I wish I was more open-minded about downhill.
I was a follower of the ‘long boarding is for kooks’ prejudice until I was doing a zine article about people in the skate community doing cool stuff.
Turns out, nobody in the ‘cool’ community was, but the skateshop pointed me to a crew of downhillers that hold weekly events and meet-ups.
I went to one, they made me wear a helmet (which I thought was stupid) until they saw I knew how to stand on a board.
The first time was mellow, but the main guy in the crew, a downhill board designer and racer showed me some downhill vids and I was blown away.
He hooked me up with a factory second and I got the rest of the gear second hand, and holy shit once you start sliding it’s fun. Nothing better than drifting a looooong coleman around a corner while cooking.
Learning how to slide, corner, and drift on paved bike trails (and barging golf courses) was like putting a line together, figuring out how to navigate each curve and then putting it together in a single run, and then trying to do it at speed.
Plus it reminded me of the camaraderie skaters had in the 80’s, when we were hated. That spirit lives in the downhill scene, and there is a pretty punk feel to it, dodging cops, outlaw races, etc.
I know most of you will write this off and kook me for it, but I’m glad I gave it a chance. Plus, it’s not that bad for an aging body.
Oh, and I finally understood why they have the helmet rule, locking up while in a slide can send you to your head really, really easily.