Skate Reanimate

What can you say about a guy like this, reasserting his status as a skate legend?

…ain’t what he used to be. But he does have some practices he uses to keep skating:

• Stretch before skating. From head to toe. My older brother swears by yoga, but I don’t know, because he can only skate half as long as me. Stretching seems good enough.
• Pay attention to your gear. One less variable to control. With a real job there’s not much of an excuse to keep worn-out components.
• Treat your feet and knees right. Don’t know about you, but I strain my ankles and knees most of all. My doc suggested that real insoles go a long way to reducing wrong ankle stress, and I believe him. I wear Dr Scholls Sports. I also go with a pair of knee braces–primarily because I’ve got some arthritis going on there. Somedays I’ll wear a simple glove-like gasket. Tough days call for the full-blown mechanical-man brace.
• Learn to fall better. Still don’t have this one down, but I keep thinking about how to get out of tough spots at the last minute.
• More pads. I’ve learned to always pad my front elbow and wrist, and always wear knee pads and helmet on any ramp or bowl. Part of that’s because I don’t heal as fast, part of that’s because my balance is less predictable, but mostly because I want to skate again tomorrow.

The only other thing I’m trying is glucosomine/chondrotin–even though there’s little or no scientific evidence, it’s worth a shot. I’m taking it in powder form with the Emergen-C packs.

Aron and I caught the Vert Finals yesterday on the Dew Tour. And though I was rooting for PLG, I’ve got to admit Shaun White conquered all. Here are some video clips:

• Alli Sports Skate Vert Finals 2010 – Salt Lake City
• Dew Tour Skate Vert Highlights 2010 – Salt Lake City

Beautiful. I was tipped off to this art house skate video by Kirk(?) featuring Chad Tim Tim.

Skaters and non-skaters alike, enjoy:

Starting this Wednesday and running through Friday.

http://espn.go.com/espn3/index

Also on livestream.com: http://www.livestream.com/xgames?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=promo&utm_campaign=xgames

As I start to skate more ramps and bowls I’ve realized the need for good knee pads, and heard that 187 Pro knee pads are about the best. My brother has sworn by Boneless knee pads for almost 2 decades, but they are near impossible to get a hold of (he’s wearing the more expensive Paincheaters knee pads now).

Having read in a number of reviews that the 187s run large I bought a size small, and they fit nice and snug on my skinny legs (I’m 5’10” & 140lbs). The 187s have surprisingly less strappage than the Pro-Tecs that these replace, but that doesn’t mean they lack in security; in fact, they feel more secure, and seem to offer a good range of motion.

As for the cushioning, well I haven’t ridden them in a bowl yet but just walking around the house and randomly dropping to my knees is a surprising comfortable experience. The most I feel is a little left-right motion on my caps, which I expect will diminish as they mold to my shape. And what is that on the inside? Cushy fleece? Nice!

I picked these up at Social Skateboarding.com, a site I haven’t used before but seems to have a lot of killer deals–these were about $16 less than any online competitor.

I’ll report more on how these work out once I’ve recovered a little from last night’s skating.

I ordered new bushings and soft risers from Socal Skateshop, which I installed last night and tested before work this morning at the Orem park.

Old bushings

SCS stickers:

The product:

Installed:

If you notice, my old bushings were crushed and deformed. I realize now this is because they were replacements for Grind King trucks, and GK has it’s own unique style of bushings. So not only do these new GK bushings fit better, they perform better, and I think it has straightened out the hold of the board. You’ll notice that I have replaced the kingpins on these trucks, as the hex bolts that GK packs drill into the board when I tighten them down.

My ride this morning was noticeably smoother; the Orem skatepark has a lot of roll-ins and good transitions. I left my trucks a little looser than normal, so I don’t know if that improved the overall ride, or if the risers had anything to do with it. I really have no way to tell immediately if they disperse the impact and protect my joints, but I may be able to tell after a week of skating.

A couple parts questions have been on my mind this week:

First, bushings: what does hardness affect?

I’ve got some old Grind King trucks that I threw on the deck my mother gave me for Christmas, but they hold to a peculiar angle, and so I figure I need new bushings. As a freestyler in the 90s tight trucks were the norm, and though I’ve eased up a bit these days, I still like my trucks pretty tight. I recall setting up with hard bushings–95 or 99a–so I’ll probably go with that again, even though I’m not sure how much hardness of bushings affects anything–if at all.

Second, riser pads: do they impact tricks?

As I get older I look for more ways to absorb some of the beating my joints take, especially my knee. I recalled that right before we stopped using risers altogether (as wheels lessened in diameter) one company–maybe Independent–put out some cushy little black riser pads–maybe 1/8 or 1/4 inch. I remember how well they absorbed impact for the deck–virtually eliminating pressure cracks around the trucks–and am now wondering if the new generation do anything for impact on landings. On the one hand they’re really small, and landings are quite hard. On the other hand, the natural cushioning and pillow between one’s joints is similarly small, so it’s got to be better than nothing, right? The real question is, do they impact tricks? Do they absorb some of the force your feet might exert on the board before, say, an ollie?

With no ready info on the web I suppose I’ll have to just try each out and report back here..

This trailer for the upcoming movie Machotaildrop gave me chills (think Brazil + Willy Wonka + Animal Chin):

A number of skaters have been talking about the passion and skills demonstrated by the Uganda Skateboard Union, but you have to see it to believe it:

USU Pt 1

USU Pt 2

These guys push equipment and terrain to the limits! You can donate to the Uganda Skateboard Union and help keep that fire alive.