Well Im truly back into the Finnish lifestyle now. Nothing special has been happening in the past few weeks. I have been working of course and skating when I can but the weather is beginning to change now and most days are wet if not raining. This is my first real Autumn as we don't really get seasons other than summer and winter in Australia. All the leaves on the tree's are beginning to lighten in colour and scatter along the ground. Mushrooms are popping up everywhere. I have seen some really cool mushrooms ranging from really big ones to the red ones with white spots that we all know from fairy tales and children's books. Most of the mushrooms here will shit down your nervous system and kill you if eaten so they are strictly for looking at.


The other night Paulli, Janne, Sammi and I went out for a skate at some new spots. We found some good free riding spots which I am really keen to head back to and do some filming. We did the Passila tour which involves a lot of pushing around the city but has some fun little foot paths to skate down and takes about 40 minutes to do the whole loop. This weekend there is a competition at Påmmine which should be good. Julia is going away on Thursday to do a course and she wont get back until Sunday which means she wont make the comp.  The competition will be done using timed runs. Fastest time down the track wins. Simple.


I managed to fall on my phone and smash it into pieces while skating so last night after work I went out and got a new phone. All white and shiny! After phone shopping Julia and I headed to a rock climbing place and tried our hand at Bouldering which was a lot of fun. It was in a really small place that had quite a few people in it and at first it was a bit intimidating to see how good everyone was but we got into it pretty quickly and spent 2 or 3 hours climbing different walls. Bouldering is only on small walls and doesn't require any ropes as there are thick mattresses on the floor below. Next Tuesday we have a course lined up at another climbing spot to teach us how to use the ropes and harnesses safely and then we will begin some higher climbs. While working as a Koala catcher in Australia I developed a fear of heights which I never knew I had. I am really keen to overcome the fear and I thought climbing would be a good way to do it so we will give it a go.


Thats all really. Julia and I are still trying to sort out what to do when I head back to Australia. At this stage it seems Julia might be coming back with me for a little while so I may end up back here in Finland again next year. We shall see.


I have added a new video to the videos page. It is the first of many to come from my Euro tour, starting in Norway of course. Be sure to check it out!   

Coming on September 11th will be the first Aulanko downhill jam in Finland. The race will raise money for SLL to put towards conservation efforts in the Saimaa area.


All are welcome to register no matter the skill level or experience. The day will be about having a smile on your dial, meeting new people, riding skateboards and raising money for a worthy cause. 


If your interested in riding or volunteering some time to help run things smoothly check out the Facebook page HERE or if your an old fogey who is yet to get with the times and sign up to Facebook, drop me an email at [email protected] and let me know.


Spectators are more than welcome so bring your friends and a picnic.


See you there!

Well seeing as I have just posted the last blog entry for the 2010 Euro circuit I thought I should throw some photos up. I have hundreds more to upload and a lot of footage to edit when I get home but I have uploaded the skating pics of me at the races.

I hitched a ride to Insul with Scoot and Sebastion. Scoot is from Canada and was world champ in 2008. Sebastion is from Germany and wasn't world champ in 2008 but what he lacked in fame he more than made up for by being the 2010 ''best car on the Euro tour'' champ. He had put many years and a lot of money into his old combi van. A lime green wagon on the inside and out with tiny LED's on the roof that looked like stars on the inside. A new engine that got us up to 140KM/h on the auto barn and a bangin' stereo.

We all high tailed out of Ramons place at around midday. We had to stop off at a couple of skate shops on the way to pick some stuff up and drop some stuff off. Of course we had to eat at each stop and have a general look around the area so we were very late to Insul. We got in at around 11 and drove about the car park for a while looking for a good spot to set up camp. Once camp was made we headed over to the registration/party area. I never signed up for the race in Insul. I was supposed to be doing touristy stuff over the next week or so but decided I would rather spend time with all the crew than by myself. The plan was to just rock up for the free rides with a board and a helmet and poach runs. I would get free food, camping and riding on a closed road. We partied most of the night and played a lot of table soccer which I am really crap at. A few of the locals turned up so we spent some time getting to know them and catching up with the people we hadn't seen in a week or so and eventually went to bed.

