After driving from Grand Junction I chilled for a bit then rushed off to dog park on a nice cool afternoon. Valmont was empty so I started there. I had changed my setup to 8.3 with ace 44 lows. I liked it more than the previous setup, but wasn’t exactly in love with it. I had some fun on the top section. Did a little roll out on a weird little rounded qp, rock ‘n roll the tight qp, back 50 the main qp, curve around then front disaster it. Did a few variations of that which were all fun. Had some good feeling ollies over the euro, kickflip to fakie did not come easy on the bank.

Then I went to the dog park which was mostly empty too. I skated alright, cruised around faster than normal, didn’t land much flippers. Had a fun line of front 50 180 out, halfcab noseslide the bench, back 50 the curb. After a while I went in on fakie 50 creepy spin out. I kind of landed a couple, but not good enough to hand off to Dave. Fun session. I skated the ledges okay, transition pretty well, flatground not good at all.

(null 8.3 vhs, jessup ultragrip, ace 44 af1 lows hard bushing, 51mm spitfire f4 101a classic, new balance numeric 440 brown size 12 half insoles)
(pain level 3/10)

On a cloudy and cool morning I went to dog park feeling excited to skate. For one, it wasn’t too windy and for another I was woke again. Venture finally came out with hollow cast plates and the timing was too good to not add in a christmas complete. Anyway, warming up wasn’t too bad except I kept seeming to get in everyones way. Rob showed up basically the same time as me, Cass was later, Jack B later. Dennis and crew were there as well as some other older skaters and it was a good vibe. I skated okay and had energy. Personal highlights were front 180 off the grate kicker to really bad switch front board on a parking block, halfcab flip first try, how much pop my board had, boardslides on everything felt good as did crooks. Cass was over at the skatepark for a while. Rob had first try shove lipslide! Also close to nose manual shove. Jack B front 50’d the bench, dude got pop! Cass, Rob and I played a game of SKATE featuring the worst f/s halfcab ever (by me of course, actually I ended up not counting it because it was so bad), a lot of bailed flip tricks by me, no comply back 360 by Rob and he won it on that fakie bigspin no comply.

After that Cass and I kickflipped a parking block a few times, we did it in a train. I was happy to kickflip it, it’s been a while. I couldn’t get a clean no comply flip though.

After a very filling burger Cass and I went to Douglass. We did a lap around the school since Cass hadn’t seen it all. We ended up in the back and have no idea why we haven’t skated there more. The little ledge was fun, but we didn’t have wax. We both imagined noseslides dropping down to noseslide. I posed some switch front noses. Then we went to the front and struggled. I was happy how my setup popped up the curb easily, but I really struggled with kickflips. I posed some other flippers, but landed nothing. In the end I think Cass had done some good back 180s up the curb, halfcabs on flat then couldn’t get a noseslide. I did ollie up the curb, kickflip, some type of noseslide that was supposed to be a crook. I also got switch 180 up the curb, pop shove on flat, noseslide to fakie, almost fakie flip.

(setup null mc hesher 8.25, jessup ultragrip, venture 5.6 v-cast with bones medium bushings, 51mm bones pj 103a v1, new balance numeric 440 blue size 12 half insole)
(pain level 3/10)

On a nice bright Saturday I drove the shaking Honda wagon to the dog park. I knew Rob, Sean, Nick would be there. But was hyped on Jack B, Eric, Paul and others. I brought my smaller 8.1 setup and stuck with it after first try kickflip and fakie flip felt so good. I wouldn’t skate very well, but did get a noseslide 270 out that felt cool and almost front shove off the c pad. Nick had some nice manuals and poppy flippers. Sean battled back nosegrind to quick kickflip nose manual. So good. Eric always charges. He was over on the barrier for a while so I couldn’t see much, but still saw some heelflip, almost heelflip back 50, so close to crooks on the upper deck. Rob was killing it. Fakie nosegrind 180 on the curb, halfcab back 50s, back smiths and manual around the backside part of the C pad and then went on to get back 180 out. I was unhappy with how incredibly sore I got. But Nick and I closed out with a game of SKATE that involved a lot of misses, but was pretty fun. I was happy to get a first try backside flip and eventually get a fakie bigflip. Nick won on a fakie treflip.

