LONDON FRIDAY NIGHT SKATE TM
& SUNDAY STROLL TM

From: Week on Wheels <wow /at/ lfns.co.uk>
Subject: [wow] Week on Wheeeee! Down Hampstead Hill
Date: Wed, 04 Oct 2006 15:43:47 +0100


This Week, On Wheels

* This week: Hampstead Hill and Chelsea
* Last week: Holland Park
* About a bike
* Profile view: Mit
* Battle UK: Nottingham, this weekend
* Skating in Stockholm

== THIS WEEK ==

This week the LONDON FRIDAY NIGHT SKATE is going to Hampstead Hill:
all the way up and more importantly all the way down: watch out for
the rumble strips.

The first half is 4.5 miles, full of rolling gentle inclines and three
steep hills. Then its half time for those that have conquered the
worst of Hampstead Hill by the famous Hampstead creperie. The start of
the second half is an awesome climb up and three quarters of a mile
downhill along twisting roads with sleeping policeman.

Now, read this bit carefully: the first part of the downhill is STEEP
and FAST and DARK, and if you're not confident or would prefer not to
skate in these conditions, please don't. There will be a group
waiting near the half time point: once the foolhardy have made the
final ascent and first descent, the route comes back past this point
and you can rejoin the skate at a more sensible pace.

The rest of the route back is a stunning mix of downhills and smooth
surfaces, so the 7 miles back will fly past quicker than it takes a
cabbie to swear. We finish off with a dash down Park Lane.

                     http://www.lfns.co.uk/route.php/20061006


On SUNDAY we'll be taking a Stroll through Chelsea, South Kensington
and Pimlico. Lead Marshal Christian (who has never yet had to call a
skate off so let's hope his good luck sticks!) promises a route which
covers some old favourite smooth surfaces. We'll spend the first half
sliding (not literally) down to the Kings Road and along bits of the
Fulham Road. Half-time at South Ken tube (not that any of you will be
leaving then) before we roll on towards St James and Victoria. Usual
Sunday Stroll stuff, beginner's pace and lots of nice surfaces!

                      http://www.lfns.co.uk/route.php/20061008


== LAST WEEK ==

The weather gods decided to play games with us on FRIDAY, and for a
while it was doubtful whether or not we'll have a skate at all. After
a lot deliberation, looking at various weather sites and much mumbling,
Lead Marshal Sol called a GO and the skate went ahead: small but
perfectly formed. We headed towards Holland Park via South and West
Kensington, taking in a few uphills to make things interesting. After
half time at Holland Park station, it was all the way down Kensington
Church Street, through Earls Court followed by a spot of window
shopping on the King's Road and back home via Victoria and a final sprint
down Piccadilly.

Skaters who may have witnessed an altercation with a Jaguar driver
will be reassured to know that the marshals dealt with it with their
usual consummate skill and diplomacy, and all is now well. Please, if
you see aggressive driving on the skate, DON'T get involved and DO
leave it to the marshals. The more people that gather around, the more
difficult it becomes for us to defuse the situation and keep things
calm.

On SUNDAY the weather games continued, and it looks like we lost this
round to Chaac. And if you're wondering why we don't skate when it's
wet, no it isn't because we don't like wet T-shirt competitions, it's
more because it's rather hard to skate on wet surfaces - and if normal
skating is slippery, overtaking the pack is doubly exciting.

                              http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaac

We'll keep Lead Marshal Edd's "Shopper's Delight" stored away for
another day so look out for it very soon...


== PUSH IT REAL GOOD ==

FireBrox is fast becoming part of the landscape on the LFNS and Sunday
Stroll, and everyone who's talked to us about it has been
enthusiastic. If you want to help things run more smoothly and make
the rider's life easier (and who wouldn't?) here's a few pointers:

* PUSHING: pushing the bike is welcome on uphills or fast sections -
whenever the bike is moving slower than the skate. Please, though:
push the red tray, not the speaker tubes, and push forwards not
downwards. Pushing downwards has the risk of snapping the axle, and
you will cry if the bike collapses and lands on your foot. (Not
nearly as much as we will cry when faced with the repair bill). If
there are skaters in front of the bike there's rarely any point in
pushing it, because it's nigh-on impossible for the bike to get around
people if they're taking up a lot of space.

