10.23.09
Max Schaaf Conditioning
Growing up as a skater, there were many heroes that my friends and I had. So many skaters, so many skate spots and so many cult figures in the scene. When your teenage years are spent in a tropical country halfway across the world, these things are pipe dreams.
As of earlier this year, I now live in the very same state as many of those heroes and in some ways, it’s a bit of a trip. Seeing some of the spots that have been featured in skate videos from the past in person and thinking about how far and how long it’s been since I’ve thought about some of these things and the memories they’ve dug up… it’s heavy.
Living here, I see more skaters daily than I would see in six months or a year in Chicago. I still have a board. I still occasionally bust it out. I’m beginning to think about getting a new one (I’ll likely custom design some graphics and get a on-demand deck). Some new wheels, some new bearings, Swiss of course.
I came across this pair of videos from the James at Secret Forts. It features pro skater and motorcycle builder Max Schaaf. Watching him in videos years ago and seeing him now is pretty damn cool. Seeing a lot of those skaters still doing it today commands a complete respect in me. It really dominated my mind this morning, knowing that Schaaf is just across the bay and brought to light the constant introspective questioning I have about who I am and where I’m going.
