Gentry Stein has picked up a new Protegé, Luke Finnell. Here are a few words from Gentry about Luke:

The first time Lukes yoyoing caught my attention was last year at the 2011 Pacific Northwest Regionals. At the time he was 13 years old and had been yoyoing for only a year. The amount of professionalism and control he had over the yoyo on stage amazed me. The best part is, it was his first ever competition. Since then, I have been watching him progress through his videos and he has improved so much in such a short amount of time. Luke is going to hit the contest scene hard this year, but I am confident he will continue to bring the heat, and become a top competitor in the near future. Making yoyoing look good is one of the most important aspects of it all. There’s no question Luke knows how to do that. I am stoked to announce Luke as my protege.

 

We had a lot of great players representing, and playing with, YoYoFactory at Cal States. Here’s a video featuring some of our Contest and Protegé Team members. Be sure to check out the Cal States Freestyle playlist on our YouTube Channel.

YoYoFactory Contest Team member Luis Enrique may have gone under some peoples radar, but not ours. A force to be reckoned with in the international contest scene this year, Luis threw down an explosive freestyle at Mexico Nationals which launched him into the 1st place spot.

Last year saw Paul Kerbel competing in major contests all over the Americas. Stops in Boston, MA and Orlando FL. Along with contests in Mexico, Paul has been hard at work perfecting his tricks. In his first major contest of the year Paul pulls out all the stops and clenches an amazing 2nd place victory at Mexico Nationals.

Congratulations to the YoYoFactory sponsored ‘All Wound Up Yo-Yo Club’ of Baker Elementary School in Pennsylvania who recently raised $1,155.00 for the Children’s Institute! The Children’s Institute is a one of a kind, non-profit, pediatric care facility that focuses on rehabilitating kids with physical and cognitive health issues. Pictured here is a representative from the Children’s Institute receiving the donation from some of the club members. Along with club leader, Erik Wiesemann.

Here at the YoYoFactory Blog we are constantly inspired by the skill and dedication players show day in and day out as they hone their craft. None may be more inspiring than this. Mark is from Italy, and has overcome the challenge we all have at learning new tricks in an amazing way. Truly Undeniable.

Last weekend YoYoFactory loaded up the tour van and hit the road for California States. Along with the usual suspects, current National Champion Harold Owens III flew out for the road trip!

It was Harold’s first time visiting YoYoFactory, so he got the grand tour. Soon his trophy collection will rival ours.

Harold holding the last 2 of his special edition Catalyst.

Clint Armstrong finally showed up, after getting lost for an hour. The crew convened in Pat’s office to chat, plan and try out yo-yos.

Time to hit the road. John took the first shift, which ended up being quite a stretch. The drive went through the night, so most people slept in various precarious positions in the back of the van while Grimes, Cut Copy and Broken Social Scene played on repeat.

So, if you’re wondering what we saw between Phoenix and Sacramento, just close your eyes and imagine… nothing.

By morning we reached our hotel. Some slept, but Harold was ready to practice for the contest.

Stay tuned to the blog for more coverage of Cal States. While you’re waiting, be sure to check out the Cal States playlist on our YouTube Channel.

In recent years Yo-Yo has seen a huge resurgence in Mexico. And with it, some truly remarkable players. YoYoFactory Contest Team members Luis Enrique and Paul Kerbel have been holding down the top spots for a while now, and in 2011 they gave stellar performances at the World Championships. This weekend at Mexico Nationals they will definitely be setting the tone for the rest of the year.

Check out Luis and Paul’s freestyles from 2011 Worlds. Who do you think will take it this year?

This week finds Ben in Melbourne for the Australian Toy Hobby & Nursery Fair. YoYoDistribution’s Jon, Toby, and Wing are all repping YoYoFactory at the fair, where they’re demonstrating and teaching YoYoFactory Modern Performance yo-yos to the Australian toy industry.

There is no question, Gentry Stein is a rising star in yo-yoing. Last season he made his mark on the contest scene with multiple wins, and high places at some of the most prestigious contests in the world. In the 2012 season he plans to do even better. After his win the weekend before at PNWR, Gentry set his sights on his home states title, California Champion, and got it. We are all looking forward to seeing what he has to show at the Bay Area Classic in May.