Thread: New Interview: Takeshi

Sorry bout being extremly late with this guy Mitch is a busy man. But we got it done. Enjoy everyone. Especially you winners :)

Name: Mitchell Takeshi Thomas RedCloud Kamisato AKA Takeshi

Sponsors: Duncan and II

Style of yo-yo play: Mainly 1A and 5A, but I love struggling with 2A at times.

Birthday: April 22, 1975

Hometown: Wahiawa, Hawaii

Now Resides: Indianapolis, Indiana

Favorite yo-yo: I play FH1's the most, but my Oxy 4 is probably my favorite.

Favorite Player: Too many to name.

ACHIEVEMENTS

"I think being told I have inspired someone is my greatest achievement."

Interview

Yin: O.k. so this is hard my head is listing 1,000 things I should ask you. Law and Order is playing in the background and all I fell like asking you is "Where were you..." but then I come back to reality which STILL seems like a dream. You are "Takeshi" for short. You have done for yoing what, in my opinion Rodney Mullen did for skateboarding. You made even the veterans of yoing go, "O.k. what the hell was that right there." Basically what I want to ask is where it all started. Where did your journey begin as a yo-yo Ronin?

Takeshi: It was May 5, 2001 at the Major Taylor Skatepark in Indy (Indianapolis). I remember the date for several reasons. 1. Cinco de Mayo always sticks in my head, because it was well celebrated when I lived in San Antonio, Texas. 2. It was the first time I had placed first at a skateboard contest. I placed first for Best Trick with a kick flip indy out of a quarter pipe. and 3. It was the first time I had seen some new school yoyoing. It was Kyle Pearson (FIZX) standing in the parking lot after the contest waiting for his friends. He was doing some basic brain twister combos, but it was the most amazing stuff I'd ever seen done with a yoyo. After I saw him, I got a yoyo (SuperYo Renegade) and whenever we'd meet up at the skatepark, he'd show me a trick or two. Then I just got obsessed with it.

Yin: So then what was the next step up for you? How long did it take you to start buying more yo-yos? And learning about the tuning and the different kinds. When did you realize your yoing had become a syringe addiction?

Takeshi: I really can't remember when I really started buying up a lot of yoyos. When I had seen Kyle for the first time, I was still in school, going for my degree in architecture and design (civil specialty), and working on the dock of a big department store in the evenings. Yoyoing was something I did to get my mind off of worrying about school and work. Kyle had told me that he started after he had seen a guy the Childrens Museum of Indianpolis do some demos. I went there to meet him in late September of '01, but he wasn't working there anymore. Well, I asked them if I could volunteer doing demos like he did. They said sure and after 2 or 3 weeks of that, I got offered a job as a Sales Associate/Product Demonstrator in there store. It was/is a great job. I suppose when I started at the museum is when I started really figuring out how yoyo's worked and what would make them better. It wasn't until the next year when I went to Worlds that I learned how to tune a yoyo to play the way I wanted it to though.

Yin: So this must have been 2002. Is this when you really started tuning. Recessing, Satin finish, Optional sunroof? How did the birth of our now Takeshi "Ultra-modder" come about?

Takeshi: It was all Kyle again. He started modifying yoyos with a dremel. He learned how to put Coral Snake rings and Viper Shells on yoyos. That was late '02/early '03 I'd say. I wanted to give it a try, so I started making mods with an old hunting knife and a regular old drill. Holding the drill in one hand and the knife in the other. Man, that sucked, but being able to put rims on a yoyo like that, I think that's what got me noticed by guys like Mo and Eric Wolf. Not my mods, but my methods. As a graduation present from my father, in the summer of '03 he gave me a mini Jet wood lathe. That's when I really got into modifying yoyos.

Yin: So you are sponsored by Duncan. When did this happen? Did someone just come up to you and say. I like your yoing here is a sponsorship. Or was it just a little more complicated.

Takeshi: LOL! I was actually on Spintastics first. Worlds '02 was the first contest I had ever been to. Even though I was at worlds, yoyoing still wasn't a passion. I just really wanted to go somewhere to get away from working full-time and being a full-time student. After worlds I think I was hooked for life. I found out about the Mid-East Regional Contest in Cleveland a month or so after worlds and made plans to get Kyle and head up. When we got there, we showed some of the guys what tricks we had been working on and appearently they were things that hadn't been done. We never thought we were good until then. A couple of weeks after that I got an email from Dave Bazan inviting both Kyle and I to be on the team. I'm not sure when, but shortly after that Dave Bazan left Spintastics. When Dave left, Kyle and I started thinking about switching to other teams. Kyle tried out for YoYo Jam and Rick Wyatt picked him up pretty quick. I stayed on for a little while and then left Spintastics in early March of '03. Steve Brown came into town a couple of weeks later for a trade show. He stopped by the Childrens Museum and asked if he could take Kyle and me out for dinner. It was over dinner that he asked me if I wanted to be on Duncan. When he first asked me, I just kinda stared at him suspiciously, but then he told me he was serious! "HELL YES!" I think is what I said.

