Kicking the Habit of Competition
By Todd Reinhard, ISSA-CFT Email spikereinhard@aol.com
Other articles by Todd: Add Some Blough to your Kicks | Just Kickin' It and Kick Returns | The Spike Evolution
The Mystique and Essence of Bloughchi Footbag
An Interview with Steve “Danceman” Blough
Every so often the mainstream sports scene is struck by an athlete who seems to possess superhuman abilities on the playing courts and fields. He or she is always at least one step ahead of the opposition and consistently finds ways to get in the right position at the right time to make the really “big” plays. Moreover, these players often make these feats look so easy and natural that they might go unnoticed by the casual fan or observer. Basketball has its Michael Jordan, boxing has its Muhammad Ali, football has Barry Sanders, baseball has Pete Rose, hockey has Wayne Gretsky, tennis has Pete Sampras, golf has Tiger Woods, cycling has Lance Armstrong, and soccer has Pele. These men have become icons in the world of sport, and as such they have become synonymous with human excellence. But what of the great players and innovators of the sports that are not so well-entrenched within the fabric of our society? What of the athletes who have risen to stellar heights in their own unique sport, despite the fact that the sport itself exists in relative obscurity? What can be said or written about these men and women and their contributions to not only the world of sport, but to the sport of life in general? Well, in the game of footbag one name stands out like a shining star; that name is Steve Blough. The interview that follows is an attempt to get to know this man, “The Danceman”, a true living legend amongst legions of footbaggers world wide.
Q. Hello Steve. Thank you for taking the time to participate in this interview. It’s really a great honor and thrill to be collaborating with you like this. My first question pertains to the circumstances under which you were introduced to the sport of freestyle footbag. Can you tell us something about how and when you became so mesmerized with this activity? At what age did you commence this practice?
A. My first contact with footbag (i.e. hacky sack) came when I was 33. A friend of mine introduced me to the game. At that time I learned to kick with a little hand made bag. It was filled with rice. I became so entrenched within this footbagging there was no turning back. I felt I had met my Maker.
The first couple of days I kicked non-stop for 10 to 12 hours each day. My friend told me I was a natural. She said she had never seen so much talent and dedication. I got so sore I literally couldn’t get up my staircase. I had to sleep downstairs.
Betsy, the girl who taught me, was from a circus family. She had been introduced to the game by a sky diver friend she had come across. They were kicking before they went up into the sky to be crazy and jump out of planes. She and the sky diver used hacky sack to calm themselves before they went up to be crazy.
I had no formal training, so my trek into this game was my own. I was a natural side and back kicker, so away I went. I felt so much of everything that I held dear in mind and body when I would kick. There was something magical about this game, and I decided not to desert it. After my meeting with Betsy, I went home and made my first footbag with the leather from an old pair of gloves and some rice.
Q. I know that you have been involved in many facets of the arts and humanities. In your point of view, how is footbag similar to the world of art? I mean, as an artist, how do you “connect” and relate with this activity?
A. Art comes with many faces. The human body is a wonderful tool with which to create art. The movements associated with freestyle footbag are similar, but are also very different. Rhythmic movement in art or ballet, gymnastics, and other forms of dance requires the balance of one’s body, which is an art unto itself. I made the connection immediately, and with passion I pursued dance with a footbag.
Q. You have a very unique view on how sports should be played in that you espouse an overall feeling of camaraderie as opposed to competition. Can you explain why you champion such a point of view? Do you feel that competition is innately bad for humankind, or is it more that it is overstressed?
