So, I recently decided to get back into skateboarding. In high school, skateboarding meant the world to me. Now, as I am getting older (I just turned 28), I have realized the skateboarding was a form of self expression that I still enjoy on a fundamental level. So, I built myself a new skate box for my birthday, and my progress is really coming along. Today was a great skate session as far as summoning up some old tricks I had up my sleeve. It is amazing how some skills like nose slides (in the video) have come back relatively effortlessly, while other skills, like kick flips (not in the video) have been quite challenging.
This short video was captured on my iphone and includes a backside nose slide which isn’t perfect, but I was able to pull it off. It also includes a short video of my ollie height practice. I have worked up to ollie-ing over a bucket and a candle, which is approximately 18” tall.
I have primarily been focusing on my ollie (for the uninitiated, that is when you jump off the ground and the board follows), which is a fundamental skill needed for almost any grind or flip trick.
My absolute favorite thing about skateboarding is the intimate relationship one has with failure. Failure in skateboarding is quite literal and can be very painful. If you land the trick you “roll away” on the board. Everything is smooth and you were successful. If you don’t land the trick, at best you “bail” and at worst you “bust”. Busting can be as simple as falling on the ground or a much more painful (and sometimes comical) chain of events that can induce scrapes, bruises, sprains, cuts, gashes, broken bones, concussions, or worse.
I plan on posting short videos of my improvement from time to time. (I have a long journey ahead of me)
Enjoy!
