I'm Too Old for Skateboarding

Catherine Penfold-Waxman: 16th Dec 2005 - 14:25 GMT

I decided long ago that boarding, blading, skiing or even running is not for me. I'll break my leg falling off a barstool, thank you very much.
(You only bruised your ego. Give it another try and you will be yelling, "I'm flying!")

GGP: 16th Dec 2005 - 14:51 GMT

This story has it all: drama, adventure, the thrill of the challenge, the agony of defeat, and a wonderful sense of humor...a cautionary tale for our time! Much enjoyed.

Peter: 16th Dec 2005 - 15:00 GMT

hehehehe. i still ride my longboard. its slower, slacker, and harder to crash on. though, i must admit, there was an unfortunate spill on it earlier this year that required me to shell out $150 for a new mobile, as i shattered the one i had thats to said incident :(

jack: 16th Dec 2005 - 15:09 GMT

ha ha ha ha very funny and very sad. you are reaching an age where you see the years doing things to your strength. i must applaude you for doing what you did. you were going rather well. but it was'nt your fault. the board hit somethiong. in brooklyn in the fifties we made skate boards from one roller skate and a 2x4. we would unscrew the roller skate and then nail it to the 2x4. the board was about 4 feet long and the front roller skate was in the front and the other in the rear. most of the time we would nail a wooden crate from the produce store onto the board and then we had a scooter. i was pretty proficient on those wheels in those days but i soon found that the next ten years took a toll. i had gotten bigger and a little clumbsier. but the army rangers got me back into shape and they took a lot out of me. it is all right, dont worry, at 29 your still a young man. be smart, exercise as much as you can and do yoga. my mother is going on 92 and she does her yoga and wears her short shorts with high heels and walks around the hills in california.

JJ: 17th Dec 2005 - 00:45 GMT

Catherine: I may give it another go. But next time I'll drink fewer beers beforehand.

GGP: You're very kind.

Peter: Sounds awful. I've never destroyed a board thankfully.

Jack: Reminds me of Back to the Future when Marty McFly rips the kid's scooter apart to make a skateboard out of it.

jeeff: 17th Dec 2005 - 20:03 GMT

i've been in a couple bike accidents, and each time there's a kind of "get away" embarassment, even in the case where i got the door prize and broke my collarbone. i just wanted to get the hell out of there.

JJ: 21st Dec 2005 - 22:33 GMT

Choo:
Yes! I wish I had one of those.

Jeeff:
That's exactly it. "Get away embarrassment" Describes the feeling perfectly.

haj: 3rd Jan 2006 - 20:01 GMT

I've been thinking about taking up skateboarding. I'm 33 (but active and in good shape). Am I crazy?

Hector: 23rd Jan 2006 - 05:04 GMT

Here I am with 30 years and 3 skateboards, a short one a carver and a pintail. I just can't imagine miself without a skateboard. A word of advice for you all, get a longboard with 72-80 / 70-80a wheels and a 180-200 mm trucks and you will be flying over asphalt. Forget old times. This is here and now and is funnier than ever. Longboards are waaay better than anyting you ever ridden before. Trust me on that. Get one right now and get some healthy hills.

anon (bmly-cache-10.server.ntli.net): 23rd Jan 2006 - 16:11 GMT

"I decided long ago" . . ."never to walk in anyone's shadow" . . . Go see the film "Chlorine": Steve Alba is still ripping at 40.

Skate or Spin Dry!

10¥ - tenyen.net

Allio: 24th Jan 2006 - 20:01 GMT

I tried every fing from dancing to bungie jumpung and skateboarding is atmost..my best ..~~../

Jono Cono: 3rd Feb 2006 - 03:27 GMT

That's a great story, well written. I used to skateboard as well and I know the feeling of hitting a small pebble or your wheels locking up on your for some reason due to the terrain. You definitely go flying man, the worst is if you just ollied down a set of stairs going fast, you just pulled off a tight landing and your wheels bite a rock, the board instantly stops and the continuation of motion is you bouncing off a curb on the other side of the street. Ahhh those were the days, of course back then it didn't faze you at all, just get up and do it all over again. Now I'd probably cry if I knocked my shin doing an inverted 180 heel flip.

Empress Signs LLC : 2nd Mar 2006 - 19:44 GMT

LMAO, Sorry. But wait til you have your own kids like me. I just was smart enough to show them my 360 and tic tac skillz and to not go beyond my driveway. But stay in touch with that kid at heart none the less.

Susannah: 23rd Oct 2006 - 14:26 GMT

Stories like these are the reason I like to watch "Jackass" so much.. those guys are way old to be doing what they're doing!

Jason: 10th Jan 2007 - 20:28 GMT

I'm 31. I'm married. I'm a programmer. I'm 15 lbs. overweight. I ordered a complete board last night on the web. I've never really skated before, but dammit, I'm going to give it a shot. As ridiculous as it sounds, I've been searching around for stuff on the web along the lines of: "too old" "skateboard" "new"... you get the idea. Being confined to a cubicle day in and day out is making me salivate for a rush of freedom. I'm excited to push my boundaries, regain some balance, and quite possibly break my arm (never done that either!). 30 is the new 20, right? Wish me luck...

Brad: 11th Jan 2007 - 02:22 GMT

I skated for about 3 solid years starting when I was 13 (I'm 20 now). I got half decent and used to have a blast, while it got us into a little bit of trouble, it really kept us out of a lot worse stuff we could have gotten into. It was in August 2002 when I kind of hurt my foot and a week later got a job, together they put an end to my skating days. It just never clicked after that for whatever reason, even though I was only off of the board a few weeks at most to let my foot get back to 100%. In the summer of 2005 I started skating again every weekend and sometimes after work/before and after classes during the week. Then it kind of fizzled out again. I skated a few weeks ago for the first time in a little over a year, and it still just doesn't feel right anymore. I can enjoy just pushing around a little bit doing manuals and popping what few tricks my feet can still do but it's always frustrating because you have to relearn a lot of the stuff you got so used to and I'm not patient enough to do that anymore.