A. First of all, as far as competition goes, I think it should definitely be left to the athlete over 18 years of age. There is no reason to subject young children to a win- or-lose game of any type. It takes the worth of the loser and degrades it. Injuries are also a major concern. There are many growth bone plates in a child that are forming as he or she matures. Breaking bones in the feet, ankles, and wrists is serious for the young. Usually the child will be plagued with injuries created in childhood for the rest of his or her life. Most child competition is done for the gratification of the parents – Friday night football games, soccer games, etc. The expectation of a child becoming a sports figure with literally millions of dollars at stake is so tempting to the parents that they let their child compete regardless of the consequences. When you see ambulances parked at high school football games, it should send the parent a clear message: that this is not right to endanger children. A child can start kicking a footbag at his or her own speed and without pressure to compete; the intent should be a cooperative effort with other children--each learning at his or her own natural speed, rather than pushing things as competition requires.
Further, I think that footbag kicking in particular is best done in a cooperative fashion rather than a competitive one. Because of the nearness of the people kicking in a circle, for instance, there has to be cooperation to assure that no ones territory is trod upon--if for no other reason than safety (feet can be very dangerous). Because of this inherent factor, a camaraderie is born based on everyone controlling his or her own territory and leaving another’s alone. It is a natural way to develop social boundaries while interacting in a fun and fitness enhancing manner. The person gets balance, the group gets balance and the experience of acting as a unified organism--but with each individual having separate space. This is how it should be in real life, and forcing footbag into a competitive format completely erases this fabulous cooperative effect, which I have heard, and with which I agree, is a type of synergy between people. It reaches a cohesive level that is hard to describe and cannot be achieved in competition.
Q. From your writings, one can easily detect the passion with which you have pursued freestyle footbag. Do you pursue your other activities with such a zeal and enthusiasm?
A. If you have passion in your life, then most all things you pursue will come to fruition with that passion. Learning to be the best you can be is part of your life. Yes, zeal and enthusiasm are an even greater part of my life as a result of footbag kicking.
Q. In your essay “The Renaissance of Modern Movement” you discuss scientific research that delves into the physical and mental health aspects of eye-foot coordination. Can you describe exactly what lead you into exploring this research? I mean, is it something that you acted upon as a direct result of your personal experience with the footbag?
A. From the very first time I picked up a footbag, I saw within my mind the riches associated with the eye-foot study: to see better, to exercise, to increase ones awareness of all things around the body. To learn the value of your feet has so many positives associated with it that it becomes overwhelming. You become dedicated so that every day you are learning more, becoming better at eye-foot coordination. It is not like getting on an exercise machine. You are learning so much more. To balance your body in such a fashion increases your perspective on life in general changes. You feel good about yourself. Your self esteem rockets to the sky. You feel you are a part of this earth by dancing on it with the movements required to kick well. Seeing all this, I wondered how professional psychologists, sociologists, and medical doctors thought about this. So I researched the eye-foot idea and found that one of the great things footbag requires is the crossing over from the right to the left brain and vice versa. Also, the specific focus of the eye on the foot promotes a much more general ability to focus. I further discovered that doing this activity in a non-competitive environment has a lot of benefits. I wrote up what I found in my research complete with a bibliography. Anyone can read the paper (five short web pages long at http://www.freestylefootbag.com/blouchi.htm).
Q. Your style of footbag is aptly named “Bloughchi”, and one of its primary characteristics is that it is based largely upon the side and back kicks with little emphasis on “stalling” or “shredding”. Why is it exactly that you tend to downplay these popular techniques and skills in your routines?
A. My style of footbag is that of a well-disciplined martial artist. I treat it very seriously. I’m not out to impress people. I want people to enjoy the calmness and beauty of this endeavor. I kick a footbag with little effort. At least that is how it seems to the onlooker. In reality it takes a large amount of strength and focus. I’ve had individuals come up to me and say, “I suppose you could kick that little ball as long as you want”, referring to the length of time it stays in the air. Treating the footbag just as an object to impress people is not in my consciousness. I have little time to act upon such trifles. I’m not saying that people who do shredding and stalling are not worthy people. It is just that I have taken freestyle footbag into a realm of its own.
