Monday 30 September 2013

SYN 2013 - Slovak Yoyo Nationals


Tones of autumn yellow (feat. Anya Ushakova)


Round Structure for the World Yo-Yo Contest

Everything below is copied from IYYF.org:


Reasons for the change:

For the final round, 15-20 is the maximum number of contestants that can be judged fairly and accurately.
We cannot fit ALL National Champions into finals anymore.
We want the winners and high-ranking players of National Contests to have some benefit.
In actuality, really only the top 10 in each Championship Division of each National Contest should be capable/eligible to compete at the level of World Contest.
However, we still want EVERYONE to have a chance to come and try for the World Title.

2014 World Contest Round Structure


Day 3: FINAL (3-min) TOTAL 15-20 (1A) / 8-10 (2A-5A)

Last-Year’s World Champion x 1

Multi-National Contest (AP, EYYC, NA) Champions x 3

Winners of Semi-Final x 11-16 (1A) / 4-6 (2A-5A)


Day 2: SEMI-FINAL (1.5-min) TOTAL 40-60 (1A) / 15-30 (2A-5A)

National Champions x 15-25 (1A) / 5-10 (2A-5A)

Winners of Preliminary x 25-35 (1A) / 10-20 (2A-5A)


Day 1: PRELIMINARY (1-min) TOTAL 100-150 (1A) / 30-60 (2A-5A)

Top 10 of all Nationals x 70-110 (1A) / 20-40 (2A-5A)

Winners of WildCard x 30-40 (1A) / 10-20 (2A-5A)


Day Before: WILDCARD (30-sec) TOTAL 100-150 (1A) / 20-50 (2A-5A)

Anyone x 100-150 (1A) / 20-50 (2A-5A)

It will be in a private room with just judges.
The venue may have a limited ceiling space.
Music selection may be limited.
Clickers (plus and minus) only.

If you are the World Champion, you compete in Finals directly.

If you are the Asia-Pacific, EYYC (or NA if/when established) Champion, you compete in Finals directly.

If you are a National Champion, you compete starting in Semi-Finals.

If you are one of the top players in your country, you compete starting in the Preliminary round.

If you had never won or ranked for the year, you still have a chance to compete starting in the WildCard round.

Seeding Rules for the World Yo-Yo Contest

Competing in a National Contest

National Contests are for the contestants of a country (its citizens and residents).

A contestant can only compete in a National Contest of the country they have citizenship in or reside in currently (permanent residence or long-term visa holders like work (also working holiday), student, spouse and child of citizen visas). Visitors or sightseeing visa holders are not allowed to compete in the National Contest.

Non-Championship Divisions (International Open Division, etc.) are not subject to the rule above.

Regional Contests are not subject to the rule above.

Contestants must follow further rules which are provided by the contest organizers to attendees.


Organizing a National Contest

Organizers can only hold one National Contest per calendar year (same number year, ex. 2014).

Organizers must allow all their citizens and residents to compete or to be subject to compete. However, this rule does not forbid other rules set to limit the Contestants by previous contest results, pre-registration, or other rule violations/violators.

If the Organizers know a Contestant has already competed in another National Contest for that year, they must reject their participation, except in Non-Championship Divisions (International Open Division, etc.).

If the Organizer fails to follow that rule, the seeding from the country to the World Contest can be canceled for that year (or future years).

If a National Contest Organizer chooses to have multiple contests to determine the national ranking, we ask that they please consult IYYF beforehand.



Seeding for the World Contest

The winners of National Contest Championship Divisions (1A to 5A Divisions) will have a seed spot to the World Contest Semi-Final. Also, the Top 10 of each Division will have a right to compete in the World Contest Preliminary Round.

The National Contest must be held between the first day of the previous year’s World Contest and the day before the first day of the current year’s World Contest in order to use its seed spots. For example, any National Contests happening between August 8, 2013, and August 6, 2014, will be subject for seeding to the 2014 World Contest.

In the case that two National Contests from the same country are held within the World Contest Seeding Term, only the first National Contest in the Term can feed its seeds to the World Contest. For example, if the 2013 National Contest is in late 2013 and the 2014 National Contest is in early 2014, both contests are held during the Seeding Term for the 2014 World Contest. Therefore, only the 2013 National Contest will feed its seeds to the 2014 World Contest.

All National Contest Organizers must report to IYYF their Champions and the top 10 Contestants of all Championship Divisions within a month after their National Contest is held.

Only Champions will be granted the seed spots. Even if the Champion gives up, withdraws, dies, chooses not to compete, or already has the seed from a previous world title, the seed spot does not pass to second place. The only cases in which the second place can take the seed spot are as follows: if the Champion does not have a right to receive the seed (see Dual Citizenship/Non-Citizen Resident rule below) or the Champion gets disqualified after the contest.



Through Multi-National Contests

The winners of Multi-National Contest (MNC) Championship Divisions (1A to 5A Divisions) will have a seed spot to the World Contest Final. Also the Top 10 of each Division who are from countries that do not have a National Contest approved by IYYF will have a right to compete in the World Contest Preliminary Round. The current MNC’s are Asia-Pacific (AP) and EYYC (European) Championships. In the case that you compete legally in two MNC’s which feed their seed spots to the same World Contest, you will have a chance to acquire a seed spot only in the first MNC. You can still compete in other MNC’s, but you will not receive a seed for winning the second MNC.



