The yo-yo traces back to ancient Greece, and made a resurgence in my teen years. It became the must-have playground toy for all school kids. I was no different, and my parents bought me a Henrys Viper Yo-Yo on a trip to Lakeside Shopping Centre. This yo-yo was brilliant and became the envy of my friends. No matter where I went, the yo-yo was on my person. Eventually the fad died and the yo-yo joined Pogs, and a Tamagotchi gathering dust in the cupboard.
I recently rediscovered this yo-yo whilst searching for things to sell on ebay. This was also during the time I was reviewing my bucket list. With this in mind, I decided that I wouldn’t sell the yo-yo until I had learnt a yo-yo trick. The trick I settled on was called ‘Splitting the Atom’. This was a trick that I recall people talking about, but not actually performing. I guess I viewed it as a mythical yo-yo trick. One that was so hard that it was unlikely to exist. Luckily, the internet is on hand to prove me wrong.
With the help of YouTube, I have been perfecting my yo-yo skills over the past few weeks. It has been a bit like riding a bike – ‘Once you learn how to ride a bike, you never forget’. I picked up all the old tricks in no time, but ‘Splitting the Atom’ was giving me headaches. No matter how many times I viewed the trick online, I just couldn’t complete it. Eventually I made a breakthrough – check out my video (also available on my YouTube channel).
A simple yo-yo can be picked up for a couple of pounds online, but you will need an unresponsive ball bearing yo-yo for some of the tougher tricks. I am sure ‘Splitting the Atom’ is not the hardest trick, but it is one you will need to work up to. If you are looking to pursue this item, then keep an eye on ebay for my yo-yo – selling soon.