(setup null all you need 8.1, jessup ultragrip, venture 5.6 v-hollow royal bushings no big washer flat top washer, 51mm bones pj ladd v1 103a, new balance numeric 440 blue size 12 half insole)
(pain level 5/10 ugh)

On a really nice day I went to Uni Hill Elem to meet up with Jake, Rob and Dave. I’ve been here a couple of times, but haven’t really fully skated it. This spot has so much potential. I arrived first and was cruising around and getting some ideas. Rob and Jake showed shortly after. Rob wasn’t feeling it. I started trying to line out the curved ledge, ollie and make it to a boardslide. Jake joined me with some back 50s. I think once I got back 50, no pop ollie the mini ledge, kickflip and slid the boardslide, but didn’t pop over. Not sure that I would know how to pop over. I came close to back 50 shove. Jake couldn’t quite get nollie back tail. Dave started a session up top doing tricks into the turf bank. He got fakie shove. Rob did some tail spins (?) into it. I’m not sure Jake got shove or kickflip in. Jake and Rob moved on to campus and I tried to ollie up the ledge into the sidewalk, but never got it. When I committed my back foot didn’t get the height. Doh.

On campus we went to start with a game of SKATE. I failed 3 kickflips in a row so I quit the game and somehow managed to not focus my board. This is probably due to yet another setup change and wearing different shoes, but I was still upset. So I just skated flatground while those guys played SKATE. I was still struggling, but did get a line of 4 or 5 tricks at one point.

Then we went to Baker ledge which a few students were already skating. At times I got incredibly annoyed as the youth clearly weren’t paying attention and just going when they felt like it. I came close to noseslide up to crooks and got a couple kickflips up the curb. But I couldn’t front 50 the ledge or nose manual the pad. Jake got nollie back tail, noseslide and crooks. Rob may have gotten no comply manual to 50, halfcab noseslide, front board. Dave front 50’d like second try then went on to do some ride on front crooks to fakie that were so sick. Fun day.

(setup null 8.5 vhs, jessup ultragrip, venture 5.8 titanium royal bushing no big washer flat little washer, spitfire 51mm 101a classic f4, new balance numeric 425 black/gum size 11.5 half insole)
(pain level 4/10 started off pretty good and the different shoe avoided the sharp knee pain but the smaller shoe definitely hurt after a while)

After a fun hike with the Nebraska crew I swapped vans at square house and met up with people at Broomfield park. I was not very focused and obviously distracted by the upcoming event. The only thing I remember doing was trying crooks and then treflips for a long time. Never got the treflip. Was trying 8.5 with Indy 149s and basically hated it. Played a game of SKATE with Cass where I didn’t land anything it seemed like, but still won with f/s halfcab heel. Rob was shredding, I saw a shove lipslide. Richard was there and did a super fast kick back nosegrind so perfectly. Sean was making everything look easy. Garrett, Joe, Hayden, Bo, everyone was skating good. Then it was time to bounce and pick up Jack and get the party started.

(setup null 8.5 vhs, jessup ultragrip, indy barbee 149s, spitfire f4 101a classic, new balance numeric 440 size 12 half insole)
(pain level 3/10)

Feeling pretty exhausted still but wanting to skate with Carleigh before she left Paul picked me up and we met up with Dave, Darin and others. I had a Christmas complete. My reward for finishing Something. It was an 8.5 with 51mm PJ wheels and hollow Ace 55s. I liked it, but I didn’t love it. Popping was hard. I got close to noseslide 270 shoves and did a sloppy fakie bigflip out of the bank, but other than that was pretty lackluster for me. Carleigh was lofting ollies into the bank and doing front and back disasters on the brick qp, boardslides, kickflips. Ripping. Paul is really good, was back 50’ing the black ledge before I had even pushed. He went on to do a lot more tricks like back 50 front 180, fakie tails both ways. Dave had some poppy nollies into the bank, nollie front 180s out of it, almost nose manual the black box, there’s a lot more, but I’m forgetting. Darin, Justin, Kyler, other Tuesday night locals were there charging it. Pretty fun session.