If you are just getting into skating, just have a lot of patience, unless you have natural talent, then you are lucky. It can be a lot of fun, or a lot of pain, but I learned how to fall skateboarding and that's at least one thing that sticks with me today, and still keeps me from getting hurt when I do stupid things. I'm done rambling now, so go out and have some fun!

Tash: 16th Jan 2007 - 14:21 GMT

Your never to old to skate. Look at half the pro skaters out there. Some of them are in their thirties and most have families. Maybe you need to get back into shape and skating is a great way to do it.

Jason: 31st Jan 2007 - 14:44 GMT

Followup from: Jason: 10th Jan 2007 - 20:28 GMT

Well, it's been a couple weeks since I got my board. It's been really cold and icy here in IA, so I've been stuck practicing in my basement and garage. Working on figuring out ollies for 45 minutes will work up a great sweat! I've actually managed to land a couple, and haven't taken too big of a spill yet. It feels good to see improvement from time to time.

The biggest thing I've had to watch out for, safety wise, is ankles. Make sure you have a good set of skate shoes that provide a wide footprint. This will definitely help prevent rolling/spraining.

It was such a mental game for me when I first popped my board off the hard garage floor. I felt for sure that I was going to go horizontal, and smash into a million pieces. That didn't happen, thank god. Anyway, it's nice to see and receive so much encouragement. I'm having a great time so far.
Jason

Brad: 31st Jan 2007 - 16:52 GMT

Cool man, keep it up. Not sure if you are or not, but it always helped me to be rolling a little to do ollies. Even at my prime, doing things stationary were hard. Basements are fun if you have room. I learned how to do heelflips in my basement room during the winter a long time ago at our old place. And I had a friend with a big open basement and we used to take our rails and boxes down there and skate all day during the winter, it was a lot of fun.

Richard: 10th Apr 2007 - 22:19 GMT

Hey all! I just wanted to tell the late-starters I started skateboarding when I was 29 (almost 30). I just got 31 now, and I'm so happy I made that decision then. In the first few months I got quite a lot of bruises and one time I slipped and hit my head so hard that the lights went out for a few secs (I overchallenged myself then).
But when the weather is good I skate all the little distances I have to go in the city. I also go out a lot just for fun. I'm sure you'll love just flowing through the city, it is a great feeling. I must say I do not have an amazing lot of tricks down already. Seems you learn a lot less fast at this age..
But practicing is fulfilling itself. It totally takes your mind of other stuff. It forces your attention to here and now. Love it.
Go do it.

Darter: 18th May 2007 - 01:23 GMT

Yea, a pebble can stop a very small wheel. But if you had had 70 mm soft wheels you maybe would have just noticed a little bump sound. Smooth as a Buick. Keep skating.

bixaboo: 13th Jun 2007 - 00:42 GMT

eh, life is short!!! i started longboarding two months ago, fell on my arse twice (got yelled at by my older brother and was told not to bow to the judges anymore because i looked like an idiot...as if the falling wasn't bad enough ~~..) and am still figuring what i can do at 29. this my friend, is what will seperate us old durty men and women in our 90's from those comatose in their 40's and 50's!

Jorge Tunswala: 9th Nov 2007 - 01:44 GMT

Jus check out the skaterz at FDR dude, lotta dem rippin over 30

paul: 5th Jan 2008 - 19:22 GMT

i am 44 and just bought a board today - about 30 years after my first.
reason: i have to learn to ollie (maybe more) - that did not exist when I skated and I HAVE to nail it. these little hard wheels are strange to me.
have seen rodney mullen on youtube that darkslide thing is superhuman
wish me luck.
(ps. started snowboarding 3 years ago - no broken bones yet)

Freddy: 11th Jan 2008 - 12:54 GMT

I used to skate like every single day from when I was 10-17. Slowed down only a little and pretty much stopped at 20 when I left the country to travel. I'm 33 now, i still have my old Santa Cruz deck. I rode it today and it was such a buzz! i still could ollie quite easily and I'm sure I can even pick up the old tricks without much trouble since I've had many years in the past drilling the tricks into my system. Last week I took my daughter and wife to a playground and there was a small skate bowl there. Seeing those guys skating there mad me go insane for the next few days just thinking of skateboarding. After over 10 years of not skating I still cannot get the urge to skate out of me, it's incredibly addictive! I found this website searching for "too old to skateboard". It's just so sad that most people see skateboarding as a kids sport. But why the hell should that be? I often said to my wife the last few years that I'm too old to skate, so I'll stick to snowboarding. It's wrong though isn't it? I know one thing, through all the years of skatboarding rarely do you see a little kid getting high off a halfpipe. Mainly only the older skaters do that. That is adult skaters, in their early 20's to 30's. So I'm getting a board again soon and hit those ramps again!

RandomName: 5th May 2008 - 16:42 GMT

MAn I found this page searching for too old skateboarding like a lot of you. I hate this idea to pieces. in the time it takes you to turn 15 is the same time it takes to turn you to 30. We dont control the moon or the sun but whatever. Skateboarding is fun! you cant cut just swivel balance step off/ on and try again, on a bicycle. Forget posing I'm pissed and 26 I missed a lot of my chances in life but I had a skateboard when i was 8. I had an absence in understanding in life when family members who were like my best friends started roaming the nation with their families and I'll be damned if i'm not allowed to get on a skateboard and ride. My body will be the one that tells me when to get off not everyone else's freakin mindset. I'm way to emotional to talk about things like this. later folks

KEEP SKATEBOARDING.

