Well, it’s finally June 6th–National Yo-Yo Day. It’s the day you’ve all been waiting for. We’ve seen you. You’ve been staring at the clock on your wall, wondering why time seems to pass so slowly. Well, at last, June 6 is upon us and you can finally whip out your yo-yo and go to town. Maybe you’re a bit rusty — that’s okay. Nobody will judge you on Yo-Yo Day. Go to a yo-yo park. Meet other yo-yo-ers. Start a yo-yo club. Teach your kids how to yo-yo. The opportunities are endless. On Yo-Yo Day, anything can happen. [photo via Duncan Yo-Yo, yeah!]
Okay, we’re making a lot of that up. It really is Yo-Yo Day, but we’re pretty sure there’s no such thing as a yo-yo park. You could probably find a yo-yo club, but we wouldn’t recommend it unless you really like to use your yo-yo. Do you even own a yo-yo? Well, today’s the day to buy one.
In all seriousness — well, in semi-seriousness, because we’re technically talking about a day devoted to the yo-yo — this tiny toy can be a pretty good time. Learning some of the harder tricks can be frustrating, but wow — there’s nothing like nailing your first “Walk the Dog” trick. Whoops, we forgot about the whole “seriousness” thing. Let’s move on. How much do you know about the yo-yo? Not a lot? That’s okay; luckily, you have us to provide some all-too-important fun facts about the toy.
- The first world yo-yo competition was held in 1932 in London, England.
- A yo-yo was taken into space in 1985, but it couldn’t sleep due to the lack of gravity.
- A man named Pedro Flores is known as the father of the modern yo-yo.
- Flores used to hand-make his yo-yo’s until demand necessitated their mass production.
- Flores sold his company to a man named Donald Duncan.
- Many people assume that Yo-Yo Day falls on Donald Duncan’s birthday.
- The Duncan company still produces yo-yo’s today.
- At one point, Duncan tried to copyright the term “yo-yo,” but it was deemed generic.
- The earliest surviving yo-yo dates back to 500 B.C.
- Yo-yo competitions are especially popular in Japan.
There you have it. Ten facts about yo-yo’s you probably didn’t know already. And if you did — hey, good for you.
So, what is the proper way to celebrate Yo-Yo Day? Let’s say — hypothetically speaking — you don’t own a yo-yo. Well, that’s why we’ve taken the time to provide you with a link to a pretty awesome video of a young yo-yo artist who’d make any mother proud. In fact, it looks to us like this one guy is breaking the laws of physics. But, then again, we’re not too familiar with the laws of physics.
Yo-yo’s can be a lot of fun. They’ve lost popularity in recent years, but we were all pretty big fans back in the day. So, why not take this opportunity to teach your kids about the toy? The facts are fun, and the tricks are even more fun. And, let’s face it, any day devoted to a toy that doesn’t have a screen is a pretty great day to celebrate as a mom.
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