As usual at a race it was an early first morning. Up for breakfast at 7:30 and on the hill by 8:30. The road was shut down at 9 and we all took our first runs. Insul was my favourite hill of the tour so far. It had a snakey top section which weaved around the top of the mountain accelerating you quickly into the first left hairpin. After another right and left you were sent into another fast straight which ended with an incredibly wide left hand hairpin. A sketchy 90 degree right hander and you were across the finish line. I spent all day riding, not missing one run. I knew that I probably wouldn't get to ride the road again this year so I took every chance I got. One of my last runs I was taken out by Jackson Shapiera and Patrick Switzer on the first left. Jacko made it through somehow as Patty and I scrambled for our boards. I was fist down and into the right hander. I threw my board sideways and tried to take the wide to inside line. Patty had other ideas though. Ramming me from the side he sent his board into the side of my knee as we skittled across the road. For the rest of the week I would have a ''Patty egg'' on the side of my leg and fond memories from what was certainly run of the day at Insul.

In the afternoon we were told that rain had been forcasted for the coming days. The IGSA decided that they would try to run both qualafication runs and the race the following day. The riders had one practice run in the morning. I thought about jumping in but didn't want to suit up for just one run. I spent the day capturing footage for Jacko and mself and wandering up and down the hill chatting to people and just being a spectator. The day was dry and the riding was fast. At the end of the day though no one could beat the Swiss and it became an all Swiss Podium. Martin Siegrist came in first followed closely by Christoph Batt and Ramon Konigshausen. Mischo Erban came in at 4th which was fantastic to see. In the beginning of the year Mischo dropped all of his sponsors to R and D his own board and truck company. After taking the huge risk his season started off poorly with him being knocked out very early in almost every race. It was good to see him climb back on top and have a smile from ear to ear at the finish line.

The night after the race was a pretty crazy one. It began pouring in late afternoon so everybody was at the party. As I had said in Almatrieb, cheap beer, friendly locals and good fun. That sums up Germany in three words. Justin, a young Canadian gromit drank far to much wine and became the irritant of the night. Eventually he was jumped by a large group of us and bound with duct tape. I met a big German bloke who had a chilli schnapps which was the strangest thing I had ever had. A lot more table soccer was played and I actually began to get the hang of it by the end. Robin spent a good half an hour running around the soccer pitch with his head torch on in the pitch dark and making strange bird calls as he ran. I cant really recall much more of the night other than hanging around and drinking beer. It was a good night, I know that much.

