If you play yo-yo, you know Takeshi. He is pop, he is good and he got style!
Takeshi is worldwide famous for his tricks, his long hair, recessed yo-yos and for his videos. Anything else?
Vulto : Takeshi, you are world famous in the yo-yo community. How and when did you start?
Takeshi : I started on May 5, 2001. I remember the date for several reasons.
Small Cinco de Mayo celebrations were going on around the city (Indianapolis).
It was also the first time I’d ever placed first at a skateboard contest.
I won best trick with a kickflip indy out of a quarter.
I was walking to my truck after the contest and I saw Kyle Pearson (aka FIZX) yo-yoing in the parking lot.
He was a guy I’d seen skate at the park before, so I went up and told him that what he was doing was one of the coolest thing I’d ever seen.
I also told him that I was going to get a yoyo and next time I see him at the park, he’s going to teach me a few tricks.
He showed me a few things and after a while we became good friends.
In October ’01 I started working as a “product demonstrator” at the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.
In August ’02 I went to my first yoyo contest. Yup, the World Yo-Yo Contest was the first time I had seen other yoyo players in person.
September ’02 I competed at the first annual Mid-East Regional yoyo contest.
September ’02 I picked up my first sponsorship, Spintastics. December ’02 I was invited to be on DXL. March of ’03 I switched teams, from Spintastics to the world famous Duncan Crew. In August ’05 I picked up my second Sponsor, Infinite Illusions. Most recently I started doing work with Ecko Clothing.
Vulto : Do you dedicate your success to anyone special?
Takeshi : I wouldn’t be who I am today without my mother and father constantly telling me that I can do anything and that no matter what I do, I have to do my best. I started yo-yoing 5 months after my wife and I were married. Her patience and understanding of what I do is incredible. I was working towards a degree in civil engineering when I started throwing yoyos and once I graduated, I told my wife and my parents that I wanted to pursue a career in yo-yoing. I thought at least one of them would freak out on me and tell me I was crazy, but they were all supportive.
Vulto : How do you like to play yo-yo? Do you have a favorite style of playing?
Takeshi : I play just for the fun of it, but fun for me is the creation of new tricks, styles, modifications, videos… it’s a lot of different things that sort of revolve around yo-yoing.
Vulto : What is the best thing about being a yo-yo player?
Takeshi : It’s the yoyo community. When I first started, I turned to the yoyo forums online and everyone was very supportive.
When I went to my first contest, I found that all the top-level players were all friends with each other.
Teams were cheering for players on other teams. The yoyo community has a sense of family to it.
It’s incredibly positive and fun. I love it and am very happy to be a part of it.
Vulto : You also play spintop, diabolo and you skateboard. Do you have a favorite hobbie?
Takeshi : I love everything that requires a lot skill, especially toys. I think skateboarding will always be my favorite hobby. Skateboarding has become more than just a hobby for me though. It’s really a part of my life. Unfortunately I broke my back about 10 years ago, so now I have to take it easy, but it’s still just as much fun as it’s ever been.
Vulto : How did you break your back?
Takeshi : The doctor said it was from all the impact of landing when doing big gaps and big sets of stairs and stuff. It wasn’t one gnarly wreck or anything. It was just me going too big too often, It’s all good though.
Vulto : Is it harder to learn a skate or a yo-yo trick?
Takeshi : Learning something new on a skateboard is way more difficult. It takes a lot more physical strength to skate and if you mess up, you could fall hard. Even if you’re not going very fast, you could land wrong and twist an ankle. Most yoyo tricks are pretty safe in comparison.
Vulto : You have a great respect from Brazilian players. You came to Brazil in 2005 and 2006. What do you think about the yo-yoing scene in Brazil?
Takeshi : That feeling of family that the yoyo community has is multiplied a hundred times in Brazil. The Brazilians are so incredibly supportive of each other. I mean, we are all supportive of each other, but it goes beyond just support. Here in America, when a contest is over, we all usually find ourselves in little groups of 3-5 players and we go out to eat and usually end up meeting everyone else back at the hotel. In Brazil, EVERYONE goes out to eat. A group of 20-35 players take over a restaurant. It’s amazing. I really don’t know how to explain it. You just have to experience it.
Vulto : Do you think that there is something missing in yo-yoing?
Takeshi : A global organization that would oversee all national contests would be a good thing. I think it would be important for a global standard to be in place in the way contests are run. I’m not sure if it’s truly needed just yet, but with the popularity of the sport growing, it’s just a matter of time before it becomes a necessity.
Vulto : Takeshi, you are known for being a great player, but you also have earned a reputation for being an innovative modder (someone that modifies yoyos) and an incredible videographer. Let’s start with what you’ve done in the realm of modifying yoyos. What motivated you to start cutting up yoyos?
Takeshi : This would be Kyle’s fault again. He began changing the profile and adding weight rings to some of his yoyos. I thought it was pretty cool. He convinced me to give it a shot, so I began with some very unconventional tools: an old hunting knife and a drill. After seeing some of the things I had created with such simple tools, my father surprised me with a mini wood lathe. Modding has been a passion for me ever since.
Vulto : You are the one credited to the recessed sticker response that took yoyo design to the next level. How did you come up with that?
Takeshi : The idea came to me after seeing a new bearing design. Frank Difeo came out with a KonKave bearing which was designed to keep the string from riding against the response system of the yoyo. It’s a kind of natural progression. I thought to myself, “If you can pull the string away from the response, why can’t you pull the response away from the string?” I had the idea, but didn’t realize it’s potential and waited nearly 6 months before I made my first one. Once I played with my first one, I sent a dozen recessed yoyos to people around the US and it spread like wildfire. It was very cool to know that players liked the design.
Vulto : You’ve also made dozens of yo-yo clip videos throughout the years, what got you started?
Takeshi : Back in the summer of 2003, I looked after two boys (Connor Ebbinghouse, age 10, and Tyler Ebbinghouse, age 12) three days a week. They taught me how to use an editing program called iMovie. The first video I made was with them. It was called Happy Fun Time and it also included Kyle Pearson. I knew what I wanted in the video and how it should look, but I had to have Connor and Tyler show me how to do it. Soon after that, I got my first computer, a used Mac G4 from a player named Blake Freeman. If it wasn’t for Blake, my video career would have ended after that summer.
Vulto : What are some of your favorite clip videos that you’ve made?
Takeshi : I’d say ‘Welcome to Naptown 2005′, ‘Pra Voce’, ‘The BAC Experience’ and ‘Entropy’ are some of my favorites for sure.
Vulto : Can those still be found online?
Takeshi : Yup, you can find them at www.yoyoing.com/videos
Vulto : You’ve recently released the DVD ‘New School 101′. What was your focus with this production?
Takeshi : I wanted to get a video out there that showed what yo-yoing is all about; an inside look at the players, the contests and the fun we all have. You can read more about it and check out a trailer at www.newschool101.com
Vulto : Do you have any other videos in mind? Maybe some productions for 2007?
Takeshi : Yeah, I would like to build a series of videos covering different events and players around the world. If all goes well, I should have another DVD by New School 101 productions ready for the summer of 2007.
Vulto : You have performed hundreds of freestyles and shows. Do you feel nervous on stage?
Takeshi : Not so much on stage, but before I go up I’m a little nervous. Once I step off is when it usually hits me. It’s weird, but true. I’m slowly getting over that.
Vulto : Anything you want to say to yo-yo players worldwide?
Takeshi : The same thing my parents told me. No matter what you do in life, do your best.
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