The back kicks and the side kicks have so much depth compared to the front orientation. We as individuals are front-oriented. We do all the other sports basically in front of us. The value of side and back orientation is why I take the time to teach something that is so basically different to us in Western civilization.
Q. As a personal trainer, I’m interested in conditioning programs used by athletes in their various sports. When you were competing regularly, can you tell us anything about any special conditioning or training practices in which you engaged? Did you spend most of your time strictly practicing, did you strength-train, did you engage in other cross-training activities? Did your practice sessions follow a rigidly structured program? How long did they typically last? In short, if I’m an aspiring novice, and I want to be the best freestylist that I can be, how would you advise that I go about doing that? What are some basic guidelines that I should follow?
A. Good question! Freestyle footbag (i.e. Bloughchi) is a total package. A quarterback learns to throw a football by throwing it: over and over and over again. A professional golfer is asked to put a golf ball exactly where he or she wants it to go. Again they do this by hitting the ball over and over again with each club, which teaches them exactly how far the ball will go with every club and in what manner. They literally hit the ball thousands of times in practice to achieve excellence in putting the ball right where they want it.
I have found that the strength needed to kick a footbag is built within the spectrum of the sport. The passion needed to kick a footbag is so exciting that doing other training can lead to an injury that will limit one at kicking a footbag! So, just practice kicking is what’s best, but do it the right way, with the proper stance and so on. Do it over and over and over again. One of the www.footbag.com friends always signs his emails, “Practice makes Perfect!”. And that is so true!
One time a dedicated player came to town just to kick with me. He traveled 150 miles. On the way he saw a basketball game and stopped to play for a short time and subsequently he turned his ankle. We never got to kick together because of that injury.
I encourage students to stick to the program. Your growth comes from within. I spend most of my time practicing. That part of kicking is so important. Practicing built my strength, agility, and focus. My practice time during my best kicking years consisted of anywhere from 6 to 10 hours a day. To achieve this type of ability (Bloughchi) one must put together a mindset that he or she wants to go far. Bloughchi is a constant climb to whatever level you wish to pursue.
Stretching is the only other thing I did to prepare for competition or practice session. There are basic stretches that are shown in a short video located at http://www.footbagging.com/misc.htm , and they are illustrated in my book, “Footbag Dance” which can be read online for free at http://www.freestylefootbag.com/fb1.htm . The book was published in print in 1984, and in 1996 it was published online.
Q. Can you provide us with some history of the sport as it is played today? How does it differ from other foot-juggling sports? Where can one go to find information on the history and tradition of foot-juggling?
A. This is a complex question, but it is also simple. When the activity first originated in the USA, it was a simple kicking game conceived by a couple of gentlemen involved in physical therapy. One of the men, John Stalberger, had a knee problem and thought kicking a footbag would be helpful. It was, and remains very much helpful. Later, the other man, Mike Marshall, died at the young age of 28. The term for what they were doing, “hacky sack”, caught on. It is still the term most used for this game and for the ball kicked; however, the term “hacky sack” was actually trademarked by Stalberger along with Wham-O, so “footbag” is really the best general term to use now.
Of course, Eastern societies have been playing kicking games for centuries, and even in the USA “kick the can” was popular with kids back to the 1800’s-- maybe further for all I know.
Q. Given that footbag and its predecessors have such a rich and long history and that the sport is practiced in various forms throughout the world, why is it that it has never gotten into the “mainstream” of the sports arena? What makes it such a “blacksheep” sport and activity?
A. The crossover between a fun game and that of a friendly competitive game would be the foundation of footbag kicking finally being recognized in the USA. Putting together rules, sizes, heights, and weights is the complex part of making a game that works.
