I was starting to learn Frank's Reel yesterday and noticed from years of bad habits on guitar, that I alternate pick incorrectly. I alternate pick by changing pick direction on the note rather than beat. so if a passage was 1/8 1/8 1/4 1/8 1/8 note I would play d u d u d rather than d u d d u This stops my hand keep a steady 1/8 note movement
I think it's great that you noticed this and have decided to work on it.
Sometimes I'll go off the tracks and find myself up-picking on the down-beat and kind of wonder where the derailment occurred. It's kind of funny to be picking along and suddenly find yourself at a roadblock over this. Like "Whoa! How did THIS happen?". Triplets can also throw you off the rails.
+1 re: triplets.
I love those little personal 'breakthrough' moments - they are quite inspiring. Congratulations, and keep up the good work.
With triplets or in 6/8 or 12/8 time, the trick is to figure out whether you want to use jig picking—DUD DUD etc.—or Bach picking—DUD UDU and so forth. Jig picking is more rhythmic, Bach picking gives a more flowing line. With a slip jig, in 9/8 time, if you don't use jig picking you'll hit the first note of every other measure on an up, not ideal. If it's just one triplet thrown in, it's just a nuisance to keep the pick in the right direction.
Another option for triplets is to use hammer-on/pull-off techniques which don't interfere with the pick direction at all. There are many players who prefer that.
