The Chop

Now we get to some throws that are a little harder to throw and are caught differently, too, because they're spinning in the reverse direction. The chop is the most common of this group.

 

The chop is thrown something like a knife would be thrown at a wall, with an overhand motion. To set this throw up, catch the club in the middle as early as possible and raise your hand up above your shoulder, something like the setup for the spear throw above, with the club near your ear. But this time keep your fingers wrapped around the club. As you pull the club back, position your index finger along the middle of the club, parallel to the club, and hold on with your other fingers still wrapped around it (see Fig. 6). Pass the club by flicking it forward and upward, pushing particularly with your index finger and pulling back quickly with your wrist to get out of the way of the spinning handle.

 

As you wind up and make this throw, be sure to hold and throw the club so that it is pointing straight forward and back, not angled a little left or right. Some people have a tendency to hold and throw it with the knob pointing out to the right. The club then is flung forward but spins in a different line, making It harder to catch. With only some deliberate exceptions, your passes should be pointing and spinning along the same line in which they're traveling to make them easier to catch.

 

One question to consider in throwing chops is how to avoid hitting your opposite hand's self throw with your chop. If you tend to throw narrow selves, keep your self a little low and narrow and your chop should go outside and above the self. If you have a very wide self, you can throw inside it. The problem with this is that after releasing the chop, your hand has to go out wide to catch the self. If you can throw narrow selves, at least during chops, then as you follow through after the chop, your hand will not have to move much to catch the self, which will be getting there just then.

 

The chop can be caught in two different ways, mainly depending on how and where it is thrown. Many older jugglers throw the chop fairly hard to a location outside the shoulder where it is caught in the usual place but upside down (see Fig. 7). Newer jugglers tend to throw the chop to waist level and just inside the body, where a good throw can easily be caught rightside up (see Fig. 8).

 

The upside down catch requires practice to make and to recover from in order to get the club back into the pattern rightside up. To catch it, watch the handle and grab it as soon as the handle spins to the top, that is, just after the fat end of the club spins by and down. The club should have spun one and a half times. Because you have to snatch the club quickly this way, the impact can be hard on your hand. To reduce the bruising effect, try to pull your catching hand back just as you are making contact with the club.

 

Once you've caught the club upside down, you need to right it. Some jugglers do that by giving the club either a half spin or one and a half spins in the ensuing self. But perhaps the simplest way is to just bring the club straight down in the catching hand without rotating it backwards as you might do with a normal catch. After you catch the club with the fingers wrapped around the outside and the thumb around the inside, lower the club with the knob pointing straight up by letting go with all but the thumb and index finger. Bring the other three fingers around to the rear side of the club, ready to push the club up from there in what amounts to the formal way to hold a fork. Now you just give the club a single spin as you throw a self, with the only thing unusual being that you have the fork hold instead of a normal hand-wrapped hold on the club.

 

Now let's consider the other way to catch a chop. This catch is made at waist level with the fingers pointing inward, the palm up and the thumb out of the way pointing forward. The club's handle should just slap itself into your hand, at which point you wrap your fingers and thumb around the handle with the club rightside up. This is very easy if the passer makes the appropriate throw, namely slightly inside with 1-3/4 spins. A right handed throw should reach a spot at waist level above the left leg. Most jugglers learn this catch almost automatically when that throw is made.

 

The choice between these two catches is up to you, but it really depends also on the kind of chop being thrown. If the throw is outside or high or underturned, the upside down catch provides you much more flexibility to grab the club, even if the thrower meant it to be caught rightside up. If you really want to catch an outside chop rightside up, be sure to stick your elbow well out to the side to keep the handle from bashing on your forearm as you make the catch. At any rate, it's a good idea to practice the upside down catch so that you can have it at your disposal whenever you really need it.

 

The Shoulder Throw

The shoulder throw is thrown over your shoulder to your partner where it is caught exactly like a chop, because of the way it spins. Your partner has the same choice of upside down versus rightside up catch, again depending on exactly where your throw goes.

 

To make a shoulder throw, catch the club on the knob or at least let it slip down to where you are holding it by the knob. Your index finger should be parallel to and on the handle, with your thumb and middle finger surrounding the knob. Swing the club straight down and then backwards, as if winding up for an underhand throw but with your palm facing back. Then bend your elbow, sticking it far out to the right to bring your hand up high behind you. Keep swinging the club, pushing with your index finger and release it just as it gets to the back of your shoulder while it is going forward and upward. While you're doing this, you should be looking at the place where you want the club to go (which should be outside your partner's body while you're learning this trick).

 

You'll find that the timing of the release is crucial to getting the club to go where you want. A late release can drive it into the ground in front of you and an early release can send it straight up or a long ways behind you - so make sure there's nothing breakable behind you. As usual with new tricks, try this with just one club for a while, without juggling.

 

The club should pass fairly close to your ear. If you find (most likely from your partner or someone else who is watching closely) that your throw goes over your elbow instead of your shoulder, it's probably because you're trying to avoid hitting your self throw. Try throwing narrower selves so that your shoulder throws can actually go over your shoulder.

 

Although a little forward body movement with the throw may seem to make the throw easier, this throw looks a lot better if you can do it without such body motion. Use a strong wrist motion to fling the club over your shoulder to your partner. Otherwise it will go straight up or backwards.

 

If you have any comments or suggestions for Juggler's Workshop, write to: Juggler's Workshop, Palo Alto, CA or call Martin Frost.