Page 380 - Brion Toss - The Complete Rigger’s Apprentice

thirds.” And here, you hold the string with about them, they were—did you see them? Well, just wait
2 inches of end projecting between thumbs and a minute, let’s back up here.”
forefingers (Figure 11-11A). Then you reach across With your left hand you take one piece at a time
with each ring and little finger, snag the line under from your right, with slow, hypnotic movements, “A
the opposite hand, and move your hands apart (Fig- long, a medium, and a short.” With your right hand
ure 11-11B). you take them back again, “short, medium, long.”
“Quick and easy, right? Now you just cut the And again.
line where it is bent.” And here you let go with your You point to the pieces now lined up in your left
right hand and appear to bring “the line where it’s hand. “A professor would say that ‘A’ is longer than
bent” up alongside the end in your left hand. Then ‘B’, which is longer than ‘C.’ It’s all very logical. But
you cut it with a sharp pair of scissors. But there’s all the ends were the same length.” As you speak, you
a deception here. What you actually do, with a pick up the bottom end of the longest piece, which
smoothness born of long practice, is to bring up a should be farthest from your fingertips. You bring it
bight of line from near the end (Figure 11-11C). up behind the medium piece and appear to set it in
The real “bend” is hidden behind your hand (Figure place outside the short piece (Figure 11-11G). But
11-11D). So when you cut, you’re only snipping a you actually set it to the left of the short piece. It’s
short piece off the end. There’s a bend at the bot- an easy sleight. It helps to look up and catch your
tom, and you reach down and cut that for real. The audience’s eye as you do it. It also helps to practice
original bottom end might be hanging down a little, the move until you can fool yourself in a mirror.
but you trim it to match the others, saying, “Hey, so Now you bring up the medium end and lay it
what, college professors just don’t know how to be outside the others, then the short end. Note that the
expedient.” short piece passes behind the folded long piece (Fig-
You now appear to have three equal-length ure 11-11H).
pieces, but you’re not through with pedagogues Time for another crucial move. You bring your
yet: “A professor would probably say something right hand up so that it overlaps your left hand,
like, ‘A’ is the same as ‘B’, and ‘B’ is the same as grasp the three rightmost ends, and move your
‘C’, so ‘C’ is the same as ‘A.’ Or something ponder- hands slightly apart (Figure 11-11I). It will look
ous like that. But in the real world, all you gotta exactly as though the long, medium, and short
know is that all the ends are the same length. The pieces were draped between your hands. In reality,
top three here are even, and so are the bottom you’ll have both ends of the short piece and one end
three. If the ropes are the same length, they stop at of the medium piece in your right hand, and both
the same place. Simple.” ends of the long piece and one end of the medium
Just to emphasize, you bring up the lower three piece in your left hand. More mirror time here, so
ends, one at a time, and lay them alongside the oth- you can bring this off casually without exposing the
ers in your fingertips (Figure 11-11E). interlock hidden by your right hand.
“See? All even. So we don’t need any formu- “We have a long, a medium, and a short,” you
las.” And with that, you grab the second, third, and continue, “but common sense tells us that if the ends
fourth ends from the left with your right hand, yank are the same length, the pieces are the same length.”
them out, and present three straightened pieces with And with that you move your hands smoothly
a flourish. apart, snapping the strings between them smartly as
“Yessir, three equal-len—whaaa?” they fetch up. Then you let go with your left hand
Panic returns. You are holding a long, a and hold up the miraculously restored three medi-
medium, and a short piece in your hand (Figure um-length pieces (Figure 11-11J).
11-11F). You are as amazed as your audience is. Resuming your hypnotic examination move-
“But the ends were the same length—I saw ments, you reach across with your left hand and

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