Finger Stalls Part 3 - Combinations

For the next post I would like to go into a few different combinations which I find useful, as well as going into some harder/impossible stuff to give you an idea of how far I think finger stalls can go. I'll go through in order of difficulty giving a little explanation of each combination along with any tips I have (if there are any). More than anything I just want to open peoples eyes to some the combinations that are available, then from there you can go off and create your own weird and wonderful stuff that I haven't even considered!

For most of these explanations I am assuming you will be trying them first with the 1-2 stall, but please try them all any way you like! It will only help to improve your balance in the end.


EASY
Rolls into Finger Stalls
Most likely when you practice a stall you place the ball on your finger tips/thumb and balance from there. After you get comfortable with the stall you are learning, try going from having the ball in your palm to the stall position (so the ball rolls up your fingers). This applies to the cradle position on the opposite side of your hand as well. When you have these two learnt you can go from pretty much any roll into a finger stall. There's not much of a technique for this one, it's just something that gets easier as you get better at the stall.

One fun trick to try is to practice the "handerfly" from Brinechild's video below, then you are able to stall at the mid point of a butterfly!



Another interesting example can be seen in this vid by PePPyOOO on Youtube. Butterflys are usually done just between the 1-2 fingers, but why not do it between all of them? And when you get really good why not finger stall at each mid point of the butterfly?




MEDIUM
1-2 -> 2-3 -> 1-2
This is one of the most basic switches between finger stalls, and one of the most useful.

To get the ball to roll over your middle finger you will need to give your hand a small jolt towards you, so you end with your middle finger pointing more towards your face than being vertical (basically the usual 2-3 hand position). If you notice the ball falls off the end of the 3 finger, then you know you need to be rotating the hand further towards you. There's not much else to say for this other than practice, and have your 2-3 stall down really well too!

For the 2-3 -> 1-2 part, reverse the above steps (you should find this easier than 1-2 -> 2-3 as you are presumably landing in your strongest stall). It's best to practice each individual step first before trying to do the whole thing in one go.

Throw to Stall
Getting used to doing throws into finger stalls is very useful! There isn't much to say for this one, start small and then build your way up. It can help to spread your fingers wide to get a stable catch. From there, just see how high you can go!

Hops
After you get throws into stalls down, try doing it from finger stall to finger stall! It's not as hard as it seems.

Back to Back Pass
Another fun one to try is to do a finger stall version of the back to back pass typically done on the back of your hands. This time you want the hand you are passing to to be on the inside (so the side closer to your body) as opposed to the outside like in the regular pass. Just to make it more clear I'll include a grab from a video so you get the idea. Not much to say to this one other than practice!

Outside Arm Roll to Finger Stall
A bit more advanced version of the above, try doing an outside arm from from your hand to your elbow, and let the ball keep rolling off the end onto the fingers of your other hand. As the ball is moving it will want to roll over your finger tips, so try to make the ball roll up your fingers a tiny bit to kill some of the speed.

1-4 -> 2-3
This one isn't so hard but looks pretty cool. Do a 1-4 tall, then pop up 2-3 at the same time so the ball is raised and rests on those fingers instead.


HARD
1-2 -> 2-3 -> 3-4
All I can really say is practice each individual section both ways, and really make sure you have your 3-4 finger stall stable! Try not to rush the process, do the switch then let yourself regain balance before trying the next part.

Keep one digit the same
This is something I haven't done yet (and maybe I physically can't), but how about always using a single finger (such as 1) while constantly switching between the others? For example 1-2 -> 1-3 -> 1-4 or 1-2 -> 2-3 -> 2-4 etc.

Clasp
With this trick you exchange which hand is clasped and which one is doing the stall in one fast motion. If you have reached this point there isn't much in the way of advice, just try to keep the moment where both sets of fingers are "up" as short as possible to keep it looking clean.

I'll attach a video as it shows how I get into/out of it. It is the third trick.



H -> HTU/HTD
This is a difficult one, but it's possible to roll the ball from a horizontal 1 stall along your index finger and then turn onto your thumb, in either the HTU or HTD position. Again, not really much in the way of tips for this other than have all of the stalls very solid!

