Skateboarding Through the Ages

I was there almost from the beginning. My 1st board had clay wheels with loose ball bearings.

I've seen skateboarding go from surf-style to pools/ramps to street. And it's all good. But last week I was reading the Transworld Skateboarding magazine in my local library and I noticed that it was focused 99% on street skating.

This is a shame.

Skating means different things to different people and it would be great if all flavors of skating were represented in this way too glossy magazine.

I also noticed (which was hard to miss) that most of the magazine was filled with one polished advertisement after another selling clothes and shoes (lots of shoes). I thought folks just skated in Puma's, Van's or Chuck Taylor's.

When did skateboarding get so fashionable? Did I forget to buy a ticket for that bus?

Street skating is "in" these days, but everything always comes full circle (i.e., back to their roots). You can sort of see this with more & more longboards out there.

Enjoy it all.

A Life of its Own

My bike-to-work/school commutes have ranged from about 6 to 50 miles round trip over the past 30 years.

It's a funny thing how each commute takes on a life of its own - same daily routine, same people on the streets, same roads...

My favorite bike commute, which I did for 3 years, was a 12 miler (round trip). It traveled mostly through towns and neighborhood streets with some very minor upgrades thrown in for fun. Since most of the street had lights, I rode this route year round.

Why did I love this one over the many others? Because at the end of the work day, it was a red-line, pedal to the metal 6 mile sprint home - 5 days a week. A great way to end the day for sure.

And plus, commuting the 60 miles per work week was just enough to keep my fitness on the upside for my weekend rides.

Enjoy your ride home.