For Dual Citizenship Holders and Residents of Countries of Which They Are a Non-Citizen

If you have dual citizenship or live in another country, you must choose one National Contest to compete in for the year. You have a right to choose one, but not to compete in both. You can make this decision each year individually. For example, you can be the 2012 Japan Champion and the 2013 USA Champion, but you cannot be the 2013 Japan and USA Champions.

In the case that you compete legally in two National Contests which feed their seed spots to the same World Contest, for example 2013 USA and 2014 Japan, you will have a chance to acquire a seed spot only in the first National Contest (in this case, the 2013 USA National Contest). You can still compete in the 2014 Japan National Contest, but you will not receive a seed for winning the 2014 Japan National Contest.

There are some exceptions to this rule. The Hong Kong Contest traditionally allows Mainland Chinese players to compete. However, only Hong Kong ID holders can acquire a seed spot and top 10 position through the Hong Kong Contest.



Each contestant has a right to a chance to compete for only one National Champion Title each year.

Each contestant has only one chance to try to get a Seed Spot through National Contests for a single World Contest.



If a Contestant violates the rule (and/or others) and competes in more than one National Contest in the same year, the contestant will be subject to the cancellation of one or both (or more, if applicable) of their titles, and ultimately may not be eligible to compete in future National/World level contests. That decision is left to the discretion of IYYF.



All rules above are effective as of August 11, 2013.

Rules are subject to change at any time, for any reason, at the discretion of IYYF.

Tuesday 17 September 2013

YoYoPlanet Sirius











I've received this yoyo for a long time now, and since the video of team member Tan Yao Kun won't come too soon, I shall not drag any longer and start talking about this first.

Diameter: 54mm
Width: 42mm
Weight: 65g

While I haven't got the production Vega, the Sirius was kind of a larger Vega.
If the Polaris feels too bulky for you, try the Sirius. First of all, let me say something about the visuals... YoYoPlanet emphasise a lot on its holo-foil sticker that's on the hub, because it's apparently a kind of high quality sticker, they don't use laser engrave but sticker instead, so it gives out this glitter thing when you play.

Now the play, throws from YoYoPlanet have been pretty solid and stable, the Sirius is no different. It provide super long stable spin like the rest of the YYPs, and also have this line surface, rimmed weighted while still being fast on the string. The Sirius does not vibe both on a string hold and finger test, at least until now after a few dings and stuff, it's still pretty stable with no vibe. I would say this yoyo is pretty durable, it handles many things, but I'm not so sure about finger spins though as I've yet to see any finger spin tricks being done on it, but it sure does handle horizontals tricks. Overall, I would say try this yoyo out really, it feels solid, stable, but fast, definitely something you can compete with.
Since the video won't be available anytime soon, here's Yao Kun competing with the Sirius at AP2013.



and one from Lee Do-Seung,


Share your opinion on the Sirius for the benefit of those who may be interested!
Or let me know if you want to try it out.

Friday 13 September 2013

Acquaintance presents: Adegle Sundial














Shape: Sandglass
Weight: 67.4 g
Width: 42.5 mm
Effective Width: 39.5 mm
Diameter: 55.0 mm
Gap Width: 4.7 mm
Bearing Size: Size C
Gap Type: Fixed
Response System: CBC Silicone Pad (thickness 1 mm)

First of all, I personally think that this is by far the best Adegle yoyo I've tried. I've also tried the Accel(below) which is the latest from Adegle, during AP, but that one belongs to a player and it actually felt rather beat up, it wasn't the smoothest yoyo.

When I first got the Sundial, I was expecting the feeling to be like some of the Adegles, maximum bearing gap without a tight bind. So I finally got down to put on a string, hold it, it was a rather comfortable shape, give it a throw, do some tricks, I was kind of surprise, bind it back, it's a tight bind.
And I really enjoy playing it more than any Adegle, to be honest. Not that the previous models ain't good, but I feel that Adegle have step out of their boundary and create something that gives a different feel. The Sundial is stable, provides long spins, no vibes on string hold or finger test, smooth on the string, handles most stuff I throw at it. I forgot to mention the Sundial came with a CBC Center-Trac bearing, which probably help the smoothness while the yoyo moves within the string.

All in all, I would say the Adegle Sundial is a fine throw, competition yoyo for sure, again, not that the previous yoyos from Adegle aren't good, they are good, but I really like the Sundial as compared to the other models, I liked the RhongTo but the pads was a little bit of an issue for me, so is the kinda sharp wall area. I'd say find a chance to try this yoyo, really.
What's your thought on the Sundial? Share you opinion for the benefit of those who may be interested.


Thursday 12 September 2013

NoLimit YoYo - STARTER


David Wang's 2013 Future Star video contest entry



I usually don't share contest entries, neither do I share most of David's video even though he produced quite a few already, because the video quality was rather blurry and dark and I really don't enjoy watching them, but the fact that David's really good at it and that this video is so clear and bright compared to his other videos, I have to share this.

