Hello, I'm TheAverageOldGuy and like you, I'm not getting any younger. But getting older doesn't have to mean the end of fitness and fun. Come along with me as we explore ways to stay in shape, challenge ourselves, and have some adventure as we age.
I have over 50 years of experience running, riding, racing, and just generally trying to live life to its fullest. I have participated in hundreds of races and competitions ranging from high school track, motocross, mountain biking, BMX, cyclocross, marathon and ultra-marathon, Spartan, triathlon, and others as diverse as ping-pong and racquetball.
While I can't claim to be an expert in any area of fitness or nutrition, I hope my experiences will inspire and motivate you to challenge yourself and improve your life as you age. Staying healthy and active as you age is not always easy, but my goal is to show you it can be done, that it can be a lot of fun, and that adventure often awaits right in your own back yard.
I have been getting pretty hammered lately. I took a huge slam last night at the Atlantic Beach NC skatepark and man I am sore today. I am down for a family emergency and have skated 4 days in a row on the skateboard and its tough on my knee, but man its such a stress relief!
You are such an inspiration! I am 31, picked up skating in January this year and spent quite a bit of time at the local skatepark these past months. I started cautiously approaching grinding in the last weeks, and man - this is scary! But it's really encouraging to see you going through the same process and working up the nerve to jump onto these things!
Great job getting going! Yea I really struggle with the rail for some reason that I don't understand. I had less of a time learning to drop in than I have had committing to jumping on that rail, and if I take any time off of it at all, I have to start all over with the commitment again. I'm sure if I do it enough it will become easy, but it definitely will take more work to get there. Good luck on your journey!
We tried to make it a little higher, but it was unstable so this ended up how it came out. It seems about perfect to make me jump, but also allow getting off better too.
Wow first try on the soul grind!! It's tough finding the perfect balance between too low and too tall for a practice box but it looks like you nailed it. The souls you landed looked reallllly good, and when you messed up you didn't bail hard, to me that is almost as good as a land and shows the box is a good height for learning. Too low and you get your feet swept out, too high and it's too hard to commit to the jump for learning ... Looking better every video!!!
Thanks! Yea this height worked out really well for having to jump on and getting off gracefully. Now if I can just take this to the park and get on the rail there. Its still slow progress on that!
I skated for many years of my life and I have a deep appreciation for what the sport provides to those who pursue it but I also have a beat up body from it as well and watching you ride that concrete frankly makes me nervous. You just look a little wobbly on the board but I know I did at one time as well, I just don’t want to see an old guy take a slam on the concrete. But this is America and you’re free to skate as much as you want. Just take it slow and work your way up to the big stuff
I'm beat up from a multitude of sports so there's no shortage of body aches and pains already. I am still working on dialing in my trucks and this section would probably have been a bit easier with a little tighter trucks for sure, but hopefully it will get better as I get back into the groove.
Its much bigger looking in person than it looks on the GoPro, that camera always seems to flatten everything out. Hopefully it will get smaller in my mind as I ride it more!
@@Sure2Skate Yea, if we just had a skateboard level view those drops wouldn't seem quite so intimidating! That's what I had to do when learning to drop in on the inline skates. I stood at the bottom of the drops and sometimes even got on my knees and looked up, and it never seemed quite so scary that way. The extra height from the edge to your eyes makes a huge difference mentally!
@@theaverageoldguy sometime i sit on the coping and it looks ok from there. Im 6.3" so that also don't help. Will try to crouch more into drop position and one day when i really (mentally) get into it i will drop in.
@@Sure2Skate Oh man 6.3 is up there, you do have some extra height. Just don't spend long on the coping, decide you are going to do it, hop right up and go!
Wow, didnt know you also skate on the board. I just quit skateboarding 2 weeks ago to learn inline skating, but you motivated me to still do these two sports. I'm 41 btw and used to skate for few years from time to time but still Im struggling with my mini ollie, thats why I started something else like inline skating and it's fun.
