Easter Day fly out fun. A couple basics before the hardest trick ever. #hownottoollie #atleastoneframelookslikeadecentollie #kickflipsareeasier

A video posted by glen gillinghammer (@corpoglenny) on Mar 27, 2016 at 6:49pm PDT

Drove out to Case Logic on a decent Easter Sunday to try and get a Casper stall for the game. I got closer sooner so that was somewhat comforting. But it was still a long and frustrating battle. At least at this spot there was plenty of flatground to entertain me on the way back to the starting point. I tried to clean up my b/s flips. My left knee was kind of hurting in a way it hasn’t in awhile. Argh. After about an hour and a half I landed the casper stall! Well, my weak defensive version of it. After that I started doing various fly out stuff. All of the tricks took way longer then they should have. I got some treflips and tried more halfcab heels in between tries. I was super hyped to ollie that trash can .. until I saw how it looked. Yuck! Man I suck at ollies! Then it was back to family time.

(setup: 8.1 null control room, venture 5.25 lows with 3 washers inside, venom 91a bushings, 50mm bones stf V1 wheels, nbnumeric pj stratford 533 steel/gum)

A couple oldies then a couple new tricks from @fullertrron and I. #stubbornsaturday

A video posted by glen gillinghammer (@corpoglenny) on Mar 26, 2016 at 7:45pm PDT

Drove around looking for a dry bank to try casper stalls and ended up at the spot Dave does the fakie pogo above. I pretty much only tried them for two hours straight. The first hour I was solo. I would do some kickflips and switch back 180’s on flat and stuff, but for the most part I just failed casper stalls for what felt like forever. Dave used to have a freestyle board and had that trick so he gave me some pointers. As did Jack. Basically my biggest problem was trying not to do a kickflip. I think it took 45 minutes before I even got into one stall. Near the end I had a couple of close ones, but that was it. Dave got a couple without the casper, a fakie pogo (first try), kickflip and fakie flip.

#stubbornsaturday

A photo posted by glen gillinghammer (@corpoglenny) on Mar 26, 2016 at 6:19pm PDT

Then we went to this parking garage. I was hoping the entrance to it would be dry, but it wasn’t at all. So we skated this curb for another couple hours or so. We did a lot, tried a lot. Dave did a much better noseslide 270. That was a new one for him. We both did some regular front tails we were hyped on. Dave had switch noseslides, slappy feeble 270 out, back 50, front 50, front 50 180 out, legit front hurricanes, lots of front shoves and the sickest switch crooks! A bunch of switch crooks! They were so incredible. I wasn’t feeling all that great, took a few tries to get a slow back 50, had some fun front 50s, “slappy” front and back tails, slappy crooks, posed kick back tails and fakie flip front tails, got close to nollie inward heels, struggled to ollie the tiny median at the top of the garage, learned slappy hurricanes! Skated way longer then my body wanted to and could not get a switch flip to save my life at the end of the session.

(setup: 8.1 null control room, venture 5.25 lows with 3 washers inside, venom 91a bushings, 50mm bones stf V1 wheels, nbnumeric pj stratford 533 steel/gum)

Fun little flatground session on a freshie before date night Liz. For those who are counting, I did not make my New Years resolution of not changing my setup. Back to lows and 8.1. #ohwell

A photo posted by glen gillinghammer (@corpoglenny) on Mar 25, 2016 at 6:09pm PDT

After some more skate madness I decided to go with a Null 8.125 as my setup. The 8″ are too narrow and the 8.25″ just seems to big. Normally it would be an easy call to go to 8.1, but the 8 and 8.25 boards have 14.25″ wheelbases. The 8.1 has a 14″ wheelbase. I like 14.25. Oh well. So far I seem to like it. I didn’t have much time so I just went in front of the house for awhile. It was not warm and there was snow/water lining the edges of the street. The warm up process didn’t seem too bad and I ended up rattling off a lot of tricks. I got most my kickflip variations and a few treflips that felt good for the first time in awhile. Stayed away from straight heelflips as that can be a board breaker for me on a fresh deck. Tried nollie tres for awhile and never landed one. Tried halfcab heel for awhile too and got a good feeling one. Hucked other tricks too, close to front heel. I actually had fun skateboarding.