Nick Aceto: 6th Jun 2008 - 22:19 GMT

I had to comment on this one, plus it was written on my B-day. Anyway, I, too am reaching that age, 27, where skateboarding just doesnt feel quite the same. Still, I've found that a day or two of making yourself ride is worth it later when it starts to feel more natural again. I don't believe there is a time when one must put away his/her "toys." I work in a professional office, but when I leave I typically go mountain biking, followed by a little pushing around the local skatepark. I'm not concerned anymore with becoming a sponsored professional rider, but damn it still feels good to land a smooth kickflip or a little frontside nose on a nice slick ledge. It took me about a week of casual skating after work to feel pretty good again. I think drinking and other bull$3@! activities get in the way of living ones life to the fullest and getting a little bruised up can be part of the fun and excitement. I suppose, perhaps, this is why your likely to find so many corporate white-collar types visiting S and M services to "take the edge off." I just prefer to spend that time outside, in the sun, scraping the skin off my hands and knees on my toy. Thanks for the read.

-n

Gamester: 20th Jul 2008 - 21:54 GMT

I too just found this page after searching for "too old skateboarding" in Google. I am 23 years old and work as a technical support agent in Boulder, CO. Right now, here is my life: I drive 30 miles to work, sitting in a car, I then sit in my cubical all day long. I then come home and eat a bit and go to bed. This kind of "non-active" life style is making my body stiff as a nail and I really hate this feeling. It is time for a change.

I have always been fascinated by extreme sports and used to watch the X-Games constantly back when they started. I used to ride a bike everywhere in the small Kansas town that I lived in and always wanted to get into skateboarding, however, I was always too afraid to actually try it, so I just never did.

Now being 23, I started thinking about skateboarding again and started watching old 80's skateboarding videos like the first "Bones Brigade Video" from 1984. I have once again become fascinated with skateboarding and I can not get it off of my mind.

I have always loved those old full colored wide skateboards of the 80's more than the thin boards you see kids running around on today. So, yesterday I did some extensive research on skateboarding and discovered that the 80's style of skateboards (now called "old school skateboarding" which makes me feel even older) are actually becoming popular again. In the last few years, old skateboarding companies like Powell Peralta, Santa Cruz, and Vision are reemerging and are re-manufacturing (A.K.A "Reissuing") a bunch of their older skateboard decks and parts.

So, yesterday I broke down and decide to order a new reissue of the old Powell Peralta "Ripper" deck which is a old 10 inch deck. I went all out 80's style and ordered color matching accessories like the slide rails, tail guards, and nose guards just like the most of the good old 80's boards sported at the time.

I figure that if I am ever going to get into skateboard, now is the time. Plus, I just got heath insurance too ;-). I have been doing a lot of stretching and jogging this weekend and discovered how truly out of shape I am. But, I want to try skateboard, so I am going to try it.

Even if this new venture kills me, at least I can tell people in the after life that, "Yep, I tried skateboarding and it was a blast up to the very end".

Thanks for listening to my rambling,
Gamester

Girl: 14th Aug 2008 - 07:21 GMT

Dudes, I'm 16 and I was gonna take up skateboarding. I was looking around to see what age it caps at incase it's a bad investment of time, and I guess there really is no age max. Sweet. :)

Greg: 16th Aug 2008 - 12:53 GMT

What a lot of people do not understand is that skateboarding, is in fact, hard to do. I'm 33, going to be 34 next month, and I just got back from skating at a new skatepark right down the street. While there I was lucky enough to get the staple snide looks from the midwest dads dropping their little prodigies off at pee-wee football. lol, oh well, the stares changed when I got into my 2007 Saab.

ChrisB: 18th Aug 2008 - 13:27 GMT

Hilarious. I have been skating off and on for my whole life. I stopped for several years for fear of an injury damaging my income/I had no insurance. Now I am 27 and 2 weeks ago started to skate regularly with 2 friends. We call ourselves the "old man skate club". It was very hard at first but stuck my first kickflip in years yesterday. Cant describe the feeling. Never too old. I love to see people out skating whether they are near pro or can barely ollie, whether 10 or 50 (yet to see that though). I don't want to become "office fat" like my coworkers and this is amazing exercise/Convenient transportation.

mt: 26th Aug 2008 - 07:49 GMT

Never too old to skate, never.
37 years old, typing from Italy…
Keep feeding your soul and go skate.
Quitted for one solid year (suffered from a severe lack of vitamin b12 that prevented me to) but started riding my longboard again three weeks ago.
It helps my mind realizing I am not ill.
It really feeds my soul healing my broken heart.

