Why no love?

LDPanda · Why no love?

So I went out for a really long sesh yesterday, the weather was unseasonably nice, i was well stretched and energetic, i had a great time. The only bad part of the whole trip was the two times i passed this punk biker and he had some disparaging remarks for me (ones i dont feel the need to repeat here). Now, it was a great sesh, i dont let the words of some stupid kid get me down, but it got me wondering: why dont ldpers enjoy the same respect as downhillers or even street skaters? Whats so wrong with what we do? Im not skuffing up curbs or grinding down rails, im not speeding around cars on a busy highway, why all the hate? Admittedly, i do get a few supporters out there, bikers who want to chat about the sport and are genuinely excited about it, but i get as many if not more who are rude and (like this kid) downright mean. Maybe some of you have had this happen? Any ideas why?

scooterdad

Well, I've been lucky enough not to have this happen to me (yet), but I think people often have a natural tendency to dislike that which is unfamiliar. And it does look kind of goofy to the uninitiated.

I do notice that when I ride around on our bike path here, people give some really long, long looks, following me with their eyes for minutes at a time it seems. My wife tells me that's because I'm an older looking dude on a skateboard than what they're used to, or that I'm wearing a helmet, or something else. I think it's just because I look different doing what I am doing. Most people will probably think cool- that looks like something fun and different. Others will always react with negativity, thinking it looks stupid or lame or a waste of time. Those people may never be happy, so it's pretty easy not to get discouraged by them. There are more people that fall into the first category though. At least in my mind Wink

Those are the ones I try to surround myself with.

The others, well, there just isn't enough time on this earth to care too much what they think.

model.citizen

we look geeky. not surf-soul-hippy-kewl, not hesh. geeky.

who cares.

we're the ones with the smile and stoke...

northcoast

why no love? because we don't "look" cool. DH'ers have the mad speed and stormtrooper helmets to go with them; sliders have their spinny moves; street skaters have the flippity kicks and junk; even slalom has an element of excitement from the racing. but, LDP just has average dudes on goofy looking boards humping air and going down bike paths. i personally have gotten many odd looks, and a bunch of comments.

don't let it get you down, you're one less car on the road and one less hipster on a fixie Wink

jat.

What ever man, I slide so I'm at least semi exciting Cool

Haha. But jokes aside, I've gotten a more positive vibe from the people I've passed on my sessions. I've gotten my spanking hand gestures under control though so ... I might have been kind of uncool-ish at some point. =P

pavedwave

Belegnole

Unfortunately there always seems to be snobbish people about. I guess some people will always have to look down on others to boost their egos or make them feel better about the thousands they have spent on their particular hobby. I have always enjoyed even just the thought of not having to put a foot down while riding a skateboard even if it can look dorky.....and it can.

ZapZang

Gotta agree with what's been said - yeah we can look dorky - especially when learning - but it can't dampen my love given the huge, genuine smile I feel plastered across my face when I'm pumping down the trail.

When I was a kid I had a Ramp Rat - a huge Variflex plank with hard wheels - and when I'd ride down hills - trying to get some speed up by riding on the narrow strip of cement between the curb and the bumpy asphalt, I could feel that by snaking the front of the board back and forth I could ever-so-slightly propel myself faster than gravity pulled me.

I remember having awesome dreams, kinda like flying dreams, of being able to turn that tiny bit of self-propulsion into something very much like what I've now found myself able to do - so pumping is like living out a childhood dream for me.

Between that and how damn good it feels physically (working my whole body, flowing, breathing, blood and endorphins pumping - this is just about the ONLY 'workout' type activity I enjoy), it's a habit I'm quite comfortable enjoying, no matter how silly it may sometimes look, no matter what friends and strangers who don't get it might have to say.

The stoke can be shared, but it cannot be squashed.

wafflesole

my first 'proper' board. A variflex ramp rat.

Alec

You think it's bad getting 'hate' from cyclists?

I could take that, it's the hate towards the whole LDPumping/LDPushing disciplines from other branches of skateboarding that I don't understand and that annoys me.

