Quitting

[The Ripper]

Most of my friends that quit just sit around and do drugs

[A-Bo]

skateboarding builds character, I really havent met someone who has been skating for 20 or so years that I didnt think was a really interesting and intelligent person. It gives you a perspective on things that most people unfortunately miss.

[WonkaBar]

i think at least a few of my friends would start skating again if this park got built here in boston

[Duffy]

It seemed like skating was so far in their past and then like overnight they were skaters again, but like skaters circa 2003-2005

How its been for me. Everyone stops here for a while because of sports. Everyone who normally would be skating with them also stops because it's usually just me skating flat in the winter. Then they'll start up for like 3 months again.


Can't stop, won't stop.

[A-Bo]

i think at least a few of my friends would start skating again if this park got built here in boston

they got the money hopefully end of summer 09 that shit should be skateable

[chopper]

skateboarding builds character, I really havent met someone who has been skating for 20 or so years that I didnt think was a really interesting and intelligent person. It gives you a perspective on things that most people unfortunately miss.

Can't wait, things should be looking up for me next year.

[skatemore,man]

A skating brain is like a set of perfectly grind grooved trucks, it always locks in.

Most of my friends at home don't really skate anymore cause they'd rather use drugs. It used to seem as if skating and drugs went hand in hand- we'd eat some funky stuff and smoke out then skate around all night, maybe blow a few zingers and bomb faster than usual- these are dudes who skated for years and years and now they all sit on their couch and dope up, skating takes too much effort i guess.

[CigaretteBeer]

The past year I really haven't skated that much. Before I would skate every day unless I was hurt. Even though I haven't been around other skaters or skating that much I still think like a skateboarder. I always look at things seeing if you can skate them, do invisible fingerboarding, look at all the skatemags and videos... This year I really need to start skating more.

[A-Bo]

I was like that, just started skating again pretty often, and the break was such a good thing, I get burnt out on skating sometimes and feel like I hit a brick wall. Then I stop for a while and start again and think of all this new shti and just hit it from a different angle and everything seems fresh again. Honestly just watching Sorry again inspired me to start skating a lot again.

[1987]

Some of the things that skateboarding has done for me in 20+ years:

Kept me out of the burgeoning gangbanging/ice/meth scene in my teen years in Hawaii.

Changed me from being a completely introverted nerd into a somewhat bipolar seeming weirdo instead.  Self actualization is what that's called.

Met my first wife while skating the campus of University of Georgia one summer afternoon.

Met my second wife in Japanese 101 at UGA and we started talking because (she admitted later) I was a cute skater boy.

Allowed me to meet innumerable amounts of interesting people.

Introduced me to different genres of music.

In the navy, it kept me out of the bars and brothels of Southeast Asia by preoccupying me with spot-finding in the spirit of Animal Chin.

Given me my outlook on obstacles/problems in life (approach it like a trick and figure out how to ride away as clean as possible in as few tries).



I'll keep skateboarding as long as I can.  I've never been bored with it.  The longest break I ever took from it was for 6 months after my divorce (all I did every session was stress out).  I'm at the point where I can roll up to the spot and if I'm not feeling it, I can put my board back in the car and go home instead of forcing it.  From experience, I know forcing it usually ends up with me getting hurt more than usual.

My favorite analogy for skateboarding for me is that it's like going fishing.  I'm just waiting to land something.

[*BargainShopper*]

I've been skating since I was 10, though it wasn't till I was 11 or 12 when I found out about the skateboard world (I was a little ghetto country kid in a ghetto country bubble). I never quit, though I did have to take a break for around 4 or 5 months when I destroyed one of the discs in my back (non skate related injury in high school). Other than that, I've stayed on board and skated whenever I could. Skateboarding practically raised me... it's been the most consistent thing in my life for this amount of time, and there's no way I won't skate if I'm physically able to.