Brian C: 28th Aug 2008 - 16:17 GMT

Ah...A load of crap. I'm 51 and I skateboard. Why don't you visit oldmanarmy.com

Scott B.: 22nd Jan 2009 - 06:52 GMT

I just read all these and I think the conversations are great. My story: I'm also 29 years old. Born in the 70's. I turn thirty in June this year. I got a laptop in Oct and started watching alot of Youtube. Its filled with skate videos and how to on skate tricks. I have been freaking out this year because I'm going to be saying goodbye to my twenties for ever. Anyway, theres alot of things I want to do with my life so that later on when I'm in a retirement home one day I won't look back and realize I never got to do them. On my list of things I want to learn to do has been snowboarding, golfing and now skateboarding. Since I can golf in retirement and snowboard in my late thirties, skateboarding is something that I felt I couldn't waste any more time doing. My daughter is 8 and in the past she asked me for a skateboard but I never considered it. Now I realized that this would be a good way for me to connect with her and that we could learn together. For x-mas I bought her a skateboard at ToysRus. Its a great time to be a skateboarder in Fresno. Skateparks are popping up all over town since a few years ago. I had a skateboard when I was her age that my dad got at a yardsale. It was mid to late 80's then and I'd never seen a skatevideo. Some kids around school could ollie but I never learned it and never skated in front of them. We lived in the country and the road was rough asphalt so I gave up. It was no more interesting to me then riding a bike at the time. Now over twenty years later I have become interested in it. We went to the skatepark and I was showing her the only thing I do know, just ride around on flatground. I was watching these young kids riding down slopes and bowls and it looked like so much fun. I decided to get over my fear and I jumped on the board and tried to ride it down a slope. I didn't fall, I was sure I would fall on my ass but didn't. Then I was able to convince my kid to do the same. She was scared but did it and didn't fall either. It wasn't much of a slope but for us not knowing how to do anything it was a great feeling...and it was fun! Then I tried another one but I got wheelbite and flew about 6 feet foreward and landed on my shoulder. I was unable to use my shoulder for about two weeks. I had thoughts that maybe I'm too old for this. But since then I learned not to by cheap boards from Toys R us. The trucks already broke. So the other day I forked out a couple hundred on good decks at the local skateshop. My daughter and I are gonna take falls but we arn't going to let it happen because we are unknowladgable about cheap trucks and wheelbite again. The point is that I'm gonna keep practicing with her and together we are gonna try and learn to ollie and do some grinds. Maybe later she will remember dad wasn't afraid to get hurt having a good time with his kid. Skateboarding is making me feel like I'm young. We arn't good at it but we still are having fun together and practice will help. Although not too old to skateboard, I have no intentions on jumping off stairs or anything like that. I'd like to have my knees later on for snowboarding and golfing when I'm older. I think its important for people our age to know the limits. Lets face it, for those of us who didn't get the experience early in life, you won't be seeing many learning at 30 to get sponsored at that age or jumping off 10 stairs. Guys my age doing that have been skating for years before they were our age. Skateboard for fun and don't worry if everyone around you is younger and doing crazy tricks. If your thinking about doing it, do it or else you will regret it later. Everytime I take my kid to the skatepark I'm making sure I videotape her and I and take pictures. I now won't have the regret I didn't do it.... because I'm doing it now. Skate on and do it with your kids while they are still young enough to want to hang out with dad.

jay: 3rd Feb 2009 - 14:56 GMT

Well I found this thread trying to find out whether or not I'm getting too old to be skateboarding. It is really encouraging to hear that many of you guys across the age spectrum are keeping at it. I'm currently 20 years old, and I'm definitely not feeling as comfortable on a board as I used to. I started skating when I was 13. I still remember the board I got, and how much freaking pop it had. I started in what I like to consider as "The Tony Hawk Generation," influenced heavily by the video game. Before that came out, I had no idea that actual tricks could be performed on a skateboard. I think when I was around 7 or so I had a board from Walmart that I tried out once. Unfortunately, the street I lived on was as rough as they get and after pushing several times and moving two inches i decided to give up on it (not to mention it probably had abec -3 bearings). But at 13 that all changed. I spent probably 3 hours after school everyday learning how to ollie stationary on my sidewalk, and once I learned how to ride without falling began to go out with friends on cruising missions. We eventually started waxing up street curbs and doing some simple grinding and flatland (slappies anyone?). There were no skateparks at the time, but luckily we lived down the street from a warehouse facility that was throwing things out all the time. Wooden boards, metal poles, and they had a loading dock off the side we began tricking off of. So we would make small ramps and obstacles to play around with, and after awhile they got pretty ridiculous and dangerous, but some of the best moments of skateboarding are when you are overcoming something you are afraid of. Around 15, we all became really serious about skating, and finally got a few rails and a QP to use. Stair sets came into the equation as well, which became increasingly larger as time went on. I threw myself down stairs everyday for hours in a sort of competition with my friends over who could trick down the biggest. And then as quickly as it all came it seemed to disappear. Months later my friends never wanted to go out anymore, and at 17 I was often seen skating the streets of my neighborhood by myself (I lived in a small community. There were literally only a handful of skateboarders). It was around this age too that it started to not feel the same as it used to, and I eventually stopped going out. I've been telling myself for the last 3 years that I would get back into it, but I never really have. My knees are hurting and my back is stiff, which may or may not be attributed to the aggressive stair sessions from before. Maybe I pushed myself too much as a kid? Who knows. I do know that I am overweight and eat a horrible diet, so I should probably work on getting healthy again before I make a determination on that (something else that I've been telling myself the last 3 years). I'm also working a job that I hate to pay for a degree that I need from a school I don't like. But I will find time for skateboarding again. I love skateboarding. Absolutely nothing compares to it. I played team sports as a kid and have been snowboarding several times. I can say that although snowboarding is fun, to me it simply does not compare to skateboarding. Whenever I go off a snow jump, I can feel the air shaking the board attached to my feet. Going off a ramp on a skateboard, its weird because it feels a lot more stable and secure, which surprises a lot of people. Even for flip tricks - once you stick it, it ceases to move. Skating was the best part of my life, and I feel a void ever since I stopped. As soon as I feel 100% (assuming that's possible) I'll jump back on the board. I still have to relearn everything, but I know it will be worth it. Don't get too caught up with life to forget what makes you happy. Keep your board close, and your friends closer. Actually get them to skate too so you get the best of both worlds. Keep shredding guys.

James: 11th Feb 2009 - 15:18 GMT

I skated hardcore in the late 80's up til the mid 90's. Being around for the skate video days, the days of rushing home to watch Skate TV, going to the movies to watch Gleaming the Cube, going to skate parks all over and transitioning to double kick boards. We built ramps, had competitions and most importantly we had FUN. I see guys I grew up admiring still going into their 40's and I think sometimes that at 31 I might be too old. But skating is a good workout and keeps you off your ass where so many of us end up after working for so many years. I think back to the 4 years of my life that I skated every single day and there are no better memories in my life. I just recently bought a board to get back out and enjoy the asphalt again as well as drop some weight. Skating is something you never get too old for, its something that will keep us young at heart and few sports require the balance and endurance that skating does. I look forward to starting up a new era in my life that lets me do the things that made me happy in my life and I look forward to the next 10 years of my life on the way to 40 trying to recapture the thing in my life that made me happy.

