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in: Tricks

Spins

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This article is about body rotations. For the article on spinning clubs, see Club rotation.

During the pause in the pattern while the objects are in the air after a high flash, a juggler can spin around before resuming the pattern. This demonstrates that the juggler was able to throw high and fast enough to have time to spin, and accurately enough to be able to recover the pattern after briefly looking away from it while spinning. Spins are usually done either with all the objects in the air, or with all but two objects in the air (holding an object in each hand while turning), which is easier.

360s (full turns) and 180s (half turns) are the most common types of spins in juggling. It's also possible to do 90s (quarter turns), 270s (three-quarter turns), 540s (one and a half spins), 720s (two spins), 1080s (three spins), 1440s (four spins), 1800s (five spins), etc. Throwing higher before spinning allows time for more spins.

Rotation

Rotation

5 ball 5 up 540s, 720, and 900 by Delaney Bayles

360_Improving

360 Improving

Advanced spin moves by Lauge Benjaminsen

3 ball 1 up 360 animation
3 ball 3 up 360 animation
3 ball 1 up 180 animation
3 ball 1 up 720 animation
4 ball asynch 2 up 360 animation
4 ball synch 2 up 360 animation

Qualifying[]

Stopping and collecting the objects immediately after spinning is quite a bit easier than resuming juggling after spinning, since the high throws don't have to be set up so perfectly if you're not going to continue the pattern. WJF competitions have introduced the standard of qualifying the pattern after doing a spin, to demonstrate that the high throws were done well enough to be able to continue a stable pattern. To qualify a 5 ball 5 up 360, a juggler must make at least 10 throws after spinning, and catch all of the first 10 throws that are made after spinning. Catching the objects thrown before the spin does not count as part of the qualify according to WJF rules. In WJF competition, a qualify is usually required after doing a spin to get points for the trick.

Spin_Tutorial

Spin Tutorial

Spin tutorial

360's_Tutorial_Juggling

360's Tutorial Juggling

360 tutorial

720's_tutorial_tips

720's tutorial tips

720 tutorial

Tips[]

  • Get a dance instructor to teach you how to balance, spot, and spin quickly. Learn a type of turn that doesn't take too long to set up (don't use actual pirouettes).
  • Perfect your turns (without juggling) and your high flashes (without turning) separately before you try to combine them.
  • Make sure all the high throws are the same height. If the first throw doesn't look as high as it should be, stop and don't waste your energy attempting the spin.
  • Make sure you completely finish throwing and catching before you start turning, and completely finish turning before you resume throwing and catching, so your body movement won't affect the direction of the throws.

Multi-stage spins[]

Doing a certain number of spins can sometimes be made easier by doing them in multiple stages, which means catching and/or throwing objects in between spins.

3 ball 2-stage 720 animation
4 ball 2-stage 720 animation
5 ball 2-stage 360 animation
6 ball 4 up 2-stage 720 animation

A 5 ball 3 up 2-stage 720 is done by throwing three balls high, making the last throw extra-high, spinning once, throwing the other two balls high and catching the first two high throws, and then spinning again with the extra-high ball still in the air, before resuming the pattern. This is easier than a normal 5 ball 3 up 720 because there is only one extra-high throw, instead of three. Three balls are in the air during both spins in both kinds of 3 up 720s.

5 ball 3 up 2-stage 720 animation

A 5 ball 5 up 2-stage 720 is usually done by throwing five balls high, making the last three throws extra-high, spinning once, catching the first two high throws, and then spinning again with the three extra-high throws from before the first spin still in the air, before resuming the pattern. This is harder than a 5 ball 3 up 720, but easier than a normal 5 ball 5 up 720, which has five balls in air during both spins. In the 5 up 2-stage 720, there are five balls in the air during the first spin and only three balls in the air during the second spin.

