Juggling pattern

"Juggling, like music, combines abstract patterns and mind-body coordination in a pleasing way.

Patterns include simple ones such as the cascade and complex ones such as Mills mess.

Tricks include simple ones such as a high throw or more difficult ones such a catch on the back of the jugglers neck, as well as the claw, multiplex, and pass.

[2][3] The basic patterns of toss juggling are the cascade, the shower and the fountain.

Possibly the simplest juggling pattern to execute,[5] the cascade[6] is a symmetrical pattern performed with an odd number of props greater than or equal to three, with each hand alternately throwing arching throws of equal height to the opposite hand.

The half shower may be performed with any number of props greater than or equal to three, and with more than four props, different versions of the half shower with varying heights of throw may be executed, even without taking into account both synchronous and asynchronous variations.

Half showers where hands throw at notably different heights may be executed with cascade-style inside throws; this style of half shower is popular in club juggling, where they go by the name of triple-doubles or double-singles due to the higher clubs naturally spinning a greater number of times than the lower clubs.

Performed using an even number of props greater than or equal to four, the fountain is a symmetrical pattern where each hand independently juggles exactly half the total number of props, i.e. each hand always throws to itself.

Box patterns are so named due to the props in the pattern apparently tracing several sides of a box in the air, and can be performed with any number of props greater than or equal to two, synchronously (see right) or asynchronously (e.g. 612).

Described as, "not terribly difficult....the simplest non-obvious site-swap seems to be 441; it is similar to, but not the same as, the common 3-ball pattern of throwing balls up on the side while passing a ball back and forth underneath in a shower pass from hand to hand.

"[16] The Mills mess (named after one of its originators, Steve Mills[18][19]) is a symmetrical pattern performed with any number of props greater than or equal to three, in which the arms cross and uncross throwing the props from toward the centre of the pattern in groups of three.

Thus, a Mills mess can be considered to be a cascade or fountain but with the cross-armed movements.

[26] Along with Mills Mess and Burke's barrage it is one of three well known named juggling patterns that involve complex carries and crossed arm throws.