Hey There,

We’ve been really busy here at the shop, but I wanted to take a few moments to write an entry before the week got away from me entirely.

There’s been a lot going on with the website that I’m excited to tell you about, but first I wanted to discuss an interesting article that came across my desk this morning. It’s an op/ed piece by Bill Wundram from the Quad-City Times, titled, “Five Lessons Learned From Skateboarders”.

If you keep up with my blog, you know that I’m constantly harping on the misconceptions of skateboarders / skateboarding in the United States. There are certain stereotypes out that about what it means to be a skater, and it’s a real uphill battle trying to reverse that. This article was of particular interest because it discusses someones first hand account of skateboarders, and how those misconceptions were rectified. By being trapped with this group of young skaters, they were forced to observe some of the team work and etiquette in the skating world. They were so taken by this, in fact, that they were able to fairly easily identify five life lessons that can be taken from the sport. Here’s a basic breakdown of the big five: 1) support, 2) do it again, 3) take turns, 4) hard knocks, and 5) earning respect.

The take-away meanings have to do with being a good sport, perseverance, sharing, supporting the group, not getting bogged down by small defeats, not expecting things to be handed to you, virtue, etc. All of these are very good life lessons, I think, and the world would be a better place if more people promoted them. Now, I’m not saying that every single skater out there is going to the perfect model citizen promoting these ideals. The point is that these sorts of traits DO exist in the skating world, and even if every skater doesn’t possess every single one of them, it doesn’t mean the sport is a waste or an act of rebellion. I think on the whole, the culture does promote these traits, and by and large, most skaters are trying to live up to as many of them as possible.

If you’d like to read more about the article or the author, here is the link: http://qctimes.com/news/opinion/editorial/columnists/bill-wundram/article_292296d8-ad01-11e0-ad33-001cc4c03286.html

Since I have your attention, I thought I’d also take this opportunity to tell you about a few updates to the Liberty Skate website.

First, I know it’s been a long time coming, but we finally have the Paint section live. Every phase of the “paint project” seemed to take much longer than anyone originally anticipated, but as the old saying goes, “good things come to those who wait”. Keep in mind that you don’t necessarily have to own a Liberty Skate product to purchase the Liberty Skate protective coating. I’ve heard of people applying it to existing ramps, other outdoor wood surfaces, etc.

Next, we’ve been paying attention to customer feedback, and we’re now offering combo deals on our quarter pipes. They’re the same great quarter pipes you’ve come to know very well, in 4, 6 and 8 foot widths, but now you can save some money by buying in bulk. This is also available on the site right now.

OK – that’s all for today. Thanks for your time.

If you watch the movie 187 Hours backwards, it’s actually a fairly uplifting story about a guy who gets his arm back, climbs out of a cave and goes on to live a nice life,

Jason