In the beginning an organization was formed; it was later scrapped, and now they are trying again with the International Footbag Players Association (IFPA)--and I wish them well. However, competition began in the form of the net game, which has a lot of problems, not the least of which is that it does not define the required size of the footbag and so on—there is also the nature of the game itself. It will not and has not been taken seriously by professional athletes, and there is a good reason for that – it is not professional. The other type of competitions, adds and stalling combos, is a special approach which is interesting but limiting. There is no room for true footbag dance in current competition structures. I am not too worried about that, as I think non-competitive kicking is better for a lot of reasons. But still, if there is interest in taking the sport into the professional realms, a lot of changes must be made. At one time I had ideas for that, but now I am more interested in kicking for balance, harmony, positive social interaction, and for how it makes me feel when I get better and better at doing it. It is true that people like to watch what I do--and that’s nice--but that’s not why I do it.
The conception of footbag games and the actual playing of them need much research. The most important part is having a style of play that will adapt to any game. It’s similar to basketball, baseball, soccer, or any sport. To be a good basketball player you must at first know how to dribble, you must have moves to be able to finish at the hoop. Also, personal skills are oh so important. Athletes with good personal skills play any game well. Balance is important. Having good control over ones body is essential.
There was no style for footbag, no plan, just a lot of tricks developed and neat moves. Really good footbag kicking requires a solid well-rounded player with good skills in front AND side AND back kicks for continuous kicking, which requires strength and stamina. But it mostly is not being taught like that. The teachers have a lot of tricks, but not style. Style is something that can be adapted to almost anything within the basic activity. I think that the sport has been very limited because of the lack of style and development, even though it has been no doubt looked at by the upper sports echelon. I believe many see confusion in style, and they also see drugs. Drugs seem to follow the footbag circuit.
I believed and still do that footbag has the ability to move into the main stream of sports. This sport requires the dynamics of a person with a passion for it AND style. It seemed the pieces fell out of place at a certain point and the activity was limited. I talk more about that in my research paper “Bloughchi – a Rennaisance of Modern Movement”. It quotes doctors and other professionals on how important the eye-foot discipline is, what it does, and on the positive social and self-esteem benefits of avoiding competition--especially for children.
I still have high hopes for the sport in the future and believe it would have been in the Olympics by now if there had been a basic style taught rather than having a focus on competitive tricks. Focus on basic moves, which allow for continual growth and creativity, rather than on tricks. That is why I wrote “Footbag Dance” and why people I taught started calling my method “the Bloughchi style”.
Q. Having participated in a number of sports and cross-training events myself, I’ve become particularly interested in how ones breathing effects performance and fluidity of movement. Do you have anything to say on the principles of “proper” breathing when it comes to practicing?
A. Breathing is crucial in any discipline. Oxygen in the lungs is what makes it all work. The more you can bring in the more energy you have. A breathing routine is very important to any athlete. One of the things I tell new kickers to help avoid drops is to never hold your breath - strive for rhythmic breathing.
Q. One of the most fascinating things that I find about the sport of footbag is that the legs and feet actually begin to feel as though they are a second set of arms and hands. The sensitivity and overall control becomes so well-tuned. What are the limits of this phenomenon, or “ process”, as it were? I mean, do you feel that the lower limbs can in fact become just as adept at “handling” things as the arms and hands?<
A. Obviously the other limbs of one’s body, being the legs, become well-disciplined while kicking a footbag. There are many stories about people who have lost their arms and yet eat and do a lot of normal chores with only their feet. Luckily for footbag kickers, we learn a lot about our lower body without sacrificing our arms.
Q. Returning to Bloughchi, what was it precisely that led you to embrace the back and side kick emphasis and shun the front and toe kicks and the stalls that are so popular?
A. I believe that the front kick and toe kick already belong to us. Human beings are front-oriented. Why bother with something that is natural for us anyway? My concern from the beginning was to concentrate on kicks that were side and back oriented. It only seemed to make sense to me. When I teach kids, they ask me why I don’t concentrate on the front kicks. My reply is, “Why teach something you can learn on your own quite easily?” The core of Bloughchi style is to have control of the 360 degrees around one’s entire body, not just the 180 degrees in front. And that requires good back and side kicks.
