After a better night of sleep and breaking down the campsite in BV we got to Leadville around 11.  We had discussed a 70 minute timer which seems impossible with this crew, but we managed to only go 20 minutes over.  It was a really fun session though and there weren’t many people there.  Except for the wannabe Blood Wizard dudes who ripped, but were jerks.  I’ll start with the person who landed the least amount of tricks.  Me.  I came close to a noseslide 270 shove, did some noseslides, putzed around even though I was having fun.  Ollie did some cool stuff.  The ollie up to almost side rock to grind and the ride over to manual were sick and tricks that he thought of on his own.  Richard destroyed.  Did kickflips and b/s flips up and down the euro, then battled nollie big heel up the euro before stomping it perfectly then battled kickflip back nosegrind on the bump to ledge until he also stomped it perfectly.  Matt put down a super good nollie varial heel up the euro and did some manuals on the little two level thing in the corner with Dan.  Eric did a sick blunt stall 360 transfer.  Joe lined out front shove up the euro with front 50 and front 50 180 down the hubba.  Gnar.  I know I’m missing a lot.  The park was fun.  

After a long drive, food, 303, we ended up at a crowded Boulder park.  So many people had joined (Jack, Kevin, Fuller, Skelly, Rob, Neil) or left (Ollie, Richard) that I have zero chance of remembering this.  I was pretty blown away by Rob not shying away from the crowds, kickflipping the hip and bump to tailslide.  Neil took a long time to get going, but man he got it going.  Kickflip the hip, nose manuals, pop shove up the euro, crooks shove, sometimes all of those in one line.  Fuller feebled the parking block qp, nose manuals, front 50 back 180.  Skelly got good pop over the hips, back 50 the qp to ollie down onto the bench.  Kevin front 5-0 over the bench to back lip the parking block qp.  Dan front 50 heelflip out BOLTS!  Joe and I did doubles down the hubba as once again all I really did was noseslides.  Oh and I hucked bigflips over the hip which did seem possible and I committed to a couple. They just didn’t work out. Joe would 5-0 down the hubba too, back 50 around the bench corner, front shove the hip.  Matt back nosegrind the bump to legde, crooks nollie heelflip out!!!  Jack back 360 flip the weird old hip, close to 360 flip noseblunt.  

After a dip in the creek we went to dog park.  I was so dead at that point.  I tried to get it going, but had nothing and when my bearing blew out I took that as an excuse to sit and get bit my mosquitos.  The Nebraskans were hyped and immediately going in on it.  Eric boardslid Full Metal jacket and slammed on a parking block.  His knee was huge.  Joe brought the energy as always.  Front 50 shove the tall bench!  Also fakie 50s, boardslides and a funny slam in the grass to end it.  Dan did backside willy back 180 out, fakie nosegrinds, cancel flips and no comply pole jam.  Matt nollie crooks, boardslide the tall flatbar.  Skelly one foot manual.  Neil had a casual line of 180 wallie world, cab the manhole, halfcab board the little flat bar, bluntslide the parking block, nollie lip the little flat bar.  Then the trip was done.  I was exhausted and happy to not have to skate the next day.  But also sad and bummed on friends going home and returning to our normal lives.  

(setup 8.25 null spanbauer pro deck, jessup ultragrip, venture 5.6 cast baseplate with riptides v-hollow hanger, 3 washers inside each axle, venom 88a big bushing 91a small bushing, spitfire f4 99a 50mm classic shape, es swift b/w size 11.5 no insoles)
(pain level 4/10)

