Road Trip

Dateline: 08/07/00

Where you skate is almost as important as how you skate, and it is a practical imperative that you change your environment before growing stale by habitually skating the same boring sidewalk or backyard mini-ramp or maybe fun-box and pulling the same god awful tricks that you have for months or even years without a change. Oh, was it decades? How sad. We implore you, get out of this rut before cramping your style severely and on no account making one sorry lick of progress for yourself or for the sport.

Once you've mastered every nook and cranny in your little edge of the world it is seriously time for a change. We recommend a journey, yes, a spiritual trek to seek out unique spots that will take you way away from the same old drudgingly boring path you've been afraid to leave behind thus far. Now is the time to get out and take chances. The moment has come for a road trip.

To get there (where?) head out in one direction and keep going.

Here are some options:

• Drive yourself and your crew or find someone who can
• Charter a bus or simply buy a ticket
• Take a train or fly to Europe and take their train, it's cooler
• Work your way across the country, any country
• Get sponsored and let others pay your way.
• At the very, very least take a bus to the other side of town.

Hit the parks, hit the cities, hit the backwater curbs, but make sure it is previously undiscovered territory. Skate covertly, drawing as little attention as possible and make it your business to skate the entire planet.

Get out. Start fresh. Be new. Do something innovative everyday that defines your style alone and that no one else can think of.

In order to avoid harassment from the authorities we recommend the following:

• Be a customer where you skate, customers won't be accused of trespassing
• Pay your bills.
• Be older than 18, cops pick on kids
• Limit the number with which you travel - a smaller crew, we guarantee, makes for less hassle with the law.
• Look professional or affluent, cops pick on poor people
• Be female, this serves to numb the minds of most everyone as they can't comprehend chicks on a board. It's a real mind blower we know. Anyhow, it can work in your favor.

Other than that or if for some reason you can't meet these criteria don't worry about it. Ignore it and skate anyway. As they say, you can skate every place at least once. Do so. After that, leave peacefully and continue on the mission. Be bold.

The world awaits.