A month prior to the 1995 World Footbag Championships in San Francisco, I felt an exciting rush of energy overtake my body just thinking about the Worlds. Though my serious footbag playing days were over, I felt the same anxieties just thinking about competing in "the big one." I started doubting myself, wondering whether I had really practiced as hard as I should, was really in good enough condition to play in a seven day event, had my main competition worked harder than I had. Finally I came to my senses: Hey, I don't have to worry about all that stuff.

The next day I read an article in the Oregonian newspaper written by O.R. Vader about the great runner, Carl Lewis. Ms. Vader asked Mr. Lewis what changes he had gone through over his long, successful career.

"The thing that changes the most is the mental focus. When you've done something so many times it isn't as easy to focus on it," Lewis said.

I then started thinking about what other footbag players did to get ready for the World Championship. I decided to ask several veterans, players with at least seven years of Worlds experience, how they focused for the 1995 Championships.

As you would expect, I received several different responses. One of the most interesting responses came from veteran player Lisa McDaniel. Lisa, in her twelve years at Worlds, focused on playing lot of footbag net. She specifically worked on getting to the net and spiking to improve her singles net play. Lisa practiced two days a week for three months prior to Worlds. She also decided to have just one partner, Julie Symons, for all the women's team events. Lisa's decisions definitely paid off when you look at her 1995 results.

Peter Irish, Mr. Footbag Freestyle himself, took the approach of focusing on concentration. During his training for Worlds, Peter concentrated on doing the "biggest, baddest combos he could possibly shred" and doing more "circle shredding than routine shredding." Peter's 1995 successes were greatly enhanced by his decision to work a school assembly tour for Creative Athletics, doing three to five alternative sports shows per day for eight months. Peter said when he wasn't performing he was practicing freestyle, more than at any time in his career. Though practice doesn't make you perfect, it only makes you better, Peter was near perfect.

Kenny Shults, probably the greatest player in footbag history, was so busy with a real job (it's about time!) that he spent more time sitting in front of a computer screen and traveling around the United States than he did focusing on footbag. Kenny said this was by far the least he was ever prepared for a World Championship and his results showed this. In past summers, Kenny trained for Worlds as a full time occupation, often bicycling twenty miles per day, jumping lots of rope, focusing on at least a couple of hours on footbag net drills and playing hours of footbag freestyle.

I also decided to ask these veterans if they got nervous about playing at the Worlds. Scott Cleere came up with the best answer, saying, "I don't think of it as nervousness, but rather as excitable energy." The Footbag Commissioner, Bruce Guettich, said, "I think we all feel anxiety, but not nervous like I felt in the early days. I want to get started, get my first match under way and settle in with a good rhythm for the entire event." After several World Championships, Eric Wulff, who finished second place overall, said, "I get even more nervous the longer I play. I put expectations on myself, so I focus harder on putting that aside and playing to have fun."

Well, I'm sure the anxiety wheels are turning again for all the competitors focusing hard on the 1996 World Championships. As you practice hard and get ready for an exciting trip to the beautiful city of Montreal, remember to always do your best, celebrate the cooperative aspects of footbag, always be positive ambassadors for the great game we all love, have as much fun as possible and remember: Your playing days are short, so enjoy them while you can.

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Copyright © 1996 World Footbag Association.

On-Line Edition by Steven L. Goldberg, July, 1996.