On a cool night in the low 30s I hit campus for a bit. I started with slappy crooks on the meetup curb then moved over to this area I’ve skated a couple times. I had put a bigger board on again. I went for a line that took awhile. Ollie up the first step (oval area in the back middle of the photo), then ollie up the next step, come around front 50 the 2nd stair on the leftish stairs, ollie up a curb, then down a 3. It took a long time, but I did get the 3 stair ollie the first time I got there. I took a few tries to ollie the long two. Then I spent way too long trying a front tail on the ledge in the front left. See how dark it is? Yeah, it was hard to see.

(setup null 8.5 perception deck, 5.8 venture black icon trucks, doh dohs bushings (blue 88a barrel bottom one, yellow 92a small top one), no washers inside each axle, spitfire f4 99a radial 52mm blue/yellow swirl wheels, new balance numeric 345 black/white size 12, stock insoles)
(pain level 4/10 feet are begging for a cupsole)

On a cold night I ran some errands that ended at the Valmont Post Office. I had planned to skate around there, but the lights weren’t really on and I didn’t want to fumble around in the dark. I ended up at the Pearl business park which basically has nothing to skate. But in my new found motivation to skate more random street spots I made something of it. There was a few sidewalk manny pads, the weird bump to wallride and a brick hubba to drop in on. I settled in on a line pretty quick. Ollie onto a sidewalk, front 180 off, switch front 180 manual, kickflip a mini bump, then the wallie nollie. I never quite got the line as I could never hold the switch 180 manual the whole way and the wallie/nollie was terrible. My board was feeling very small and it was annoying me to no end. I tried the dropin for awhile, but for some reason I kept bailing out. I tried a few flippers here and there, but didn’t land much of anything. I blame a mixture of the thin shoes and cold temperature. Then I did the wallie nollie until I landed an okay one. In between attempts I bailed f/s halfcab heels. Then I did the drop in finally, but my phone had turned off because of the cold. I went to leave, but realized I could plug my phone in and film it while lighting it up better with my car. It took an annoying amount of tries again. Each bail hurt. It looks so easy in the clip, but didn’t feel easy.

(setup null 8.25 lazer deck, 5.8 venture black icon trucks, doh dohs bushings (blue 88a barrel bottom one, yellow 92a small top one), no washers inside each axle, spitfire f4 99a radial 52mm blue/yellow swirl wheels, new balance numeric 345 black/white size 12, thin rubbery adidas insoles)
(pain level 2/10)

Went to Broomfield after some lounging around and arrived to a mostly empty park.  It felt pretty cold even though it was in the 40s.  We started on the blue bank spot.  My ollies up were sketchy every time.  Kevin had kickflip and nollie flip fakies on it.  I was struggling big time, but managed a shove fakie and no comply bigspin.  We were almost shown up by a young kid hell bent on showing us how good he is.  It was weird.  Then we played a game of SKATE.  I lost, no surprise.  But it was a decent warm up.  I got close to nollie tre and tre.  My bushings were feeling super weird, like loose, but then would totally stick.  Then it was mostly the black ledge.  Kevin rattled off trick after trick as he does going fast.  I had a couple tricks.  Then we tried new tricks.  He started with pop shove 50 on the blue ledge, landed it, then moved on to the black ledge and landed it.  I was trying halfcab crook the whole time.  I didn’t get close on the black ledge at all, but would eventually get a very brief jib on the blue ledge.  It’s progress I guess.  Then I did a few quartapotty tricks as setup for a back 50 on the blue ledge.  

(setup null 8.25 lazer deck, 5.8 venture black icon trucks, bones  bushings (medium big bottom one, hard small top one), no washers inside each axle, bones 51mm stf v1 pj wheels, new balance numeric 345 black/white size 12, thin rubbery adidas insoles)
(pain level 3/10 the feet want more protection i think)

After resting from an early morning work call and then basketball with Ollie I met Dave and Eric at the dog park.    Dave seemed to be well into the warm up process and Eric was just getting started.  But Eric did a heelflip right away that looked good.  We all had some lines going.  The flatbar is surprisingly hard to skate as it’s cheap aluminum and sticks often.  We would ollie it to start lines or boardslides.  Dave would get a bunch of feebles too.  I had some luck with flip tricks early on, fakie flip, halfcab flip, b/s flip.  Struggled with heelflip, but kind of got an over 40 rick flip make. We pulled out Eric’s little ledge too and that thing is a good ol’ wobbly time.  Eric had some nice crooks.   I had a few fun front 50s and backed one of them with a slow treflip with a hand down.  I was also having fun trying lines like ollieing the crack gap, boardslide the flat bar then front 50.  Dave was working on a long line to switch ollie the flat bar.  Feeble, back 50, kickflip, nollie front 180, switch ollie.  I thought I filmed the one he did, but it turns out I was reverse filming from when he fell the time before.  Ha ha, the screen shot is above.  The switch ollie was so good though.  Eric did front 50 180 out first try, almost crooks shove.  I had started trying halfcab crooks and was actually getting into them for the first time ever.  I may have landed a couple little jibs before, but I was really locking into them this time and grinding.  It felt awesome.  I got a couple that didn’t grind far and still felt good.  Man I hope I can continue to get close to that trick, because it’s a dream trick for sure!