Thumb Butterfly! (Thumberfly?)
All I can say is start and end in the HTD position as it is the most stable, and it helps to make it one smooth motion rather than stop/start. You can see this in the video posted in the "Clasp" section.


DEATH
This is the world of speculation, I'm sure it's all possible but it's a long way off! I'll just leave them here for now...

1 -> 2 -> 3 -> 4 (aka Single Finger Switches)
The big shiny goal at the top of the mountain. Give it a few years/decades!

How about a single finger butterfly?
If you can get really comfortable stalling the ball on all parts of the index finger then this is definitely possible.

How about combining fingers from different hands?
So 1-1 using both hands, or any other combination! This is a lot harder than it sounds...

There are loads more but I'll leave it here for now. I think I'll leave the finger stall series for a little while and move onto something new, but I might come back if I find something new to talk about. Have fun playing around with all these variations and go try coming up with your own! The possibilities are endless.

Finger Stalls Part 2 - Balance

So, for the next part in the series I figured I should write a few useful pointers for learning the various types of finger stall. For the most part these tricks just require practice, there are no real secrets behind learning any of this. But at least these may help the process speed along a bit!

Firstly, nails! I get asked a lot whether I have grown my nails in order to do this trick, and the answer is no! While having a little bit of nail can help you get into a stable position, if you rely on this too much rather than actual balance it can mess you up quite badly when it comes to switching from other stall positions/learning hops. After you learn the trick via balance and only using your fingertips it is OK to use them a little, however at first I recommend toughing it out and trying without! In fact, for the most part I find the opposite side of the finger tip to be the easiest to balance (especially in the case of stalls done on both hands at the same time). The best thing is to try out different parts of the finger to see which feels most stable for you, as it will most likely depend on the person.

Another thing to mention is that I use 125mm balls, as these are the most stable for this type of trick, and also have more room to switch fingers around and do little combinations. Everything I write below can be done on a 100mm ball or less too, however I should point out that if the ball is too small for your hands it will end up just being lodged in between your fingers instead of actually being balanced!

I will use the notation I talked about in the part 1 to name each of the tricks.

1-2　2-3　3-4
The 3 most obvious stalls to learn. Most people do this anyway but just in case, 1-2 should be the stall you start out with (along with possibly 1-4). 2-3 is actually pretty similar to 1-2, so this can be learned pretty quickly after 1-2 without much hassle. 3-4 is very hard, and is still something I can't do comfortably for a long time yet.

Starting with 1-2, it is best to learn this with your fingers spread wide as it creates a more stable base for the trick. Don't spread them too far, as then the ball will just be jammed in between your fingers instead of being balanced, which is a big no-no. Other than that, experiment with different parts of your finger tip, trying close to the nail etc. to see what is comfortable for you. As you get better you will find you can bring your fingers closer and closer together until they are actually touching while still maintaining the stall. In fact, if you are bored with the regular 1-2 why not try scissor motions repeatedly? The above applies to 2-3 also.

3-4 is a big step up in difficulty, mainly because most people's pinky fingers are weak and not used to having weight put on them. Less strength also means less ability to make tiny adjustments to maintain balance. The only real solution to this one is to practice it a lot! you will find that gradually your ability to control the balance using your pinky finger increases, although it's very slight and nothing like what you can do with your other fingers. It is also worth noting that you want your finger tips pointing more towards your face (as opposed to straight up) in order to balance the weight on each finger equally and stop the ball from falling away from you.

1-3　1-4
As I mentioned before, the wider your fingers are, the more stable the balance is. In the case of these two stalls the gap is naturally wider, making them nice and stable. It may depend on the person, but for me 1-3 is a little bit uncomfortable (my middle finger wants to pop up), so I would recommend 1-4 to start with. In fact, 1-4 may be an easier trick than 1-2 to learn...

H (Horizontal finger)
This trick doesn't really need much explanation, the only thing I can recommend is to try to balance the ball on the joint closest to your nail (J1) as that seems to be the most stable point. Double jointed people have an advantage with this trick, as they can bend just the tip of their finger in order to create a more stable base!

