After work I chilled for a bit. Apparently too long and Saul and Dave L had left Close. Maybe it was the family biking around the curbs. I just went to the side and got to work warming up for a flatground friday list. I originally had 11 tricks, but changed it to 10. I took awhile to get warm up kickflips and fakie flips and it was a little maddening.
Halfcab flip – took like 20 tries I was going crazy
Fakie bigflip – around 8th try, tried to get a better one but did not
Backside flip – landed on several, but still can’t land one clean to save my life.
Frontside flip – at least I’m starting to flip the board more than 90 degrees. now if I just had any speed at all.
Treflip – 6th try, couldn’t get a better one.
Heelflip – 5th try
Varial heel – felt pretty close
Rick flip – ended up trying about 20 and they felt really close.
Switch flip – not even close
Nollie tre – tried like 20 of these as well and a few felt close.

Then I went behind the school and tried kickflip nose stalls for about 15 minutes. A couple were close, but I never locked in. JP and I are hoping to land these. I’ve done a couple where they fell off right away, but would love to get one posted up and slide it for awhile.

(setup  8.25 null curby deck, venture 5.2 awake low trucks custom hollow cast baseplate, doh dohs 88a boardside bushing no washer minilogo 94a roadside with flat washer, 51mm bones stf v1 wheels with 3 speed washers on the inside, new balance numeric 288s white/gum size 11.5, no insoles)
(pain level 3/10 would be less if I took the day off, but it’s just too nice out)

Woke up pretty early on a cool morning and had the day off work.  Went to dog park around 8:30.  Dave L would show up around 9.  I had changed to the wider axles and cast baseplate.  They were fine for grinds, but not fine for flip tricks.  I skated alright though.  Nothing really stands out, but I was pretty much where I left off the last time.  Dave was quickly displaying how casually he can pop over things.  Nollie the small metal ledge, 180 the wallie wedge, etc.  I had some good slams as did Dave.  For awhile we tried to kickflip the wallie wedge.  Well, I say ‘try’, but Dave actually did it.  I got a couple ollies over where I barely scraped.  I posed kickflips for awhile and felt close for a bit, but got tired.  Dave had done some long lines.  Nollie lip some parking blocks, nollie the little metal ledge, front smith the cinder block ledge.  I had tried a line of manual then crooks shove, but couldn’t get the crooks to grind.  Got a first try fakie nosegrind on the mini cinder block ledge.  I tried to boardslide all of the 4 parking blocks in a row, but came up short. After Dave did the kickflip over the wallie barrier we chilled for a bit.

Then a couple hours later we were at Douglass.  It was very bright, but oh so nice out.  Jake would join us.  I had changed my setup.  This time venture lows with 1/8 riser to make them a mid truck.  They felt dreamy.  Once again I was amazed at how causally Dave was popping over and onto the ledges.  He manualled one!  And some front 50s and would eventually nose manual one.  He also was doing cool drop down the curb then up the curb lines.  Nollie front 180 to switch manual was hot.  Jake quickly front 50d the ledge and worked up to a f/s haflcab nosestall.  I did a few of the best crooks I’ve done there.  Also some noseslides, really bad halfcab noseslide and switch front nose.  Flip tricks were much easier.  At one point I did a halfcab flip followed by a heelflip.  That hasn’t happened in awhile and it felt great.  I was thrown off on other flippers because of the setup feeling so different.  I couldn’t get the front 50, but I did finally get an ollie onto the ledge.  

Then I stopped by the curbs since Dave F was there.  I tried to get it going, had a few fun slappies, but gave up when I was way to sore to try a 360 flip.  Dave was ripping. Back tail shove.  Well, ride up the curb cut then go into back tail on the curb and shove.  Still sick.  He also had halfcab 50, switch crooks, lots of front shoves into the curb cut, halfcab flip, varial flip, slappy crooks to fakie to quick switch nose to quick nose 270.  Then he hippy jumped a scooter on the way out!  Unreal.

(setup 8.25 null curby deck, venture 5.8 cast baseplate titanium hangar, doh dohs 88a boardside bushing no washer minilogo 94a roadside with flat washer, 51mm bones stf v1 wheels, new balance numeric 288s white/gum size 11.5, no insoles)
(setup x2  8.25 null curby deck, venture 5.2 awake low trucks custom hollow cast baseplate, doh dohs 88a boardside bushing no washer minilogo 94a roadside with flat washer, 51mm bones stf v1 wheels with 3 speed washers on the inside, new balance numeric 288s white/gum size 11.5, no insoles)
(pain level 3/10)

After running some errands I went to the research ledge. I waxed the ledge up then did a few warm up tricks first try. I thought it would be a good session. Noseslide, noseslide to fakie, boardslide flop out. Then I started trying a line of kickflip then back 50. Not even close. I was so mad. And to make it worse the kickflips were hard. It was really making me mad. Frontside is already hard at that ledge, but the gravel from winter didn’t make it easier. I just did a front board pop out, terrible front noseslide, kinda close to fakie front noseslide and not close to front 50. I gave up on back 50s and things got way worse when I couldn’t crook. If I can’t kickflip and crook comfortable that only means on thing. Setup change time.

(setup 8.25 null curby deck, venture 5.6 v-hollows, doh dohs 88a boardside bushing no washer minilogo 94a roadside with flat washer, 53mm purple swirl blank wheels, new balance numeric 288s white/gum size 11.5, no insoles)
(pain level 3/10)