The ever popular "Today I..." thread

[BenPycroft24]

Landed hand roll > spacewalk > handroll > swirl > handroll > big cup > turntable > spike > whirlwind. Not on film though. It felt so good to land it first try. Wasn't planned out just some freestyle. Also landed 7 lighthouse flipsin a row, also not on film.

[M.Wang]

I did my first bat and little bird to big bird to spike!! That is bird over valley right?

[The Void]

Nice combo, Ben, although I don't quite get how some of the transfers would work.
And Matt, that's reverse BOTV. It normally starts with Big Bird. (Unless you're using a left-handed kendama right handed.)

[M.Wang]

Thanks the void!
But does it still count?

[the milky oolong]

M.Wang, did you think it counted?

[PikWik]

i would say small bird to big bird is a more uncommon way of doing BOTV. usually its big to small, but to be able to go from small to big is equally as important.

add a bird flip (bird > earth turn > bird) after each landing to really give it some chutzpah 

[PikWik]

today i landed some 1-turn lunars without pre-loading the ken. in the past, i would always twist/wind up the ken before doing 1-turns. but, ive since re-trained myself to use a different method. previously, i would start with a loaded ken and from a dead hang let the ken start to spin and then swing the ken forward. when the small cup is at 12-o-clock give a tug, directly towards my chest plate, and hopefully LAND it. this method would work, but 5/10 would be a wobbly mess, and not repeatable as id like it to be.

now i use the 'hold the tama in one hand and hold the ken in the other' (un-twisted/unloaded) with the tama held just in front of the ken. then, barely twist the ken on release, swing forward and once the small cup is at 12-o-clock, pull the string towards my sternum. this gives that perfect smooth movement to the lunar flip and is the technique that has plagued me for a few months. i now understand the mechanics of the release and this new method is far more repeatable. just like i want it to be

[M.Wang]

Well milky, I kinda think it counts but then I did a regular BOTV. So yay.

[The Void]

Nice work guys. I've never got the hang of those, PikWik, but then again, I almost never practise them.
Today I failed to practice-pass 6th Dan by 1 miss on the last trick.

[The Void]

Today I failed to practice-pass 6th Dan by 1 miss on the last trick.

And again today! Bah. 

[the milky oolong]

Today I felt myself nearing Small Bird > Gunslinger, can't wait for the next session of filming to get it down.

[shalafi]

Today I felt myself nearing Small Bird > Gunslinger, can't wait for the next session of filming to get it down.

Do you mean doing a gunslinger with the tama on the small bird? That's really hard.

[The Void]

Today I failed to practice-pass 6th Dan by 1 miss on the last trick.

And again today! Bah. 

Three days in a row! Dammit!
*sigh*

[BenPycroft24]

Landed spacewalk > handroll > juggle > big cup > spike > whirlwind with no extra swings or cupping from handroll into juggle.
@Void I feel your pain for not getting self certified. I've gotten to pre Dan and missed 1st Dan by one trick. Can't remember which one.

[the milky oolong]

Today I felt myself nearing Small Bird > Gunslinger, can't wait for the next session of filming to get it down.

Do you mean doing a gunslinger with the tama on the small bird? That's really hard.

Yes, [user]shalafi[/user], that's the one. I've realized if you pull up inward swing to the Small Bird already in a Gunslinger grip, taking care not to touch the tama on landing, you can get the rotation right. What's hard is the re-grip on the ken, trying to do it as gently as possible. Had some fall-offers while waiting for a train yesterday. Alleyoop!