Avoiding face-plants in life

I took advantage of the sunny day and clear streets before "snowpacolypse redux" to start my action sport for the month of February: skateboarding.

I chose skateboard this month for a couple of reasons, primarily because it is a foundational board sport. I hope it will prepare me for other board sports in future months. Secondarily, I chose it because it can be done anywhere. Given the fact that I will have lived in three different states over the course of one month, that is a big deal.

My goal with skateboarding is not to learn any tricks, but to be able to ride comfortably and intuitively.  I do, however, have one objective in mind: I want to be able to drop into a quarter pipe by the end of February. 

As a former aggressive inline skater who  used to practically live on a vert ramp, I am familiar with the sensation of dropping into one, but the difference between doing so with roller blades on, which are attached to your feet, and a skateboard, which can slip out from under you, can not be over stated.  That said, after my ride today I feel like my goal is the right one,  challenging, but feasible.

Despite today being my first day on the board, I walked away with a few lessons that seem equally applicable to life as they are in avoiding face-plants on the skateboard:

1) Look ahead and not at the ground beneath you. Steering a skateboard takes some getting used to in the first place, and looking down will most definitely result in disorientation, not to mention possibly getting hit by a car or running into some poor pedestrian.  Look ahead and trust that the ground will remain beneath you.

2) Stay relaxed and nimble.  Being overly rigid while riding a skateboard is a sure way to fall, and is definitely a lot less fun.  When you are loose, it is much easier to make subtle adjustments and maintain your balance. 

3) JFDI.  No better way to learn to skate than actually doing it.  Nothing beats actually spending time on the board.

I will post regular updates on my progress, and likely a video or two along the way. Face- plants included.

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