Whether for lack of practice, difficulty of sleights, amount of memorization, or just the evil whammy....

For me, it's spreadwave---maybe the newness, but although I practice it often, I mess it up on a regular basis. I shudder every time I perform it. (By the way, a great trick). Anyone else have their personal nemesis?

Estimation.

Sometimes I'm only off by 1 or 2, and I have outs to cover it, but I wish I could hit that **** reliably!

I gave up Sidewalk Shuffle long ago. I could not for the life of me keep the moves in my head. Love the effect but it defeated me.

Andy

If you don't have it down or mess it up often, should you be performing it?

Clocking the deck screws up 75% of the time for me.

C-Taylor,

Did I say I was performing it? I said I gave it up. I never messed it up in performance because I never performed it. It wasn't for me. Some sort of mental block I guess. I would get it down in practice and would forget it the next day.

The topic was "The trick you screw up the most". but no distinction between practice and performing. Did you ever want to do a trick C-Taylor that you found you were just not comfortable performing?

Andy

Andre,
I believe C-Taylor was addressing his question to the original post by docelk.

Angelo

Nana's Necklace by Dean Dill. I only get this one to work about half the time.

Angelo,

If this is so...my apologies to C-Taylor. My experience with Sidewalk Shuffle stands as an example and he and I are in complete agreement.

Never perform an effect that you are not completely comfortable with.

(Murphy's Law, Corollary #1001 - If you believe something is going to go wrong due to past experience, it will!)

Thanks Angelo!

Andy

Lol, the first thing I also thought of was Sidewalk Shuffle....Although I don't perform it yet, it is one of those things you just have to keep practicing, but I think it is well worth it....

I'll second that.

The trick I mess up the most is Invisible Palm Aces. I do Bill Malone's version and the last card always gets... well messed up.

Is this not addressed by clocking 13?

And some things you have to do before you get them down. Psychological forces, misdirection, estimation- all things you will have to screw up over and over before you learn them.

I always find it funny that when a post like this with a legitimate question is made, there is always one person who either feels as though they need to chime in with a comment such as "Practice makes perfect" or some other unrelated holier than thou comment. We all screw up sometimes. I too drop the ball on clocking, Diplopia waits for my perfection.

XX

For me... any aerial moves. Screws up easily for me, especially when the wind is big.

Wrong topic.

I stay away from any trick that envolves me having to do math. I always screw that up under pressure.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who can't retain this for more than a couple of days.
Denny Haney did the jumbo version last week at the Magic Club meeting, and I was inspired to dig it out and have another go at it, and so far I'm having the same problem as Andre. I'll get it, and then a day or two later I can't remember it again. (sigh)
Don

For a time, I kept on messing up back in time, my best normal deck trick.
Now, I up jog 3rd card from top and bluff that I miss.
Now I never miss getting the break.
I do agree with the math tricks.
For example, GORDON DIARY.
I made up a tiny crib sheet.

I was in the middle of performing Tailspin a few weeks ago, and completely blanked on one of the phases. I think I ended up doing a kind of modified Ascanio spread, and forgoing the final phase of the effect. It's something that I perform very regularly, and play around with to amuse myself. Not sure how my brain hicupped.