Hooked by the bait of Justice Reid

The fisherman casts his bait into the water; a fish bites; the fisherman reels in the fish. These are the basics of fishing. Profoundly, these are also the basics of human behaviour.

Frontside Blunt slide

Nollie Lipslide

 I mean to say that we are all like fish going about our daily routine, when, suddenly, we are exposed to something alluring or inspirational which grips us, pulls us out of our routine, heats us up with the fires of passion and transforms us.    

On many occasions I have sat at the skate park observing others skating, too tired to
skate myself. Then a thought pops into my mind that grabs my attention. My entire body is then reeled in, and I enthusiastically jump up, inspired to attempt a new trick. The bait appears, I bite, and am jolted out of the cold waters of lethargy.

Frontside Tailslide

Nollie 180 to
switch
Crooked Grind

 Recently, at Prahran skate park I experienced this in a  powerful manner. The bait: Justice Reid.

Justice, a teenager who recently moved to Melbourne from New Zealand, has a most graceful and delicate style of skateboarding. He is exceptionally light on his feet, executes his tricks gently, calmly and carefully, with a mindfulness that radiates his face. He lands with his feet directly above the bolts, and rides away cleanly.

Switch kickflip over hip

      

      Nollie Tre Flip into bank

Feeble Grind

Though I saw him Nollie Tre flip into a bank, and Nollie 180 to switch crook on a rail, I especially admired the simpler tricks that he performed such as a tailslide. It was specifically in these tricks, without the distractors caused by complexity or the element of fear, that his elegance was most visible. His tailslides seem to float above the rail and he glides onto his board when landing. 

Watching Justice skate, an onlooker commented, "He looks as though he's skating on the moon!" I could not have said it better, except I'd add that his personality seems to be consistent with his skating style. He has a soft, respectful, tender and calm demeanor about him.

  Since I watched Justice skate, I've been trying to skate in a more dove-like and composed manner.