Yin: So after you got sponsored by Duncan. Did you feel like you had to get more serious? Like now yoing is very big for you. Bigger than you had ever imagined. Did you ever think your hobby would turn into that?

Takeshi: When I first got on Duncan, my plan to finish school and find a job was still in place. I should say that had been married for 2 years at this point, so my thoughts were still to do what I had to in order to get my life together and get a family started. All that good stuff. I was the ripe young age of 26 when I started yoyoing :-) I didn't really feel any pressure to do more after I got picked up by Duncan. At the time, I didn't realize what a big deal it was. I was still fairly new to yoyoing. All I knew is that it was cool to have a sponsor again. Neither my wife or I would have thought yoyoing would become such a big part of my life at that time.

Yin: Now at this time you and your wife had been together for 2 years. Was there ever a point that yoing kind of patruded into things. Or was she always 100% supportive? And when the hell did you stop skateboarding. Did it just fade away?

Takeshi: My wife and I had been married for 2 years at that time, but together for 12. We started dating when we were 15. Yoyoing was never a problem. I mean, my plan was still in place to join the rat race and get a real job, but as time went by and I was still in school, my yoyoing started getting noticed. I started really making a name for myself. So by the time I finished school and I told my wife that I wanted to try and make yoyoing a carreer, she already had the confidence that I was good at it and that I could do it. She's been 100% supportive of my yoyoing. She's always been supportive of everything I do. Skateboarding especailly. I've never quit skating. I don't know that I could if I tried. I most definitely don't skate as much as I use to.

Yin: So at this point in time your sponsored by Duncan. You’ve been married for 2 years. Going to school. What was the next step for you? After getting sponsored what was your next goal?

Takeshi: Well, at this point, my only goal was making it to the end of each day. I was working so hard to get everything done. Work, school, skateboarding and making time to hang out with my wife..... life moves really fast sometimes and I was doing all I could to keep up. As far as yoyoing went, I had exceeded all my goals. I mean, to be sponsored and to be on DXL were un-attainable goals of mine when I started yoyoing, but by this time I had done both.

Yin: Now when did the Mod Squad come into play? At what point did modding become so big with you did you get invited/started the Mod Squad?

Takeshi: The Mod Squad was the brain child of my good friend Tim Redmond. There wasn't a place for someone like me that didn't have thier own website to showcase pic's of thier work. Also, it was designed to give people that modify yoyos a place to sell thier creations without having to resort to ebay. It's something that Tim felt needed to happen and I was all for it. In the scheme of things, I'm just a guy that uses themodsquad.org to showcase some of my mods and I do what I can to support the site, because it's something that I believe in.

Yin: So let’s get into the sport. How do you think yoing has changed from the “boom” to now? What do you think are the major differences in style, the yos used, competitions, videos, etc.

Takeshi: Unfortunately, I started well after the boom had come and gone. I've been a new school player from the beginning. I was trying to keep my yoyos as unresponsive as I could from the start, but even from the time I started to now I can see how different things have become. There are styles within styles. Yoyo companies have become more aware of what the players want. There are a lot more players showing up to contests. There are a lot more contests worldwide. Video editing has become so affordable and user friendly that we are now seeing a lot more players from all over the world making clip videos. The biggest difference I've seen in yoyoing today is that it really seems to have become a part of peoples lifestyle. Not just a fad. The people that start yoyoing today see the different styles and can do a little of each to keep from getting bored with it. I mean, before '99, there were basically only 2 divisions. Now there are 5 divisions! I think the people that get into yoyoing today are going to keep throwing for a very long time. I don't think it's a passing fad for most new players.

Yin: So at what point in your life did people start calling you Takeshi? I know it’s part of your name, but was it before or after yoing that is was your nickname of sorts.