5 ball 5 up 2-stage 720 animation

The two tricks described above, 3 up / 3 up (1 high) and 5 up / 3 up (3 high), are the two most common ways of doing a 5 ball 2-stage 720. In both of these tricks there are an odd number of balls in the air during each spin, and an odd number of balls that stay in the air during both spins. There are lots of other ways to do a 5 ball 2-stage 720, including five more that follow those odd-number rules:

5 ball 5 up / 3 up (1 high) 2-stage 720 animation
5 ball 3 up / 5 up (1 high) 2-stage 720 animation
5 ball 3 up / 5 up (3 high) 2-stage 720 animation
5 ball 5 up / 5 up (1 high) 2-stage 720 animation
5 ball 5 up / 5 up (3 high) 2-stage 720 animation

A whirlwind is a trick where all the objects are thrown high, each one higher than the last, and the juggler spins before catching each one.

3 ball whirlwind (3-stage 1080) animation
Video: 4 ball whirlwind by Dave Leahy
3 ball 540 whirlwind (3-stage 540) animation

Siteswaps[]

5up_siteswaps

5up siteswaps

5 up siteswap 360s by Paweł Witczak

1_High_6_Low_360

1 High 6 Low 360

Siteswap spins by Lauge Benjaminsen: 1 high 4 low 1080, 1 high 5 low 720, 1 high 6 low 360

Spins can be combined with siteswaps by doing the high throws before the spin as a higher version of a siteswap.

Video: 5 ball 5 up 360 in 744 by Chris Hodge

The 5 ball ground state period 3 siteswaps 744, 663, and 753, can be combined with 3 up 360s (77722), becoming 96622, 88522, and 97522. 97531 combined with a 5 up 360 (7777700) becomes b975300.

5 ball 1 high 2 low 360 animation
5 ball 2 high 1 low 360 animation
5 ball 97522 360 animation
5 ball 1 high 4 low 360 animation
5 ball b975300 360 animation

Most of the high throws for a 360 in a (6x,4)* pattern are pairs of (8x,6) throws, but for a 3-up or 5-up 360, the first pair of high throws is (8x,4): a 3-up is (8x,4)(6,8x)(2,2), and a 5-up is (8x,4)(6,8x)(8x,6)(0,0). A 4-up 360 can be done with only (8x,6)s, without an (8x,4): (8x,6)(6,8x)(2,0).

To do a 360 in (8,4)*, you have to start the high throws with (a,4)(4,a) instead of (a,6)(6,a) to keep the lower of the high throws from coming down too soon. The rest of the high throws are (a,6) pairs. A 4 up is (a,4)(4,a)(a,6)(2,2), and a 6 up is (a,4)(4,a)(a,6)(6,a)(0,0).

World records[]

Numbers records[]

These are the world records for 360s, 720s, etc. done with the highest number of each type of prop.

Rules:

  • No multiplexing is allowed.
  • There must be at least one prop that stays in the air during all the spins.
  • The last spin must be followed by a qualifying run. (Catching throws made before the last spin does not count as part of the qualify.)
  • No catches may be made with a hand that is already holding an object before that hand has made enough throws to qualify the trick.

For a given number of props, type of prop, and number of spins, only the most difficult spin move (not considering spin moves combined with siteswaps or other tricks) that has been qualified on video will be listed as the record.

When comparing two spin moves with a given number of props, type of prop, and number of spins, the one where more props stay in the air during all the spins will be considered the more difficult trick. Example: A 5 ball 3 up 1-stage 720, where 3 balls stay up during both spins, is more difficult than a 5 ball 3 up 2-stage 720, where only 1 ball stays up during both spins.

If two tricks have the same number of props that stay in the air during all the spins, the more difficult trick will be determined by adding the number of props in the air during each spin for each trick - the trick with a higher sum will be considered more difficult. Example: A 5 ball 3 up 720 = 3 up + 3 up = 6, and a 5 ball 5 up 2-stage 720 = 5 up + 3 up = 8, so the 5 up 2-stage is more difficult. (In both of those tricks, there are 3 balls that stay up during both spins.)

