Balls

I do a lot of 3 ball tricks.  I like patterns that flow and keep the balls moving in smooth circular movements.  Of course, there are so many things you can do with 3 balls that I have forgotten most of it.  Most people learn the basic 3 ball cascade and think "Oh, well I learned to juggle.. that's all there is..."  They are so wrong.  That's just the beginning.

My record with balls is an 8 ball flash.  That means I've tossed them all up individually and caught them all without dropping.  I have successfully run 7 balls many times with my record being somewhere around 32 catches.

Clubs

I especially like to do different tricks with 3 clubs.  I have worked my way up to doing 5 clubs, but it is fast and there isn't much time to play with them. I also spend a lot of time passing clubs with others.  This is one of the most common things we do at juggling club meetings and festivals.  In the picture, Merry Spahr and I were attempting nine clubs (one is in Merry's right hand).  It obviously wasn't the best run, but unfortunately I have very few good pictures of me juggling clubs.

Glow Clubs

Don't these things look cool!  The second picture is a four person passing pattern.  These clubs change colors as they are being juggled.  It's funny that you can do all your best tricks in the daylight with regular clubs and people just walk by.  Do those same or lesser tricks with the glow clubs and people stop and watch in amazement at how pretty they are.  Definitely worth the investment at about $100.00 apiece. 

Diabolo

The diabolo is like a large yo-yo that isn't attached to the string.  It originates from China and used to be made of bamboo.  There are many different tricks and variations that can be done by tossing the diabolo around and catching it in different ways.  A picture and description just doesn't do it justice.  I advanced in the skill up to two diabolos, which is a much sought after skill for diabolists.  However, once I have them going, it's real tough to do anything.  Each failure requires that I start all over and get them going and spinning and even to each other before trying the trick again.  

Poi are nothing more than a piece of string with a weight on the end.  Each hand holds one string and you sling them around.  Poi are getting more popular and are really a sort of kid thing, but I have found that if you have poi with flames or light sticks on the end, the effects are very nice.  I have spent many hours working out different patterns and I get a great audience reaction from the art.  For all the work I've spent learning juggling, people are more taken by the poi than they are juggling tricks.  I think they are just more visually captivating.  I must add that after many hours of practice I have come up with my own name to these things: "Testicle Torpedoes".  Often they get more names than that.

I have been unicycling since the 3rd grade I think.  My parents bought the three of us kids a unicycle for Christmas one year and my Dad offered five dollars to the first one to make it to the end of the driveway and back.  My brother Dave won it but my dad honored the five dollars to me and my sister when we learned also.  I also own a giraffe unicycle now in addition to the one my parents bought us so long ago.  At the unicycling club we often try the horse trails and the hills and back trails just for the fun of it.  Trying to stay balanced over curbs, rocks, roots and steep hills is a blast.  I have a long way to go if I want to be good, but I enjoy trying.   

The Rola Bola is a balance board on top of a cylinder.  The object is to keep your balance while the board sways back and forth over the cylinder.  To keep things interesting, I usually like to juggle knives or bounce balls while keeping my balance.  This is another prop I learned back in high school.  My brother and I bought a large piece of plywood and cut the boards and cylinders from it in an attempt to sell them for profit.  It turned out to be a waste since we could never sell more than a couple and that was at cost without the time investment.  They are better to balance on than to make, but that is the same story with most props. 

Stilt walking is a skill that I picked up strictly for the performing aspect.  Take all the skills I already know, do them on stilts and everything is that much more amazing!  I've done an Uncle Sam skit on these stilts with Dave Willacker with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra in front of my biggest audience ever.  This is a favorite prop for outdoor festivals and large venues.    

I don't know why I got so interested in the derby.  I am glad I did though.  When the derby is worn, it just screams "Juggler!".  It really adds a lot to the performance.  I have been working on a hat and cane routine where I do a lot of hat flipping and catching and cane balancing.  It's a very visual prop and one of the few that audience members can really relate to.  Who hasn't worn a hat from time to time?

Ouch!  Ohh!  Yikes!  Torches are like a initiation right for jugglers.  Every juggler that learns clubs wants to do torches.  Fire looks great and impresses everyone.  The biggest problem faced with juggling torches is the loss of hair on your hands and the black suit that gets all over your hands and ultimately your clothes.  My worst accident with torches was with some home made versions that had screws in the wicks.  One of the wicks touched my arm and branded me for a long time with a small + from the Phillips head on the screw.  I may have lost hair from my face, arms and legs and burned holes in a few shirts, but so far I've been lucky not to have burst into flames or anything like that.