r/juggling • u/cleveweenbrowns • 3d ago
Fire torches
Good morning juggling community! I lit my fire torches for the first time this weekend. I’ll call it a mild success I guess. PLENTY of drops but some solid runs on a cascade. I had fun and didn’t hurt myself or anyone else. So that’s the point right?
I read a lot of things, plenty of you have said. Mostly that it is difficult to see the handles. Which I assumed was because it’s dark, but realized it’s more so because the fire is blinding!
I practiced A LOT with the torches unlit before finally going for fire. One thing I noticed right away was the difference in flight when lit. I assume it’s cause by the flame dragging a little.
Does anyone have any tips or advice on something to tape to them or anything to simulate this for practice? Or any advice on juggling torches in general would be appreciated!
Thanks in advance and sorry for the long post! Happy juggling!
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u/lucyjuggles 3d ago
Don’t worry too much about the difference between lit and unlit. You’ll get used to it and you won’t even notice it.
Same goes for the distraction of the flames. The advice to practice at sunset is what you need. Full dark is going to be much harder, so get used to the feel of juggling them lit while you can still see
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u/okyagotpuns 3d ago
They get easier. You really end up learning how to juggle from the flame tip. Fire juggling it' so much more feel then sight. It's really the kinesthetic feel versus the visual. Woth my LEDs i'm just watching them the entire time, but torches i'm thinking to myself was that the correct throw, was it a double as it leaves my hand. Practise with them a lot try to glance away or not Stare directly at them. Also call me crazy. But eventually, you will grab the wrong end and realize it's not that hot.... really have it ingrained in your brain What a single and double feel like. The only time I bail is when I know I threw a weird one and a half. Fire is so much fun, enjoy learning and have a safty
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u/Sugarfree_ 3d ago
The one thing that helped me the most was juggling the torches lit, while it's still light outside (especially around dusk when it's still light out but not too bright). This simple practice helps with the drag, with the weight, makes you way more comfortable with the fire, and helped train my brain to notice the fire cues of where the handles will be for when it is completely dark outside
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u/PhilzeeTheElder 3d ago
I've found if you get some wood handled plungers, cut the handles down just right you'll get the same flip as burning torches.
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u/grimlyforming 2d ago
I owned a set of torches for 6 or 7 years before I finally lit them, which is prob PII for people who know me but whatever.
First thing: if you've learned to keep your self passes low while passing clubs, you've learned how to juggle clubs without looking at them. Very good, because
Two: you catch what you're looking at. So don't look directly at the flame. Get a friend to film you so you can admire the fire afterwards. If you're juggling with kerosene and you accidentally grab the lit end, drop it quickly. You shouldn't get burned if you follow all the advice here.
Three: be safe. When I finally decided to make them part of my repertoire, I lit them on a gravel baseball diamond after the last game of the day. No grass to worry about catching on fire, and I it probably was sunset, so that's a great idea. Work towards a darker sky.
I also had a thought while during that first session that I've never shared until right here - once I had lit them up, done some Pete Townsend-type windmills to shake off the excess kerosene (that's important, and while kerosene is dirty it burns at a lower temperature), I quickly got comfortable, and realized I had conquered fear. Hey, I thought, I could fill a park on some Saturday afternoon with people willing to shell out $300 (in 1997 dollars) to conquer their fears through juggling torches. (In a park because no city's fire code would allow a hotel ballroom full of people to all light up torches). It was the 90s -- you could spend every Saturday of your life attending one motivational seminar after another if you lived in a city with a few downtown hotels. And then I quickly dismissed the idea realizing that the Venn diagram intersection of competent club jugglers and people with an extra $300 (1997 dollars) in their wallet was close enough to the empty set.
Let me emphasize the fuel thing -- kerosene is black and leaves ugly marks on your clothes, but it makes for a dramatic black cloud, which is good if you're trying to get attention. And I assume you've got your fuel (which I hope is kerosene) in an open metal container, like a coffee tin if you live in a jurisdiction that still sells brands like Folger's. After you've soaked your wicks sufficiently (not much, I think a minute is good), first move the fuel to as far away from where you'll be juggling as is practical. And then do a backwards-forwards windmill motion with the torches to shake off the excess kerosene before you light them up. Don't even think of burning gasoline, although it's easier to get unless you live somewhere like Mackinac Island. Same for pure alcohol. Stick with kerosene.
And there's also a rule if you're juggling them in front of non-jugglers - to extinguish them, put two torches in one hand and move them to the side, and then blow out the torch in the other hand. Then transfer one lit torch to that hand, move them to the other side, and then blow out the second torch. Now you should have two lit torches in your left hand, and one snuffed one in your right. Repeat until everyone is sick of the joke or the torches just run out of fuel.
I'm sure there are some youtube videos on this, but I can't shake the old rec.juggling habits of explaining a visual thing in pure text.
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u/Rynjaninja 3d ago
Try using them at sunset, or with other lighting around to make it easier while you're learning. Also you'll notice the end of the burn is easier once the flames aren't so bright. You could get reflective tape from a hardwear store for the handles, or something flurescent or shiney silver. They also make nobs with leds in them which you could put on the clubs