The following day the ceremony was held at lunch time and the majority of people began packing after that. I had organised a lift with Chris who is the man behind Flexdex and was also driving Kim from Norway and Benny from South Africa to the Kosakov race just outside of Prague. We took a team vote and decided to stay the extra night and leave the following day as we would have should the event not have been rained out. Benny and I had a bit of a skate but it didn't last long as the rain started again. I tracked down a local street party and spent the day having some brews with some locals. The locals in the area were all welcoming and friendly and we had a good laugh together. Kim from Norway had started drinking at the crack of dawn so from lunchtime onwards he was absolutley smashed. He provided our entertainment for the day. He forced adoption upon an un suspecting German couple who quickly became mummy and daddy. He tried to go home with Auntie but Uncle told him in no un certain terms that he was not welcome back. Eventually Kim collapsed at our feet and after a few minutes of poking fun at him Benny and I took him off to his tent. An hour or so later and he was back, causing more trouble. One of the Swedes decided that if we were to move his tent just 2 meters that it may have some amusing results. It did, not for me though. Of course when we all went to bed, Kim couldn't find his tent and decided that he could bunk in with me. This was not an option of course but poor Kim had some trouble accepting this. After half hour of bickering, 15 minutes of trying to source some where else to sleep and then another 10 minutes of bickering he found his tent.   The following morning we all got up at around 8. We packed our bags and our tents and said goodbye to Insul. About 15 of us had stayed for the extra night so we decided we would all travel together and do some free riding on the way to Kosakov. We stopped off at a road in a neighbouring village. A long windy road, super narrow, quiet and running through forest. We spent almost half the day skating before we decided it was time to head off. I had a crash doing a toeside stand up slide which resulted in me slamming on my ass really hard. I suppose there must be muscle in the ass and I think I bruised it pretty severly. It made the drive a bit harder having to sit for hours on end but we amused ourselves pretty well along the way. We were on the Autobahn again which has no speed limit. I drove at 140KM/h which is the fastest I have ever driven in a car. At 140 cars were still flying past us at speed but I wasn't really prepared to do any faster. We got a game going with Franky and his passangers passing each other and doing strange actions as we drove past. Jogging, rowing, cycling etc. Watching a full car drive past you while all passangers are doing the same action is very amusing! Eventually we won the game when ben stuck his ass out of the window. Franky's car couldn't compete with the horror that is Bens ass.   5 hours later we arrived at our pit stop. Alex Dietz is a German rider and lives part way between Prague and Insul. He kindly took all of us in for the night and stowed all of our stuff in the garage. He lives an hour drive from some super quick runs so we didn't spend much time at the house. I sat the first runs out because of my bruised behind so I shuttled the riders up and down. The main run is a pretty straight one and although it looks reasonably flat it is a long 10% road which will get you just about to 100KM/h skating by yourself. Skating with 14 other people who are all creating a slip stream, you get high speeds. Really high speeds. After the nights riding we headed to a local Germna pub featuring a drunk old German bloke who loved us all to bits. They passed a card around the table for us all to sign and shouted us all Schnapps. The food was good, the company was good and other than the old man with his hand on my shoulder for 20 minutes, the whole night was good. After a couple more beers at Alex's house and sorting out space for everyone to sleep, we crashed out.   The next morning was another early one. Straight up and out of the house back to the hill we had been to the day before and this time I got to ride. After a couple of hours the police arrived and moved us on. He was a friendly guy and we even got group photos with him and a group of passing scouts who were hiking up the hill. We all headed back to Alex's from there, packed, ate lunch and left.   The drive was around 6 hours again. Nothing exciting really happened, same old fun and games and talking crap. We were quite a strange car load to look at really. Benny and I were pretty simaliar people. Excited to be trekking through Europe and riding skateboards. Almost impossible to shut up or calm down, bouncing all over the place. Chris is a quiet guy. An asian fella with glasses who builds boards. He is quite a technical guy and very calculated in his decisions. Sensible, would be a good word for Chris. Kim... Is drunk. He would go through periods of being quiet and irritable to being drunk and giddy. It was a good combo although Chris did vote Ben and I the 2 most difficult people to travel with on the tour.   We were all pretty excited to get into Czech. We didn't drive into prague as it was getting pretty late by the time we got in. We were held up on the freeway because of a car accident which resulted in 100's of cars having to reverse down the freeway to the previous exit with the hazard lights on. It was interesting to see the reversing skills of some people. From there we followed the GPS to Kosakov which took us on the most round about way possible. When we finally arrived in Kosakov we realised that it was 10 meters of flat road, a church and a suicidal cat who insisted on jumping infront of us each time we drove through. Eventually we found the hill which was not in Kosakov at all but who am I to complain. The campground was right next to the start line of the track and featured a party tent with food outlets and of course a bar. Beer in Czech is cheap as chips, cheaper in fact. The first night was a pretty big one, people were arriving all through the night so everytime you planned to go to sleep someone else would turn up.    Freerides started at 9am the next day. It was simply a case of waking up, putting the leathers on and walking to the start line. Simple, easy and hangover friendly. The track its self was by far the gnarliest of any other that had been raced in Europe. Incredibly steep with drops that rocketed you into the next bend. Some truly difficult corners which had to be taken perfectly if you wanted to come out the other side. It was not a drift friendly track which worked against me. The footbrakers had a huge advantage over the rest of the field and it showed in the free rides. Top speeds were mid 90's and dislocated shoulders were the injury of choice for 6 riders over the weekend. That night at the riders meeting we were told that the event had a high chance of being rained out. The area had been flooding a few days before we arrived and more storms were predicted for the days to come. The plan was to get all the qualafication runs done the next day. At least then if the event was rained out we could get a result based on those runs. With hundreds of luges, butt boarders and skateboarders who all needed to do 2 runs each free riding on that day was out of the question.   The next morning began at 8:30 for the stand up riders. We were put through our first runs after one practice run and then had the whole day to hang about before our last qulafication run at 3 in the afternoon. I was at the stage where I didn't mind anymore. I was happy to sit this race out and spend more time with people I probably wouldn't see again for another year or more. I took both of my qualafication runs as just another free ride and had some fun. The following days were a wash out. Wash out is probably an under statement. One night we found ourselves in the middle of a storm. Seeing as we were camped up so high we were almost constantly in the clouds. Lightning was striking 20 meters away from the party tent and the thunder was loud it hurt your ears and you felt it through the ground. The following morning Alex from Norway found a tree, 10 meters from his tent which had been split right in half and was still smouldering. It was a scary night, thats for sure.