Peter: 11th Feb 2009 - 15:27 GMT

ahh, gleaming the cube!

somehow i didnt add an addendum to this post when i ate pavement this past summer and fractured my elbow and shattered the camera that was in my pocket... and im 31, too. lol. i blame the new wheels, though. switching from 49s to 56s will do that to you :/

ThatGuy: 13th Mar 2009 - 22:22 GMT

Man Im Glad I found this Blog

Well, Im a 23 year old dude who was OBSESSED with skateboarding between ages 15-16. I literally skated everyday and I was quite good too. Everyone knew I had potential, I knew I had it too. During that time however, my parents were going thorugh financial troubles, so I wasnt able to replace my broken skateboard or my battered shoes.

I gave up on my hopes and dreams and continued with my education all the way to university. My pro skateboarder dream was replaced by other dreams and goals, however, I still pictured myself skating, landing tricks in my mind and thinking about the 'what ifs'. The urge to skate never left me also, so I knew what I needed to do to make things right, get a board and skate.

Ordered my board last week, it arrived two days ago and I've been smiling ever since. Skated for the first time today and all the tricks I had pictured in my head, I landed. Still got the ollie down, kickflip, shove its, still cant land 360 flips or Tre flips as they're called today:-( lol I'll give it a few more days.

Bottom line is, you are never too old! Do what makes you happy :-)

you can do it: 22nd Mar 2009 - 04:34 GMT

i've started at the age of 26, i'll be 27 in a couple months. I will say skateboarding is very hard, physically and mentally LOL Really think about it, skateboarding is about jumping and jumping no matter the age is hard work, and it gets mentally hard cuz you know in your mind how to do the trick but yet your body/feet just can't get the board to do what it's suppose to do. But after weeks and many many hours of trying a trick it's an awesome feeling when you land it, even if it's skecthy. I got the ollie down, then i had to learn it moving, then i had to learn my timing to jump over a chalk line i had, and took me forever to clear my back wheels over it, then i got a stick and took me a while to clear the stick, but now i can clear that stick HEHE skateboarding is crazy, one sec i can land a trick just perfect then i may not be able to land it for another 30 mins then land it next 3 tries and then can't land it for the rest of the time i'm out. Its fun though, i have found anything fun in life, that stays fun and not get boring after a few mins is difficult, but to see yourself getting better over the weeks/months it's well worth doing. Always wear a helmet though, no matter what age you are!!! broken bones can heal, broken minds don't!

Keith: 27th Apr 2009 - 00:50 GMT

I skated for about 15+ years right up will I finished UNI, was pretty kick arse if I don’t say so myself :), most of my mates were sponsored but I was a bit on the cautious side LOL...

I'm in NY now for 3-6 months working as a consultant for an investment bank (so skating to work is out of the question) and its been 5 years since I rode, but f&^% it I'm getting one ASAP, I still dream about it. Wake up in the middle of the night with my whole bode jumping as if I’m about to slam LOL. Why the hell did I stop??

Cant wait. But this time it'll be big wheels, wonder do they still sell bones bombers??

Max : 29th Apr 2009 - 05:23 GMT

I bought my first skateboard (see photo) in 1967 when the craze was at its peak in Australia before the sport took a downturn in popularity for a few years and now have about 30, mostly vintage 60's to late 70's in my collection. I still ride when ever I can on the more modern versions including a couple of electric boards, offroad and onroad. I intend on keeping riding until I can no longer stand.

Keith: 29th Apr 2009 - 18:12 GMT

Well I did go get a board and skated down from midtown to downtown, was a bit freaked out not having stated for about 5 years, but was heaps of fun. Though my knees are pretty dead from all those previous years skating, so ollies are not as poppy as they used to be :)

Still managed a few flip tricks and full cabs once i got to the park under Brooklyn bridge. Will have to get some softer wheels, i went for the 58mm but thought get hard ones for some grinding action :)...

what an old fart!!

Nick123: 3rd May 2009 - 13:58 GMT

Like most of you guys, i thought i was too old for skateboarding, it was pretty much all i did from 13 to 18, then got lured away by women/drugs/nightlife..im now 31 and after about a year of wondering should i , shouldnt i?i orderd one online, had my first skate yesterday, sooo much fun, even landed a sketchy pressure flip (remember those?) although im aching like crazy today, cant wait too get back out there again..must remember to stretch next time!!

David Will: 7th May 2009 - 13:35 GMT

I started skating when the big craze hit the U.K in the mid 70's. I got pretty good at it. I got myself a peralta warp II and some tracker mid tracks and I was just so happy. (My grentec coyote had served me well until then) I'm 44 now and recently two of my kids have got into skating and they're showing some promise. Needless to say I've been having a go myself. I can still do a bit and have found that athough it's bruising at my age it's still so much fun. I probably won't be rail sliding any stairs etc but last time at the skatepark I got almost vert on one of the ramps!!!(without falling off!!) You're never too old. Like one of the earlier posts mentioned, any old farts out there should check out middle age shred.com. Well anyway. Greetings from the U.K take it easy do some stretches before hand and have a go. PS. Dogtown and Z boys is a great watch for young and old...I was kind of there (in my head) even if it was just doing slalom and handstands in the street in rainy northwest England

