The Fear that Leads to Bailing
I've been skateboarding for a long time, over half my life actually. And through all those years, there is a big lesson I wish I had learned earlier, because it could have saved me countless hours, pain and heartache. The tragedy of it is, though I know it to be true, I just can't seem to act it out consistently! And that big lesson is: put your feet down. Let me explain: fear plays a big role in skateboarding. When you're hucking yourself down sets of stairs and trying to balance on rails that could potentially end your ability to bear children, naturally there is an element of fear involved. Fear, when acted out in kicking your board away (bailing) eventually turns to habit, and habits are hard to break. For years I would try the same trick, over and over and over, kicking the board away every time. Sometimes it was justified -- I didn't clear the gap or the board wasn't under both feet -- but often times I could have landed the trick by just simply pu