frisbeer Competition.

  • Hear how Dexter, who started as a foot bagger and event organizer, added freestyle to his repertoire in 2004.
  • He shares the origins of the popular Frisbeer Tournament and the sudden interest from others in Prague.
  • How did 15+ great players suddenly appear?
  • Dexter shares tips on the best way to learn the sport.
  • Jake asks Dexter to share some of his favorite memories from Frisbeer, which he has so successfully organized over the years.
  • Dexter gives a personal thanks his freestyle family in the states for hosting him while he and Lucie traveled the world, something he highly recommends!

Poll: If there was an overall event where you had to compete in at least 4 disciplines, would you be interested?

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DDC shenanigansThis poll comes from Jan Müller. Jan runs the site doubledisccourt.de and is trying to establish both DDC and Overall a bit more in Germany. Jan is considering hosting an Overall Frisbee event that would include 7 disciplines: Freestyle, Discgolf, DDC, Discathon, Accuracy, Self Caught Flight, Distance. He wants to determine if there is interest among the freestyle community to attend such an event. Though hosted in Germany, anyone from any country is welcome to attend. Players must compete in at least 4 disciplines. So, for those who enjoy Freestyle and are interested in trying other disc sports this is a great opportunity. This weeks poll aims to find out how many people are interested in such an event.

Since Jan wants to hold this event in Germany, answers are broken into 2 sections; German residents and all others. Don’t worry if you could not attend for other reasons such as living far away. This poll is about learning if freestylers are interested in trying other events.

 

If there was an overall event where you had to compete in at least 4 disciplines, would you be interested?

[poll id=”41″]

Matt Gauthier Teaches the Flamingosis Catch

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Matt Gauthier teaches us about the famingosis catch. This is one of the more challenging catches to master. Also, it has a intriguing look due to the unique body rotation involved.

First, some nomenclature. The basic osis catch is covered here. It involves catching behind the back as one spins away from the disc. A similar spinning away movement can be applied to almost any catch. In this example, Matt is showing us the flamingosis, which is a flamingo with the osis style rotation. There is also gitosis, chosis (chair osis), bad attitosis, and probably a whole host of others. So, take your favorite catch and try to add an osis to it. It can open a whole new world.

Now for the flamingosis. Set the disc up and then spin. If you spin to the left, as Matt demonstrates, then plant on your right foot, kick your left foot out, and reach behind your right leg with your right hand and make the catch. As you spin, watch over your right should as long as you can, then flip your head around quickly and watch the disc into your hand over the left shoulder. Matt points out that the motion is very similar to a phlard. So, one way to begin is by catching a pharld but move your hand to the other side of your leg. This will help you with the motion.

There are also some subtle variations here. For example, the raised leg could travel over the disc before the catch is made. Or, it could move into position before the disc is low enough for the leg to go over. Or it could never go past the disc flight path at all. All are valid but it changes the aesthetic. My guess is that, with a little creativity there are other possible variations as well. If you think of any, please share in the comments below.

 

Episode 36: The Lost Interview with Steve Hayes, AKA “The Beast”

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The Beast

Photo by Char Powell

As we practiced to start our podcast, we interviewed Steve Hayes “The Beast”. He has so many deep thoughts about Freestyle Frisbee that we found ourselves fascinated. This is one of those early interviews.

  • Randy starts off with a burning question for Jake.
  • The Beast goes deep on what he considers a good throw.  Who knew he was so philosophical and thoughtful?
  • He talks about the heartbeat of the jam, which is not just about making the hard moves, but about the connection with another person and making them look good. 
  • Jake talks about the hoop factory.
  • Randy, Jake, and Beast discuss flow, and a what that means now and how that evolved over the years.

Poll: When You Go for a Spinning Trick, Which Rotation Direction Are You Strongest?

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Sacha Spins

Photo by Anne Gabriel

Many performance based sports like figure skating and freestyle skiing as well as most dance styles incorporate spinning. Freestyle Frisbee is no different. Adding spins to any trick ups the difficulty and adds to the artistic value. I came across an interesting article about different disciplines and the performers prefered spin direction. According to the article it seems that few, if any performers will rotate both ways. It also seems that many “athletes” spin counter clockwise while many “dancers” spin clockwise. Of course there is no rule that says one must spin in a given direction and every discipline has exceptions. The article doesn’t really conclude why one spin direction is prefered over the other, but preferences are quite clear.

This left me wondering about spin direction in Freestyle Frisbee. Perhaps our preference will reveal whether we are athletes or dancers. This Poll asks, when you go for a spinning trick, which rotation direction are you strongest? Note that this not asking if you can do both. Yes, I can catch either direction, but percentage wise I have a much higher chance of catching if I spin counter clockwise. 

When You Go for a Spinning Trick, Which Rotation Direction Are You Strongest?

[poll id=”40″]