Takeshi: Growing up in Hawaii, my family called me Takeshi, sometimes Mitchell. It wasn't until I moved away that I really started to use Mitchell, because people had a hard time pronouncing, "Takeshi". That's tah-kay-she. People said, "Tuh-kah-she", "Tuh-kee-she", "Tah-kee-shy".... just all kinds of stuff. "Mitchell" they could say. Somewhere along the way "Mitchell" became too much for people, so it became "Mitch". I'm not sure when that happened though. The one thing that I find very strange about my name is that people are never sure what to call me now. Sometimes I ask them to call me Takeshi and sometimes I ask them to call me Mitch. When I meet a little kid I tell them "Takeshi", because they can usually say it correctly and it seems a bit more respectful than just "Mitch". In Hawaii, 'lil kids wouldn't call me by my first name. They would call me, "Uncle Mitch", "Uncle Takeshi", or "Mr. Kamisato". It's not the same here on the mainland though, but I think it's very strange to hear kids at yoyo contests call me "Mitch". "Takeshi" is still a bit strange too though.

Yin: Very Different here and there sometimes the differences are such subtleties like pronunciation. Which yo do you think right now is the most innovative yo-yo? Not the best but the one that has really done something different and new or just added another level of quality to yoing?

Takeshi: The Fast 401k is a great example of innovation in yoyo technology. It's easy to set up for the most basic yoyo play, but can easily be tuned to the tastes of any advanced player. I throw Duncan, but as a player and a modder the 401k is definitely a step in the right direction in yoyo technology.

Yin: What is your possibly favorite modification to yo-yo? And what is your favorite yo-yo to mod?

Takeshi: My favorite mod right now is doing dual recessed silicone response systems. FH1's are my favorite to mod. I don't know why though. Maybe it's just the fact that they don't make 'em anymore. The YoYo Jam Kickside is also a great yoyo to cut up. I think the plastic is called Delron and it cuts so nicely. It doesn't melt, it just kinda shaves away. I love it.

Yin: So what is Takeshi throwing right now? Tell us everything from the dual recess to the satin finish. Whatever is going on with your yo let us know, what you throw.

Takeshi: Let's see, in my pocket right now is a blue FH1 w/yellow caps and a dual recessed silicone response. In the other pocket is a Higby painted FHZ, dual recessed silicone response and a yellow die counterweight. In my backpack that I carry with me is my Oxy 4, two yellow ballistics for 2A, a stock flying Squirrel with Squirrel head counterweight, a green/yellow FH1 with recessed sticker, a Flying Panda with dual recessed silicone response, another Higby painted FHZ with a recessed sticker, and a couple of Bearing King spin tops. That's the usual arsenal I carry. It varies a little sometimes.

Yin: Now I noticed in your videos your choice of music is rather different and refreshing. Like your playing style. What music do you usually listen to while freestyling and practicing tricks?

Takeshi: Wow, it varies minute to minute. I don't really have a "usual" for music. I drove home from work today listening to Gunmoll, but came in the house and threw on Jamie Cullum.

Yin: What thing has influenced your yoing, that is not directly connected to the yoing scene. For example: Doc Pop said the Punk scene at the time really influenced his yoing. Anything scene or person for that matter that has influenced you greatly in yoing?

Takeshi: Hmmmm.... certainly in the beginning my biggest influence was Kyle Pearson. He showed me the ropes you could say. Then I drew inspiration from the videos Glasseye and Citadel made. I think that most of my inspiration comes from just hanging out with players. Even those that are just starting off. I mean, sometimes kids that are beginning try stuff that I haven't thought of or as they are trying to figure out a trick, they do it wrong and within that I see something else that could be done. Plus, it's always fun to just hang out with your friends.

Yin: Gotta say the yoing community is awesome. So as far as advice. What would be advice that you would give to beginning modders? As far as modding and what tools to use if your broke?

Takeshi: Don't let your perceptions of what you can and can't do keep you from trying. I started with a drill and a hunting knife. "How can you cut the rings off of a YYJ and stick 'em on a Duncan and the give it a recessed sticker? You can't!" I said to myself when I started, but I knew there had to be a way. There's always a way. If you don't even try, you truly fail, but if you try and try and try and you don't get it....... well, at least you tried and if you don't give up, a solution usually presents itself. My friend Steve (not Mr. Brown) wanted his FH2 recessed. He didn't have a lathe or anything, but he figured out he could just wittle away the plastic. Believe it or not, IT WORKED! It wasn't the prettiest mod, but when you're playing you can't see the inner wall anyway, plus the sticker was covering it up. Start off with what you want to do and THEN look at the tools you have to work with. Don't let your tools dictate what mods you can and can't do.

Yin: What is your worst yoing accident? The one that made you go “Crap that sucked!”