Buck: 12th May 2009 - 17:45 GMT

I'm 32 years old and have been considering skateboarding again. I skated for a long time. I started around '87 (I was in the fifth grade when I got my first Veriflex skateboard for x-mas)and quit when I was about 23 years old. I don't know why I quit. I guess I thought I was too old and most of my friends had lost interest and quit too. So I just forgot about it for a while and life went on. I went to school, my father died, I got married, lived in NY for six years, then had a son. All the while skateboarding still lingered in the back of my mind...I constantly had skateboarding dreams. And I've always seen the world differently because of skateboarding...I'd always notice ledges, handrails, stairs, embankments and daydream about doing tricks on them. In high school I used to skate every day, every night. I lived it and breathed it. I was never too concerend about getting sponsored. Just wanted to have fun. Now, I have a 2 year old son and I want to introduce skateboarding to him when he's old enough -- I'm thinking when he's three. On a whim i bought a longboard thinking that longboarding is just what older skaters do. So I rode it down some hills and it was fun but the whole time I was trying it out, I just wanted to skate a regular old 32 X 8 inch board, do some ollies, kickflips, whatever...hit up a skate park. I feel wierd though. I own a house in the suburbs and wonder what all the middle age and older suburbites would think if they saw me ripping it up in the driveway or down the street. I'm kind of self conscious about that. Oh well. I may just go for it. I don't want to be one of those inactive fat dads out there. I want to pass something I love down to my son. Who remembers H-street? I just found my old Hokus Pokus VHS tape. Man, those were the days...

Ken: 15th May 2009 - 16:50 GMT

32 Year old From Long Island. I skated for more then half of my early life and then lost touch w/ it during my twenties. Two weeks ago I ordered a board from TGM and the day it came I headed down to the local skate park to ride the mini ramps at Nickerson Beach.. I had an absolute BLAST! What a wonderful time.. It was just like riding a bike and after a few runs I had all the basics back. I've been back several times since and don't plan on quitting any time soon. Not sure if I'll do the whole street skating thing, but riding the ramps has become a welcome alternative to pumping iron w/ the goons at the gym. Its going to be a great summer. The best part is my wife thinks its sexy! woo hoo for me! Join us old timers at Rusted Bones - http://rustedbones.ning.com/

Tucker: 20th May 2009 - 23:04 GMT

I'm 34 and decided to start again because I always felt that I quit too soon and completely hated the popsicle stick boards that were coming out at the time. The first thing I bought was a sweet Eric Dressen reissue and some NOS bones wheels and put together a "cruiser". Then I picked up a new style Enjoi board on 50mm's. I always rode Indy's so that's also what I picked up. It was nice to recognize a familiar brand like Indy. I admit that I put the Dressen together 3 years ago but was also experiencing a career change and didn't want to get hurt while I wasn't insured. Now that's not an issue and I'm learning and getting better every day. Don't be afraid of new style boards because they are much easier to do tricks with. Also, I know the internet is a great deal but please, all of you, make an effort to find a local skate shop. They can help with questions and do not give attitude as they respect your business and your tenacity. Plus they'll get old too someday and... Google tricks for How-to's and practice, practice, practice. If you go the internet complete route make sure you check that your wheels aren't too tight because it'll mess up your bearings, and bones are still the best bearings. Rip it up!

Mike: 17th Jun 2009 - 21:32 GMT

Great string... I bought my son who is 9 a skateboard a few months ago and have been thinking about getting my own ever since. What pushed me over the edge was taking my son to the vans store opening near my house as he wanted to see the old pros who were signing autographs. I waited in line and we eventually met Tony Alva, Christain Hosoi and Steve Cabellero. After that, we rented lords of dog town and the peralta documentary z-boys and dog town. This really brought back memories as I was skating in the 76-79 timeframe and loved it. We had a skate park close by and used to go to the dam drainage pipes etc.. Getting my license and a car kinda changed all of that and I quit.

Well I just turned 46. For my birthday I bought an old school peralta board with indys and rat bones. I built a little ramp last night and only ate it once. This morning, I woke up real early, went to our local skatepark (6 am) so no one would see me and had a blast! I was pleasantly surprised how well I did considering... although I am way rusty and still afraid to drop in but hey, it is just day 1. I can wait to go tomorrow! My wife said to me "aren't you embarassed... what is this a mid life crisis?" Well the answer is no way!, in order to be a mid life crise you would have had to of grown up first which I have not. It was simply at 30+ year break and I am ready to shred.

Danny B.: 24th Jun 2009 - 03:17 GMT

Awesome...I too just picked up skateboarding again after 13 years of hiatus. Last week I bought a complete from Darkstar and hit a local school and bombed a couple hills on it and had the time of my life! I'm 32...fat...a smoker and a drinker, but damn...I can still ollie almost 2 feet and I can still land a no comply 180 to tail! Hopefully I'll be shedding some pounds off in the process. No grinding or sliding for me until I do. I also splurged a bit and picked up a Creature Brue Killers board(it has a bottle opener built in the deck! Brilliant!) and will be getting that here soon...I can't wait. All I need now is some insurance. I guess I should get some pads and a helmet too.

Craig: 6th Jul 2009 - 01:56 GMT

It's always a hard lesson to learn that you're not as agile as you used to be It's a cold cup of coffee to remember how you used to skate every day, you were pretty good and now you're stepping back onto a board at 30 and can barely stay balanced. I learned this lesson today, the girlfriend wanted to go running on West River Drive since they close it off during the summer. She suggested that I take my skateboard, good idea until I realized that I almost couldn't stand on it. I was a fish out of water on something that brought me so much joy for so long. I was dismayed to say the least, but fear not, there is a happy ending. I became reacquainted, my balance got better and I began feeling more at home, more like my old self, I even cracked a couple of ollies and 50-50s.

While I realize that I'll probably never be as good as I once was, I'm strangely comfortable with that, I'm a different person. It's not about insane tricks or bombing flights of steps anymore, for me it's about pushing around and having fun. I started skateboarding at age 11, now I'm 31 and I'm still doing it. That's love.

Steve: 8th Jul 2009 - 17:34 GMT

This is great. I love how everyone (myself included) found this website by Googling "too old to skateboard." I skated a little bit when I was a kid, and a year ago I made my wife get me a new setup for christmas. I practiced off and on in my basement over the winter and yesterday, on my 30th birthday, I took it to the streets for the first time (I wanted to make sure I could at least push around before going out in public) and I had a blast. I'm happy I got back into it, hopefully its something I can be good enough by the time I have kids so I can teach them.

