When I was in about 7th grade, or maybe the summer before, my mom got my dad a video on yo-yoing. It's the one done by Arne Dixon for the Duncan yo-yo company. It was pretty cheesy, but I was enthralled. I started using an Imperial I think, and later found out where to order the wonderful yo-yos he showed on the video. I'm pretty sure it was my mom who found the place. We called Duncan company first, then found out from a rep that they distributed through Infinite Illusions. (I think I first got a Wheel.) Then mine eyes were opened. I recieved a catalog with my Infinite Ilusions order. This catalog showed me the path to a bold, bright new world. A world of transaxles and wooden yo-yos. A world of super-slick strings and velvet drawstring pouches.
And so it all began...
At first, I was alone in my interest. That didn't last long. My two best friends quickly became enthusiasts themselves. After picking up a Yomega with a Brain in a mall (*sigh* I was so blind then to the evil of clutches) my friend scored himself a Saberwing Brain from the catalog.
My next order from Infinite Illusions brought me a Terminator Tigershark. Now here was a yo-yo! Yet, I was still a beginner, and it was a long time coming before I mastered string tricks.
One memory that really sticks out in my mind is when I finally learned how to loop. I had been frustrated, unable to figure what the trick to it was. I watched the video, over and over again trying to get the concept, but to no avail. Then, one day, I was standing in the doorway to my kitchen, absentmindedly throwing the yo-yo in front of me, trying to loop it. I think some psychich alien race had been watching me that day, and decided to instill in me the secret of looping, in order to better the human race... or maybe I just got lucky. In any case, on one of the passes I simply dropped my hand, and the yo-yo swung around it and back out. Whether or not I caught it I can't recall, but I remember excitedly telling my mom how I had actually looped it. It took some doing, but I finally duplicated the procedure.