The following two days were wet. Really wet. The carpark and half of the campground had turned to mud, tents had been flooded and the track was slick with mud. We sat around in the tent moping, all itchy to ride the hill one last time. We amused each other with games of coins, dice, poker, ninja and slaps. Benny and I built a ghetto extension to his ten using other tent which brought the realestate value of the neighbouring tents right down and made Benny feel as if he was back home in the slums of South Africa. I had a blast, I really enjoyed the social aspect of sitting about with nothing special to do. I got to know people much better than I had previously and had some great laughs. That being said, it was disapointing not to be able to ride the hill again. Next year.

On the last night I headed into Prague by train with Ali, Auden and Hoken (all from Norway). Most people had packed up and left the campsite that night to party in town. After a long wait at the station and an hour long train trip we headed to Hostel AZ where the others were staying. After a much needed shower and some food we all headed to the local strip club, ''hot peppers''. The club escorts burly black men to round up tourists and escort them to the entrance of the place. They work on comission, each person they bring in, they get some money. Seeing as we were a large group we entered the club surrounded by 8 very big black fellas which gave an overwhelming sense of power. Audin is only 18 and Hoken is 17 so it was their first time in a strip bar. A grin from ear to ear, they didn't say much all night. I was approached by a working girl who said ''hello'' to me, I said hello back and told her ''thanks, but we have just ordered a drink from the other waitress'', ''what?'' was the reply, ''Beer, I just ordered beer from the other girl'', ''not beer! Private dance, what are you stupid?!?'' I was a bit taken back and all I could come up with was ''me? Your a stripper!'' She wasn't very happy with that reply and stormed off. After that they were onto us. I was sitting at a table with a couple of guys from Holland when a waitress came round and asked if we wanted a drink. I said no thanks, but she insisted that I have one. I told her I didn't drink to which she replied ''you have to have a drink or you have to leave!'' I tried the ''I'll order one in 5 minutes'' routine but that didn't stick either. In the end, all 3 of us ordered a drink, waited till she left and then moved to the other side of the room and hid. By the end of the night, Alex and Justin were thrown out once they finished their drinks and judging by the looks we were getting from the staff we assumed that we were next and followed those two. After leaving the club, Jackson went and bought the biggest sausage you have ever seen from a local kiosk and we all headed back to the Hostel.

The last day in Prague was a pretty quiet one. Scoot, Leeso, Jacko and I went to Maccas for breakfast. We spent a bit of time chatting then headed back. After a lot of sitting around and chatting with the others about 10 of us went to a pizza place for lunch. After that, I got a lift to the station with Justin who dropped Andrew Chapman and myself off. Andrew was heading to Munich and I was on my way to Berlin. My plan was, Prague to Berlin, Berlin to Amsterdam, Amsterdam to Lilly, Lilly to Calais ad from there over to England to meet up with my mum who was visiting family. I was supposed to catch a 12:30am train from Berlin but of course it was full simply because the German rail system hates my guts! Instead I would have to wait until 4:30am. By the time 12:30 rocked around I was in no mood and decided to get on anyway, what were they going to do, stop the train and kick me out? Turns out the train was empty. I had asked about sleepers at the station and instead of saying ''well the beds are full but would you like a seat?'' the lady said ''well the beds are full so you will have to have a seat on the 4:30 train''. The rest of the trip was pretty smooth. Long, but drama free. I met a fella named Sebastion from California and he was headed the same way as me and on our last train journey we met two German girls who were also going the same way. One of the girls spoke French so was very handy to have around in Calais.

2 days of travel on a train, 5 countries crossed, 3 new people to talk with and a ferry trip across the English Channel and it was done. The 2010 European racing season was done. I met my mum and Grandmother on the other side, said goodbye to my new mates and was on my way to a bed and breakfast to sleep, in a real bed.