Then we went to Saul’s.  There was already a crew there.  Saul, Uriel, Josh, Cole, and another dude.  Uriel was doing crazy good grinds.  Feebles, smiths, both fs and bs.  So good.  Saul was shredding around.  Cole had some moves.  Dave is always a treat to watch there and didn’t disappoint.  Eric had some good heelflip slams, long back 50s.  I had fun doing scratch grinds and bailing axle stalls.

(setup null 8.25 lazer deck, 5.8 venture black icon trucks, bones  bushings (medium big bottom one, hard small top one), no washers inside each axle, bones 51mm stf v1 pj wheels, new balance numeric 345 black/white size 12, thin adidas insoles)
(pain level 3/10 some foot pain)

Met around 1pm on a nice, but a little breezy day at the little arvada park, aka triple nipple.  I haven’t been there in a long time, so long in fact that the newly paved parking lot made me think I had drove to the wrong place.  Kevin, Jack and Carleigh were there already along with some of the other girl crew.  I started on the mellow top qp for awhile, got a few basics, it’s a fun qp.  Carleigh did a back blunt on it.  So sick.  Then I played the ledge game with Kevin and Jack.  Kevin was trying fakie back nosegrind, Jack was trying nollie back 180 switch front crook (or maybe just call it a Suciu trick).  Both got close, but moved on.  Rob would show after awhile.  Kevin and Jack were rattling off trick after trick on the ledge.  Kevin had kick back tail!  Jack was doing 8 foot long back tails, front tail 270 shove, pop shove nosegrind, so many tricks.  I did a couple basics and forced myself to try back 50.  I got into a couple at least, but it was slow and I came to a halt.  But I was still happy to have made myself try.  I got a halfcab noseslide and struggled with some front 50s.  My highlight was a fakie 50 f/s halfcab out then a front 50 shove.  Rob was flowing manuals, boardslides, noseslides.  Carleigh was getting close to back disaster.  I left for Darin’s while Jack was trying a line of back tail, nosepick, back 180 nosegrind 180 out.  

Then we went to Darin’s.  Well, just Kevin and I.  There was a crew there.  Adam, Craig, Dave and Darin.  Most of them were trying a line that had started with add a trick that was like 20 tricks long.  It looked exhausting.  I think Craig was the only one go get it.  Kevin rips miniramps.  Blunt fakie, switch flip, long front 5-0s and lipslides.  I didn’t do much, even bailed some axle stalls.  I should probably skate ramps more.

(setup null 8.25 lazer deck, 5.8 venture black icon trucks, bones  bushings (medium big bottom one, hard small top one), no washers inside each axle, bones 51mm stf v1 pj wheels, new balance numeric 212 black white size 11.5, stock insoles)
(pain level 4/10 bottom of the foot pain)

I wanted to skate later during lunch, but I knew the work day would be too crazy.  So I went to the dog park on a cold morning that felt even colder than I thought it would.  It took me a really long time to do the warm up line of kickflip, no comply 180 then fakie flip.  In fact I gave up on it and came back to a first try fakie flip after also getting a first try halfcab flip.  I didn’t land anything else for quite awhile.  I setup a couple bricks as something to ollie over.  I made a T out of them and it felt pretty tall for how early and cold it was.  I had an ollie over it followed by a 2nd try sketchy treflip which stoked me out.  Couldn’t get nollie tre, got one super slow heelflip, one super slow halfcab heel, first try slow fakie varial flip, slow f/s halfcab flip, maybe a couple other slow tricks.

