skateboarding
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Focus first on mastering the basics.
I’ve started to notice now how often new skateboarders want to jump right to a more technical trick. Barely getting the basics, someone quickly decides to move on to the more complicated thing, usually before they can understand what it is they’re trying to do. And it’s a waste. They’ll land a boardslide once or Continue reading
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Once, or first?
I sat watching and filming a friend who was trying a trick down a six-stair handrail. Attempt after attempt, it didn’t seem like he was getting the hang of it. Occasionally, he would get lucky and stick the trick. This fueled his drive to try again. But after another 45 minutes or so of getting Continue reading
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Failing, not breaking.
If failure is an essential part of getting better, then how do you do it well? How do you get better at failing? When I was a younger skateboarder, I believed in the mantra, “Go big or go home.” I thought if something wasn’t all or nothing on any attempt, then it wasn’t worth doing. Continue reading
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Failure is an essential part of getting better.
Many years ago, I visited some friends and, as always, brought my skateboard along. At this point, I had been skateboarding for several years. My friends asked me to show them a few tricks and when I did, I failed on most of the attempts. One of my friends looked at me and said, “I Continue reading
the Practical Skateboarder 