Thanks to everyone who has read all that I have written. I dont know who most of you are but I hope you have enjoyed this part of the year as much as I have. Thanks to Fire-Up Industries, SLL, Daily Grind, Free style revolution and Kooky for all the help you have offered me. Thanks to all the Finnish crew for keeping me active and teaching me new things. Thanks to Steve, Pauline and D for the financial aid when I needed it most. Cheers to everyone who gave me a couch or a floor to sleep on, food and company. Everyone who I rode, crashed, and partied with over the last 2 months. A million thanks to Julia for searching train times, maps, prices and exchange rates for me. For paying the rent while I was gone and working a shitty job that she hates so that I could do what I wanted. I owe you a 2 month holiday and a lot of hugs.

I have 2 weeks in England with family now and then back to Helsinki for the last part of my year in Europe...

I got into Annecy to late. I still had to make my way to Argonay which was maybe 10 or 15Ks away and the last bus had left 10 minutes before I arrived into the station. I hung around for a while, bought a drink, tried to get in contact with some riders but with no luck. After about two sips of my newly bought sprite a fella came over and started rambling onto me in French. From what I got, he had no money and was trying to get a free drink from the shop for his kid who was maybe 3 years old. Of course they wouldn't give him a free drink so he was pissed. I offered the kid a sip of my drink fully expecting to get the bottle back. It didn't work that way. After the child had taken his sip the bottle was quickly handed around to about 4 other people until it was totally empty. Never trust a Frenchman. Eventually I found a bus that took me to the hospital and although the hospital was still a few Kilometers away from the race grounds I figured it was closer than where I was and I could probably hitch hike the rest of the trip. When I reached the hospital I followed the signs towards the main road which leads to Argonay. I lugged my gear for 10 minutes or so and before I even got a chance to hitch hike a lady with a name that meant sun set offered to take me to where ever I needed to go. Turns out that years ago she had met a fella named Pierre Gamby who now lives in new Zealand but is originally French. I met the same Pierre last year while racing at Newtons Playground in Bathurst. It really is a small world. Sunset (or whatever her name was) had no idea about the race that was happening in the area but said she might come along to watch. After 40 minutes of trying to work out where the camp site was, she dropped me off and was on her way.    