T (Thumb tip)
This trick looks like it should be very hard, as balance is being done by the tip of the thumb alone, however after a little bit of practice you should be able to get a bit of a stall going. I'll confess now, for this stall a tiny bit of nail is very helpful (the same applies to all single finger stalls), although it should not be to the degree that you can just rest the ball on it, as I consider that cheating :) You'll want to hold out your arm a bit in front of you, as otherwise you will most likely be looking down on the ball and you won't be able to see where your thumb is in relation to the ball's center point. Other than that, it is just practice!

HTU (Horizontal Thumb Up)　HTD (Horizontal Thumb Down)
Of all the single finger/thumb type stalls, HTU is probabily easiest. That is because you are able to move your thumb slightly at the joint in order to maintain balance. There isn't much else to say about this one other than keep the ball in the center of the thumb, and as you get better you will find you can move your whole hand around to balance while also making tiny adjustments using the muscles in your thumb. That sounds hard, but it just happens naturally in the end!

As for HTD, this is a relatively stable stall as you place the ball in the little hollow between your nail and the first joint. Thus, the main balance is only side-to-side. It still takes a little while, but when you have it down it can be a convenient stopping point in a conbination (after a butterfly from HTU for example).

X
This is really like doing a 1-2 with a very narrow gap between your fingers. Depending on the way you twist, you will either have your hand very vertical (the middle finger should be on the "inside" of the twist), or have your hand pointing towards your face (the middle finger on the "outside" of the twist) in order to offset the height difference. The first is obviously the easier option to start with, although I only noticed it after learning the hard way first...

Dual stalls
This is one I have only started having progress with recently. All I can really say for this is to learn the 1-2 stall without needing to look at your finger. If you have the 1-2 down well this shouldn't take that long. When you can do this with both hands, give it a go! I wouldn't recommend looking at either hand when doing this as it can mess up the other side, plus it looks a bit odd when you stare really intensely at one ball only...This can be done with any combination of any finger stalls on either side, but it is really really really high level (far beyond me so far!).

Single fingers
Lastly, one that is still a work in progress for me. I don't really have much advice for these other than work on them for a long time, and maybe use a tiny bit of nail to help! In the case of 1, it may be helpful to angle your hand at a 10-20 degree angle as it seems to be a little bit more stable there rather than directly on top.

One last thing, a slight warning. If you feel your fingers or wrist starting to ache, STOP IMMEDIATELY! This especially applies to people using Jea9s and other heavier balls. When you try the weirder stalls or start working on combinations, it will tire your fingers/wrists out fast so try not to overdo it too much, otherwise you can develop some nasty problems which might prevent you from doing these tricks at all. Safety first!

OK, this post was meant to be a short one yet turned out massive, so I'm going to run away now before all this notation and finger talk drives me mental. In other news, combinations are next!

Finger Stalls Part 1 - Notation

For the first (proper!) post in this blog I figured I'd start with a theme I've been playing around with for a good few years now. A lot of people call them "dipod" stalls, but before I heard this I gave them the name "finger" stalls as it just seemed to make sense, and especially since I branched out for the regular index-middle stall it seems a lot more apt for me to use now.

To start with I should mention that I started trying this trick because of a video MCP posted several years ago.


As far as I know she was the first person to really explore this kind of stuff and did a lot of the switches/passes that I do now back then. After learning the more basic stalls and the switches through this video I began to realise that there is a whole world of stall points around the hand, and thus a huge number of combinations that can be made by switching between these positions. Obviously, getting the regular stall point to a good level of consistency takes a lot of time, so going on to learn countless variations and then figure out these combinations is a bit of a daunting task at first. However once you get over the challenge of learning that first basic stall, the whole process gets (slightly) easier and progression is a lot more apparent.

Next I should probably talk about the notation I use to make it much easier to type and explain this kind of trick (at least at first). It might also help to get across the scale of the tricks that are available to you just in this one tiny section of your body! This could be complete nonsense and only legible to me but bear with it, I will only cover the more practical tricks here as going into every variation would take far too long (and scare everyone away from this blog from the beginning).

Looking at the above picture, I label the fingers as follows;
T = Thumb
1 = Index finger
2 = Middle finger
3 = Ring finger
4 = Pinky/little finger

Thus, the trick done in the picture above would be simply called "2", or a "2 stall". Please note this isn't meant to be an official declaration of what these tricks should be called, it's simply being used to make things easier to understand and make the following text a lot easier to write!

