It is time to take our swiping discussion to the next level. I wrote part 1 way back in July of 2009 – please refer to it for basic swiping techniques and safety. I am going to break up part 2 into 2 parts. Part one of part 2 will cover more elementary advanced techniques, while part 2 of part 2 will cover middle, advanced-advanced and trick techniques. Then second half of part 2 of part 2, the advanced-advanced techniques, I will begin part 1 of my own past professional exploits. This will likely take 3 parts. The first part will be included in the second half of part 2’s second half – my amateur start and progression into the first part of my professional career. Part 2 of this 3 part series will focus on the second and most exciting part of my 3 part career, professional competition. Part 3 of the 3 part series will talk about the third part of my 3 part career, the last part of my competitive career and first 2 parts of my teaching career. I believe I still have one part of my third part of my 3 part career left to be told.

In the first part of part 1 we will be discussing elementary-advanced techniques and in the second part of each of the parts I will share some memories I have of these wonderful swipes.

Part 1 of part 2 – Elementary-Advanced Techniques

Last time we talked about the standard swipe – this swipe is appropriate in most situations at the mall or at home with your personal SmartSwipe machine. However, if your regular swipe is missing the mark, you have a scratched or old card or a pesky swipe machine here are some techniques to help. Sometimes we swipers gets so caught up in all the fun and forget that the purpose of all this is to buy stuff.

The Dead Stop

I referred to this swipe in part 1. It is mainly for pesky readers or damaged cards. The Dead Stop is extremely simple and can be done with the grip of your choice. For this swipe you want to penetrate the reader a little deeper than normal for your starting position. I usually slide the card in until the tip of the card is resting against the round protrusion (head) usually found about halfway in the slot (every reader is different, however, and some have the head anywhere from 1/3rd to 2/3rds the way in). Once you are in position you want a solid thrust forward, but don’t go alls out, you want to stop once the magnetic stripe has past the head. In a perfect dead stop the length of your swipe will be exactly the length of your mag stripe.

It was with the dead stop that I won my first amateur title. The judge said he had “never seen such a perfect length swipe done with such velocity”. The scouts where there in full force, one winked at me and I will never forget it. I remember thinking “should I wink back?” I ended up doing a double wink, technically known as a “blink.” For me, this is a truly magical swipe – the stuff dreams are made of.

The Grab Bag

This is a real classic. If you just cannot get a successful read this is definitely worth a try. Grab a regular plastic grocery bag and put the card inside the bag. You then press the bag tightly against the business end of the card so that you can actually see the magnetic stripe through the bag. You want no air bubbles and a smooth bag surface. Then swipe with a firm, even motion. This often works well in combination with the Dead Stop as a full follow-through will often damage the bag – not good if you need a second swipe.

The Dead Stop has come under attack in recent years for environmental impact. Most of the time this method is employed in a grocery store where plastic bags are, unfortunately, still readily available. Often times this swipe renders the bag unusable after an intense swiping session (which is all the more reason to employ good technique) and is a waste of plastic. If the bag and card are properly joined together then friction is minimized and the bag may be used a second time, possibly even to carry groceries.

Runners is a really easy swipe concept, but rather difficult to master. For beginners I don’t recommend trying Runners with a human holder as this is a recipe for horrifying credit burn. You start with your standard 3-point grip and the objective is speed. You want to quickly swing your arm from a “Running” start and swipe the card with a full follow-through. The hard part is accuracy and maintaining a flush connection. You have a very small opening and must keep the business end of the card rubbing against the swiping tray at all times. Remember this is a difficult swipe, so don’t get discouraged, it took me years to master.

Unfortunately, most of my memories of Runners are fairly tragic. The best Runner I ever met was also a professional bowler, so obviously a tremendous athlete. It turns out the spray they used to put in bowling shoes turns into potent venom when mixed with swiping talcum. He lost his sense of smell in ’95 and took his own life a few minutes later.

If you want to look smooth you go with Poker Face. It was named because the finger manipulation of the card is reminiscent of that of a poker player shuffling his checks. Take the edges of the card between your thumb and pinky finger and rest your other 3 fingers across the bottom of the card (the card is upside-down so the bottom of your fingers would be on top of the bottom of the card and the top of the card would be in swiping position – at the bottom). The Poker Face is a short slow swipe so make sure you are not changing speed (could result in a miss-read and instant disqualification). What makes this cool is what you do after you swipe. As soon as the card has passed through the reader, continue the motion in is circular rhythm and pass the card behind your hand. When you get good you can swipe over and over with seemingly one motion. Play some jazz to get in the mood.

The Poker Face is a fairly new innovation in the PSA (professional swiping association) world and rose to prominence with the famous final 3 bout between brothers Idef and Samuel Needmorbling and the ‘mag’. It is a favorite among my students and the inspiration for the Lady Gaga song of the same name.

That is a lot of information to pass through your digestive system so I will continue with the more advanced techniques next session. Thank you and remember to practice safe swiping.

Shane Gross is a 3-time all-Canadian swiper and the 1997 world tandem champion. He has swiped for Tide and The Regina Taxi Association (RTA). His swipes have appeared in Time, National Geographic, the Daily Swiper and the Weekly Swiper. He is a consultant for many Hollywood films and documentaries. In 2002 Shane turned his attention to teaching and to date has taught 2,249 new swipers.