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The
Mad Professor's Shooting Bible Today
I want to cover an often talked-about, but frequently misunderstood subject in
Precision-Shooting:
The
Dead-Cat Bounce
What
Is It? The
phrase is derived from the biggest gambling-joint in the entire universe; the stock-market
world of Wall Street. In
their definition, traders
describe the phenomenon of a rapidly falling stock to slow just before hitting a new low
or bottom. Its when the
downward spiral finally hits the point when market-forces even out (the number of buyers equal the number of
sellers) and the fast descent or rapid drop suddenly stops with barely a moan or whimper. The
analogy is based on throwing a dead cat out of the window of a skyscraper. Even though completely dead, the cat will slam
down solidly, with a barely perceptible rebound. In
the Precision-Shooting world, a Dead Cat Bounce occurs when the dice land and stick (stop)
without any further movement. If you threw a
dead cat across the table instead of a pair of dice, we can expect that the cat would just
land and stay wherever it first hits. Now
to be completely honest, I have never ACTUALLY hurled a dead cat or any other mammal (dead
or alive) across a craps table, and the Port au Prince Casino in Haiti has been closed
since 91, so even the voodoo practice of hurling dead chickens has been curtailed
somewhat. In any event, I dont have
irrefutable proof that a dead cat will do what I have described that it does, but Im
pretty sure that its a fairly accurate description. Some
people also call the DCB effect, Glue Dice because they stick and
stay as soon as they touch down. How
Does it Work? The
physics are pretty simple to understand, but the actual doing part is quite
difficult to repeat consistently time after time after time. The
physics work like this: Four
different forces meet with the same amount of energy, all at the
same time. Those different forces
are:
Ø
Forward
Speed
Ø
Rotational
Speed
Ø
Trajectory
Angle
Ø
Descent
Speed Four
Forces, One Result
This
is essentially a vector (a coming together or convergence at the same point) of four
dissimilar (or unlike) elements. Again, you
have to keep in mind that all four forces come together with the same amount of
energy, or equal amounts of opposing energy (offsetting energy) all at the same
time. The
simplest explanation would be to imagine four vehicles all approaching an intersection
from different directions at identical speeds. To
get the perfect collision, youd want all four cars to concurrently hit each other. The energy from each vehicle is offset by the
opposing energy from each of the other cars. As
a result, they all end up in a twisted pile of metal, pretty much in the center of the
intersection where the four of them first came in contact. To
execute the Dead-Cat Bounce properly, you want all four toss-characteristics to achieve
the same level of force or stopping power, at the same time and at or near the point of
contact with the table. This
offsetting of energies (or extinguishing of momentum) results in dice that tend to stop
and die as soon as they hit the felt. That is
the perfect Dead Cat Bounce. Elements
of Success
Ive
made this explanation complicated enough, so Im not going to get into long
equations. Ill try to keep this simple. Forward
Speed
Ø
This
is the amount of energy that the dice carry as you throw them forward.
Ø
Of
course, the harder you throw them, the more forward speed they will carry.
Ø
The
lighter you throw them, the less forward speed they will carry.
Ø
How
hard you have to throw them depends on where you are standing at the table, and how far
away the backwall is.
Ø
Ideally,
all of their forward speed would be exhausted by the time they touch down. While this is not the case, we use some of the
other factors to counter-act or offset any remaining forward speed that are left in the
dice when they hit the felt. Rotational
Speed
Ø
This
is the amount of spin that you put on the dice.
Ø
Backspin
makes it easier for the dice to stay on-axis as they fly through the air.
Ø
In
some cases, certain tables demand substantial amounts of backspin, while others demand
very little or no backspin at all (a knuckleball type of throw).
Ø
Needless
to say, the further you are from the intended touchdown target, the more backspin that you
can safely employ. This factor ties in to the
trajectory angle of both your launch and the dice-landing.
Ø
When
you are nearer to your target area, you can get away with much less spin. Of course, this also ties in to the trajectory,
distance and landing-angle factors.
Ø
You
gauge, control, and input as much or as little backspin as required to maintain on-axis
travel, and to slow dice movement upon impact to an absolute minimum.
Ø
Depending
on the amount of backspin, the dice will either slow down rapidly once they hit the table,
or they will take a forward hop or bounce. The
size (length and height) of the bounce ties in directly to the amount of forward speed
(energy) that was remaining when the dice first made contact with the felt.
Ø
You
have to be a keen observer to determine how much to recalibrate each throw compared to the
outcome of your previous toss. Simply put, if
the dice just did what you wanted them to do; then throw them EXACTLY the same way again. If the dice did not do what you wanted them to do;
then recalibrate your next throw to achieve the desired effect.
Ø
Ideally,
you only want enough spin on the dice to keep them on-axis while they are in the air, AND
have some counter-rotation left to offset any forward speed that hasnt been
exhausted by the time they touch down. In
this way, rotational speed is used to counter-act or offset whatever forward speed
remains. It is the equaling-out of these to forces that leads to the termination of
further movement. Trajectory
Angle
Ø
This
is the arc of your throw.