Q. It’s refreshing to read of a sport that is so centered upon the concepts of sportsmanship, camaraderie, cooperation, and harmony. It is often that you hear of people who are immersed in this sport describe it as a “personal journey”. What is it that makes footbag so surreal in this sense?
A. Footbag is magical. From the time you pick up a footbag and try to kick it you are hooked. I believe the footbag connects you to the earth. Everything around us is round-- from the tiny, tiny atom to the planet Jupiter. We live in a round world. A footbag can be a key to becoming one with that roundness, to connecting with the earth and at the same time causing a defiance of gravity, repeatedly – a magical realm.
Q. For the history buff, can you recommend a single source that provides a good general overview of the history of foot- juggling and its cross- cultural modalities?
A. The bibliography provided at the end of “Bloughchi – a Renaissance of Modern Movement” paper is a good place to start. Other than that, just search the web and see what you find. There is, of course, a lot of history about the first organization during the infancy of kicking in the USA. And there is a history of other matters that are best left alone for the cohesiveness of the sport…. and that’s the reason you don’t see much in print about it….
Q. What can you tell us about the atmosphere of a footbag tournament? Do players participate year-round? Do they train especially for certain tournaments? How are performances, team and individual, judged? What sorts of rewards are typically provided the winners of such tournaments?
A. I have no current information on this. It is not something I now keep up with. I am interested in each individual experiencing the joy of kicking a footbag at his or her own level and having his or her own growth curve competing only with his or herself. But I do know that people are sharing “tricks”, that they train a lot, that they go to tournaments, which are usually won by the same people with a few inroads for newcomers, and that there is never much of a purse – another problem to solve before it can become truly professional. You can find websites that purport to have “professionals” on their staff and such, but really there are no professionals yet because there is no real pay provided for a good kicker of any type.
Kickers are dedicated, and I have had emails from some of them who get tired of tricks and really try to develop the style basics, which then develop into their own personal style for growth for as long as they live. The Bloughchi Kickers in London know what I am talking about, and so do thousands of other kickers who have found what I know footbag can be--and maybe they even have a basic style to put forth which would be good.
Once competition is surmounted, a kicker really begins to grow into what he or she will become, can become--free of constraints other than a basic, solid style from which to begin. Some of our emails have been really inspiring, and many are thankful for the book online and the acknowledgement that they don’t have to compete to be a great kicker. And, as I mentioned before, there have never been any really big rewards within the tournaments, which is one of the reasons they are not taken very seriously by many, other than footbag kickers themselves. To make a trournament really exciting and well-sponsored there needs to be a good purse, something that will attract viewers and thus advertisers. To get those large purses, the sport needs refining into really professional games and a way to address the creative end of it – footbag dancing.
Q. What about current freestylists? Who are the ones that especially stand out as exceptional?
A. Again I have no data about this, nor do I have much personal interest in this. I teach my students to kick for growth, to compete with themselves. I don’t keep up with who is the “best”, nor do I worry about that or expect others to keep up with that. Harmony is foreign to competition. The idea is to keep trying to achieve ones own best and not to be worried about another’s best.
Q. Do you have any personal heroes whom you greatly admire and respect? If so, what qualities make or have made these people stand out as personal role models?
A. I think that any athlete who steps into a competitive arena and gives 110% inspires me to do the same. Before this can happen professionally with footbag kicking there needs to be a style that is taught to beginners rather than tricks; there needs to be better thought out competitive games. I have always loved and appreciated sports of any type. It’s just that footbag kicking is very uniquely able to be performed alone, or with others, for a positive social interaction, fitness, and freedom from stress. Those very qualities are ruined by competition.
We have an article entitled “Just try to forget about competition”, and it explains further about holding meets to teach and show rather than compete. It’s located at http://www.freestylefootbag.com/doit.htm if anyone is interested in checking it out.
