Yo-Yo and Kendama Kit

Two skill disciplines, a multitude of challenges to overcome! The Skill Challenge Kit combines the Henrys Lizard yo-yo and the BANANA Kendama to explore two very different ways to juggle an object connected by a string. Learn your first tricks, improve your precision, and discover the joy of successfully completing a move that seemed impossible just a few tries earlier!

Skills Challenge Kit: discover the yo-yo and the kendama

Do you enjoy challenges that require skill, concentration, and a little perseverance? This kit combines two particularly interesting disciplines for learning to control a moving object.

The yo-yo and the kendama are easy to understand: you can start playing immediately, without any special installation. But behind their apparent simplicity lie very rich technical universes.

The pleasure comes from the progression: you discover a movement, you practice, you improve it and you end up succeeding at a figure that seemed difficult at the beginning.

Two complementary pieces of equipment to learn at your own pace, develop your skills and take on new challenges!

What does this kit contain?

• 1 Henrys Lizard yo-yo: a responsive, robust and comfortable yo-yo, particularly suitable for learning.
• 1 Kendama BANANA: a kendama made of beech wood, with several landing surfaces and a ball attached to the handle by a string.

The yo-yo comes with its string. The Kendama BANANA is ready to use and also includes a spare string, a spare string ball, and a tool for replacing the string.

The Henrys Lizard yo-yo: an excellent choice for beginners

The Henrys Lizard is a reactive yo-yo, meaning that it can return to the hand thanks to an appropriate impulse on the string.

This feature is particularly useful when learning: it allows you to discover the basic movements without having to immediately master the return techniques used with non-reactive yo-yos.

We start by learning how to throw the yo-yo correctly, how to make it go down and up, and then how to control its rotation to perform new tricks.

The Lizard has several advantages:

• Rubber edges: they improve comfort when the yo-yo returns to the hand and help protect its structure in case of a fall.
• A Henrys AXYS axis system: its interchangeable axis offers possibilities for evolution.
• A robust construction: ideal for initial handling and regular practice.
• A responsive function: suitable for discovering the fundamentals of yo-yoing.

The Lizard allows you to learn the basics with equipment that is pleasant to handle, before gradually exploring more technical figures.

The Banana Kendama: a challenge of precision with every throw

Kendama is a traditional Japanese skill game consisting of a wooden handle, receiving cups and a perforated ball, called tama .

The principle seems simple: you throw the ball and try to catch it on one of the cups, or to get the tip of the handle into its hole.

But each reception requires coordinating the movement of the hands, the trajectory of the ball, and sometimes even the bending of the legs.

The Kendama BANANA is made of beech wood and has a glossy finish on the ball, designed to provide grip.

You can start with the most accessible receptions, then gradually discover more complex figures, balances and sequences.

Each successful reception becomes a small challenge overcome, and makes you want to try the next one!

Two different disciplines that develop common qualities

The yo-yo and the kendama are not handled in the same way.

With the yo-yo, you learn to manage continuous rotation, string tension, and precise trajectories.

With kendama, we mainly work on throws, catches, balances and body positioning.

However, these two disciplines draw on several common skills:

• Coordination: synchronizing gestures with the movement of the object.
• Precision: adjusting the force, direction, and timing of each movement.
• Concentration: observe the trajectories and remain attentive to what you are doing.
• Dexterity: gradually improving the precision of movements.
• Perseverance: repeating a pattern, understanding your mistakes and noticing your progress.

Alternating between the two apparatuses allows you to vary the sensations and discover new ways of learning.

Which figures should I start with?

With the Lizard yo-yo

• Learn how to throw the yo-yo straight and make it come back up.
• Improve the consistency of throws.
• Try to keep the yo-yo spinning at the bottom of the string.
• Gradually discover patterns adapted to a reactive yo-yo.

With the Kendama BANANA

• Start by catching the ball on a large cup.
• Try the other cups.
• Work on the regularity of receptions.
• Discover the figures using the toe and the first sequences.

There's no need to try to succeed at everything immediately. A few minutes of regular practice can be more beneficial than one long session where you end up getting discouraged.

NetJuggler's opinion:

We really like this association, because yo-yo and kendama are two disciplines that can be easily practiced at home, while offering an amazing technical richness.

For the yo-yo, we chose the Henrys Lizard rather than a more complex model. Its responsive action, rubberized edges, and interchangeable axle system make it an excellent companion for learning first tricks.

Banana Kendama presents a very different challenge: here, the goal is to catch a ball accurately. The first exercises are easy to understand, and each new successful move brings real satisfaction.

What we appreciate most is that these two disciplines demonstrate very concretely the progress that can be made through practice.

A kit we recommend to challenge lovers, curious beginners and anyone who enjoys learning new tricks!

Two objects, two worlds of figures and the same desire to progress! With the Skill Challenge Kit, discover the yo-yo and the kendama, take on your first challenges and enjoy developing your technique at your own pace.