I grew up skateboarding and still love it and am glad I got back into it. I started the inlines with my son last fall and have really had a great time on those too. I'm sure I would make more progress if I stuck to just 1, but at my age its less about progress and more about just enjoying the journey. I generally blade when I am with my son and skateboard when I am alone and that works out pretty evenly. I struggle with everything that requires a jump, but I love skating transitions on both blades and the board so much that I'll never run out of new things to try. Good luck on your journey!
You are truly an inspiration my dude! Soul is really tricky for me on p rail. One thing that seems to help me is to focus much more on the sole foot than the front foot. Just really getting boned over the rail and keeping that foot right under me. Keep it up man!
I (as an older skater) use the Oysi Medium which are great for cruising thanks to the large front and back wheels. The middle wheels are still a good size and have a big gap between them. The wheel bite protection is great for me, a mediocre skater!
I was thinking about those new FR Oysi frames that have all 4 wheels the same size and are supposed to be a little thinner than the Mediums. My Them 909's already have small soulplates and losing more to the frame wouldn't help. Glad to hear you like those frames though because those are definitely still on the table for me.
Great work getting the tile dude! I absolutely love those fakie pumps so much! Don’t you love how thrilling and scary and yet satisfying that is? It keeps calling us back like a moth to a flame. 🔥 😮
Yea, its really got me wanting to do something in that bowl now. My knee is getting better and I skateboarded and inlined the past few days, so hopefully I am on the mend. I tried some pumping tips I got from SkateIQ on a newer video and it works really well, hope to get that one out soon.
Thanks! This has been a mental struggle for sure. For some reason that rail always freaked me out and it took me forever to try and jump on. Now I have a sprained knee and I hope I don't lose my progress!
I'm talking about the G-form short pants that you wear under your cloting. they are made for cyclists. They have soft plastic pad on the hips and rear. the soft plastic hardens when it receives a shock and becomes soft again afterwards. it's very comfortable you totally forget you're wearing them and I've had enough falls with them which have proven to me that they are very effective. By the way, I'm 63 years old too, I started roller skating last year and immediately fell in love with this sport. I embarked on this project looking for a means of transportation because I was losing the ability to walk the usual long distances. Now it's my passion.
@@alainisabelledemontreal2484 Glad to hear you got into skating, always good to hear from older folks that are staying active! I have checked out some of the g-form pads and they look great. I purchased a set of Rhip Clips now that clip into your pants and you place them where you want them. I wore Bodyprox padded shorts previously and they just seemed to be missing padding right on my hip bone (and were HOT) and the Rhip Clips I can put exactly there. I have fallen in them some and they work great, but I will check out the G-forms as well. Thanks!
Thanks, this was all about breaking that mental barrier of the jump. For some reason that rail has terrified me for months and now hopefully I can commit to the jump. I do have a sprained knee right now though, so that has stopped the jumping for a while and I hope I don't have to start over mentally on it again!
You are an inspiration my friend!! I'm in your neck of the woods in Maryville. I want to check out the pump track at the Baker Creek Preserve. That skatepark looks fun.
Thank you! I have made some pretty good progress since this for sure. Of course not as much as I would like, but its still progress and I am having a great time with it. I hope you are enjoying your comeback!
Honestly the way i learned was a low curb waxed well with an antirocker setup. give it a shot, helps you get comfortable with the feeling of grinding. Also as you ride along the rail practice locking your sole foot on a few times and letting it slide a good distance before attempting to jump onto the rail. hopefully that helps.
Thanks! I have been able to grind on some low ledges and had some decent step on grinds on this particular rail, but I had never worked up the nerve to jump onto it. I kind of half-hearted tried to stall the mizu with my right foot in soul position before, but never gave that 100% effort, so this was the first time I gave it an all out effort. It may seem like a lot of failures, but I was very happy with the result! I sprained my knee skateboarding a few days after this though and now have to wait a while before I can jump again, hazards of getting old, everything takes longer to heal!
That's the way to do it, glad she's into it! I try to skate as often as I can and alternate between the blades and skateboard. It takes a toll on my knee though, this session almost killed me, but I was so excited it didn't matter.
I have been thinking about a set of the new FR Oysi frames, they look really nice from all the reviews I have seen and are thinner than the Oysi originals it looks like. My 909's already have smallish soul plates and I don't want to lose any of that to a really wide frame!