The camp site was nothing special. It was hot as hell in Argonay and the oragnisers had put us in an open field with no trees or shade of any kind. I had done a bit of thinking about weather or not I would race and although the temptation was there I decided it was best to let my new stitches do what they are supposed to do. I managed to get a full refund on my race rego and decided to do some filming and photographing during the event. The Graveyard course is one of a kind on the IGSA circuit. It starts on a very narrow strip of road that runs through forest and ends in a housing area. The surface is rough, the corners are tight and narrow not to mention the man holes and pot holes that are scattered about. It was interesting for me to watch a race from a spectators point of view and although I would have liked to ride, it was a lot of fun to wander up and down the track and see how different people tackled the course. At the end of the day Kevin Reimer was once again invincible. In second was Switzer and Louis Pilloni took third place. Milena and her boyfriend Thomas came down from Grenoble after the presentation to join the party.  The next morning was a slow one. A very slow one. It took a couple of hours to get packed and organised but eventually Milena, Thomas and myself were on our way to Annecy. We checked out my train times to Chamonix and after a feed at a place across the road we headed to the Annecy lake. The lake was incredible. I still cant get over the colour of the water in the European lakes. The lake is backed by a mountain range which creeps up towards the clouds. Around the lake are shops and restaurants. In some areas the water creeps between the shops and looked just how I had pictured Venice. We wandered for a couple of hours, looking at the area and getting a little lost from time to time. We spent some time in a park hanging about in the shade and watching some poor caged birds that were not in a very nice state. Eventually the time came, we said our goodbyes and I was on my way to Chamonix, Mont Blanc. No matter how much time you spend looking at them, mountains are still some of the most impressive things the world has to offer. The alps are truly incredible. At one of the change over stops I caught up with an Aussie chick and two rock climbers from Annecy that were heading the same way. The two French guys were great to have and could point out some cool things along the way. One of the most impressive sights was the glacier that creeps down the side of the mountain towards the town. During the heat of the day it begins to thaw and move down the mountain face as streams and waterfalls. During the night it freezes solid again. The young fella on the train with me told me that his Grandfather remembers that every winter the glacier would cross the main road into the town. Each year the city would have to dig hole or a tunnel through the glacier so that cars could pass through. Although it was big, it was now no where near to crossing the main road. Apparently it is reducing in size around 2 meters per day which is a huge amount if you think about it. Most of the mountain peaks couldn't be seen as we came into Mont Blanc because the cloud level was lower than the peaks themselves. We eventually got into the station, parted ways and I headed to the tourist information centre which was about a 20 minute walk from the train station. Of course, they were closed. It took me a while but I eventually found a couple of campsites. I lugged all my gear to the first one only to be told they were full. I arrived at the second one and read the sign that said the grounds were full. Instead of going into the office to ask if they had even a little room I just wandered around until I found a small gap and pitched in it. I ended up next to some very rowdy Swiss fellas and a male couple that had managed to find the worlds shortest shorts somewhere along the way. That night I went for the first skate I had been on since my stitches were put in. I cruised around the main town for a few hours, ate some food and headed back to camp for the night. The next day was a similar one. I did a bit of wandering around but spent most of the day with the board. After a week of no skating I was very happy to be back on the board again. I had thought when I heard of Mont Blanc that the place would have been filled with amazing roads to skate but it wasn't the case. The roads were cracked and eroded. They had pot holes in them deep enough to swallow your own foot and they were mostly super narrow. I spotted two housing areas that ended way up on the side of the mountain. Normally you would expect the road to wind down the side of the mountain to reduce the steepness but not here. The two roads went straight down and were two of the steepest roads I have seen. Again the surface was gnarly and you really had to think about what you were doing while riding them. I did each road twice and called it quits. In the evening I headed to the pub around the corner from my campsite to see if anyone I knew was hanging around. I ended up talking to an Aussie guy who was in Chamonix for 10 days working as a climbing model for a Korean climbing label. It was a pretty strange circumstance and he said the clothes were some of the ugliest he had ever seen but if they pay and allow you to travel, why not. We hung about for an hour or so before parting ways. The next day I decided I had to head up one of the mountains as it seemed the touristy thing to do. To get part pay up a peak it cost 20e, 35e for half way and 47e to head to the peak. I decided to walk. I found a track filled with people carrying walking sticks, backpacks, huge canisters of water and all decked out in gloves, boots, cargo pants and anything else you would need to scale mount Everest. I had my camera, 2 liters of Orange juice and a packet of nuts. Most of the people on the path with me were upwards of 40 years old so I was out in front in no time. After almost two hours of walking I found a water fall and managed to fill my almost empty juice bottle with ice cold water. The path was narrow and dirt with tree roots sticking out every which way. In some areas there was a 50 meter plus drop off the edge of the path which made it even more impressive when a couple of mountain bikers shot down the path past me. After almost 4 hours of walking I was back in town. Chamonix is another place that has ben over run by tourists. The buildings are old and impressive but filled with cheap shit that has been mass produced in China. Every now and then a tourist train would cruise by on the road, filled with dotty old lady's and screaming infants. The train was good if you had a board though, I managed to grab on and get a few free rides across town. The following morning I was at the station and out of Chamonix, heading towards Peschiera Del Garda, Italy. Italian trains are a lot like Italian drivers. Shit. I was very nervous for the whole journey. The speed, the grinding noises, the parts flying off the side and the holes in the floor that allowed you to see the tracks under you. Not only that but we were traveling through  flat, ugly and mostly industrial areas. Corn crops and grain silos as far as the eye could see. I was beginning to wish I had stayed in Chamonix. The whole journey so far I have always had, even if it was only a slight idea of where in the world I was. This trip, I had none. I had no idea if I was on the right train, if I had gone past my stop or even if the train would ever stop again. I was really tired and wanted to sleep but I knew if I slept I would miss my stop and end up in