I've known a shitload of people over the past couple of decades that have quit, and for every one of those dudes that I still see on occasion (or talk to on MySpace), they all regret it*. They either tell me "they're gonna be getting a board soon" or "naw man, I'd bust my ass now." The latter of which makes me feel bad for them... I mean, I pay a mortgage, I've been rolling with the same girl for 14 years, I have a career, car payment, blah blah blah, and I bust my ass hard nearly every session I have. I don't like pain, but I'm still able to take it, so I do it gladly. I'm always coming into the office with bandages on my fingers, gashes, swellbow or a limp. I just love the fact that I'm still getting adrenaline rushes and still paying dues outside the office. I know I won't be able to skate forever, but I goddamned sure will while I can.

*I do know some people that got back into riding after our Dreamland park got built, but not enough people.

amen

[alexander32thegrea]

it's an impossibilty to quit once you catch your first high off of it, skating to me is definatly a need and not a want.

[Sony MDR V2 headphones]

One day my dad said "When I had kids I just quit playing golf."

Guess I'm never having kids.

[mikefork]

i don't think that i could actually quit. i had a knee problem where i wasn't supposed to skate but i skated anyways, the day after i wound up in the hospital with a concussion i went skating, i couldn't skate for two months because of my foot but i sill tried to roll around and try stationary manuals all day long, i went skating right after i got out of the hospital even though they told me that i shouldn't skate until mid january/early february, and i have been shoveling out snow to skate. it might be a little early to claim, but i am in it for the long haul and i can't picture myself ever quitting now, in twenty years, or however long

[*BargainShopper*]

Some of the things that skateboarding has done for me in 20+ years:

Kept me out of the burgeoning gangbanging/ice/meth scene in my teen years in Hawaii.

Changed me from being a completely introverted nerd into a somewhat bipolar seeming weirdo instead.  Self actualization is what that's called.

Met my first wife while skating the campus of University of Georgia one summer afternoon.

Met my second wife in Japanese 101 at UGA and we started talking because (she admitted later) I was a cute skater boy.

Allowed me to meet innumerable amounts of interesting people.

Introduced me to different genres of music.

In the navy, it kept me out of the bars and brothels of Southeast Asia by preoccupying me with spot-finding in the spirit of Animal Chin.

Given me my outlook on obstacles/problems in life (approach it like a trick and figure out how to ride away as clean as possible in as few tries).



I'll keep skateboarding as long as I can.  I've never been bored with it.  The longest break I ever took from it was for 6 months after my divorce (all I did every session was stress out).  I'm at the point where I can roll up to the spot and if I'm not feeling it, I can put my board back in the car and go home instead of forcing it.  From experience, I know forcing it usually ends up with me getting hurt more than usual.

My favorite analogy for skateboarding for me is that it's like going fishing.  I'm just waiting to land something.

i've been thinking about joining the navy when i get out of high school but theres no way in hell i will if i cant skate...
how often were you able to skate?

[89-90pistons]

most of my friends quit so I skate with dudes that are four years younger than I am.

[theroots]

i started when i was a little kid and skated for a few years.  then my friends sorta got out of it and i kinda slowly degressed into doing it less and less and eventually just kinda took a break for about 2 years.  then one day some of the kids i started skatin with got their boards out and knocked on my door and we all went skating and i've been doing it ever since.  that was probly like 8 years ago.  it's seriously like a drug addiction, you might be able to kick it for a little while but if your truly hooked it'll always be a part of your life.

[Matze]

the city where i live now has a little skate scene, there a only few spots in there. during the last 3 month i went only about 5-6 times out to skate (because of too much university, bad wheather and ... missing skate spirit).  this year was also the first time since i started to skate that i haven't had a board (i had to sell it because of money problems). so i thought in the last couple of weeks, that maybe i'm on the way to quit it. but fuck, i'm back in my hometown for christmas and working, i went out 4 times in the last 6 days, i had long sessions at minus 1° celsius to minus 7° celsius and it's fucking good at the moment. i usually skate with my friend stefan, who should rather make some footage for his sponsors, but instead we're having a good time skating little things, pushing around, droping in some "secret" miniramps. so good. skateboarding at it's best.

[MFS]

oddly enough i have a close friend who inherited a large sum of money only to end up putting down the board. dude was very talented aswell, without a doubt could have gone somewhere with it but just doesnt care. i could never quit, other than family its all i have.