Takeshi: As far as injury, I've been lucky. I've knocked myself in the face and cracked a few knuckles, but nothing that bad. My worst yo-yoing accident however.... that's easy. I don't tell people when I mess up a mod, because it happens a lot more than people think. I once thought I'd be cool and mod a proto FH1. You know, those super rare ones with the starbursts. Yeah.... ummm.... I screwed it up pretty bad. I tried to put Yomega HyperWarp Heavy Weight rings on it. It didn't work. Then I thought I could salvage the hubs at least. I tried to put 'em in a YYJ Phat Phaktor. Yeah.... ummm.... that didn't work either. Crap that sucked!

Yin: From what you have been seeing so far this year. Who do you think is going to walk away with the Worlds ’06 championship and Nats ’06 championship this year.

Takeshi: I think it's too far off to even make a guess. There are certainly guys out there that dominate, but I have faith in too many players to even make a prediction.

Yin: Do you ever have those days where landing a braintwister is on the horizon but not on the string? You know those days where the simplest tricks are the hardest to do. What is your advice for those kind of days?

Takeshi: Pick up a top! I started off doing single A a lot. When I would have those off days, I would play around with other styles. Five A mostly. Now when I'm having an off day, I will pick up another yoyo set-up for something else or if I'm having a really off day, then I switch skills altogether. That's how I got into juggling and contact juggling.

Yin: What is your dream mod? Something you know is probably highly unlikely but would love to do? Like put spinners on your Oxy 4.

Takeshi: Shinobu has already gone beyond my dreams with his mods. http://www.geocities.jp/skon_world/yoyo/index.html I don't really have a dream mod. I mean, I would love to get the guts to mod my Oxy 4, but there's nothing that I can think of that would make it better. Modding it would just make it different.

Yin: Have you ever used your yo-yo skills to pick up any women? Or at least woo them into buying you a drink? Or do you try and use your yo-yo to Jedi Mind trick your wife into paying for dinner?

Takeshi: I've tried to woo my wife with a yoyo, but it doesn't really work.

Yin: What advice do you have for up-and-comers in the yo-yoing community. As far as tricks and learning dedication. What is your professional (cause you are a professional yoer) advice?

Takeshi: My advice? Keep it fun. Like any hobby you have, keep it fun. Alright kiddies, listen up. No matter what your into, do your part to support the scene. If you skateboard then buy your stuff from the stores that support local events. If listen to punk rock then go to shows that showcase local bands and buy their records. Whatever it is, support the scene! The yoyo scene is no different. When you go to a meeting or a contest, help people set up, take down and clean up. Buy from the stores that sponsor events. Buy the brands that support events. Give back to the community you are a part of. If you don't know how, ask. Ask the sponsors of an event how you can help. Ask the forums how you can get something started in your town. Get involved.

Yin: Thanks Takeshi, anything you would like to say before we go?

Takeshi: Life is hard without support. Support from family, friends and even strangers. I wouldn't be where I am without the support of my family (especially my mother), my lovely wife, my friends, my sponsors (Duncan and Infinite Illusions) and the countless number of players around the world. I support the scene as much as I can and in every way I can. We need to support each other. Thanks for letting me be a part of this.

(I would like to thank theyostore.com and Mike for sponsoring the First Annual Pick The Interview contest. Takeshi thank you for finally getting in contact with me. And All of you The Yoers and The Readers for reading this. Keep reading and I’ll keep bugging the hell out of yoers. Peace!)

Wow, no offense yin, but thats a lot to read, I couldnt read it all, i dont have any patience

nice interview!

very cool

Love it!! Another great interview Yin!!

freakin awesome interview yinninator...thanks to takeshi too for taking time to tell us a lil more about himself

Awesomeness. You always ask good, informative quesitons. It is cool to get to read all of these interviews with these super cool pros. Thank you a lot.

Great Interview, almost inspiring.

I learned loads, good stuff man, keep it up!

Mmmmm Mitch-licious!

Friggin awesome review, Yin. Thanks to the both of you! =)

great interview!!!! keep then coming......

A PROTO FH1?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!~?!?!?!?!?!?!

WHY TAKESHI WHY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

tyler

I really love these interviews Thaks a lot both yin and takeshi

Best interview yet, Yin! Keep 'em coming.

Wooh! Nice interview! very long and informative. Very fun to read.

-Derek

yeah takeshi is great! he is a big role model in the yoyoing comunity.

yay...a little long, but as always, interesting.
also, in the end, what is that blank line that just says "Takeshi:"?

Fantastic Yin!

Too long? no way!

I love reading good interviews.

I always think that they end too soon.

Thank you for your continuing work!

Feralparrot

Originally Posted by YoYoSchwartz

yay...a little long, but as always, interesting.
also, in the end, what is that blank line that just says "Takeshi:"?

Thanks for pointing that out I edited it to say the correct thing matching the question.

~yin

Great interview! You are a master Yin!!