Using the above notation, this trick becomes "1-2", meaning the index and middle fingers are used. If you used the index and pinky fingers, it would become "1-4". As you can see, using this method it's nice and easy to understand what trick is being done and how to keep a record of it for little sequences (to me at least, not to anybody else!). The problem is, this currently only applies to the hand in a vertical position, only using the tips of the fingers. So, what about the knuckles?

This diagram should (hopefully) explain. In these cases the same vertical trick is done, however instead of balance on the finger tips there are 3 sets of joints which can be used, starting with J1 (the joint closest to the tip), down to J3 (the knuckle). When combined with the typical 1-2 stall, this becomes J1 1-2, J2 1-2, and J3 1-2 respectively. In the case of the thumb, there is only J1 T and J2 T. Makes sense right?

Next up, non-vertical hand tricks.

I chose to name this one a "Horizontal" for pretty obvious reasons. In this case theres not much point doing it on anything other than finger "1" so I chose to write it down simply as "H". If you want to get super deep/obsessive you can of course label this for each finger (H1/H2/H3/H4), and also do the same for the hand turned upside down, starting with the pinky and working down! Also, in this position you can balance the ball on the finger with your palm facing up or down (as opposed to the 90 degree angle I chose). This could be given a notation as well but seeing as I never use those stalls I won't do it here. Kyle Johnson on the other hand seems to use the palm down type in a few videos, so it's really up to the person.

I used the same idea for the thumb also.
In this case it's probably worth splitting this into 2 types, "Up" (the left picture), and "Down" (the right picture). So, it should be HTU (Horizontal Thumb Up) and HTD (Horizontal Thumb Down). It's useful to differentiate these two as they can be used to butterfly between each other or be used alone, but I'll get into that later on.

The last worthwhile one to point out is crossing fingers.
In this case simply put an X before the number, so it would now become X1-2! Again, these could be done flat or mixing fingers with joints, but I'm not lunatic (or flexible) enough to do much of it, so I'll leave it at this for now. Feel free to try though!

That should be about it, hopefully this all didn't confuse you too much! For the next post I'll go into some tips for balancing different stalls, and then after that go into combinations and ways of putting them together. To finish I'll write a little about where I think this stuff could go if someone took it far enough. At least everything should be a whole lot easier to describe now this bit is out of the way. If you have any questions or thought of something I missed out (which most likely I did), please let me know in the comments! For anyone not interested in finger stalls, bear with me I'll be moving on to another topic soon enough! There will be quite a wide range of topics (not just notation/trick tip type of things), so there should be something for everyone (I hope!).

Introduction

I figured I should write some sort of introduction to this blog just to give everyone and idea of what it's going to be about, and also to introduce myself to anyone who doesn't know me already (although given who is going to read this it's probably unnecessary).

Starting from the beginning, my name is Darren (going under the name Teku online) and I am currently living in Japan working as a translator/proofreader, and in my free time (among other things) I love to do contact juggling. Recently in order to keep juggling interesting for myself I have been trying to figure out new directions to take my contact, either by taking ideas from other styles of juggling and trying to find an equivalent (such as taking a toss idea and doing it on my body via rolls), or by using other props/things to create new routines/tricks that would not otherwise be possible (such as rolling balls on rings etc).

The idea for this blog is to explain some of the ideas I have tried exploring, and to pick up some new topics to write about in the hope that it can generate some new ideas and lead somewhere interesting for me and maybe other people too (regardless of the type of juggling you do). I figured there's not really much space to rant on about these things on a forum without annoying everyone, and I don't particularly want to speak in front of a camera for Youtube to get the point across either, so this blog is here for anyone interested to share ideas and hopefully get something out of the mish mash on nonsense that's likely to follow. I figure if even one person gets something out of a single post it's a worthwhile task, right?

I plan to write everything in both English and Japanese in separate blogs (There is a link on the right to the Japanese blog). By doing this it gives me a chance to practice my writing for a change and also share ideas with Japanese friends who may not understand the English. I should say I'm not really much of a writer, so don't expect any wonderful beautifully written articles or anything like that. If the point gets across that's good enough for me!

Anyway, I'll most likely start off on finger stall/dipod stalls as it is something I've put a lot of time into up to now. Hopefully you'll find it useful!