I ride in a circle on the outdoor basketball court of a local elementary school- this is my spot. Kids sometimes stop to look, or some might even throw out a couple of compliments or obnoxious statements. People don't often ask what it is that I am doing. Or why I come out every day to ride. Flatland isn't about being in the limelight or showing off. People may think that you are showing off as you stand on one wheel and flip the bars underneath of you... but it's not true. Showing off is what is done when you are doing a show. It's what you are supposed to do in shows. Impress people... make them have fun... if they want to or not.

Practice is what happens at the school. It isn't a big thing with a dozen friends. I am lucky to have one of my friends be free at the same time as me so we can ride together. But in the end I don't need them there to practice. I ride hard for as long as I can and think about what it all means.

It is challenge and accomplishment. It is taking something in my hands... with my body and creating something that is unique. Nobody rides like me. Nobody can. They can ride similar, they can do similar tricks... but my style is mine. I would love to make a living riding so I could do it all day instead of losing 40 hours a week to a job. But when all is said and done I need freestyle. It is my focus and my relaxation. I am forced to put all worries, all doubts, all my problems outside of my head for a short period of time and work my body, muscles, and mind in harmony trying to take myself to the next level.

I wonder why people talk about this or that rider being the best. Flatland can never be about competition. There may be riders that do better in contests then others but that won't make them the best. The best riders are the ones with the dedication to the sport... the ones that feel it in their blood and bones. To reduce the sport to 3 minutes just isn't possible. To reduce the sport to specific styles of riding just isn't acceptable. I'm not the best... I'm not the worst. I am a rider though. I am pushing myself to be better. I want the next trick. I want the last trick to be better. I want the trick from ten years ago to be better.

I hear people talk about old school like it is supposed to mean something. Like it is bad... I haven't quite figured out what old school is though. I keep waiting for someone to explain it to me. I wouldn't trade my ability to do undertakers and nourie stands for another trick. Why should I? Because it isn't a 'contest' trick? There are times when I ride with friends and we work on tricks that we KNOW we will never use in a contest yet are as hard as any other trick we are attempting. There is no way to explain how much satisfaction comes from hitting a trick solid no matter what it is.

If there was one question that comes most often to flatland riders it is probably "How do you do that?" Of course everyone knows the answer to that already. Practice, practice, practice, prac..... But what does that mean? Practicing isn't work- it's relaxation. But it is only relaxing because it is a challenge. Huh? When I first rode the best thing I could do was ride backward sitting on the handlebars and rock walks. Eventually I got to the point where I could do them forever any time, any place... so I moved on. The tricks get harder but the process is the same. Focus on it and try it and try it again and learn it and do it over and over and then.... move on. Linking tricks is just like doing a new trick often. It is a challenge that is tackled one step at a time. In the end the tricks become easy. In the end a time machine for me is easier than an endo for someone else. It means that the time machine is no better than the endo- just a little bit more complex.

I once read a letter from someone who wrote in about how great he was... how he could clear this jump and do drops off his roof and do crazy gaps. So why the HECK (or some other expletive) can't I manual? The answer being that flatland is possibly the most technical and difficult sport overall in existence. Gaps and jumping takes some practice but usually shows results much faster than flatland. To do a really good gap usually all you need to know how to do is a bunny hop which is about the most basic of the flatland tricks. Street riding requires a raised level of guts from a rider... but not as much skill. I would say that street riding is one of the craziest sports in existence yet not one of the most difficult. Some riders are exceptions. So I ride flat and get frustrated some days and get motivated other days. I always try to maintain my focus.

In the end though, when the sun sets, and I've ridden hard for a few hours... I'm happy. I've had fun. That's what it's all about. That's what matters.