Rome or some other place I didn't really want to be at present. Eventually we got there. I stepped off the train at about 8 at night and the priority was a camp site. With no tourist office and no signs I followed some people into the heart of town. I found a sign that said camping, walked for half an hour to get there only to be told that they had no room. When I asked the lady about the next closest site she gave a long list of instructions and to cap it all off told me to take the last right while she pointed left. I got lost. Really lost, I found about 3 areas that all looked like city centers. I could only find one person who spoke any English and all she had to say was ''there are campsites everywhere'' and that was it. I had Julia on the phone with google maps but still no luck. An hour or so of wandering later, I found a campsite. Even if it was on the other side of a fence. I didn't care, I scaled that fence like a monkey in the knowing that sleep was waiting on the other side. I knew that the site was full but again, I didn't care. I found a spot next to a nice old couple who lent me a hammer, set up camp and went to eat. If you ever get the chance to go to Peschiera Del Garda... Don't. I have never before seen such a touristy place. To the point that in the morning they rake the beaches clean of seaweed. Drunk, rich 16 year olds were running amuck everywhere and huge, meat headed morons with fake tans desperately tried to claim dominance over the area they walked in. My train out wasn't until about 1 in the afternoon. I hadn't paid for my night in the camp site but taking my current financial position into account, I went skating instead. I found a great little road with a brand new surface that was awesome for free riding. I got two runs in before the local fuzz blew his whistle and asked me to leave. I found another spot and got in half a run before the same guy came and yelled ''bipidy boop, bippidy bop, spaghetti'' at me and I was moved on again. Eventually I found a road that was quiet and got to skate for another hour or so. When I got back to the camp site to pack I found that every entrance had a security guard posted. They were checking peoples wrists for colored bracelets which are obviously issued to you when you check in. I didn't have one. i had to get in because all of my stuff was set up but the security guard took an immediate disliking to the shaggy Aussie with the wheelie board. They wouldn't let me walk through the grounds to the reception, instead I had to take a huge detour around the park. When I got to the reception no one was around so I headed back to the fence where my tent was closest to. I did the monkey thing again and happily strolled towards my tent. Before I managed to get to the tent the security guard had called me out and I was in a game if charades. I was waving my arms around trying to explain and mime my situation and he was waving his around because he is Italian and that just how they talk. In the end 4 other guards had joined and luckily one spoke minimal English. I told him that I had arrived late last night and the reception was closed. I now needed to pay for my camping but my bank card was in my tent and this schmuck wouldn't let me go to my tent. We wandered over to my tent, I got my card out and showed him. I asked him if it would be better for me to pack first and then pay on my way out because if I left again now I may not be allowed back in. As I'd hoped, he agreed. I packed my stuff, wandered past the guard, smiled, waved and said ''I hope bad things come your way''. He smiled, waved and said something (probably the same as what I said) in Italian. I was out of the site with a free night of camping and a new enemy. I rode my bag to the station in the pouring rain and even ran into the same policeman who blew his whistle and waved his hands at me. I waved and kept rolling hoping that he would chase me and my bag down the hill. He didn't. I was so happy to be out of the tourist trap and on my way to the next event in Teolo. It was a train trip with a bus trip at the end. Flat Italy is ugly but as soon as you get into the hilly areas it becomes everything you would picture Italy being. Rolling hill, Vineyards, old stone houses and lush green forest everywhere. When I arrived into Teolo no one was about. I managed to track done one old lady who pointed me in some direction but I wasn't really sure where the race hill or campsite was. I went in the general direction that the old lady had pointed me in and before I knew it I was sitting on my bag rolling down an awesome road. I knew that I was heading the wrong way when I saw the sign telling me that I was leaving Teolo but the ride was so fun I figured I could always hitch back up. Then it started raining. A lot. I found some shelter under the roof of a closed restaurant. I spent about 20 minutes there hoping to see a skaters car come up or down the hill but it never did. The next thing I saw was a grey dog, maybe a short haired pointer wandering up the road. I called him over and he was friendly enough but terrified of the thunder, wind and rain. We hing out together for a little while before I read his name (Cuba) and phone number on his tag. I rang the number and got through to someone who asked if I could wait for 20 minutes until the owner arrived. I had no where to be and had no idea where I was so it wasn't a problem. Half hour later the owner arrived to pick up the dog, he offered me a ride to where ever I was headed. We took a quick stop to his place to drop off Cuba before he ran me to the top of the race hill where I was able to register. The girls behind the desk told me that Athletes were entitled to a 50% discount at a particular hotel in town. To shorten the story slightly, Cuba's owner ended up dropping me off at the hotel, booked me a room and left me with 300€. It was the best thing to happen to me this entire trip and I was so happy to be in a room with a bed I could have cried with joy. During the course of the week over 1,500€ worth of gear was stolen from the athletes campsite including camera gear, wallets, computers and passports. I was able to store some stuff in the hotel room for the week which was convenient for the people who hadn't had their gear stolen yet. Teolo was by far the strangest race I have ever attended. The course itself is pretty lousy. It starts off with a long straight that peaks at about 80KM/h before throwing you into a quick left right. After that it is maybe 6 hairpins that dont get you over the speed of 40 for the whole time. If your not riding in a group, it's not worth it. The event has been the inline world championship race for years before skateboarding was ever invited which meant the whole thing was roller blade mad. On the second night everyone did a night run down the hill which was followed by us parading down through town in front of all the locals representing our country. This was then followed by over an hours worth of roller skate dancing routines on a stage and another hours worth of speeches by Italian officials such as the mayor. At the end of the day it was a fun event but a crappy race. A whole lot of sitting around and waiting for things to get organised and official ceremonies. A couple of times we tried to turn it into a skateboarding event by initiating food fights but it just made us un-popular with the roller bladers. I had no problem qualifying for the races but I was knocked out in my first heat, placing 3rd by what can only be described as another riders incompetence. I was beyond irritated by the result but as the saying goes, shit happens.