(setup 8.5 null vhs, jessup ultragrip, ace af1 55 hollows, 51mm pj bones stf 103a v1, new balance numeric 440 size 12 half insole)
(pain level 4/10 some good ol’ cupsole knee sharp pain)

Another entry well after the fact and a big premiere later. Cass and I went over to Valmont to get warmed up. Had a couple of kickflips when we went in on the top little bowl area that is super hard to skate. Some back 50s and ollies went down. I do wish there was more flat coping instead of the obnoxious slope. Still, it was fun to skate it differently. Back at the ledges we got a status report from Rob who said he had gotten shove lipslide. Sick! I had one decent feeling crooks and couldn’t fakie 50 the bench.  Had a couple fun slappy front crooks.  Cass was trying some fakie back 50s, doing good regular back 50s.

(setup 8.3 null vhs deck, jessup ultragrip, ace af1 55, 51mm spitfire f4 99a classic shape, new balance numeric 440 black size 11.5 no insoles)
(pain level no idea)

I’m writing this one week after the fact and a huge video premiere later so it’s not going to have much. I had taken a few notes. I had switched to venture 5.8s and hated every second of it. The dog park was heated. Rob and I went over to the skatepark. My only notes are that I did a kickflip on the mellow bank, the rainbow grind and couldn’t get a good grind on the pond qp. After Rob left I went back to the ledges and putzed around for a bit before having a fun little line of wallie the corner of the barrier then boardslide the other end of it.

(setup null vhs 8.3, jessup ultragrip, venture 5.8 titanium hanger cast baseplate royal bushings no big washer flat top washer, 51mm spitfire f4 101a classic shape, new balance numeric 440 black size 11.5 no insoles)
(pain level no idea)

I’m writing this after several days of editing Something and remember basically nothing about it. I know I didn’t have the will to pull out my big board again so I was on my little 8.1″ board and it felt small, but awesome. The kicker had been raised and some dude kickflipped the picnic table so casually. He would also hardflip it. I don’t think I did much other than some slow flip tricks. I think Fergs was there too bringing the fun. Rob said he did nollie front lip on the little flat bar which he hadn’t done there before. I’m sure he was killing manuals and nose manuals and back 50s too.

(setup 8.1″ null all you need deck, jessup ultragrip, venture 5.6 v-hollows royal bushings no big washer flat top washer, 52mm spitfire f4 99a classic shape, new balance 440 black 11.5 no insoles)
(pain level probably something like 3/10)

On a surprisingly hot day I met up with a bunch of people that my video making brain is too fried to remember. I’m sorry. I remember skating alright, not great, but I skated pretty hard. I thought I’d only have an hour before being the filmer so I paced myself for an hour of skating and when it became 2+ hours I was exhausted. I had switched back to Aces and I liked it a lot. I had some early easy 50s on the blue box, but couldn’t get them on the black box. Had a lot of noseslides that felt good and was trying 270 shoves out which were somewhat close. Crooks were not very good. I tried a lot of flippers which I didn’t land many of, but they did flip around and give me hope. Not landing front 50 on the black ledge definitely made me mad, so i just stopped trying it. I played a game of SKATE with Bo. I didn’t get pink slipped and I landed a heelflip so I was happy about that. Everyone else was ripping, but again, I forget even who was there so I’m just sticking with me since it’s my journal ha ha.

After some filming and posing a six stair we ended up at the Broomfield bank spot. I took too long to get a front truck bonk, but it was fun when I did. Sean was doing them really well. Noè started in on a crazy manual that he would try even after we got booted and we somehow lasted. I could have gone for another try or two to clean up the kickflip, but it is what it is. I was surprised how good the board flipped for being 8.5. I guess narrower wheelbase really does matter. Anyway, we had a fun session, Bo, Sean and Noè ripped it. After the kickout that turned into no kickout I just rolled around on the cruiser a little and tried to keep Noè cheered up.

(setup 8.5 null vhs deck, jessup ultragrip, ace af1 55, 52mm snot pink/yellow swirl 101a, new balance numeric 440 white/red size 12 half insoles)
(pain level 3/10)