* CLEARING A PATH: if the skate's waiting at traffic lights and the
bike's somewhere in the middle, it wants to be at the front. Anything
you can do to help clear a path for it (short of threatened or actual
violence, which is messy) is welcome.

* OFFERING TO RIDE: if you'd like a chance to ride the bike, get in
touch. We strongly recommend starting with a Sunday to get used to
it - you'll find it considerably easier than keeping up on Friday's
Black run. On Fridays we often split the riding, so you can ride
the first half and skate the second, or vice versa.

* MUSIC SUGGESTIONS: these days it seems like everyone's a DJ. If you
think your musical tastes or mixing skills deserve showcasing on the
skate, get in touch.


== PROFILE VIEW: MIT ==

Mit is "one of our lazier marshals", he says, having been marshalling
for about 18 months, on and off. He first got into skating 3 years
ago, but keeps hurting himself by a combination of attempting skate
manouvres beyond his capabilities and not stopping in time for
fast-approaching lamp posts.

When not marshalling street skates Mit is skating on them, and can
often be seen with his distinctive orange skates and matching
t-shirts. He is violently pro Pepsi, preferring it to the other
leading brand of cola every time.

Off skates, Mit has a day job which mostly involves ranting about how
stupid other people are, as well as a double life trying to thwart
Batman's good deeds in Gotham City. Some day he plans to take over the
world.


== SKATERS TO DO BATTLE IN NOTTINGHAM ==

Slalomers from as far away as the US and deepest Europe will be
travelling to Nottingham this weekend with their London counterparts
to take part in Battle UK, the UK's newest freestyle slalom
competition. As well as Freestyle Slalom, there will be other
competitions including Speed Slalom, Jumping and Dance demonstrations.

We're told that spectators get in free, that you can register in
advance or on the day for Ten of your Earth Pounds, and that
practically anyone who knows five slalom tricks or more can take part
and that everyone who enters has a very good chance of winning
something. And it's being held indoors, so it can't get rained off.

If this has whetted your appetite, check Serpentine Road for more
details about the competition, travel and accommodation details.

          http://www.serpentineroad.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=19300
          http://www.serpentineroad.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=20482


== SKATE TOURISM: STOCKHOLM ==

Nina (half Swedish and "a little homesick at the moment") is just back
from Stockholm, and it sounds like a good place to skate. "I wasn't
sure how it was going to work out but skating in Stockholm was
amazingly fun! Skating the streets was just a dream - smooth tarmac,
wide roads, hardly any traffic (in comparison to London), wide
pavements, no nasty man-hole covers, no surprise sticky tarmac, and
much good will from my fellow Swedes".

Stockholm's built on an archipelago, which means not only a lot of
beautiful views out over water, but also a lot of hills. Short, sharp
and steep - great fun helterskelter skating, although a heel brake may
be a good idea to save on wheel wear.

The Swedes don't seem to mind skaters, she says: "the Tourist Bureau
had no problems me rolling in to pick up a map, cafes didn't complain,
and the funky couple who owns my friend's favourite second hand shop
didn't bat an eyelid at me rolling between Bauhaus vases and 1950s
kitchen chairs".

We don't know of any organised street-skates in Stockholm, but the
speedskaters meet regularly every Monday and Thursday evening and it's
not hard to see how people can become good speed-skaters living in
Stockholm - wide road, flat smooth surfaces, and endless miles and
miles of uninterrupted cycle lanes. Stockholm is a place where you can
really stretch your legs and skate until your heart's content.


== IT'S THE END OF THE WOW AS WE KNOW IT ==

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