Was hyped to be having a Null day, but wanted to get some skating in so I could enjoy just being a filmer more. I got to Southern Hills around 9:30 and the first few minutes felt rough. I thought I’d skip out and go to the slappy curb session in awhile, but I ended up getting it together enough to keep at it. I was bummed the bottom stair was covered in ice so not skateable. That’s such a good warm up. I tried to warm up on flatground, but that wasn’t working so I started with some really slow noseslides and boardslides and somehow that started working. Started trying a line of pop shove, noseslide to fakie, halfcab flip, crooks. But the halfcab flip wasn’t working so I changed it up. Front board the bench of a picnic table, noseslide to fakie, switch 180, crooks. That came pretty easy. Then I mostly skated the best of the ledges. It took awhile to get a slow front 50, but I ended up getting a few of them and it felt cool. Hadn’t done that there in awhile. I couldn’t get back 50 though, I committed, but just never got on it. I got a really bad front nose or two and took awhile to get a halfcab noseslide. I hucked some flip tricks in between tries. It’s hard to imagine I have actually landed a nollie flip because I couldn’t even get it close. Landed on a treflip, posed nollie inward heels, switch heels. Sometimes when I’m sucking I just huck tricks I can’t ever do and it feels better than not landing tricks I should land.

Then I went and picked up Jack and after some business at Loco we went to Rocky Mountain Elementary. We were there first. We played a game of SKATE that lasted awhile. I got a letter on 360 flip as I always seem to these days. I got him on a couple of random tricks, but basically I wasn’t landing tricks when I should and I ended up losing on a frontside flip. Then Hayden and Peyton showed up and I played Hayden in SKATE. Once again I got a letter on 360 flip and even front shove. Argh. I got pink slipped. The last trick was nollie front heel and somehow it felt close enough that I would like to try it again. Filing went alright. Filming lines isn’t easy. Jack and Hayden got some good lines. Riley could have. Sean and Garrett were there too. Garrett looked smooth on the ledge. Then we checked out this crazy bump to rail that Peyton front noseslid. Then a quick peep at a weird bank spot, but it was getting cold so we called it a day. Null days are fun.

(setup 8″ null Monico deck, venture 5.25 awake lows, 50mm bones stf v1, 3 washers on the inside of each axle, venom 91a bushings, new balance numeric arto 358 black/white size 11, custom orthotic insole)

Had the day off work. Did some family stuff, went swimming then eventually got Ollie to go skate for a bit at Creekside. All he really tried was kickflips and he seemed upset. Doh. I did a couple back 50s and then Jake showed. We went to Douglass and Dave pulled in at the same time. We started off with some tic tac races around a little track. It was funny. Dave won and we found out he had been training for this for years. Then we played a game of SKATE that Jake won. It was another game where I got letters on tricks I can do. Dave got me with switch no comply and that’s fine, but I think I got a letter on front shove. Then we hit the ledges. I was the last to get a front 50 and I’m sure mine was the slowest. But it felt cool regardless. I got a lucky first try crooks, noseslide, noseslide to fakie and boardslide. Dave also did front noseslides to fakie, maybe halfcab noseslide. Jake also did back 50, back crooks, several accidental noseslides instead of crooks. Then he started trying a line of ollie over a ledge then front 50 shove out. We filmed it for awhile, he got it once, but it had some sketch. Then it was my turn to skate, but I felt this crazy pressure because I knew Jake would want to leave soon and it turned into anger at my skateboard. I got so mad. I’m happy I didn’t focus my board because I ended up having fun, but man it was close. We were skated the back area mostly now. Dave had been doing lines while I was filming Jake. Something on the little ledge, switch and regular wallrides, kickflips, etc. I was really struggling just doing a basic 50 and it drove me nuts. There was this very mini hip there and it took me awhile to kicklfip it and that was nearly the end of me. I eventually settled down and got some, tried to line it out with nollie tailsides then front 50 a taller part of the ledge, but kept failing at that. Dave was doing really good front 5-0s, trying front 50 nollie shove off the end, did the switch crooks pictured above, boardslides, almost fakie varial flip over the little hip. Jake and I tried f/s halfcab flips over the hip. I got a lame one. I also got a fakie flip over it which would be a first on a hip for me, but I guess calling that mini bump an actual hip is a stretch. I tried some nosegrinds on the little ledge too, but I stuck every time. Jake was trying fakie bigspin boardslide or noseslide. He kind of got into it. I failed fakie nosegrinds. All in all a weird session for me. Sorry for getting so angry dudes. It was fun in the end though.

(setup 8″ null Monico deck, venture 5.25 awake lows, 50mm bones stf v1, 3 washers on the inside of each axle, venom 91a bushings, new balance numeric arto 358 black/white size 11, custom orthotic insole)