I pity the fools

LDPanda

Yeah, i have a hard time connecting with kick flippers, maybe im getting old O.o Longboarders have their own drama tho (see silverfish re: maryhill '08 ) Im thankful we have such an awesome community here at pavedwave, no fuss, no muss, all stoke. I hit the trail for an hour in my brand new pavedwave.org t-shirt today and got more compliments than ever Smile

Belegnole

what is it with places where you cant help a person without getting flamed?

btw nice shirt...I want one in a XL

G- Dub

You gotta turn the dry humps into more of a dance. When ride, I throw on some tunes and groove to it. I turn my pumps into a groove. Looks much cooler and I get more positive feedback.

gboom

Great thread, keep it burning.

Anger on the trail results in mental, and possibly physical, pain. My two cents...don't lose your focus b/c of anger. I did, and my wrists are still paying for it. I fell b/c of a loss in my focus from getting just a little attitude from cyclists. Never, EVER, again.

Don't just do it, enjoy it!

LDPanda

Well, since this thread got resurrected, i guess i ought to share this event that happened at the most recent ultraskate. Ive hesitated to write about it for two reasons. One, i dont want to cast a negative shadow on what was an awesome event. Two, im not quite sure how to feel about it. Here goes: I was in the bike lane, the pedestrian lane is on my left. I came up behind two teens, walking in the right lane with their skateboards under their arms. I said "on your right." Nothing. I say "on you right" again. This time the two teens look back, see me, and keep walking. Ok, theyre jerks, i get it. So i switch to the left lane to pass them. As im going by, the one on the outside jukes out in front of my board, forcing me to make a quick maneuver on wet pavement. After recovering, i jam my foot down and quickly brake to a stop, pick up my board, and confront the kid. I'll be the first to admit, i lost my cool. I got up in his face and made it clear how i felt. I skated off and returned to our base camp. The same two teens passed by a few minutes later and we had another 'verbal exchange.' So, im left with mixed emotions. One side of me is ashamed that i would lose my composure, get up in a kids face as a grown man. Another side of me feels proud that i didnt let this punk get away scott-free like he thought he was going to. Im still a little torn on the issue but im just glad i didnt let it ruin the awesome time i was having.

G- Dub

I probably would have flipped out man. I don't take shit from people, no matter what age they are. I don't let them walk all over me. I guess my philosophy is a little different on the topic.

pavedwave

Dave that did suck, but you handled it fine. The kids needed a little wake up, and you didn't actually resort to anything past words. Thinking that being underage is some kind of carte-blanche ticket to disrespect the "elderly" is total BS -- there were some common sense rules those kids clearly decided to ignore, as the other witnesses that were there also spoke up about. One can only hope they'll learn from a few strong verbal reprimands-- so that some day they might not pull a wrong move with the wrong dude in the wrong alley at the wrong time.

I think it sucks even more that these little douchers were skateboarders. Which kind of speaks to Alec's point about the infighting. I have some seriously long posts I keep holding in "draft" mode about this, so I'll spare ya for now Very Happy

gboom

Yeah, like JP noted I don’t doubt your judgment after reading your posts. Kids will be kids.

I find the balance of adrenalin and politeness is tough to keep in check while out riding. We tend to travel significantly faster than walkers/runners and a bit slower than many cyclists (well, I do at least). So we are bound to irk everyone. That, combined with the fear of the unknown mentioned above, sets us up for being the perceived antagonists.

When I am pumped up, I want to keep flowing along. Now I sit at a computer and I am much more reasonable and civilized. Props to you LDPanda as a disciple of the discipline. Hmm, that seems redundant.

And as for the young punks out looking for a fight…..GET OFF MY LAWN!!!

barefootboarder

Hey LDPanda, sorry to hear about your troubles during the Ultraskate but I agree with the others that you behaved in the right way and you really shouldn't beat yourself up about it.

Seems to me that you may have taught those kids a valuable lesson and maybe they'll think next time before they deliberately mess with someone... like James said the next person they mess with might not be as nice about it as you were and they may find themselves in a whole heap of trouble.

I've had a few problems, usually when I've been on my own which sucks and normally I just grab my board and keep going but one time I think I must have been suffering from some kind of hormonal imbalance because I really blasted the guys involved! After they disappeared I sat on my board and didn't stop shaking for ages... daft girly hormones could have got me into a whole heap of trouble Embarassed