[rollforever]

Even though i dont get to skate as much as i would like to i cant see me not being stoked on that useless wooden toy

[Silent Bob.]

I can honestly say that, last time skating died, I was just about the only skater in my home town, just cruising on my own; it felt weird skating on my own but it's always soothed my soul - I get all angsty if I don't skate for a few days; right now the weather here is shit and I can't help but feel like a junkie without his fix

Truthfully I'll skate until I can't physically do it any more. I really, truly, don't give a shit if I look ridiculous as a 50 year old scooting around - if it's still fun I'll still be there

Too many people worry about image etc too much. Really if it is fun to you, then that is reason enough to always do it - personally I've never found anything that makes me feel the way skating does - and like I say it somehow soothes me when times are hard as when you skate it's just you and your board; it's hard to ay attention to any of lifes' problems

Oh yeah - Merry Christmas!

[1987]

Don't join the military if possible.  If I could, I woulda joined the Chair Force.  If my ship was currently in port, I would skate everyday that I could unless I had duty (which was pretty awesome since my ship was homeported in Yokosuka, Japan).  When we were underway, I could only skate when we hit a liberty port.

[ryanoconnor]

i haven't skated since august pretty much, but i still have the skating mindset. always lurking on here and reading mags and looking out for the new videos. seasonal depression really takes a toll on any energy you may have.

[Zurg]

fuck, im pretty burnt on skating at the moment. Well, i think thats only half true. Its mostly just living in the same spot for too long and the fact that alot of my friends stopped skating(not even for a drug addiction, atleast give me a drug addiction), so i find myself skating with a crew of whoevers around. Sounds alright, but i really dont like it. Most of them started skating with skateparks and it seems to really make a difference. The only time i have fun skating now is by myself riding around the city, which really doesnt bother me. Ive been skating for 10 years and im not quite 20 yet, so its pretty much all i got at this point. Hopefully ill be able to move to a new city in 2008 with a non-skating friend. I guess im just burnt on my situation and scared that ill eventually stop skating if hang around for too long, more so than anything

[DrifterGreg]

all the dudes i started skating with "back in the day" all quit years ago. Cars, girls, drugs, having kids... heck, life in general kinda stepped in and took em off the board. its funny though when i run into them. they get so psyched that i skate still. the look on their face is crazy. then they talk about how they are going to get back into it... never happens.

[Blue Fescue]

Dude, the psychology of a skater

[oyolar]

i'm in school now, i live in the midwest where the summer's will be extremely hot and humid and the winter's are wet and freezing, all my friends quit skating, and all i have to skate is little dinky spots and a shitty park. despite this, i still look at every potential spot and i still keep up on what's going on in the skateboard world. i think about skating everyday and i'll skate whenever i have free time, even if it's doing little stationary manuals and flips or slow shove its in my little dorm room. i might not skate as much, but i could never see myself quitting.

[Tony Sandwiches]

none of my friends ever just said "i quit" and went home but a lot of my friends fell off hard. like a combination of school, laziness, mad weed, and "its too cold" stopped a lot of people i used to skate with everyday. i still have so many good friends that i skate with everyday though, im really lucky. everyone has to stop eventually, but i will never "quit" skateboarding.

[rocklobster]

for me ive thought about quitting a few times, especially when i tweaked the same ankle twice in 3 weeks and i just couldnt learn anything new....  i wasnt having fun so i took a week off from skating....  but i realised that my life revolves around skating....  if i have nothing to do i watch a skate vid or read a mag and my room has a couple of boards hanging on the wall...  the skater identity is part of my identity and you cant quit skating without a part of who you are not dying....  (not sure if any of this is making sense)

skating was so much a part of my life i didnt have anything else to do if i wasnt skating....

so i just quit my bitching and went back to skating....  im never able to learn any new tricks on flatland anymore but fuck it, skating is more than just about learning tricks on the ground....

[PAWL]

"to me, skateboarding is like a magic sticky hand. im stuck with it."