I saw my share of hostility in Vietnam, and I truly appreciate any activity that encourages peace and harmony among people. Footbag fits the bill.
Q. Finally, Steve, you have emphasized that Bloughchi is a definite discipline, much in keeping with a martial art. Given that it is a discipline of this nature, and that high levels of conditioning and endurance are necessary to become skilled, do you have any words of inspiration for those times when maybe the thrill has become a little too much of a drill? Obviously we all need a little kick every now and then. Do you have any favorite mantras or quotes or motivational techniques to get the sac in the air?
A. You need to work really hard and with passion. If you want it badly enough you can get it. When you are ready to do a kick (workout), psyche yourself up. Look forward to it. Keep in mind that every time you step into a footbag arena you will come out the other side better than you were before. Like our friend says, “Practice makes Perfect!” I believe that.
The basics of Bloughchi are talked about in the article “Bloughchi” located at http://www.freestylefootbag.com/style.htm, but basically the style involves: a stance that you keep in between kicks, reliance on back and side kicks with extensions so that you control the 360 degrees around your body and control the footbag to stay within that area. The idea is to control the footbag--not vice versa. The idea is to know your territory and not infringe on another kicker’s territory (this is great training for learning personal boundaries, and it transfers into psychological attitudes as well). Finally, the idea is to be able to do it without looking. At first you must keep your eyes on the bag, but after you get really good, you can just connect without even looking--and that’s a type of Nirvana. When you get there, the practice is more than worth it.
Q. Steve, I can’t tell you how much your attention to these questions is appreciated. In closing, is there anything that you would like to add that has not been adequately addressed?
A. Your interview questions were really thoughtful and have brought a lot out about footbag Todd. Thanks for the opportunity to get some of this material voiced and into a context that is meaningful. I would just like to add that we are now involved with showing people what Bloughchi is by putting up short movies in footbag.com’s new site http://www.footbagging.com. This is something I have wanted to do since I first started footbag.com back in 1994 – a picture is worth a thousand words. We invite other freestyle kickers to send videos or CDs to us to make movies of and to put them in the site. For more information about how to do that, email webmaster@footbag.com . We’ve got several up right now, and there will be more and more. Check it out and you will see for yourself what the style is about. Also, we have put up http://www.stallingtricks.com for people who really, really want to do tricks; and there are, admittedly, a lot of them. There are hundreds of tricks there, and videos or CDs are welcomed. Submitters of the ones used will receive a complimentary footbag.
I have developed quality footbags for kickers as a result of being asked by our www.footbag.com visitors to sell them online back when there was only one other site doing that in 2000. Now there are very many places you can find footbags online. But our line has been honed down to provide inexpensive footbags for all types of kicking. But what I really wanted to do, and still want to do, is to communicate to others what a wonderful activity footbag is. And thank you for letting me further that effort here.
My last words are our motto “KEEP KICKING!”
Steve Blough, throughout his fascinating life, has steadfastly chosen to be a champion of the individual; his words and actions express and embody passion, self-discipline, education, peace, and above all, STYLE. Steve is a devout warrior, a true martial artist. But rather than encouraging and proliferating diehard interpersonal competition, he courageously espouses the need for cooperation and goal-oriented competition amongst and within all individuals. With corporal grace and mental acuity, his pioneering efforts have poignantly demonstrated the profound benefits of actively pursuing higher ground. The Danceman continues to go with the flow of life’s streaming journey as he teaches others to enjoy and appreciate the magic of Bloughchi--an art form that embraces freedom and style and effortlessly kicks limitation to side and back. Danceman, may you retain your fleetness of foot, mind, and body for years to come!
For a brief video demonstration of the Bloughchi Style as performed by the Danceman himself, go to http://www.freestylefootbag.com/steve.htm. Kudos to Steve, Sandy, Heather, and all others who have donated so much of their time and energy toward the development of www.footbag.com !! May the force be with you!!
|
