Ok, so this story starts in my 20s with the release of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 (I played it on the Dreamcast, a beloved and underrated system). The game was amazing, with footage of real skateboarders doing real tricks; I was tempted to learn. Around this time I also had a friend at work who was looking to get rid of his old skateboard, so he gave it to me. Every day after work I went to the parking lot near our apartment and pushed around. I tried learning to ollie for a few weeks without much luck, and eventually my interest fizzled out. But the skateboard moved with us from home to home for over 15 years.
Fast forward to the pandemic. And the Tony Hawk Remastered (video game) announcement. If there isn't time to rediscover old hobbies during a shelter-in-place, when is it ever going to happen? I dug out the skateboards again and started skating around the Arroyo School parking lot while the kids were scooting and riding their bikes. I started practicing ollies in the garage (YouTube has gotten a lot better since the last time I tried to learn). And I saw a neighborhood friend cruising by on his new longboard from Society. The kids have shown some interest as well, carefully stepping on and off of the board.
On Saturday I went to the store. Masks are required in the store, and only 8 customers are allowed at a time. A customer was already at the assembly counter, so Michael listened carefully to what I was looking for and brought over a few components for me to look at. He helped me to figure out that my current board is probably too narrow and patiently laid out options for trucks, wheels, and bearings. I grabbed a new helmet and a smaller pre-assembled board for the kids as well. After I paid, Michael carefully assembled my new board. I was really happy with the friendly and knowledgable service, and everyone else in the shop was really nice as well. I'm excited to come back! I've got some discounts through the customer loyalty program to spend.
Today we went to the Stanford campus to skate (both inline skates and skateboards); we were there for nearly five hours (lots of breaks and some time to eat our sandwiches). It was a joy to ride around the wide hallways with their smooth concrete floors, and I was so excited to see my daughter and her friend enjoy their first experiences skateboarding.
Hoping that this time, I'm able to finish learning how to ollie. I've got YouTube...and also my kids, who are fearless on wheels and could probably learn something from seeing their dad struggle to learn something new. read more