Records with publicly available video evidence:

  • 1440 qualified with the most balls: 7 balls, 5 up by Ofek Snir in 2017 (video)
  • 1440 qualified with the most clubs: 5 clubs, 5 up 3-stage (5 up 360, 4 up 360, 3 up 720) by Kaito Tanioka in 2023 (video)
  • 1800 qualified with the most balls: 5 balls, 5 up 4-stage by Yudai Kato in 2017 (video)
  • 1800 qualified with the most clubs: 3 clubs, 3 up 3-stage (720, 360, 720) by Kaito Tanioka in 2016 (video)
  • 2160 qualified with the most balls: 3 balls, 3 up by Ofek Snir in 2015 (video)
  • 2160 qualified with the most clubs: 3 clubs, 3 up 3-stage (720, 720, 720) by Kaito Tanioka in 2022 (video)

Records with insufficient video evidence:

  • 1800 qualified with the most balls: 5 balls, 3 up by Ofek Snir in 2014 (video no longer available)
  • 1800 qualified with the most balls: 5 balls, 5 up by Ofek Snir in 2016 (video doesn't show the whole qualify)

Unverified claims:

1-minute records[]

These are the world records for the most 360s, 720s, etc. done with all the objects in the air in one minute, for various numbers and types of props.

Rules:

  • All the objects being juggled must be in the air during each spin. None of the high throws that the juggler spins under may be multiplex throws.
  • All the objects must be caught after spinning for the spin to be counted. In the event of a drop when attempting a subsequent spin, the juggler must either spin or qualify a non-multiplex pattern before dropping for the previous spin to count.
  • If multiple spins are done with all the objects in the air, each 360-degree turn that is done under all the objects counts as one 360. A 5 up 720 in a 5 object 360 record would be counted as two 5 up 360s, and a 3 up 1440 in a 3 object 720 record would be counted as two 3 up 720s. (180s must be done separately. A 360 in a 180 record would not count as two 180s.)
  • The one minute starts when the first spin is attempted. If the time runs out after the last spin is attempted but before the objects are caught, the last spin still counts as long as all the objects are caught.

Records set in WJF competition or with publicly available video evidence:

Pending validation:

  • Most 5 ball 5 up 360s in 1 minute: 35 by Doug Sayers (This was listed on the WJF 8 competition results page, but since Doug won the Power Up events that year, it's not clear whether all of those 360s were actually done within one minute.)

Records with insufficient video evidence:

  • Most 7 ball 7 up 180s in 1 minute: 10 by Ty Tojo in 2014 (video no longer available)

Connection records[]

These are the world records for the most connected repetitions of various types of 180s, 360s, etc.

Rules:

  • All the spins done in the connection sequence must be the same trick. If the juggler changes to a different trick, only the spins done before that will be counted.
  • If after starting a sequence of connected spins, any throws are made that the juggler does not spin under, no subsequent spins will be counted.
  • A spin is counted when all the objects that were in the air during that spin have been caught. Qualifying the pattern after spinning is not required for these records.

Records with publicly available video evidence:

Unverified claims:

Alternative names[]

  • Turns
  • Body rotations
  • Pirouettes

Spins in juggling are often called "pirouettes". Some jugglers prefer not to use that term because the turns jugglers do are not actual pirouettes according to the definition of a pirouette in dance. It is more accurate, descriptive, unambiguous, and concise to use terms such as "spins", "360", "180", "720", and "2-stage 720" referring to the spins jugglers do, rather than "pirouettes", "pirouette", "half-pirouette", "double-pirouette", and "2-stage pirouette".

Variations[]

Gymnastic moves can be done instead of spins to make more interesting and difficult tricks. The juggling part of the trick may be more difficult when doing gymnastic moves than when just spinning, because the throws have to be higher to make more time to do the trick, and in some tricks you end up standing in a different place from where you started, so the objects have to be accurately thrown forward or backward instead of straight up to make them come down in the right place.

Some gymnastic juggling moves that have been done on video:

*video doesn't show a qualify after the trick

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