Yoyo Trick Theory 101

Tired of all of your tricks looking like a clone of a copy of a crappy trick that someone did back in 2004? Me too. If you’re having fun with your yoyo and you like your trick repertoire the way it is, that’s fine. When it comes to yoyoing, I am not the first to say that you have to remember first and foremost that a yoyo is a toy. If you’re having fun, you’re doing it right. That being said, don’t be afraid of a challenge, and facing a little frustration when it comes to your tricks – it almost always pays off.

Let’s get started.
Let’s take an inventory of your moves. I’m not talking about tricks or combos… but individual moves. Do you only know how to hop the yoyo from one string to another? Let’s try and fix that first. Here’s a quick list of different moves, directions, and concepts that immediately come to mind – keep in mind some of these are more abstract and conceptual than others, but don’t let that limit you from trying them, and who knows, maybe you’ll read it wrong, try what it would mean to you, and come up with something new and revolutionary!

Anyhow… the list:
Throws————————-Catches——————Pushes
Pulls—————————-Basic Mounting———-Hops
Pops—————————Grabs———————Swings
Direction changes ————Lindy Loops—————Somersaults
Transfers———————-Underpasses————-Dunks
Mindbends———————Mutations—————-Flops
Drops ————————–Magic Drops————-Reverse Magic Drops
String Twists——————Finger Twists————Inside
Inside————————–Outside——————Between Hands
Cross-armed——————Behind the wrist———Behind the Shoulder
Behind the back—————Strongarm style———Red Clover Hops/Grabs
Chopsticks———————Pinwheels—————-Folds
Bends————————–3D————————Excalibur
Plane Breaking—————-Swoops——————-Sweeps
Up——————————Down———————Right
Left—————————–In————————-Out
Pinches————————-Letting go—————-Shooting
Slack—————————Suicides——————Whips
Lacerations——————–Real Lacerations———Lassos
Tunnels————————Pointing out————–Pointing in
Portals————————-Finger placement——–Knuckles
Elbows————————-Arms———————-Feet
Shoulders———————-Head———————-Neck
Knees————————–Legs———————-Waist
Creases————————Layers——————–Zerbers
X-axis————————–Y-axis——————–Z-axis
Links—————————Kinks———————Freegens
Seasicks———————–Boingies——————Regens
Throwback Regens————Loops———————Around the Worlds
Elevators———————–Rocks——————–Grinds
Snaps————————–String Barfing————Knots
Mach 5s————————Tethers——————-Punches
Velcro Drops——————-Rejections—————-Archery
Picture Tricks——————Suicide Generation——Reverse Suicides
Sid——————————Swagger——————Style
Laying Down——————-Sitting Down————-Hanging Upside Down
Switches———————–Shogun Tricks————Apparatus Tricks
Going Fast———————Going Slow—————Reversing Moves
Traps—————————Wraps———————Choranges

I know that there’s a lot more, but that list is about as close to comprehensive (and thus still VERY lacking) as I’ve ever seen for 1A concepts.

So then, the question you should ask yourself is this: “Which of the following concepts and ideas am I using in my tricks?” Are you just sticking with some Hops, Pops, Underpasses, and Kinks? If so, you’re missing out on world’s of fun and creativity that you can have with yoyos.

Also keep in mind a few key things:
A lot of these terms have different applications depending on what mounts and situations you find yourself in. A pull on a string from a split bottom mount might just mutate the shape of the mount, whereas a pull on a string from a chopsticks mount might unlock 20 different things to do from that mount.
Sometimes these concepts only really shine when in combination with other ideas/moves. 
Laying Down + Swagger + Going Fast + Boingies = an amazing Shinya Kido style combo. 
Laying Down + Swagger + Going Slow + Picture Tricks = a really lethargic performance, but also a chance for comedy.
Can you combine Chopsticks with mutations and drops and mindbends? Sure! Can you combine looping with boingy-boing? Probably not – but if you can… AWESOME! And send me a video ‘cause I’d want to learn that.
The point is that you have to play around. Unfortunately for yoyo trick theory, it’s not as “easy” as something like music theory. There are no current notation systems showing things like tempo, rhythm, chords, finger placement, what notes to play, and whether it’s staccato or blah blah blah. You have to play around and experience what things link together well.

I like to think of trick concepts like raw materials. In 1999-2002 the players were the miners who went digging and forged paths and brought back huge shipments of ores and minerals. Ever since then, the rest of us have been the players at the mill trying to refine the substances. Some items need no refinement and are rare gems that when mined proved that they were found in their most raw and brilliant state. Other concepts and items were covered by soot and debris and require careful study and patience before they can be refined into something useful.

The other thing that’s interesting about yoyo trick theory is that even though the discovery of new concepts has slowed down since 2001-2002, the refinement and applications of those concepts is still in it’s infancy. I know that I’ve come up with tricks and reached dead-ends, only to come up with ways to finish them 3-4 years later because my knowledge of what works and what doesn’t has changed and expanded in some areas and shrunken in others. Every day, I see tricks and mounts and concepts a little bit differently. My perspective shifts, and thus also my ability to create tricks.

That’s it for today’s lesson.

Next time we’ll cover the basics of style and why it’s important.

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