a portrait of danielle: Longboarding!!

When we leave home and go to college we are always tempted to try new things. Ok maybe not always but for me I love to try new things especially when it falls in a category like sports or adrenaline rush. Yes, one day I do want to go skydiving, this however is nothing like skydiving. There are no planes, and no parachutes and the landing is not always graceful. The only similarities between the two would be that you are potentially risking your life and you definitely will fall. Longboarding is a great sport that I recently discovered a passion for. So instead of drugs and alcohol I decided to give longboarding a try.

Some of you reading this probably have no idea what longboarding is. You might even think I am wasting my time learning how to longboard when I should be "studying" but let's be honest who really "studies" in college? Here's a brief history about longboarding compliments of wikipedia (and we all know how reliable this source is.) Longboarding is an offshoot of street skating, but, like all board sports, its roots lie in surfing. Developed as a single sport on the west coast in the 1950s, by the 1990s, Longboards and Skateboards branched off into their respective disciplines. With the right setup, a longboard can give the feeling of surfing on hard smooth surfaces. There you have it simple enough, longboarding is similar to surfing and snowboarding for that matter.

Anyway let me get on with why I enjoy longboarding. Last semester I met this great guy Brad, he loves longboarding it is essentially his addiction, or I guess I could say it is his hobby. Brad enjoys longboarding so much that he shares it with the people he meets. So one day he took me longboarding what a great friend. It was my first time and I loved it. When I was younger I used to enjoy skateboarding...I mean attempting to skateboard. Longboarding is similar to skateboarding but longboarding is so much easier for me to grasp. Longboarding is both challenging but relieving, when I am longboarding I can escape from all the stresses in my life and just ride. So in short I enjoy longboarding because one my good friend introduced the sport to me and two because it is a good way for me to relieve stress.

It took me one time to realize how much I love to longboard. Ok so maybe I went that first time because I thought Brad was cute and I definitely wanted to impress him. After I went I just enjoyed learning new tricks and ways to longboard. I am in no way educated in longboarding (hence my major interior design) this is when Brad became my coach. After one time of longboarding I was hooked and ready to learn.

Unfortunately last semester I was not able to go longboarding as much as I would have liked. Last semester was hectic, I had projects and well this really time consuming job. Sad day :/

This semester however I have had the privilege to go longboarding more. Although Brad and I are not as "friendly" (if you catch my drift) as we used to be we still enjoy longboarding together. This semester I bought my own longboard and I LOVE IT!! I received my longboard in the mail today, in short: Today has been a great day!!! So Brad, Kelsie and I went out longboarding it was amazing. I cannot describe in words how it feels to be on a longboard but I strongly suggest that you all try it at least once in your lifetime.

Tonight Brad and I went longboarding again. Brad assumed the role of my coach again and I am eternally grateful for the sacrifice he is making to teach me how to be better at longboarding. Yes, it is nice to go longboarding alone to clear your head but it is an unforgettable experience when you have a friend by your side helping you and encouraging you to do better. Thank you Brad, if you are even reading this. Tonight I practiced sliding and yes I fell one or two times, there are indeed bruises to prove my hard work, or clumsiness.

This is Brad Longboarding

Hopefully you are all contemplating longboarding now. I will be the first to tell you to stop thinking about it and to get out there and do it!! Follow the simple advice from Nike "JUST DO IT" You will never know if you have a hidden love for longboarding if you don't try it. Brad is a great teacher and he loves to take people longboarding, if you are interested I am sure he would love to help. Because of longboarding I have made a great friend and creating priceless memories. Like I mentioned before college is all about trying new things and in this case I am so glad that I took the challenge and went longboarding.