After a tough night of camping and a long drive we arrived at a sunny and hot Gunnison skatepark.  The park had lost some of it’s edge over the years.  I guess with other parks having mellow hips now it wasn’t as unique.  I chilled for a while and ate.  Ollie mostly sat in his hammock, but would come out for some manuals and f/s half cabs.  Dan tried to heelflip into the BMX track, did a double staple gun on the mini loveseat.  Eric and I attempted to play on the spine, but really didn’t do much.  His rock ride to fakie was good though as was the rock fakie attempt on the little vert brick qp.  He would also grind over the love seat way quicker than me.  Matt had some grinds on the ledge, nollie b/s flip over the hip, qp to nose manual.  Ricahrd ripped as he always does.  Melon the pyramid, b/s flip way better than mine, ghetto bird the hip, nollie big heel the hip, basics on the ledge like they were nothing.  I had a fun line of noseslide the pyramid ledge then turn around and b/s flip the hip, grind over the love seat and got remotely close to nollie tre the hip.  Joe, aka the Energizer Bunny, skated well even though his ankle was kinda wrecked.  He front 50’d the weird bank to ledge, front 50 shove and front 50 to front board the ledge, b/s flip the hip, back 50 the china bank.  

(setup 8.25 null spanbauer pro deck, jessup ultragrip, venture 5.6 cast baseplate with riptides v-hollow hanger, 3 washers inside each axle, venom 88a big bushing 91a small bushing, spitfire f4 99a 50mm classic shape, es swift b/w size 11.5 no insoles)
(pain level 4/10)

Ollie and I got to Frisco park around 11, chilled for a bit then Rob and Neil showed up too.  The park was pretty empty and it’s funny because of all the skaters that showed up everyone basically skated the street section only.  The scooters and strider kids were attracted to the moonscape pumptrack so I guess that’s a good distraction to keep them out of the good stuff.  So much skating has occurred after this that it’s really hard to remember.  Luckily there was some filming so there’s that.  I was definitely thrown off with the new shoes.  Ollie skated quite a bit which was cool.  He stuck with fakie front shoves and front 180s, maybe some manuals too.  Rob was shredding.  Bean plant and no comply shove over the A-frame, back 50s manuals and nose manuals on the little manny pad, was hyped to see him kickflip the bank, first try boardslide the down rail.  I skated okay, but not great.  Kickflip on the bank took awhile, couldn’t nosegrind the little ledge, struggled with crooks, didn’t get fakie nosegrind, had some fun kickflips out of the little bump, finally front 50 the little downhill ledge, couldn’t get the front shove off the wedge and my happiest moment was first try noseslide down the rail.  I haven’t boardslid a down rail in a long time, but I guess it’s more of a ledge.  I was still hyped though.  Neil’s ollies are just so good it’s great to watch.  Pop shove the A-frame, no complies on the bank, manuals and nose manuals the pad, front 50s, looking good.

Then we went to Buena Vista to meet the Nebraska crew which was Dan, Joe, Eric, Matt and Richard.  Man it was great seeing them.  We would get interrupted by rain at times, but skated for a couple/few hours.  This is impossible to remember everything.  Neil was ollieing up the euro, cruising, one foots, kickflips out of the bank.  Joe went in on a line of kickflip out of the bank, rock ‘n roll the qp, front 50 to tail the weird ledge.  He would get it, but he paid on a couple slams.  Luckily his ankle was okay.  Dan did some cool manuals variations from the miniramp to the park and back, then a front board to switch 50 then ride in the qp on the weird ledge to qp.  Eric rock fakied the weird euro qp.  I skated it with him and tried a bunch of axle stalls before getting it first try a camera was brought out.  Ha.  Also got rock ‘n rolls.  I couldn’t get a halfcab flip on the bank.  Then Eric and I tried tricks out of the mellower bank for awhile.  He went shove it which he’s only done once and would get it.  I couldn’t get a treflip and ended up losing my temper.  Ugh.  I put too much weight on that trick.  Matt was shredding, but I can’t remember a trick.  Rob had some stylee f/s grinds on the qp.  Richard b/s flipped over the rainbow rail second try and then crook, feeble and front board the rail.  I wish I would have just landed a treflip instead of losing my mind, but it was still a fun session and I was happy those dudes were visiting again.

(setup 8.25 null spanbauer pro deck, jessup ultragrip, venture 5.6 cast baseplate with riptides v-hollow hanger, 3 washers inside each axle, venom 88a big bushing 91a small bushing, spitfire f4 99a 50mm classic shape, es swift b/w size 11.5 no insoles)
(pain level 4/10)