A True Game Changer

by Crazy Ivan


In November of 2011, Myachi made took an enormous leap forward with the introduction of the new Battle Paddles.  The first rudimentary prototypes were first fashioned in Cocoa Beach back in 2003 and for all the intervening years, we eagerly awaited the right time to introduce them to the Myachi playing universe.

They look like that, but bigger and three dimensional.

The concept is pretty simple.  They're like a baseball mitt for Myachi.  They strap on to the back of your hand and expand the total catching surface making it easier to catch big air throws, long distance chucks and crazy difficult aerial tricks.  They open up freestyle moves to a much younger audience and they open up athletic moves to even the most seasoned Myachi veteran.  They expand the game beyond freestyle, MYACH and Fu players and create whole new worlds of Myachi-sport.

They are game-changers in both the literal and figurative sense.  They've changed the game of Myachi, but they've also been a game changer for the company.  We've been selling them as fast as we can make them and we've already smashed even our most optimistic sales goals with them.  Stores all over the country are selling out of them and we've seen reorders galore even over the first few months of the year.

Some people have complained about the level to which the paddles have changed the game and I suppose that in a sense I see where they're coming from.  Some dedicated freestylers complain that paddles make the tricks "too" easy and that they shift the focus of the game from the tricks to the passes.  But can only sympathize with this argument to a small degree.  Sure, they change the focus for some people and sure, they make the tricks more accessible.  But is that a bad thing?

Obviously, adding the paddle doesn't take any of the skill out of paddle-free tricks.  I'm far more impressed by a Kelly Slater dropped to a bare hand than one with a Paddle on it.  That being said, I really wish I'd had a paddle at my disposal when I was learning that trick.  It would have saved me a lot of frustration and I probably would have mastered even the bare-handed version of it far quicker.  So while the paddles change the game, they only change it for people wearing the paddle.

And accessibility has always been the hallmark of Myachi.  The whole point that inspired Myachi Man in the first place was making a skill toy that everyone could play.  Now, the Myachi did fall a bit short of that goal.  While it is certainly the easiest skill toy to learn and the easiest to build an impressive repertoire of tricks with, it still wasn't accessible to everyone.  Kids under 6 couldn't really play at all and some people who were behind the curve in coordination could only do a very limited number of tricks.  Catching back and forth throws actually required some serious practice, especially if those throws included any real speed or height.

But now those boundaries have been widened.  There are still limits, of course, but they are smaller and smaller margins.  I've seen 5 year olds throwing down with paddles and I've seen grandmas master the catch in an instant.  I've seen people who weren't all that interested in learning tricks get fired up about long distance catch.  I've seen skilled people throwing down tricks on their first day that were once limited to people with weeks of practice.

So yeah, they change the game, but only in the best of ways.  There are still plenty of hold-outs in the Myachi community when it comes to the paddles, but I've already had the pleasure of changing a few minds.  When it comes down to it, all that it took to inspire such an epiphany was strapping a paddle on the back of a doubting hand.

Starting Off With a Little Kick

by Crazy Ivan


There's an upcoming addition to the Myachi family that I've alluded to on this blog before, but never actually talked about.  The truth is that I didn't want to get everybody's hopes up until it was definite.  Now it's definite so I can now feel comfortable stoking the fires of suspense.

Many of you have probably heard of/seen the new Myachi Battle Paddles.  We've developed a series of increasingly awesome prototypes over the past year and several versions have shown up on various videos and photos.  Heck, an early version even snuck its way onto the back of the 5.0, 5.1 and 5.1x packaging (look on Animal's desk on the back).

A few weeks ago, we finalized the design and the long process of R&D came to a close.  Some of you have been waiting for a year to see the finished product, but for Myachi Man, Kid Myach and myself, this is the culmination of ideas and sketches we've been sharing for the better part of a decade.  Seeing the effort finally come to fruition seems like a real milestone in the Myachi world as yet one more of our dreams are realized.

Now the whole operation moves on to the next phase.  We're done with the research, we're finished with the development, we've polished off the design and now all that's left is the manufacture.  Granted, that's a pretty big piece of the puzzle, but the wheels are already turning on it and molds are already being fashioned.  The juggernaut has already started to roll and the inevitable awesomeness of the Battle Paddle creeps closer and closer.

But that's not to say that you can't still play a part in it all.  We recognize what a big step this is in the history of the Myachi Movement and we also realize that the movement spreads way outside the House of Skills.  Sure, the Myachi Masters have played a big part in spreading the word and expanding the scope of the game, but our contribution pales in comparison with what the Myachi Maniacs have done to build the game and the expand the reach of the brand.  Without you, the loyal jammers and local STWAKOJeers, the Battle Paddle would still be a sketch on a napkin.

For that reason, we want to give you a chance to be a part of this next phase in the Myachi world-takeover.  Luckily for us, there's an awesome website out there that makes that pretty easy.  It's called "Kick Starter" and it helps small companies and groups raise money for projects.  The concept is that the company sets a goal (in our case that's $2500) and people can go to the site to pledge small amounts toward that goal.  They can pledge small amounts, even down to a single dollar.

Of course, there's more in it for you than simply knowing you helped Myachi move forward as a company.  At different pledge amounts, you get different rewards for your contribution.  Even if you pledge as little as a dollar you get a certificate that commemorates your participation in the Batlle Paddle project, but as the dollars go up, the rewards get better and better:

• At $1 you get a certificate that confirms that you were a part of it all.
• At $10 you get an exclusive commemorative Myachi (A Pakisack, no less!)
• At $25 you get the certificate and the Myachi, but in addition, you get a pre-release Battle Paddle set.  You'll be among the first people in the world to try out the newest addition to the Myachi family and as soon as they arrive at HQ your pre-order will be shipped out.
• At $75 you get all the other stuff, but instead of getting one set of Battle Paddles, you get 4.  Keep in mind that these packs will sell in stores for $20 a piece, so you'll be getting $80 worth of stuff PLUS the limited edition Myachi.
• At $250 or more you get stuff so awesome that I can't even tantalize you with it on this blog.  To find out about this pledge, you'll have to go to the Kick Starter website.

We've only had the project listed for a couple of days now and we've already gotten almost 20% of our goal, so things are looking really good.  The way the website works, if we don't raise the full $2500 then nobody who pledged will be on the hook for anything, but at the pace we're going it looks pretty clear that we'll be smashing our goal.

If you want in, click here to check out the website.  It goes without saying that if you're under 18, talk to mom and dad and have them read over the info on KickStarter.  I'm sure many of you have plunked $10 down on a limited edition sack in the past and this isn't much different, just more meaningful in the long run of Myachi history.

And even if you're not interested in backing the Battle Paddle project, you should still click on the link up there if for no reason but to see the video that shows the Battle Paddles in action...