I've decided to learn how to skateboard...... at 28 years old! Now I know that might seem crazy to a lot of people; but it makes perfectly good sense to me. It also only makes sense to blog about the entire experience; from major air to major fail. So, here I am!!
SOME QUICK BACKGROUND: I'm a middle class, blue collar worker from the southwest suburbs of Detroit, Michigan. I'm a musician, whose recently decided to take a break from the music business. This has offered me a tremendous amount of new-found free time. I've always been fairly athletic, and played a variety of sports growing up. Eventually, I feel in love with aggressive inline skating. At one point, I stopped playing hockey to focus on rollerblading. I never dedicated myself enough to "go pro" but its something I always enjoyed. I'm not amazing, but I'm probably a bit more comfortable than your average beginner or intermediate. Enough to have fun at skate parks and skate spots.
As with a lot of things as we grow up, I slowly skated less and less until it stopped completely. It was odd, however... because skating would occasionally pop back into my life for short spurts. A little at college. A little when my kid was born. And here we are again; after a 2 year hiatus. After a bruised tendon in my ankle. After a hernia surgery. I stand here, again, with the itch to lace up.
There's something magical about skating. It transcends you to a higher level of thinking. It transforms you into a mythical warrior. An artist. An airborne bird, riding on the jet stream. Even if you're not doing the craziest trick. Even if there is no audience or camera man. There is something to be said about That feeling. The only way I can describe it would be "freedom." A noun that most people think they have, but very few have ever really felt. It's the sense of physical accomplishment after working out, mixed with the creative achievement of painting or sculpting. Its an adrenaline rush; but it's also zen. Its meditation to skate.... and I was itching for it!! But this was a different "itch" this time. For some reason, this time, I wanted to try my hand at skateboarding.
Now, if you remember skating and skateboarding from in the 90s; you'll know that what I'm doing is kinda sacrilegious. Most folks then (and some still now) picked their sides and stuck to it. Insults. Bias. Fist fights. Something I've never really understood, because I've always found awesomeness and beauty in ALL extreme sports. I've always, personally, preferred rollerblading.... but I always had friends who did snowboarding, bmx, skateboarding, etc! I'll always respect somebody doing what they love!
And with that being said, I'LL ALWAYS STILL ROLLERBLADE TOO! I'm significantly better at skating than skateboarding, and so it provides a different type of enjoyment for me when I go to a good skatepark or skate spot. But for now, I want to give a genuine attempt at skateboarding! I can cruise around pretty proficiently, but I would like to get better!
My goal is to be able to do a basic grind by the end of this coming summer. That's 4-6 months of good practice and honest dedication. As I said before, I've got a slight learning curve... but I'm also quite prepared to fall on my ass as expected! I'm willing to get a little hurt, in the name of expanding my horizons a little bit. I'm also excited to see how much it will improve my balance and coordination when blading. All in all, it will be a fun learning experience.
My purpose for this blog is to maybe inspire somebody else out there who wants to try something similar but it worried about being "too old" to start. A year ago, I completely quit smoking cigarettes. Since then, I've been convinced that anybody can do anything if they put their mind to it. Hope you enjoy reading, and thank you for checking out my webpage!! I'll be posting pictures and videos of my progress when I feel it's suitable. Wish me luck!!!!!!
SOME QUICK BACKGROUND: I'm a middle class, blue collar worker from the southwest suburbs of Detroit, Michigan. I'm a musician, whose recently decided to take a break from the music business. This has offered me a tremendous amount of new-found free time. I've always been fairly athletic, and played a variety of sports growing up. Eventually, I feel in love with aggressive inline skating. At one point, I stopped playing hockey to focus on rollerblading. I never dedicated myself enough to "go pro" but its something I always enjoyed. I'm not amazing, but I'm probably a bit more comfortable than your average beginner or intermediate. Enough to have fun at skate parks and skate spots.
As with a lot of things as we grow up, I slowly skated less and less until it stopped completely. It was odd, however... because skating would occasionally pop back into my life for short spurts. A little at college. A little when my kid was born. And here we are again; after a 2 year hiatus. After a bruised tendon in my ankle. After a hernia surgery. I stand here, again, with the itch to lace up.
There's something magical about skating. It transcends you to a higher level of thinking. It transforms you into a mythical warrior. An artist. An airborne bird, riding on the jet stream. Even if you're not doing the craziest trick. Even if there is no audience or camera man. There is something to be said about That feeling. The only way I can describe it would be "freedom." A noun that most people think they have, but very few have ever really felt. It's the sense of physical accomplishment after working out, mixed with the creative achievement of painting or sculpting. Its an adrenaline rush; but it's also zen. Its meditation to skate.... and I was itching for it!! But this was a different "itch" this time. For some reason, this time, I wanted to try my hand at skateboarding.
Now, if you remember skating and skateboarding from in the 90s; you'll know that what I'm doing is kinda sacrilegious. Most folks then (and some still now) picked their sides and stuck to it. Insults. Bias. Fist fights. Something I've never really understood, because I've always found awesomeness and beauty in ALL extreme sports. I've always, personally, preferred rollerblading.... but I always had friends who did snowboarding, bmx, skateboarding, etc! I'll always respect somebody doing what they love!
And with that being said, I'LL ALWAYS STILL ROLLERBLADE TOO! I'm significantly better at skating than skateboarding, and so it provides a different type of enjoyment for me when I go to a good skatepark or skate spot. But for now, I want to give a genuine attempt at skateboarding! I can cruise around pretty proficiently, but I would like to get better!
My goal is to be able to do a basic grind by the end of this coming summer. That's 4-6 months of good practice and honest dedication. As I said before, I've got a slight learning curve... but I'm also quite prepared to fall on my ass as expected! I'm willing to get a little hurt, in the name of expanding my horizons a little bit. I'm also excited to see how much it will improve my balance and coordination when blading. All in all, it will be a fun learning experience.
My purpose for this blog is to maybe inspire somebody else out there who wants to try something similar but it worried about being "too old" to start. A year ago, I completely quit smoking cigarettes. Since then, I've been convinced that anybody can do anything if they put their mind to it. Hope you enjoy reading, and thank you for checking out my webpage!! I'll be posting pictures and videos of my progress when I feel it's suitable. Wish me luck!!!!!!
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