After two days of loading up furniture, boxes, everything of my mom’s into a U-Haul I had some free time. So I went to the park for 30 minutes to say goodbye. I don’t like that park much. Okay, I really dislike it. And it never helps when there are lots of scooter/strider/mountain biker/one wheelers. This would be no exception. At first it was just two scooter kids and there dad was even cool and trying to teach them to take turns and to avoid going right in my path. Did they listen? Nope. My first warm up run was a fly out kickflip, rock ‘n roll, front grind around the very mellow love seat, pop shove fakie on the mellow bank. The kickflips took too long. Later on I would get a front 180 out of the steeper fly out then a fakie bigflip. I did some fun boardslides on an I beam. Some switch front noseslides on another beam and tried to get f/s halfcab heel after which I never landed. Had some really fun longer feeling back 50s on the long qp and fun carves around, but most were interrupted by kids not having any awareness that a 200 pound old man was coming down the qp he went up. Ugh. Anyway, I think that was it. Goodbye to that park.

(setup 2/10 null smoke valley 8.3, jessup ultragrip, venture 5.6 v-cast royal bushings, 51mm spitfire f4 99a classic shape, new balance numeric 440v2 high black size 12 half 574 vulc insole and currex runpro insole)
(pain level 4/10)

On a Tuesday afternoon I went out to dog park knowing I wouldn’t be able to skate much the next several days. But I’m writing this several days after the session, almost remembering nothing about it. I know Paul showed, then Ladd, Mike, Wade did later. I don’t remember any tricks other than a heelflip in a game of SKATE and that every other trick was hard. I was still slightly sick feeling so kept it mellow. It was cool seeing Ladd.

(setup 3/10 null smoke valley 8.3, jessup ultragrip, venture 5.6 v-cast royal bushings, 51mm spitfire f4 99a classic shape, new balance numeric 440v2 high black size 12 half 574 vulc insole and currex runpro insole)
(pain level 4/10)

Feeling a little better I went over to the school on such an incredibly gorgeous day. I would skate for about 30 minutes and actually did some tricks. I mean I didn’t go in that hard, but I would get a few flippers like kickflip, fakie flip, b/s flip, heelflip, halfcab flip, fakie bigflip. Did the basic slappies, couldn’t get a switch front slappy. Ended on a line of slappy crook, b/s flip, fakie flip.

(setup 5/10 null smoke valley 8.3, jessup ultragrip, venture 5.6 v-cast royal bushings, 51mm spitfire f4 99a classic shape, new balance numeric 440v2 high black size 12 half 574 vulc insole and currex runpro insole)
(pain level 2/10)

So yeah, once again I had no idea at the time why I was skating with so little motivation until after the fact. Turns out I was getting sick. On an absolutely beautiful fall day I had went over the school just seeing if I felt up to it. nope. Maybe did 2 kickflips, a few slappy crooks, fs slappies.

After a long day of sitting at work I stopped by the parks on the way home. I started at the skatepark and was having fun in the little bowl area until some clueless kid in headphones dropped in the middle of my run and we barely avoided colliding. “Sorry I didn’t see you coming back”. It’s like 8 feet away dude. And maybe if you didn’t have earphones in you would have heard my board rolling towards you. Argh. There was a period when I had the park all to myself, but it was very short lived. I don’t remember much else before heading over to the plaza. Did a couple basics. Went in on pop shove nose stall to fakie on the bank to curb, but never got one. I blame work for leaving me with no motivation. And I rode my big board because I was annoyed how badly the 8.25 with aces wouldn’t flip.

(setup 8.5/14.25 venture 5.8 hollows 51s new balance 440v2 highs 12 currex runpro insoles)
(pain level 4/10)

On a beautiful warm fall day I went to meet Rob and Dave. I arrived first and started at the dog park and was kind of in a groove. Rob showed and went to do some warm up carves when Dave showed too so I went over to the park. Rob was smart to avoid it as there was a million bikers and toddlers on striders or scooters. It was maddening at times. Dangerous too. I was trying a line of kickflip to fakie then halfcab flip on the shark fin, then changed to 180 off the kicker to start. Came kind of close, but never got the halfcab. I had tried some other random stuff, before sticking with no comply pole jam then kickflip on the weird lumpy hip. Took a while to get the pole jam and the timing with all the randoms looping around the kickflip timing was weird too. Oh well, it was really fun when I landed it. Dave had tried a bunch of shove tail bashes over the hip, but never quite got it, some good ollies on the lumpy hip, switch back 180 the hip, kickflips on the bank, no comply pole jam, casual tricks that he does. Then we went over to the dog park as it got dark. I got a couple bad boardslides up the angled bar to manny pad, but started to chill since my achilles started hurting. It had felt really good for a while so I had no problems stopping. Although my knee pain is still pretty severe. Dave however would get it to manual really quick and then also to fakie with a f/s halfcab off.

