A whirly bird is a tantrum with a backside 360 mixed in.
Once the tantrum rotation is going, add the spin. Look over your rear shoulder to start the backside 360, and at the same time punch the handle all the way across your face. That handle punch is what makes or breaks the trick: if the handle stays out to the side, the line tension hangs you up and you'll never come around.
As you come around, still looking over your rear shoulder, you'll spot the water. Let the rope pull you the rest of the way, bend your knees on impact. Fair warning: the first few attempts will be a blur - unless you have serious trampoline or gymnastics background, you won't spot the landing right away. After a few tries you'll start to know where you are, and it gets easier from there.
The two classic failure modes are both about bailing halfway. The first is starting to look over the rear shoulder, freaking out mid-air, and snapping the head back straight - you end up doing a weird backside tantrum and the 360 never happens. Force yourself to keep the head turned until you're all the way around. The second is leaving the handle out to the side, which stretches your shoulder out and stalls the spin - the fix is the same handle punch across the face.
Watch more here:
Video by JB ONeill
Key tips
- Approach like a tantrum
- Last second, square your shoulders with the kicker and trip off the top into the backflip
- Look over your rear shoulder to start the backside 360 - and keep looking until you're around
- Let the rope pull you around, spot the water late, knees soft on impact
- Don't expect to spot the landing on the first tries - it's a blur until it isn't
- Head snapping back straight mid-trick = fear, not technique. Commit to the shoulder look at least once