Revolution Mother will be playing at the House of Blues tomorrow night… the opening band starts at 6:30 pm. I’ll personally be there to celebrate my birthday (that midnight) and to give some love out to Mike V for helping us put Hammond on the map. I hope to see all of the homies there… it’s an all ages show, so you don’t have to be a geezer to get in. Come do this.
Every time I have a birthday coming up, I feel an urge to share my perspective on skateboarding to younger skaters… I can’t relate to my teenage (and younger) friends about much these days, but we can all relate to skateboarding. Below is a copy of a message that I wrote to some online skaters I know, most of which are half my age and weren’t even born when I started skating roughly 22 years ago:
Enjoy skating at the level that you’re at and don’t let tricks frustrate you. I promise that you will progress naturally as long as you stay on board and skate whenever you can. Don’t ever compare your skating to anyone else’s, because all that matters is that you enjoy being on your board. Push yourself when you feel like it. There are all kinds of ways to manipulate a skateboard on just about every kind of terrain… consider skateboarding an exploration rather than a challenge you feel that you’re required to meet. If someone tells you you suck at skating, tell them to ‘eff off and continue enjoying your board. The relationship you have with skating can last your entire life as long as you keep up your end. Skateboards aren’t to be stared at, they’re to be skated on. Just keep that in the back of your mind and be part of the next generation of older skateboarders.
I get some surprised looks when people find out that I’m an active skateboarder at nearly 33 years of age… but what else am I supposed to be doing? Drinking beer and watching the game? That’s fine and all, but if I can skate, why shouldn’t I?
Anyway, that’s it… just keep with it and skate for yourself.
Because articles bump older content from the main page, I wanted to make sure we had one page that was permanent and set aside to honor our friend Big Mike.
Keep this page in your bookmarks, and share it with friends.
Peace.
All of us at Small Times hope you have a great holiday season!
Now, go scrape up that new board you got…
Enjoy today, and be thankful for what you have. Make it a day to remember.
…as we receive any information that may be of benefit (money donations for the family, funerary arrangements, etc) I’ll try to relay that as quickly as possible. If you or anyone you know has information to contribute, please give us a shout so that we can share that info with the rest of the community.
Also: you no longer have to register to comment on the blog, although it’s recommended.
Edited to Add: I wanted to point out to some other sites that are giving Big Mike’s memory some love, as well as condolences to the rest of his family:
Bulldog Skates (via our brother Scuba)
Old Man Army (via myself)
Skate TN (via the Tennessee locals)
Here at Small Times
Update: Thanks to Skate Daily for relaying our emotions over the skate community’s loss of a great man.
If you pick up this month’s issue of Thrasher:
Look for this pic:
…that’s Chet Childress skating our very own Chicken Coop. And before you ask: the ‘Coop is not open yet, but it will be soon enough. Don’t worry, we’ll let you know.
In the meantime, go get that Thrasher and own a piece of history.