I really hope his future videos are of this quality though, I mean the visuals, not the tricks, his tricks are always awesome.

Acquaintance presents: Y-Not F.A














Diameter: 57mm
Width: 42.8mm
String Gap: 4.7mm
Weight: 68g

When I first tried the F.A, it wasn't the one given to me, it one with an old string and it certainly didn't feel nice at all. When I got mine, I put on a new Kitty String and it feels really different.
At 68g, it sure does not feel like its weight, it feels like a 65g to me when I hold it, but I do feel the rim weight when it's moving within the strings.

Honestly, I have to say, based on the F.A that I got, it's not the smoothest feeling yoyo out there, on a string hold, it does feel a bit of a vibe, not that it bothers me, but thought I'll bring it up. But it's definitely not a vibe that's not playable, it's just that feeling you get while it's spinning. Vibes aside, it does still spin long, event though it feels lighter than it weighs, might be because of the shape which is rimmed weighted. That being said, it's fast on the string, sustainable during flops and horizontals, Ian Loh shows that finger spins are possible as well too. I tried finger grinds and it works pretty well, it stays on your finger rather than 'climbing' up. This is Y-Not Yoyo's first product and I look forward to what they have to offer in the future. Share your opinion on the F.A in the comment section for the benefit of those who may be interested! Players can ask to try if you see me around.

Tuesday 10 September 2013

BLKSENS Traccia











The BLKSENS Traccia is slightly "fatter" than the Fireballs and Raiders, I tried the prototype at AP2013 and they were rather unresponsive for non 2A pioneers, and Calvin Wong told me the production ones are gonna be fixed. I'm not sure if there's actually any major changes but this pair that he gave me does plays rather responsively stocked. I still lube them anyway.
I kind of like it considering I'm not a pioneer at all at 2A, but don't take my words for it, the last I heard, I wasn't suppose to say I know a fair bit about 2A, because well, I'm not a pioneer at it, and I'm definitely not a qualifier. So having let Kenneth Leng tried the Traccia, he mentioned it's a little too responsive for his liking, that's the main thing he said a couple times. But I put on Kitty Strings normal when I let him try, so it could be the string, I haven't try with 50/50 yet. So yea, I can only share experience of what I can do with any looping yoyos, well at least I know when your Fireballs start slipping, one of the main thing concern would be the wearing out of starburst. Long strings loop down, short string loops up, etc, but I shan't share too much, if anyone really wants to know my experience with the Traccia, drop me a PM or something.
Better yet, try it out yourself if you happen to see me or anyone who has it.
Share your opinions on the Traccia in the comment section for the benefits of those who may be interested in the Traccia.

Kyuiture (Part 1)


VO-Mitation



C3yoyodesign X Speedaholic X Jackey Li


Tuesday 3 September 2013

HKYC 2013











More freestyles at HereWeYo's YouTube channel!

Acquaintance: Kentaro Mannen



Kentaro Mannen is probably one of the more technical player, but that's just my opinion.
Always friendly and smiling, I remember seeing him for the first time back in 2008, or was it 2010? he look kind of fierce but he's really a friendly guy! I think he's rather underrated, is he? 

Yoyofactory Betty and Paul


Sunday 1 September 2013

YoyoAcquaintance Presents: AP-SYYC 2013



This video should have been up long ago, like most of the yoyo write-ups that should've been up too, but was so caught up with school, now that I'm on break from school, I can finally sit down and compile these clips. AP2013 was great even though many friends didn't attend, and even though I didn't really hang out like usual after the day ended, but I get to finally film and talk to players that I've seen from a distance. This AP I'm happy to finally talk to and filmed Zannix Wong, have always like his trick presentation, wicked! Ahmad Kharisma, always wanted to make a video clip of him but time constraints and I didn't talk to him about it too. Ho Swee Jim, personal favorite from Malaysia and also a Diamont Noir member, finally able to chat with him a little and get some footage of him. Ginji Miura's such a nice kid, always smiling, crazy tricks! #yoyobaby Kazuya Murata's probably the highlight of the event, attracting attention everywhere he goes, I was telling some of the guys that his parents doesn't need to worry about him getting lost because wherever he go players are watching over him. Momo aka Ethan Wong from C3YoyoDesign was pretty friendly to let me film his crazy finger grinds, watching it in person is definitely a different experience! Kentaro Mannen deserves more attention with his crazy combos and tricks, I have more footage than just that one finger grind trick that's put into this video clip and I might compile them into another short clip! Ji Hwan has been improving rapidly and I really like some of his tricks crazy! Pornpinit Sanprasert, C3YoyoDesign's latest member from Thailand, first got my attention at AP2012 using a Chinese song for freestyle, this year showing off his crazy finger spin tricks, and allowing me to film them at the bash! Of course there are other great players/old friends but these are few new players that I've never filmed before and I want to mention them.
Of course the emcee is great, everyone's favorite emcee. And definitely thanks to SPINWORKX for organizing the event and thanks to all sponsors as well! Congrats to all winners event though this entry came super late. And hope you guys enjoy watching this video even though there isn't fancy editing and all.