I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t just a little bit nervous about the whole thing. I mean, Malibu is just one of those places where you have to know what you’re doing. And with the amount of people in attendance that day, everyone there was just waiting for something to happen. We all knew that there were going to be some unlucky ones in the herd. The canyons were hungry, and you gotta pay to play in Malibu. It’s just the way it goes. So it was just a matter of time before wheels touched, or someone missed the apex on a turn, you get the idea. You earn your right to skate those hills, and you have to earn it in blood. All of us locals have our scars, our proof of purchase. We wear’em with pride. Some people boast about their complicated tattoo designs, we got our scars, and that’s downhill. But that’s not to suggest that the canyons of Malibu aren’t just a complete dream to skate, because really, they are… When you finally rise above those proverbial dark looming clouds of apprehension, they’re perfect. It’s like the best dream you’ve ever had, except it’s real, and all your friends are there too. The corners, the straights, everything about those roads exemplifies exactly what this sport is all about. So despite the hesitation, the warning bells, you just simply had to remind yourself that flesh and blood were a small price to pay for a day spent in downhill utopia.

(more…)