What's funny is that people think you are crazy for wanting to learn to skate at this age, but when I tell them I'm a big time snowboarder, they think nothing of it....

Vedz: 11th Jul 2009 - 11:04 GMT

I went to buy my brand new skateboard after I quit skateboarding when I was 19. I googled "too old to skateboard" and find this site. Reading comments here really encouraged me to go for it.. I figure out there are so many people thinking the same way as I am. :) You guys are great!!! Now I am married and working, and I taught everyone will think I should be more serious as I grow older, but I was still dreaming skateboard..so my wife told me to buy skateboard and make those dreams come true, and make those memories alive :) Skate On! Btw, I am 25 now.

Jethro: 12th Jul 2009 - 01:45 GMT

Awe : (.
Well i'm sure it was just for the heck of it! But then again, you lose experience step by step.

fsp: 6th Aug 2009 - 06:36 GMT

i am 27 still doing crazy things off of big shit... no lie, skatings my sanity
never giving it up. im going to skate til the day i die... but i know one thing, poor nutrition will catch up to you quick and smoking cigs kiss the stamina good bye. There is no age limit, you are the one who makes that decision.

Heather: 8th Aug 2009 - 23:38 GMT

Hahah, I'm very amused to find I'm not the only one doing websearches like "too old to learn to skateboard". I'm 33 and my daughter has just started learning to skate. I used to skate a bit when I was in my early teens but we had no such thing as a skatepark and had no idea about tricks etc. I don't think it'd even be possible to ollie with the boards we had! Just used to skate around the streets and go as fast as possible! :)
Now I sit at the side of the skatepark feeling envious of the kids and teens and their skating community, wishing I'd had something like that when I was that age and thinking "damn, that looks like fun". I've come to the conclusion that the only way to stop feeling envious is to start skating! I have discovered (away from the park) that I don't actually immediately fall on my arse when I try to skate and that it is indeed fun! And I think when the school holidays are over I will go to the skatepark when the kids are all at school and can't laugh at me!

Winnl: 26th Aug 2009 - 13:04 GMT

Its good to read that there are people out in the world, who at 30+ yo. still realise how good skateboarding really is. I skated as a teenager just as a means of getting around. I tried getting into doing complex looking tricks in the first 2 years but decided it was too hard and just prefered it for downhill riding and transport. I stopped when I got my car at 19yo. I took up surfing at age 23. Now at 34 I thought that skateboarding again may benefit my surfing and fitness on flat days. I bought an old skool, Hosoi hammerhead from the net. When it arrived I practised in the backyard and decided to skate out the street at dark so that noone would see how old I am on a skateboard. I have a funny feeling that people are not as open minded when it comes to this sort of thing AND I have never really seen anyone at 30+ riding a board in the suburban streets where I am. Anyway, I rode it and tic tacked ( I know its soooo....... L A M E ) on the streets. I loved how much it feels as good as like being on a surfboard. Definitely a good fix for stints of no surf. Its a shame that skate-boarding as sport is still relatively new compared to other sports and its potential as a sport for older people and its longevity doesn't seem to have been as widely recognised, as it is, in surfing. I don't know if I will keep skating because I feel a little embarassed but I do like the idea of people skating around well beyond 40. Its benefits for surfing is something that keeps me wanting to get out and enjoy having fun on the streets and maybe trying these nice modern skate parks in the suburbs. Reading the posts in this site brought back a lot of skate related memories. It sure beats the boredom of living in the consumer based society.

Johnny Ace: 27th Aug 2009 - 17:31 GMT

Skateboarding is great, no matter what your age or skill level. I'm 26 an have been skating on and off for a while. After about a 2 year break I just started back up and I immediately rememebered again why I did it. It makes you stronger and you learn to overcome fear and other obstacles. It's great excercise, it gets you out in the sun, and nothing satisfies more than landing a trick after pouring hours of practice into it. And yea, you'll definately wipe out a few times, thats not unusual. But skating is also about learning to pick yourself back up. If you love skateboarding, do it! Just take it easy on the brews beforehand. lol

andy g.: 28th Aug 2009 - 02:32 GMT

At 34 also re-started skating a couple of days ago after 15+ years that i quit .It's so hard to picture how easy it was back then , It takes a lot of practice and mind control, but it's a great sport.I like ramps (skateparks) than being riding on the street.

George s.: 28th Aug 2009 - 20:12 GMT

Kinda makes me grin like a friggn idiot! Skated clay wheels in the '60s, rode a Dogtown Bulldog with trackers and 70mm kryptos at the ranch skatepark in Colton ca from '78-82. Then cars/girls/motocross sidelined skateboarding for years. Oh ya, the boards changed shape and skaters started jumping on/over/off stuff, what the heck? Well I married, got a real job, rn, and had kids. We moved to Tn(??)Skating still sidelined. The skate park next to the wavepool here in Nashville kept eating my heart out every time I drove by, on purpose or not- LOL. So last oct for my , ready?, 46 birthday I searched for and found a local skate shop and put together a roscoff replica 31x10 with indys and bowl bombers. Took it to the park and scared the $&@&$ outof my self on the driveway steep ramps. Way too much fun! So now I can carve the bowls and kickturn, am I old or what, almost on vert. Got a longboard too and neighbors know I'm from California so they just smile and wave as I cruse by. the kids are mostly amazed that this mostly bald skategeezer can skate at all much less work up a sweat and love doing it.

Oldheads: 28th Aug 2009 - 20:22 GMT

Funny story. Never Stop Riding! There are a ton of 30+ people that still skate.
Check out www.oldheads.com

anon (ip68-99-84-77.ph.ph.cox.net): 5th Sep 2009 - 07:11 GMT

I've fallen trying to skate over railroad tracks at 29.. bruised pretty bad... but i never give up so I just thought positive and kept on.. I'm still skating and learning new tricks at 33.. falls happen but stay flexible and you'll roll'em off.. :)

JD: 23rd Sep 2009 - 11:59 GMT

Just found this by googling 'too old to skateboard?' and I'm bloody glad I did. Inspiring reads from everyone one of the comments as well as the initial post.