(setup: 8.1 null control room, venture 5.25 lows with 3 washers inside, venom 91a bushings, 50mm bones stf V1 wheels, nbnumeric pj stratford 533 steel/gum)

Ledgy, moon, moon filter. 🌕

A photo posted by glen gillinghammer (@corpoglenny) on Mar 24, 2016 at 9:48pm PDT

Brought Ledgy out and drove around trying to find somewhere dry to skate it. I looked at Red Curbs and there was water everywhere. So I figured most parking garages would have water in them from cars dragging it in. I found a nearby lot that was lit well and had a good section of flat that was dry. I was warming up just skating flat for awhile when a security guard came, slowed down, then drove right on by. Rad. I was skating an old Null 8″ board because I really hated that MJ board. The Null 8″ is longer then the Chocolate 8.1. I skated pretty bad and I didn’t like how small the 8″ felt. I didn’t do much on Ledgy, I don’t like it very much. But I had the dream of doing halfcab noseslide 270 shove out. I didn’t get close to the 270 shove out, but I did get better halfcab noseslides then normal. If I ever get that trick I would be beyond hyped. I never got a front 50, I came somewhat close to front nosegrind. Got a couple crooks. Flip tricks were not good at all really.

(setup: 8″ null, venture 5.25 lows with 3 washers inside, venom 91a bushings, 50mm bones stf V1 wheels, nbnumeric pj stratford 533 steel/gum)

Went out into the garage after working from home during a 25″ snow storm. UGH! I wasn’t too motivated so I went with just trying a trick 10 times and that’s it. Here’s how it went.

Nollie flip 0/10
Kickflip 2/10 (seriously bummed me out)
switch heel 0/10
360 flip 0/10 (landed on a couple. one of which shot into the bike above and they all fell down like dominoes)
nollie inward heel 0/10 (kind of close to a couple)
switch flip 0/10
switch front heel 0/10
heelflip 2/10 (finally landed something)
backside flip 3/10

I finished with some ollies trying to get my back foot to leave the ground.

(setup: 8.125 chocolate mj, venture 5.25 lows with 3 washers inside, venom 91a bushings, 50mm bones stf V1 wheels, nbnumeric pj stratford 533 steel/gum)

Went to Lafayette a little later in the evening. The park had it’s average crowd. Lots of kids on bikes, scooters and a few skaters. We started in the little toilet bowl. Matt struggled with back 50s and I struggled with moving faster then a snail. We kind of did our own things for awhile. I was trying a line of ollie into the bank, wallie the corner of the rock, little slash, little ollie to fakie the volcano, fakie flip on the bank, crook the bump to ledge. But I never got the fakie flip and the crowds of flyout bikers ruined my chances. Matt had some fast back 50s on all the ledges, had trouble with 360 flips for once. Then we hit the bowl for awhile. Matt had some good carving out of the gates getting up into the tile on vert. I had to baby step it, but had a few fun carves up onto the vert section. Then it was time for the lights to shut off so I got scared. Matt came close to back 50’ing the shwallow end. I played in the toilet bowl at the end for a bit trying blunt to back d. Got close. Happy I didn’t ollie too much as I’ve been incredibly sore.

(setup: 8.125 chocolate mj, venture 5.25 lows with 3 washers inside, venom 91a bushings, 50mm bones stf V1 wheels, nbnumeric pj stratford 533 steel/gum)

Not feeling like skating at all I went over to the school to dork around on the curb in the back. It was totally covered in little rocks. Ugh. I held onto the handrail and posed a couple tricks, but I can’t really do that. I went to the front, did a kickflip and went home. I had some new PJs. These ones seem extra comfortable. This shoe rules.

(setup: 8.125 chocolate mj, venture 5.25 lows with 3 washers inside, venom 91a bushings, 50mm bones stf V1 wheels, nbnumeric pj stratford 533 steel/gum)

Here you go @boredzinejp. I tried to do crooks transfer up a curb, but when I saw the footage I don't really know what it is. So I just went with the ol' fakie bigflip for the next challenge. #theglenandjosholdfartlongdistanceinstagramtricksuperchallenge #unwarrantedslomo #runningoutofideasfortricks Guest crooker @fullertrron

A video posted by glen gillinghammer (@corpoglenny) on Mar 20, 2016 at 4:20pm PDT

#extrastubbornsunday

A photo posted by glen gillinghammer (@corpoglenny) on Mar 20, 2016 at 3:07pm PDT

