the Get Rolling Orbit

Today we skated the Iron Horse Trail section that extends from Rudgear road to Monument Boulevard and back. (See a complete write up of Iron Horse Regional Trail North on CASkating.com.) We started near the upgraded staging area at Rudgear, with its benches and a water fountain, completed in late 2009. Lots of happy trail users were out enjoying the beautiful morning in Walnut Creek.

On this northern portion of the Iron Horse, the surface is generally in good condition except for one section alongside Walnut Creek which continues to degrade. The wash-boarding is bad enough to knock a skater down or to throw a bicyclist off her bike. It’s about time the city or the park district did something about this growing hazard.  Read more... (267 words, 1 image, estimated 1:04 mins reading time)

Brake lock-up

Ever get a rock stuck between your rear wheel and the brake pad? Ooo, I hate when that happens! And it’s usually when I’m braking on a steep downhill or speedily approaching a traffic-filled intersection. If you have ever been there, you know how desperate this situation can feel. Here are some techniques that may save your skin.  Read more... (289 words, 1 image, estimated 1:09 mins reading time)

1. With weight shifted to the non-braking skate, forcefully slap the brake skate’s wheels backward on the pavement to force a reverse spin and dislodge whatever has immobilized that skate.

Using the Inline Planet Skaters social network, I have been corresponding with Paul Korankye in Ghana, Africa for the past year. Although he’s only 20 years old, he is as passionate about his speed skating group as he is about his Christianity. Last year I sent them a carton of Get Rolling books, plus a few stickers and other spare skating-related items.

I have been deleting spam from Nigeria for years, and I encountered many opportunists in my trip to Tanzania in February, so I react with suspicion to requests from Africa. But it is clear from our exchanges on the Inline Planet community and the photographs under his profile that Paul and his team are definitely enthusiastic about this sport!  Read more... (333 words, 1 image, estimated 1:20 mins reading time)