Kendama was a really popular sport in Singapore but had been losing this trend recently. It seems that many people are quitting or not selling kens anymore just because its not the trend. I was playin kendama in school and a random boy said:" who still plays kendama nowadays" i answered "me" Honestly im really pissed by people who think that just because it isnt the trend, kendama is useless or something. I will still continue playing ken cause i enjoy it. Do you guyz also feel the same?
Yes I have similar problems. A lot of times when I am playing out in public people will say that kendama is old and not cool anymore. Usually I ignore them or explain to them how long kendama has been around and how "old" it has been for hundreds of years.
Ikr, quite a few times i teach them how to play ken if they say that so they actually realise how fun it is
Went through this in the skate world. Don't let it get to you haha just do what you're in to! Kendama community is like how it used to be in skating before it blew up. No matter background, age, style, how good you are or other hobbies if you're into kendama, you're accepted by this community!
In the USA people tell me "You still play kendama?" I reply "You still play football?" Usually they don't get it, but kendama is a sport, and it deserves to be thought of more highly.
I was at school one day and this kid said Kendama that's like 3 years ago. He was new from Hawaii so they had Kendama way before Norcross GA other than him I pretty much started the trend in my town so nobody has dropped off yet, actually nobody has really started yet.
My entire senior year of high school was the year that the kendama craze picked up around the Bay Area. It gained popularity amongst some of the students, and there were people who only bought the kendama to wear around their necks or to just have it because their friends did. The only reason I didn't like it was because of the fact that it was so obvious they didn't really give a shit about it. They would struggle with big cup and then move on. Like come on dude at least get the big cup. But while there were kids like that, there were other dudes who bought it and actually made progress with it. It made its way into the "jocks" group, so I would see football, basketball, and baseball players jamming. Some would even ask for pointers which also let me know they actually wanted to get better. While those guys probably don't play anymore, it was nice to know they didn't just ignorantly dismiss it and actually kept an open mind about it.
"Jock" here, lol.. I didn't find kendama until I was playing college baseball, but I almost immediately noticed a correlation between jamming dama and my performance on the baseball field. At this point, I can't imagine not having kendama as apart of my baseball life. I'm playing in Australia right now for a club and still jam daily. I honestly believe and have noticed an increase in my hand-eye coordination, reaction times, controlled balance, and throwing arm strength over the past few years of actively playing both. I don't know the science behind it, but I'm for certain kendama has contributed to my ability to play ball. I've never thought of kendama as a trend or even made of cliques, but more like an immensely helpful life tool per se, with the ability to bring people together and spread positivity. The kendama community is comprised of some of the most creative, unique, and interesting individuals in our world. I haven't even met any of you, but I know if I did we'd get along great.
One of my friends that I got into dama has been playing baseball all his life. His progression rate within his first 6 months of playing was definitely because of his athletic abilities/talents, so I get what you mean. Kendama's definitely not a clique thing, but when you're in high school it can be. The first group of guys to have kendamas were all Asians, and they mainly hung out with each other. It wasn't until my friends and I got into it that it started to branch out to other groups of people. From there is how it started to become one of the "must haves" of the school year. Totally agree with you though. It's always funny to think that every Tuesday, I go to the city to hang out with dudes as young as 13 and guys as old as 33 all because of a wooden skill toy.
Like everyone at my elementary school 2 years ago did it but when I left to middle school everyone seemed to stop but there's a few kids who stuck with it and I learned to not care about what they think because at least I'm into something that makes me happy and I love to do it
If you like it, jam on. Stay true to who you are. There are always going to be haters. In this case, people who are insecure with being perceived as uncool. I'm sad that they didn't find what I have found in Kendama, a metaphor for life. However, I question their intention of starting Kendama to begin with.
It used to be a very big trend here in utah. but now i only know of about 15-20 people that really play
There's always going to be people playing only because others are especially if the players are seen as the "cool" guys. Everyone wants to be with the "in crowd" right? Even in our market, which is pretty small, we've had players get in, get pretty good, then drop out. When we were only a year or two into it and we had just brought in a bunch of Pills and new Sweets and Catchy products and one of the guys that had been first to get into it replied to a post by other players about the new stock saying "meh, I'm so over them" (meaning he'd already seen the new stock and wasn't impressed I guess) C'est la vie.
I have this exact same problem. Last year every one at my school played them now most people judge me simply because I play kendama. But i'm like screw them. Some people are nice. LIke a sub I had in math had me play in front of the class XD