I've always been interested in skateboarding going back to when I was 6/7 (I'm 29 now). I've always had boards, but my problem is being too 'scared/embarrassed' to go out on the street and just go for it, so I just played on my patio in the garden as a teenager, whereas before that age I was whizzing down hills sitting on the skateboard with the other local kids. The fear must have came with increased self consciousness as a teenager.

Anyway, I bought a couple of decks a couple of years back now, I love the design of decks, I love spending money, and I still love skateboarding, now all I need to do is get my moneys worth and have the balls to go out and use them! The exercise factor certainly can't hurt either.

Now deliberating whether to get a bigger deck as realistically my uses would be commuting rather than parks and tricks. Decisions decisions.

Thanks for the kick in the arse and the inspiration!

Rikkid: 27th Sep 2009 - 03:45 GMT

Man, I'll turn 38 in December but physically I'm still in good shape, been working out for years straight. I've had dreams in my sleep of skateboarding since I stopped riding it in 1992. Back then skateboarding was all I could think of. I was never one of the best but I loved the thrill riding it. I always prefered riding ramps. I've been watching a lot of skateboard vidz on youtube and seeing all the pro skaters from back then still ripping it also made me decide to go for it. I know it'll take a while to get back to being half way decend but I do not care. Back then I always had issues over skateboarding with my parents but now I got my own household & pay my own bills & even if there would be a person in my life, I wouldn't stop going for it. I never adjusted to others but pleased myself. Even if I would be in my 40's, I would go for it. Back then Tony Hawk had this 60 year old dude that started to ride and he was decend. He ripped the mini-ramp and was not afraid. Most of us old heads are insecure and are afraid of injuries, so what?! I'd rather get some bumps & bruises instead of being frustrated....... Like the other guys said, just do what U feel and go for it. Next week I'll get myself a skateboard and when the wheater will be good I'll hit the streets 1st and I got lucky cuz right down my block the have a ramp-park where U can ride even in the winter.

2 all the ones who think they're too old, U are never too old, U are only scared to go for yours & maybe U'll hit the pavement too often but remember they saying back then "NO PAIN - NO GAIN"!

One last thing - skateboarding is in us, It has been in us since we stopped riding it & it never left us. It's just up to us to get back to being a rider & most important - being happy!I am looking forward 2 all the bumps & bruises...........and after the bumps & bruises there will be the happy feeling of completing the tricks which we had in for all these years............!!!!

Skateboarding was, is & will be in us 4 ever!!

Rikkid: 30th Sep 2009 - 23:02 GMT

Yes Yes Yes!!!! I did it! 2 days ago I got myself a skateboard. I bought myself a comlete board (Speed Demons). At first I was a lil suspicious because back then all those complete boards were trash & low in quality. But I read some good reviews on the internet & U cannot complain at this price - € 80 (about $ 120). I bought the board but 1st I was a lil hesitant jumping on it because I was in the city & most important the last time I stepped on a skateboard was 18 years ago. But when I got off the train I was heading 2 my appartment & just went for it. Damn.........................this was beyond my expectations! There was not a moment were I felt I was out of balance & even with a backpack on my back & a heavy shopping bag in my hand I still managed to ride it with no problem.

Today I went 2 the skatepark which is right around my corner. They do not have a bowl or a miniramp but an area with lots of ramps & obstacles.

Yesterday I went 2 some shoedealers 2 see what they have in store because when U ride a skateboard the shoe is also important & none of my shoes would last a week.

I keep U posted on my 1st attemps & slams........

Till then - Skate & destroy!!!!

AHmir johnson: 3rd Oct 2009 - 15:41 GMT

I got my self a skateboad And I kow how to kickflip hardflip 360flip hippy flip And double kickflip

anon (c-67-191-72-25.hsd1.fl.comcast.net): 13th Oct 2009 - 22:02 GMT

Dudes i am 47, i used to rip on a gordon and smith fibreflex, its been years since i rode, i just got a warp tail, and have been ripping on parking lots and wherever i see a good ride, keep it in the back of my trunk, for when i spot some rides. Wiped out a few times doing some sharp turns (wheelbite)But i am fine. I dont give a rats petudy what anyone thinks because of my age. I am having fun !!! Thats it. (until i brake my head)

Robert: 14th Oct 2009 - 00:38 GMT

Coudnt stand it any longer,bought a board.(9x32 Lance Mountain Flip,149 Independant trucks,re-issue Rat Bones 60mm,Im 41 and cant stop smilin.Havent been on a board in 20 years but my advice is start with an old school board it a world of difference in mine and my sons popsicle stick with little bitty 52mm wheels.I was a little shaky at first but its coming back to me.

Old Man Army: 19th Nov 2009 - 04:11 GMT

Here's the scoop- old bodies don't heal as quickly.

Rode vert/bowls through the 80's and FDR frequently after moving to Philly, but the sad fact is, slamming to concrete from 10' up can put one out of commission. Still longboard around now and again, but now in my 40's have consigned myself to the fact that aggressive riding and huge crashes are best done in surf and powder. Check out kiteboarding- many of the riders are in their 50's and beyond, and still catching 20 foot airs!

Yes I still yearn for vert, but discretion being the better part of valor reminds me there are other ways to satiate one's stoke!

kid scooter: 21st Nov 2009 - 06:50 GMT

my advice for you skater boy,,try to buy an electric scooter so that you will not disappointed at all it looks like skateboard their difference is that an scooter have a handle..hehe..and its good exercise than doing a tricks on your skate board.

kids scooter