(setup null 8.25 lazer deck, 5.8 venture black icon trucks, bones  bushings (medium big bottom one, hard small top one), no washers inside each axle, bones 51mm stf v1 pj wheels, new balance numeric 345 black/white size 12, old rubbery sole tech insoles)
(pain level 4/10 and my right foot was so cold)

Went to Boulder park before work on a cold morning, but somehow it didn’t feel so cold.  I had the park to myself for awhile except for a random homeless dude doing paperwork near the ledge (wtf?).  I had switched to some old 345s for no real reason other than I think it really does help my feet to rotate shoes.  I did some random stuff, but managed to not skate transition at all.  Ha.  I had those smaller harder wheels and they felt a little weird at first, but then I started popping ollied and they felt great for that.  I did a noseslide to fakie down the no runway hubba.  Well, only slid for a bit then landed in the bank which was kind of hard and fun.  Then I tried back 50s down it for awhile.  Never quite got in, but did commit at least.  Tried b/s flips over the tiny hip for a bit, but never put both feet on it.  Then front 50 across down the main ledge 2nd try.  Somehow that got me the courage to try and front 50 on just the downhill which I haven’t done in forever.  Downhill scares me.  But I did it like 5th try going super slow.  I wanted to go back and do it faster, but I needed to get to work and was happy leave on a good note.

(setup null 8.25 lazer deck, 5.8 venture black icon trucks, bones  bushings (medium big bottom one, hard small top one), no washers inside each axle, bones 51mm stf v1 pj wheels, new balance numeric 345 black/white size 12, old rubbery sole tech insoles)
(pain level 4/10 didn’t do many morning stretches)

Feeling lazy I went into the garage to try some flippers.  After fakie flips took a few try I hucked some weird ones.  Randomly I tried nollie front foot flip.  I can’t really nollie so I’m not sure why I tried, but it did feel somewhat possible.  Then I went into nollie front heel and it felt close.  I got pretty close a few times and fully committed.  Then I had an awkward fall into the mattress in the garage and decided to call it a night and catch up on this journal.  I’m caught up!  Hooray

setup null 8.25 lazer deck, 5.8 venture black icon trucks, bones  bushings (medium big bottom one, hard top one), no washers inside each axle, bones 51mm stf v1 pj wheels, adidas city cup size 11, stock insoles)
(pain level 5/10 maybe sore from the gym)

Went to Square House right after work and a quick meal.  I wasn’t really feeling like skating much and I really wasn’t wanting to skate a crowded park.  But Donnie sent me a photo of no one being there so I went.  It was just Donnie, Sean and Riley.  David joined later, as did Ted.  I had put some old bones wheels in thinking I would like them to flip with.  But straight out of the gates I sucked.  Bailed axle stalls on the ramp, couldn’t 50 the ledge, etc.  Those 3 were skating the parking block on top of the bump to ledge.  Well I guess Sean was mostly skating the ledge, Riley was too.  Donnie was doing some ridiculous switch stuff from the lower qp onto the higher one.  I had a crooks on the ledge I liked, a sketchy kickflip up the euro, a fun kicfklip to fakie on the mellow bank and ended it by taking a lot of tries to back 50 on the qp over the little qp.  Riley had lines for days and could just improvise with tricks like switch heel up the euro.  Sean had a sick line of front nosegrind the ledge, back 50 up the hubba then ollie into the wood bank thing.  Donnie was in beast mode.  It’s inspiring the way he slams and gets up.  Still fun, but man I skated terribly.

(setup null 8.25 lazer deck, 5.8 venture black icon trucks, bones  bushings (medium big bottom one, hard top one), no washers inside each axle, old bones 51mm v1 pj stf, new balance numeric 212 black/white size 11.5, stock insoles)
(pain level 2/10 but still felt disoriented)

After getting hyped on some Vics Market videos at Jack’s I felt like doing some real street skating for once.  Just pull up to an area of town and skate.  I had to bring boards to Fedex so I just went there and skated around.  I was immediately stoked to see the very well lit alley behind the old Whole Foods being totally skateable now.  I played around for awhile warming up then settled on some lines to get going.  I would do a variation of a side rock, then ollie a little square cement chunk and then try to tailslide a little yellow curb.  I had setup a new board, 8.25.  It felt small, but fine.  I had the City Cups going again and they felt tine too.  I took a long time to get a kickflip to fakie, the approach was hard.  I tried to back tail the tiny yellow curb, but that didn’t work.  Pop shove to fakie was fun too.  That area is cool.  Then I rolled around for awhile and ended up at the weird wood bench in the photo.  There is a slight bank up to it.  i did a nose stall to fakie then took a very long time to get a front axle stall.  But it felt good when I did it.  I had tried a few flippers, but didn’t land much.  My board/shoes felt weird for that.  But yeah, super fun night, felt great to really street skate.  I need to do this more.

(setup null 8.25 lazer deck, 5.8 venture black icon trucks, bones  bushings (medium big bottom one, hard top one), no washers inside each axle, spitfire f4 radial blue/yellow swirl 52mm 99a wheels, adidas city cup size 11, stock insoles)
(pain level 2/10)