OK so please read this BEFORE you watch my edit. I have to explain things a bit.

Even though I have been riding since '86, I have been off my bike for about 5 years. Add to that being 37 now and pretty out of shape cardiovascularly and muscularly and you get a guy that has pretty much lost almost every trick he could ever do. So I am starting pretty much from the beginning again.

That said, I needed a place to start. Since I won Matt Wilhelms "Ground Rules" this last Christmas from Flatland Fuel, I thought that using that DVD as a sort of check list would be a good way to get going. I could get back the basics so that I could not only work up my health and stamina, but rebuild a foundation to get back to where I was as well as progress from there.

So a few things to keep in mind:

• I did this edit (and the ones that will come after it) mostly for myself and to document my progress.
• I am following Matt's DVD from beginning to end to start out with. After that I will film the stuff that I can do (or get back) that he doesn't cover. Then it's on to filing in the blanks of not only the things I couldn't do on Matt's DVD, but the stuff I could once do and cant now.
• I am much better than it appears in these first videos, but I wanted to keep with what Matt shows first, so the first few videos I am sure are not too exciting. Still new guys might find some things interesting in there as I do some variations that he doesn't.
• Sorry for the length. I was going to do this first stuff all at once, but I figured I better split it up. Trying to keep it at 10 min per, but I do realize that is a bit long too. Thanks for your patience and thanks for checking it out.
• Feedback is well encouraged, but please keep it helpful and positive. I don't need some troll telling me I suck. You never know. That one comment might just be enough to make someone put the bike away for good. I had some 16 year old say to me today, "No way your 37? You would rock if you were 17! You have my vote!" That is encouraging, but this kid has no idea what he was watching either. You guys do and your feedback is more important to me and carries more weight.

My hope is that these videos will serve to encourage any older guys that are thinking about riding again too, but have been off the bike for a while. If I can get it back and have fun while doing it, you can too and this thread is a way to document that from beginning to end.

Anyway, enjoy!

Getting It All Back (part I)

Thanks man!

niceee man! we should ride in COSprings in May or something

That is a definite possibility, Bro!

Here is Part II...

Thanks for all the great comments on Part I!

Did a little more filming yesterday. Getting better! I can definitely tell that the tricks are getting harder, but they are also more fun.

BTW for anybody learning things like flails or decades or working on relearning them like I am, work on the upper body strength first. If you don't have it, You are not going to get those tricks.

Getting It All Back (Part II)

Hey good job!  Keep it up!

Thanks man!

P.S. do a search for Mark a.k.a. "VericalSmile"...he's 41 and is kicking serious ass around here!

This is great man...well done! we are in a very similar position. I rode from 87-90..as pretty good for the time. But then was off the bike till 2003..then rode till 2007..and have just started back at it. Im 39 now, and probably gained 20lbs since 2007  and my stamina and cardio sucks now!  So im getting back into it for fitness and fun. I gotta stop sittin on my butt! This community is great and i still see quite a few familiar faces here, and i think you'll find there are alot of great helpful and positive people here, and quite a few in there mid to late 30's. Im looking forward to getting out there again and getting back the tricks i had a few years ago. I wasnt very good, but hell i had tons of fun! Im sure your looking forward to the same things! Good luck and most of all...have fun bro!

Keep up the good work....I just got back into riding myself.