AUSTIN (KXAN) — There are multiple ways to spin this story.
“No two spinners spin the same,” said Laramie Rosenfeld, general manager of The AArrow Sign Spinners in Austin.
“You’re gonna see some people who are more into dancing around, some people who are really technical… and then some people who like to point, smile, wave, and spread some happiness.”
Rosenfeld’s happiness resides in mastering technical skills and practice has paid off. He started sign spinning in 2006 at 15 years old. What started as a weekend job has now turned into multiple opportunities and success, especially from competing in tournaments. He is currently a two-time world champion, ranked fifth place in the world and third place in Texas.
Among his accomplishments, he has grown sign spinning in Austin.
“I’ve taken over in Austin for the past year and a half and we’ve pretty much tripled in size since then. As long as there are people on the ground to care about the craft, the clients come and we go out there and spin for them,” Rosenfeld said.
The signs they are a-changin’
The founders of AArrow Sign Spinners, an advertising agency, “spinvented” sign spinning in 2002, per their website. Since then, it has evolved past human billboards into a competitive sport.
“It’s changed from how the roots used to be,” Jakob Vega said. “There used to be a huge stigma with sign spinning and people thinking that was just a dead-end thing and honestly I think it’s further from the truth because I’m still going eight years strong and I know some of the guys out here as well, 20 years in this job.”
Vega is the general manager of The AArrow Sign Spinners in San Antonio. He’s held that role for three years but has been sign spinning for eight years. This is his sixth year competing. He’s currently ranked 10th in the world.
“Things used to be a lot easier to replicate. A lot of people were gatekeeping their styles and their tricks. ‘No you can’t have that trick!’ kind-of-thing versus now it’s like ‘Okay, here’s a trick because I don’t think you can do it anyway.'”
Rosenfeld agrees.
“Sign spinning has changed from even the shape of the sign a little bit, the materials we use, as well as the tricks people are doing now. It’s become much bigger tricks, way more break dancing, and free running and juggling fused into sign spinning now.”
Both love to teach new sign spinners.
Tyler Cassell, a rookie, has achieved many of his goals since getting into sign spinning after moving to Austin. He is currently ranked first in Austin for rookies and ninth overall in Texas.
“I found sign spinning or sign spinning found me,” Cassell joked. “Once I found it was very competitive, I was like, ‘It’s time to go! This is my job right here, so let’s do it.'”
The Austin community and passersby have embraced him.
“When I’m on the corner, I get a lot of reactions. I get tips,” Cassell said. “I be looking for the honks. That’s what I’m really looking for. The honks are where the love’s at… I’ve had people screaming out of the window before, very ecstatic and everything. That makes me ecstatic. Makes me do bigger tricks. I’m one of the people that likes to do bigger aerials so I can get a lot of attention.”
The upcoming tournament will be his first ever and he is looking to prove himself amongst his peers. He’s aiming high with his “mystery bag of tricks” and another goal: dipping into the top 20 sign spinners in the world.
“I have a lot to prove. During the summer, I took a lot of beating up from the sign but it got me to where I am today.”
All signs point to Las Vegas
“We call it the best free show in Vegas,” Vega said.
The AArrow Sign Spinners host the world championship March 8 in Las Vegas, Nevada. They’ve been doing so for more than a decade. To get there, cities from around the U.S. hold local competitions to find the best spinners to represent their states. But the competition doesn’t stop there. Teams from other countries also compete. Overall, 50-100 spinners will attend the tournament.
Every round, teams compete in two heats. In round one, each spinner gets two tries. Your best attempt moves you forward if the score is high enough. Each category is judged on a 1-10 scale.
“You’re judged on technical ability, execution, and style,” Rosenfeld said. “Technical ability: how hard the trick is. Execution: how well you’re doing the trick. Style: how cool you make it look.”
Round one lasts 45 seconds. Round two lasts one minute.
“You get to put on more of a show, slow down and interact with the crowd — that’s a big part of sign spinning,” Rosenfeld said. “It’s on Fremont Street, so you know, people are drinking, having a good time. They’re yelling in your ear. The music’s blaring. Everyone’s looking at you.”
This year, Texas is bringing a bigger team of 25 spinners which means even more eyes are watching.
“Of course there’s a lot of people, but what gets me is having my peers watch me. They’re gonna know when I mess up, so I try to put on a show for them and go for the highest score possible,” Rosenfeld said.
But it’s not all stress.
“I have seen 70-year-old elderly women screaming at me in the stands,” Vega said. “I had someone literally ask me, ‘Hey, can I have your jersey off your back?!’ I enjoy that people are able to pick up the energy that I put out there and give it back to me, cause at the end of the day, like I tell everyone, you get what you put into this job.”
The tournament isn’t just for the crowd. There’s also an incentive for the individual. The world champion gets the first opportunity for any commercials or big events coming up, along with a boost in their pay throughout the year.
AArrow Sign Spinners start at $15 per hour with paid training and breaks, Rosenfeld said. They’re franchised in 15 major cities including Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. The company has about 500 active employees across the world.
