Bay from Austin TX asked:
hi guys, i have spent the last year practicing this shot and can score at the bars with it on both push and pull side, however i would like to readjust my grip to the one Rico uses. I need pictures of rico's grip that i can imitate and integrate into my own shot. I have seen dieter's german site but that is not the grip rico uses. can you guys post pics or show me where i can download the grips. I already have the dvd championships that i watch daily. Please email me at bay_tran@yahoo.com or just post pics or links.
thanks
Foozkillah from Palm Bch FL replied:
Hey Bay,
Don't get me wrong, I admire your dedication... Been observing fooz for 30+ years.. Started fixing them at my uncle's arcade right off Kalakua avenue & Waikiki beach in the mid 70's..
Wow... You really spent a year trying to get Euro? I guess Rico's adjustment grip would really help you. Having played in the Low Countries in junior high, I understand your need for a better grip to translate Euro style to these Tornado tables. So are you planning to continue & migrate to the Lehmacher or Jupiter style tables? I can't believe you're planning to keep playing Euro style on Tornado. I know, I know... Rico dominated for almost three years here, with & without Todd's help.. but as you can see the last two years, North American Tornado play has adjusted. You can see it among Billy, Tony, and the other young'uns... also Rob Atha and the Canadian players... the "walking" or dribbling snake offense has almost (not quite completely yet) all the fakes, mobility, and defense-forcing motion of the Euro ... with two attributes the Euro will never have on the Tornado ... the shot-speed and pinpoint power of the Snake shot.
I would compare it to the NFL dominance of small, very mobile running backs like Barry Sanders dominating the run, especially with a motion offense, until a decade later came monsters with the same mobility and speed but 50 more pounds of bone & muscle. The Euro may dominate on the Lehmachers, Bonzinis and Jupiters, where unbalanced metal or heavy feet can generate unbelievable torque when shooting, but never on a Tornado or other table with counterbalanced men and much less ball grip to snap with than a Euro table... at least within the 1-3 inches of backswing. Sorry to say yes, Rico is a typical freak of nature... like most superstars like Tiger or Beckham or Zidane or Federer or Michael, but unless you are one yourself and can go back in time to your 2nd decade, or you're moving away from Tornado-type tables.. or moving to North Carolina.. plus you need to bring a Hall-of-Fame goalkeeper like Todd L. with ya...
IMHO, Rico will also master the Snake on the Tornado tables and come back to dominate with a mix of the Snake and his homegrown Euro style against those not used to it. But right now, because Billy, Tony S, Rob, Kane G, and all the young kids have seen the videos and THEY CAN ALL NOW DRIBBLE, TO open up any D & create multiple holes, almost as well as the Euro philosophy, but they have the "cruise missile" power of the Snake to go with it.
But then, Tornado may not be dominant for too long, either, with the success of the "real" World Cup, so we may all have to follow you, Alan, & Bruce over there thataways... First guy to develop a "velcro" or ninja "whip" cord to allow snakes on Euro tables gets to dominate with a Snake on that side of the Atlantic, too. Whose 10 yr old will that be??? Who will change the science and start using the weight, kinetic energy and angular velocity of metal rods on Euro tables just like rollovers do on Tornados??
So what do you think... Mark W. (wiggle-shooter like Terry M. & Louis C. & the old guard) vs. set-shooters & "walking" snakers (like our own Brian C. or our Canadian buddies Merv B. or Eric D. .............. as well as pro-masters like Billy P. or Tony S. or Kane G. or Rob M.) It's been almost a slam-dunk the past year & 1/2.
*Note that set-shooters easily adjust to a walking snake, as opposed to wiggle or "in-motion" snakers, who usually shoot once rhythm is established. And almost all set-shooters can easily do a wiggle is that's what bothers or psych's out the goalkeeper.
Are the Euro-pin & Wiggle Snake OBSOLETE at the Pro/Promaster level???
