Today I went to this amazing park with a full circle of pavement used mostly by older walkers and younger bike riders. I have been looking for new opportunities to skate for exercise as my beloved outdoor group has as much as disappeared over recent months for a miriad of reasons. It was good to feel the sensation under my feet and to see folks look surprised that I knew what I was doing. I was able to practice some dips and pivots as well as manuals on the street surface. Balanced in the Aframe on my tiny stoppers looking for the proper tension needed to hold the matrix someday. Mainly I enjoyed how no surface scares me anymore. And the hypnotic sound of skates rolling. #skatersgonnaskate #skatejoy

I was at the rink yesterday during one of the early sessions when there are always birthday parties and bystander parents who don't see much skating on a regular basis. One of the parents took time to stop me as I was leaving to say I was a really great skater and asked if I did figure skating. While I thanked him, all that was going through my head was " I'm a solid beginner/intermediate skater, you have no idea what you're talking about, there was nothing spectacular about what I did out there". But it got me thinking about one of the IG reels of a skater that I found so inspiring when I first started skating, how cool and smooth he looked rolling down the street and such joy in his face and movements. After I had been on my skating journey for a bit, I came across that video again and now that I knew better, I saw that he wasn't doing anything particularly difficult... He was basically just doing bubbles/braids the whole time as he jammed out! 😅 It made me realize how much adding your own special sauce, your own joy in the movement and flow can make ANY move spectacular and can be an inspiration to others. I had to remind myself of that after the conversation I had when I realized I had that negative self talk running through my head. So I'm reminding you all too, fam. In case you need it 💜

Planning to travel to London in the spring and really want to visit a rink there. Looks like Roller Nation will be the one – they have a soul night, so that’s exciting! I won’t have my own skates and will have to use rentals. I am not used to a toe stop any more! Wondering if they will let me switch them out for my jam plugs, and probably I should bring my own tool to adjust the trucks. Anybody have any tips?

Went to the rink today and had my friend film me for the first time since I started. Just felt weird to film myself. I can say that I'm still not exactly where I want to be for how much time I've put into it but we'll get there!!! 😊. Anybody know when to incorporate pivots into a routine? I love watcing other skate as well so feel free to drop some of your crazy moves that I could try to learn!

For those who’ve traveled by plane with their skates, how do you pack them? Any tips for keeping them safe?