manipulation

This series will help you learn the basic elements you need to know for mastering take out passing patterns (also known as manipulation patterns).

You can start practicing these in order or check in the tags which elements you need for the pattern that you want to learn next.

The self-substitute:
For the self-substitute the Manipulator replaces a thrown self with an extra club. This can be in a passing pattern, but you can also practice it with 2 people.
Communicate beforehand which club you want to substitute (e.g. in 4-count every fourth). In manipulation passing we want to help each other as much as possible, therefore the juggler can throw the selected self with less spin to make the manipulation easier. This throw we call a Pelf (Pass-self, as it is a self that is now passed to the manipulator).
When handing the extra club to the juggler as a replacement make sure to do a clear movement, so the juggler can estimate when and where the club is coming in. The convention is to hand manipulated selfs from above and manipulated passes from below. If the selected self is thrown with the right hand, the manipulator catches it with their left and replaces it with the club in their right hand and vice versa.

The Pass-substitute:
For the pass-substitute the manipulator replaces a thrown pass with an extra club. There are three versions of how to take the club: Early, middle or late.
The pass-substitute can be done in any count. In the video we show it on 3-count, that way you can practice both sides.

For the early substitute the manipulator is grabbing the club on the body before it leaves the hand of the passer. The passer can adapt the force of the movement. The arm should do the regular movement, but less force is needed as the club will not be thrown.
The extra club is handed to the other juggler from underneath. The manipulator has the club on the body now, which is perfect for another manipulation. If this is done in a pattern, where the manipulator will start juggling again after, the club might have to be flipped (turned around).

For the middle substitute the manipulator holds their free hand in the middle between the two passers. This is a signal, that they want to manipulate the next pass. The passer now throws the selected pass with less spin so it lands in the hand of the manipulator with a quarter of a turn. The extra club is handed to the other juggler from underneath. The manipulator has the club on the handle now, which is perfect if they want to start juggling again, but must be flipped for another manipulation.
The middle substitute is often recommended as it gives the manipulator significantly more time.

In some pattern it might come in handy to do a late substitute. For this, the manipulator places themself next to the receiving juggler. They catch the selected throw like a normal pass, and hand their extra club to the passer next to them. This can make sense in a pattern where the next step is replacing the receiving juggler, but is less common.

For all manipulation the convention is that when manipulating a pass from the right hand, the manipulator receives the club in their left and gives with their right hand. After a manipulation you usually have a zip (repositioning the club from one hand to the other). This can be adapted if it makes sense for the pattern.

The pop:

The pop is a kind of substitute where each of the jugglers only uses one hand for the club exchange. It is usually followed by the manipulator and the passer changing position. For the pop it is very important that the manipulator makes a clear movement when handing the club. This helps to get the timing right. The passer throws their club as a flat (or with a maximum of a quarter turn) and then turns their hand around for receiving the club from the manipulator. The flat should be high enough to create enough time for the exchange.

Which hand is used, and which direction the manipulator turns after the pop, differs from pattern to pattern, so it makes sense to practice different variations.

The Pass ‘n Pop Practice Pattern

After mastering these basic elements individually you can start setting them together. We developed a simple practice pattern that put the pop and pass substitute in action. It is based on a 4-count.
In the video you can check out the two steps to learn this pattern. It is also possible to combine different elements to a pattern or using these elements on different counts.

After mastering this, you can try out two more patterns with a pop:
Catch the carrot (Pops in 3-count): https://passing.zone/catch-the-carrot/
Dolby 5.1 (Pop and ‘starting’ and pass substitute on 5-count): https://passing.zone/dolby-5-1-mit-einzel-und-doppelganger/

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