I couldn't decide on any one picture, or if I wanted to do ones of me, or ones I took. So I'm just going to pick some of my favourites over the years, and tell you a bit about each of them.
Pictures I Took
This has become one of my new favourite ways to take pictures, because it allows me to both take the picture, and be in the picture! Plus with the 360 camera I can change the perspectives AFTER the picture is already taken! This one is one of the most beautiful runs I managed to take this year, since I wasn't able to travel due to lockdowns. This was taken in Asessipi Provincial Park right as the fall colours started to come in. Asessipi is a large valley, going down to a lake, with a river running through it. This made for an amazing view as I skated down the valley to the lake, which you can see here surrounded with trees on the way down. I honestly couldn't find a better picture to capture the feeling of going down a hill.
This is a picture I took at the Chute Lake Outlaw race in BC, 2019. Rider in front is Sean Young, who despite never pursuing a pro racing career, is known as one of the fastest skaters out there. He has also not changed his setup in years, because he believes him being familiar with his board, has more benefit than any of the latest boards or trucks will.
This was also the event where I nearly broke my ankle in a crash. Which was why I was sitting in this corner taking pictures. Luckily for you.
It's tradition to throw pinecones at racers at Giants Head Freeride, so here is me doing just that.
These above photos were ones I took at a skate competition, in Abbotsford BC while traveling. Sadly I don't know any of the skaters names, as we only stayed to watch for a little bit. But it was fun to try to find ways to capture good angles of the skaters, and I think I came out with some good ones.
These two are the best pictures I took at my first skate competition, Scam Jam. It was an event put on by my local company that makes both longboards and skate decks, Scam Skate. They had live bands playing music the whole time, tons of skaters, and prizes. I've always been grateful of the support they have shown me, so I try to help them out by making content for them when I can.
Picture Of Me
I think my third favourite thing about longboard events, behind the skating and the people, is having my picture taken while skating. Not only does it feel really cool to see yourself in action, but it's also a great way to correct your form.
I used to always grab the board between my legs in corners like this, but was told it was bad form. I had learned to make it work, but the main worry was that if you crash with an arm between your leg, your back kneed can snap your arm. Luckily that never happened.
Here you can see I am leaned back on my hand, which has a slide puck on the bottom to allow me to glide my hand on the road, while sliding my board. I've got my front foot close to me, so I'd say about 60% of my weight on my front foot, about 35% on my hand, and the last 5% is used to push out the tail end of my board.
If you notice all the white lines on the road, those are thane lines left by wheels. They also show you path most riders travel through the corner while sliding, which is actually a curved line. This is because when you slide the correct way with your board at about a 45' angle, you can actually slide in a curve. This when mastered allows you to drift a corner like a car does, and also is good for racing since you can slow down at the last second while also aiming towards the exit of the corner.
Thanks Skate Hive for putting on this contest!
This gave me reason to go through some old pictures, and even edit a few new ones for this. Which was nice to do, and made me wish I did this more.