From falls & poppers to plaiting & cracking technique, this section is dedicated in memory of Sergei, IndyGear Staff Member and Whip Guru. Always remember to keep "Celebratin' Life!"
She's here!
10 footer, 8 plait, chrome-tan cowhide, JUST the way I wanted it.
Oh, and I can tell it's a she from the beautiful waist on the handle that Adam made. He really got the my specs down on this one and I couldn't be happier as I'm now the proud owner of two very nice Winriches. (Did I get he last part right?)
Anyway, tonight will be premier night for cracking it... Indoors with a bunch of guys singing.
That's a nice looking whip. I'm sure you'll enjoy every minute of it. Someday when I have the extra cash I'm going to buy a whip from Adam too, I'm really impressed with his work.
That's also a very unique color you've got there. I don't think I've ever seen that color before on a whip.
Yeah, I really like the color of it too, pale but yet rich in a very nice way. I thought I'd shoot a couple of pics of it unused as I expect it to darken in a hurry now that spring is almost here for me to go out whippin'.
Thanks! Adam is really great with his customers and I can't recommend him enough.
I tested it today. It really goes "Wallapoo!".
Nice and fluent motion it has, this whip, with the weight just under the IOAB despite of being a foot longer. The extra foot does quite a bit I think, so I'm gonna need a bit of training to get all the moves down.
SJ;
Thank you, Shir!
Indeed I believe you need another dose of popper fibre, but only if I may have a taste of that finger lickin' good Pecard's you have.
Seriously though, this one will hopefully crack about 10 feet and then some away from you. I hope we will be able to squeeze in a two man summit during easter. I'm an uncle again and both of my GF's and my own family are sort of pulling us in all directions to hook up. I'm sure I'll be able to get a few hours off though to travel to East Aaras.
Tone;
What can I say... Her maiden voyage was at a speed of about Mach 2, and I hardly even had time to wave her off before she cracked on me and came back, coiled up by my side like a snake. A great performance and it was a love story of its own. Thanks.
I really liked your videos too. I'll have to take my vids in short bursts and not with the highest quality audio, but I hope at least something will have got stuck when I'm done. I can only do clips with a digital cam and don't have a video cam, yet.
Very nice job on the cracking! Trust me, you look way smoother than I did after 3 months of practice (though I can't ever say that anyone ever compared my tricks to a mad duck ) My only word of advice would be to take it easy on your shoulder next time - whip-cracking is just like any other sport, in that your workouts must increase in increments. Don't push yourself too far, too fast....Other than that, keep on crackin'....
High Regards,
-Chris
P.S.: (in regards to Rawhide) Tell your choir director to make sure the stage you're performing on has room for the whip - talent like yours needs to be displayed ....
Thanks buddy. I know... I tend to get a bit giddy once out on the field though.
Not a strained muscle or anything, just a "the day after" tenderness. "Training ache" we call it in Sweden.
Too bad I'm leaving the choir as I'm moving down south, about 200Km west of Stockholm. I'll have to find myself a new choir to sing with, and start arranging scores with "Whip in E major" denotations in them.
If you're just experiencing "the day after" tenseness, that's not too bad....The more you practice, the more your muscles get used to the activity, and then, no more tenseness....It just takes time....
That is too bad about your moving - I'm actually in the same boat right now. I'm off to college here in a couple months, which for me will be about 8 hours north of where I'm at currrently....So, I can relate....Best of luck to you....
About arm tenderness, I did a bunch of whipcracking demonstrations this past weekend at a fur-trade era reenactment and actually had my should come a little bit out of the socket. That's what I get for swinging a 22 footer around too much A lady put my shoulder back in, and it was sore as all get out. Been taking it easy and now it feels pretty much back to normal.
Now I have to remember for future shows to (ab)use my left shoulder as much as my right so neither arm gets that bad off.
Hey Swindy, I'm working on planning a trip to Stockholm at the end of August. I'm planning on meeting up with some Swedish western performers that I met at the WWAC convention this spring. Hopefully we can get some whipcracking in together while I'm over there.
Thanks Moses. Someone graded my vid with a 5 I just noticed.
Adam;
I'll be in Stockholm the 12th of August attending a wedding and will probably stay a few days before or after that aswell. Perhaps a little early to hook up in case you are planning for the end of that month? Let me know when all is planned and we'll see what happens. Scandinavia Jones is nearby Stockholm aswell, one of the nicest people you'll ever meet in case you see him.
Hall;
Good luck to you too. Moving can sometimes be a pain to organize, but always turns out fine in the end when you're done with it I think.
You should get a stockwhip. You can really do fancy work with those, whereas what you were doing was difficult. A stockwhip won't make your shoulder ache as much, either.
I wouldn't mind a stockwhip. I guess time and money is the key to justify me getting another whip. Time being the few times I get a chance to go cracking.
Thanks Brein! But so do I. I really don't practice as often as I want to, which adds up to about five times a year or so.
I think I need some practice with the "Lederhandwerk" after looking at your site too. Wow! Pretty neat stuff there. Have you thought about doing a version in English aswell? I'm sure you'll find some interest from non-German speaking gearhads if you decide to promote it.
Or maybe you already did and I have managed to miss it all this time.
Nah. Tried again tonight while teaching friends to use it. No dice this time either. But they fell over with a "bing", let me tell ya'! Strong wind up north these days.