(setup 2/10 8.25 null abstract, jessup ultragrip, ace af1 44, spitfire f4 99a classic yellow 52mm, new balance numeric 440v2 wide high black size 12 half 574 insole and currex runpro insole)
(pain level 6/10 left knee)

My achilles was feeling better after the skating so that is a good sign. Went to meet Rob at dog park and was hyped to see Eric there too. It was super nice out. I’m not remembering much about this session other than Rob and I playing on the propped up bank, but that was later in the session. Early on I took a few tries to get a ride to fakie and watched Rob casually carve it like it was nothing. I couldn’t commit to a noseslide across the tall flatbar that had the kickers up to it. Hucked some random tricks I have no shot at, but it was fun like inward heel tail ha ha. Rob had a bunch of the halfcab bank rides, tossed around shove out and 180 out. I took a long time to get that kickflip and decided to sit after that as the achilles was hurting a little.

(setup 4/10 8.25 null abstract, jessup ultragrip, ace af1 44, spitfire f4 99a classic yellow 52mm, new balance numeric 440v2 wide high black size 12 half 574 insole and currex runpro insole)
(pain level 4/10)

First day I woke up in a couple of weeks and didn’t feel pain in my left achilles on my first steps. I lounged around, did some exercises. Around 1pm I went to dog park for an hour. Spencer was there so that was cool. Valmont was completely overrun with striders and mountain bikers, which is what I guess Evergreen built the park for. I started really slow and was happy that I didn’t feel much achilles pain. I did a few kickflips, front 50s on the curb, crooks on the bench, boardslides, noseslides, switch front noseslides. After a while it started to hurt a little and I didn’t want to push it. Did a couple ultra basics on the tiny part of the barrier and called it a sesh.

(setup 4/10 8.25 null abstract, jessup ultragrip, ace af1 44, spitfire f4 99a classic yellow 52mm, new balance numeric 440v2 wide high black size 12 half 574 insole and currex runpro insole)
(pain level 3/10)

On a very nice night I met up with Carleigh, Will, Darin and Cass. My achilles is still swollen and painful, but I could do some slappies and stalls on the bank to curb. At least for a while. I did some hurricanes, front tail on the bank to curb. Slappy crooks and boardslides, noseslides on the black ledge. Carleigh had front d and back d on the brick qp. Will and Darin tried front crooks on the blue lurb. Cass had back tails on the bank to curb. I filmed for a while. Those guys did flippers at the end which I would really have liked to join, but my achilles was hurting and I didn’t want to push it.

(setups 8.5/14.25 venture titanium 5.8, spitfire 51mm classic 99a f4, nb# 440 high b/w size 12)
(pain level 7/10 left achilles)

On a Friday after work met up with Paul, Rob and Will. It was beautiful out. The dog park was heated when I first arrived so I went over to the skatepark which was chill initially. I started in the back little bowl area and did some little grinds. Then in the main area became obsessed with trying halfcab flips on the shark fin. I would do kickflips to fakie on the mellow bank and curve over to the shark fin. I had started committing, but it wasn’t working. Also tried some with 180 off the flat bank kicker and was getting closer, but the park got overrun with mountain bikers. Riley from LOCO was there, he’s cool and was fun to skate with. Rob had popped in, but mostly did the dog park.

I went over there after a while. The youth were ripping, pretty heated. I don’t remember doing much. Rob suggested a game of SKATE which had some weird ones in it like powerslide shoves. I somehow won it on a heelflip which marks the first time I’ve beat Paul I think. Will had shown up, he was shredding. We finished on the bank to curb. Paul took a while to get crooks to fakie. Will did back tail then back tail to fakie and almost back tail shove. I lost my mind on a no comply to tail. Seriously no idea how I couldn’t do it right. What a freakin’ crybaby.

(setups 8.25/8.5/14.25 venture hollows both of which I liked more than the 8.25 with slappy lows unfortunately, nb# 440v2 wide)
(pain level 6/10 but man I felt some tenderness in my achilles at the time and a few days later as I write this it’s totally hosed)