I’ve hit the final stage of The Madness: Exhaustion.
I know this stage. I’ve been through it before. The Madness hit me (this time around) far more acutely than before. In turn, the Exhaustion is proportionate.
For the last few weeks I’ve been tinkering with equipment. In essence, rather than skating in the moment, I’ve been toying with equipment to find that “right set-up” so I can skate it in the future. The irony is not lost on me. I just want to skate, not prepare for future skating. Moreover, constantly switching between stuff makes me less consistent (on any given board). No set-up feels like “home” (and it should). I am over-thinking a lot of this, and it’s leaving me mentally drained. And burn out. I’ve been skating a lot, and doing so somewhat injured (jammed my big toe really bad last week). Between injury, and constantly switching gear, it’s got me in a bit of a slump, and those are no fun. I need to step away from all of it for a bit. To heal. And to clear my mind.
Usually when I get to the Exhaustion, I just come to a hard stop with the Madness. “This is going nowhere. Just ride your normal set-up, and be done with it.” Part of it is that I really like skateboarding, and skateboards. Hardware to Helmets—I like skateboard gear and equipment. It all fascinates me, and gets me stoked out. The down side is the perseveration over nuance.
The last two (three?) things I am ruminating over:
(1) What wheels (shape) to put on my 8.75;
(2) What size trucks (144/149) to put on my 8.25;
(3) In the back of my head, I am still wondering about a good 8.5/14.5wb, but I know that will not really go anywhere.
I want to skateboard. I want to not think about (doubt?) my equipment. I just want it all to feel good, flow in the breeze, and be fun…without any Madness. For now, it’s just time for a little mental/physical break. I am exhausted. I need to reenergize.
