Extreme Sports Hey Japan Man Skateboarding

Reflections of The Round Up

Well, it looks like The World Round-Up is done for another year. I wasn’t able to skate my best this year unfortunately, however I think I gained something even more important from this time: clarity. I only spent a week in Vancouver, but that week helped me realize a lot of things in my life and the direction I want to go. I always had these choices in my mind, however I feel like I can think more clearly now and make the right decision for myself (which I hope to talk about in another post).

I also learned a lot about my skating, what I did wrong, and why I think I couldn’t perform my best. Hippie Mike and I went to film the day before I left back for Japan and he brought up something very interesting about the difference between competing in a freestyle contest versus competing in a street contest. If you’re going to compete in a street contest, it’s better to get used to your terrain and not to worry about exactly what you will do in your run. In a freestyle contest, planning your routine is everything. We’re more like gymnasts, dancers, or (dare I say it?) figure skaters. Planning your run is everything and the second you start to doubt your run and try to change it up, your done. I guess in a way, the contest results are decided well before the contest itself. I’ll definitely remember this and hopefully I’ll be able to skate better the next contest. Regardless of the formal results, as a freestyler I just want to skate a run that I can feel happy with and be able to say that I did my best. I think a lot of us freestylers are really just trying to chase that one perfect run we can be proud of. At least, that’s what I’m chasing…

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