Ø
We
often hear talk about the ideal 45-degree trajectory. In some cases this is correct, however in a lot of
other cases, it virtually guarantees a perfectly executed off-axis RANDOM ROLL.
Ø
The
table length and bounce characteristics of the felt (plus the underlay and base-material
of the table) are the chief factors in deciding which trajectory to use for a particular
set of circumstances and table-conditions.
Ø
If
you put this into easily understandable concepts, then your ability to adapt to various
table-conditions improves substantially. First,
think about the trajectory (angle of release and flight-path) when you skip stones across
a pond. If you get the correct angle, the
stone will skip and bounce many, many times, especially if you throw with a lot of force,
and you throw it at the proper slant. Second,
think about the trajectory when you are at a carnival trying to throw clothes-pegs into an
aluminum milk-jug. You need throw at a steep
angle so that the object that you are throwing goes into the receptacle nearly vertically.
So
we know that the dice have to land somewhere between 0-degrees (if we slide them
illegally), and 90-degrees if we get them to plummet straight down. The ideal range for the DCB is
somewhat narrower. While
each craps table may call for slightly more or less trajectory (on the landing-angle) than
others, the best range for the most consistent Dead Cat Bounce is between 55-degrees and
75-degrees when the dice hit the table.
Ø
Remember
that trajectory all by itself means nothing. It
is when we combine or counter-act each of the other forces when our efforts all come
together to produce the DCB. Descent
Speed
Ø
This
is the force or speed at which the dice hit the felt.
Ø
While
this speed ties in with how hard you throw them in the first place, it also depends on how
far the dice have to travel before they make their final descent to the target area.
Ø
In
addition, the descent speed varies with how far they have traveled from your initial
release, and how much they have slowed down while in the air.
Ø
Once
an unpowered object (in this case, a pair of
dice) are thrown horizontally over a short distance, they tend to lose speed. The lighter the throw and the longer the distance,
the slower they will be going at their initial point of contact with the table, and vice
versa.
Ø
Ideally,
all of their descent speed would be exhausted by the time they touch down. While this is not the case, we use some of the
other factors to counter-act or offset any remaining descent speed that is left in the
dice when they hit the felt. Descent
speed and counter-rotation (backspin) use up or exhaust some of the forward speed that the
dice still carry from their initial throw. In
this way, descent speed and rotational speed is used to offset any forward speed that
remains. Again,
it is the equaling-out of all of these forces that leads to the termination of further
movement and results in the DCB. Convergence
If
all four forces come together with the same amount of energy and they cancel out each
others momentum at the point of impact; then the dice just die right there on the
spot. They may do a little death-rattle kind
of shake, but mostly they will just shudder to a full and complete stop. When
all four ingredients mix together with the same amount of force or an equal quantity of
offsetting energy at the point of impact; then you get the Dead Cat Bounce. When
properly thrown to a target very close to the backwall, the DCB outcome is amazing. The on-axis, primary-face results (the same four
numbers that you initially set them on) is a thing of beauty
and a thing of PROFIT! The
HIDDEN Factor
There
is one unseen, latent element that you have to deal with on any craps table. One way or another, the table-felt, underlay and
sub-surface DOES affect the success of any throw. After
all, it is what the dice come into contact with after being hurled and spun through the
air. Some
table-surfaces carry speed, and actually cause high rebounds due to
recoil-energy, while some are dead in that they absorb almost the entire shock
of impact. Still others are
neutral in that they dont add any additional rebound or
spring of their own, but they do provide predictable and expected
dice-rebounding and roll-out. The
consistently successful Precision-Shooter has to adapt his throw to suit all of the
various bounce characteristics for the wide range of tables that he will encounter in his
pursuit of profit. Is
it Hard to Throw?
Yes
quite definitely, the Dead Cat Bounce is difficult to throw time after time after time. However, if youve practiced your
dice-tossing for almost any amount of time, youve probably accidentally experienced
the Dead Cat Bounce in your own throwing. What
Precision-Shooters do, is to move it from the ACCIDENTAL stage, and transition
it to the INTENTIONAL phase. Once
you can do it intentionally a few times, most people want to improve the rate of
occurrence so that they can do it CONSISTENTLY. That
is where substantial profits are derived. Putting
it All Together When
the speed of the backspin cancels-out the speed of the dice's forward motion, and when the
trajectory angle and descent speed nullify the bounce effect; the dice stop
immediately upon impact. That is how you get
the Dead Cat Bounce. To
do it consistently however, takes a tremendous amount of practice, and an even greater
amount of patience and fine-tuning. While
all of this may sound like a lot of work (and it truly is), the profit is what makes all
of the effort worthwhile. Good Luck
& Good Skill at the Tables
and in Life. Sincerely, The Mad
Professor
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