On a cool morning I headed to Longmont to meet Dave and John. I checked out the other bank school, it was kind of snowy so I went to Rocky Mtn. This spot rules. I waxed up a section of curb that we hadn’t before. It ended up being really fun. I started by doing a line over and over of dropin on the kinked bricks, slappy crooks, ollie up the crub, noseslide. I tried to get noseslide 270, but couldn’t. Going the other way I was doing switch noseslide, frontside slappy, kickflip. I realized quickly that I didn’t have much energy. I’m not sure why. John showed next and mostly got tech on the curb. Back 180 fakie 50, halfcab front 50 back 180 out. I thought I learned crooks transfer, but it turns out it’s some weird nosegrind. Still fun. Then I filmed him do a line for awhile. Dave was ripping around the spot. Ollies over the medians, 180 nose manual to fakie, After filming John those two were doing the bank think where you gotta push fast, ollie up a curb then do a trick on the bank. Dave got close to nollie shove manual. John did front shove to fakie and kickflip to fakie. I tried to get my legs going. Never got a front 50. The little crack weirds me out. I don’t want it to, but it does. John did some front tails. Dave was doing great back 50s and following them with front pivot on the bank to curb section which was gnar. I tried to ollie up onto the flagstone ledge over and over with no luck. John was doing cool ollies onto the rock. I ended up giving up on anything good and just slowly did tricks up the curb then on the ledge. Kickflip up the curb, crooks on the ledge, fakie ollie up the curb, switch front noseslide, front shove up the curb, never landed back 50, halfcab up the curb, tried crooks to fakie and failed. Tried to end the day with a fakie bigflip since I had nothing else for the game. I did 5 in a row before John grabbed the camera, and then took 10 tries to land it. Figures. Dave outlasted me and did his variation of crooks 180 transfer up the curb.

(setup: 8.125 chocolate mj, venture 5.25 lows with 3 washers inside, venom 91a bushings, 50mm bones stf V1 wheels, nbnumeric pj stratford 533 black/gum)

After a long family day (football in the snow with Ollie, bringing India to a friend’s concert in Aurora) I got out around sunset. I went looking for a manny pad as I thought maybe I could do a kickflip nose manual for the game. The main Valmont pads were snowy, but this mini one was clear. It became clear pretty quick that I wouldn’t get it. I messed around a little, did some switch 180s off a curb, posed flip tricks then left for something a little warmer.

Got to skate a little after a fun filled family day. It was great. #stoprockssuck

A photo posted by glen gillinghammer (@corpoglenny) on Mar 19, 2016 at 7:09pm PDT

Ended up in this garage and on my first few pushes hit the rock. I didn’t let it get me down. I probably skated for about 30 minutes. Hucked a lot of flippers, curb stalls then kind of settled on trying a line of 360 flip on flat, kickflip over a parking block, nollie treflip (never landed it), f/s flip (if i never got the nollie treflip why even say I was trying this? Because it makes me sound cooler obviously). I hucked some tricks like fakie flip front tail on the tiny curb. It was chill. I went home to hang out with the girls, but they didn’t seem do care. I should have kept skating.

(setup: 8.125 chocolate mj, venture 5.25 lows with 3 washers inside, venom 91a bushings, 50mm bones stf V1 wheels, nbnumeric pj stratford 533 black/gum)

I really needed a new deck and I was out of 8.125 Nulls so I picked up an MJ board at MRKT. It’s a horrible graphic in my opinion, but it’s the right size and MJ is one of my favorite pros so I got it. There was a foot of snow on the ground and it was still dropping. After working from home I went out in the garage wanting to land a new trick. I started in a zone of trying to get a perfect backside flip going down the garage, nollie flip going up. Never got the nollie flip and the b/s flips I got were anything but perfect. Then I went with my 5 treflip minimum down the garage and rotated between switch flip (close), switch heel and nollie inward heel up. That took awhile. I got a nollie varial flip at least, a crappy nollie bigflip (I was still hyped on it!), and an over 40 varial heel. I hucked switch front heel for awhile and came so insanely close on one of them. That trick somehow feels possible. Fun night, I was motivated. Skating flat and listening to old cassette tapes (Daisy Chainsaw!) and new ones (Bilge Rat) is fun.

(setup: 8.125 chocolate mj, venture 5.25 lows with 3 washers inside, venom 91a bushings, 50mm bones stf V1 wheels, nbnumeric pj stratford 533 black/gum)