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I just re-learned skateboarding. I spent a lot of time skating in my late teens (37 now), and was decent at it. I noticed three things throughout the learning p
by Disruptive_Dave 10y ago
I just re-learned skateboarding. I spent a lot of time skating in my late teens (37 now), and was decent at it. I noticed three things throughout the learning process this time around. First, there is so much more information available today than when I was a kid. YouTube videos alone could keep me busy for years. Then you add in the GoPro and my phone, and you have an entirely new world available. The one downside here is that I find myself edging towards "paralysis by analysis." Less doing, more thinking, which I never experienced as a kid. Second, I'm forced to take things a little slower because of my age and reluctance to get hurt. This means I've gradually progressed through the learning steps, which has resulted in a stronger foundation than I had as a kid. Third, and this is the big'un, I see angles I never considered before. I'll never be confused for a smart person, and I've always been one step away from "getting it" when learning most new things. Now that I'm older and more aware of what it takes to "get me there" I can better create that learning environment. Example: There is a very subtle part of the tail "pop" in an ollie that I just never fully understood until I started skating again recently, but this time I "got it."
(I realize this falls more in the "relearning" than "learning something new" category, but I've typed too much at this point to bail.)
- branchless 10y agoAs someone who tried snowboarding for the first time this weekend and fell over around 200 times, this gives me some heart.
- munkeegutz 10y agoI snowboard a tremendous amount and have tought many people. Your experience is typical.... Even with a great teacher newbies spend their first two days eating it!
- branchless 10y agoOkay interesting, thanks. Not just me, glad to hear this.
- DamnYuppie 10y agoYeah keep at it, the first few days are the worst. After that though you should be flying down the mountain.
- Wh1zz 10y agoDon't worry, snowboarding gets really easy really quick. If you'd snowboard for a week straight, you'd already be able to go really quick without falling and looking pretty cool along the way. The issue is most people only do it at most 3-4 days a year for just a couple hours, so it looks like it took them "years" to snowboard decently.
- xzel 10y agoThis. Its like learning how to do anything else using edges like surfing, ice skating, skiing. First you learn how to balance and then you learn how to turn. After that, you can basically ski 50% of most mountains (that is in bounds terrain). Just keep falling and watching how other people transition between edges and you'll figure it out pretty quick.
- sodafountan 10y agoI believe I've read somewhere that it takes about 100 hours of deliberate practice to become proficient at something and 10,000 hours to master it. A week of snowboarding for eight hours a day would get you halfway to that 100 hour point and definitely put you above the beginner so this definitely makes sense.