I think you should look at HiLo (hi-lo/high low) frames. You can ride flat and have more space between your center wheels. Also, if you are really focused on grinds and aren't concerned with airs, an aggressive freestyle frame might not be a bad idea. You can always get a 4x80/4x90 frame to roll around on and then throw the other frames on when it's grind time. I have a 4x90 frame setup that I swap with my Oysi frames and I gotta say, every minute I spend cruising on big wheels makes me more confident when I swap to agg frames. Shouts out to everybody out there rolling flat. Anti-rocker is cheating, lol.
Also really like your videos and how you show the true and mostly inglorious process that is learning to blade. It's good for folks to see the struggle and the payoff of finally getting your intended result.
@@ezimmerman562 Thanks, it is definitely a process and doesn't come easy. I am thinking about some of the new FR Oysi frames, I don't want to change from the flat setup since most of my skating is transition based. I like trying the grinds, but my real joy is skating the transitions and the flat setup is just so much more fun there.
Just a thought you look uncomfortable just moving around spend more time skating the park till you relax more also start by stepping onto the grind skate faster put your sole on then step up once you are comfortable and sliding start jumping on just my take on things enjoy
At my age everything looks uncomfortable, mostly because it is! The loss of mobility and flexibility really affects my skating. I do work hard to maintain some level of mobility, but it does get more and more difficult as you age to remain limber and able to flow, and old injuries come back on you too. I have done step up grinds on that rail before and really want to work my way into some jump on grinds there, but boy its slow progress!
Are the inline skates heavy? It looks like it takes tremendous jumping power to get up on that rail there. Incredible job by the way. I felt the thrill of victory from here when you got it. 👊
They are heavy for me, probably several pounds each, and that rail is at the upper limit of my jumping ability. What would have been a piece of cake 20 years ago is dang tough now!
It took me forever to get the courage to try and jump on that thing. It was way easier to learn to drop in than jump on that rail for some reason. Now I have a sprained knee and the jumping is out for a couple of weeks, hopefully I won't have to start over on it again!
I have tried that setup and just don't like skating around the park with them, I so much prefer the flat setup for that since that's the majority of the skating I do.
@theaverageoldguy wow. You responded this time. Thanks!! antirockers wont change how you roll bro they just take away the wheel bite when grinding whilst still giving you something that rolls when you go over transitions. Flat setup is like literally doing everything on hard mode and freestyle would probably just be too far in the other direction. A set of antirocks will just help you be able to grind without the bite and your rolling around will be unaffected.
@@Yama-kid187 I am looking at some of the new FR Oysi frames right now. I do feel a big difference in skating when I put the anti's on my skates, they are a lot less responsive for me. Grinding is not a high priority for me, I like it (when I can do it!), but transitions are what I really love to skate, and that extra responsiveness and carving ability on the flats just makes that so much more fun.
The progress is awesome!!! keep working and skating it is really cool to see your improvement keep it up!!! Ps. Work on landing on your back leg on those soul grinds and have the front leg as support👍
Yea, that back leg is a problem for me on the rail and the ledge. I think it lags behind in an effort to protect my right knee and I really need to work on getting both feet up at the same level. I'm going to try and start back on the box jumps once my knee sprain heals.
Good stuff. I'm 45 and decided to start rollerblading again after 20 years, got to give you credit. I was terrified going down my driveway and you are out here doing tricks and stuff, props to you.
Thanks! My driveway still terrifies me, I hit a stick on the skateboard 2 weeks ago, slammed with no pads on, and am still paying for that one! Good luck on your return blading!
wow, great duuuude. You doing great. Iam 43 and started about a month ago after 27 years break. Inline Skating and Skateboarding. It is getting better each day. Been lucky having time to do my 3-6 hours in the skatepark. Mostly working on transition. Much respect to you, looking amazing. You´re in a great shape and having good reactions. 20 years from now i can only wish being in the same shape. Have a great time, looking forward to your next videos. Have fun and take care. Bless you ! Greets from Germany
Thanks, I do feel a bit better every day I skate. Sprained my knee a week ago and working back from that now, but did get some skating in over the weekend.