The final day was another early one. I payed my Hotel bill at 7 in the morning and caught a ride with Melanie, Ross the boss and Carmen to Zurich. The drive took about 7 hours and ended with the most impressive storm I have ever seen. Fork lightning, flooded roads, strong winds and minimal visibility on a very fast highway. I stayed with Ross and Carmen for two nights and two days just out of the center of Zurich. Ross and I did some skating on both days and other than that we played Monopoly, drank some beer, watched some TV and talked rubbish. That about brings me to now. Tonight we ventured to the Airflow Skateboard warehouse to watch the European premiere of DROP. DROP is a new movie to come out of North America and is focused on a few of the top downhill racers in the world. The cinematography was incredible and it is by far the largest budget ever put into a skating film. We had a few beers before watching the movie and catching up with all the other guys who had ended up in Zurich. I have organised a ride to Insul (the next race) tomorrow and am spending the night at Ramons house. Right now Patty Swiss is watching footage next to me and Ramon and Sebastien are eating some food that smells amazing on my left.

Thats it, it's done. I hope you didn't have anywhere important to be...                

Excuse the writing on this post but Im on a French keyboard which has keys all over the shop. I also spent 2 hours writing this yesterday before Weebly deleted the post so I am a bit miffed about having to do it again. 

Well the last time I posted I was about to head off to Berlin and Julia was on her way back to Helsinki. The trip to Berlin was a trying one. I made my train with no problems, I had one stop over which would put me on the train straight to Berlin. After a couple of hours on the train I was picking up my bags preparing for my stop over. The train stopped before we ever made it to the station. A few announcements in Swedish were made and finally I was told that the signal light was broken so we had to wait for 20 minutes while it was repaired. A few more announcements were made 40 minutes later and before I knew it we were heading back the way we came. Once at the previous station I managed to find a controller and explain to him that I had a connecting train to Berlin which was due to leave 15 minutes ago. He explained my options to me. Either I could find a bus to the next station, or I could walk. Not the most encouraging answers I must admit. As I made my way from the train to the bus stop the man came running over and told me to get back on the train. The light was fixed. We arrived to the station and although the conductor wasn't sure if the train had been held he did know it left from platform 6. I scrambled to the platform with a big group of people but when we reached the platform no train was waiting. No infomation was given so we all stood around wondering what to do. Some lady had sliced her foot open on the escalators while running for the platform so while her boyfriend ran around like a stunned mullet trying to find an open shop (which is not easy at a train station at 10:30PM) I managed to clean and patch her up with some medi wipes and a bandage. It bled a lot but wasn't to deep which was lucky for her. We were eventually told that our train had not yet left but had no certain departure time which left us stranded at the station, unable to leave incase it arrived. We were there all night, some slept on benches, some on the concrete floor. I stayed up and chatted with some Americans. Finally a train arrived qnd took us to another station. We were told that the station wouldnt open in a few hours but we were welcome to sleep on the train until 4:30. After that the train would leave so we would have to wait outside. At about 3:30 I woke to people scrambling with luggage and evacuating the train like a plague had arrived. I followed the madness and arrived at a platform with a train to Berlin waiting for us. I got on and found a room with a couchette and prepared to sleep. I shared the room with a mother and her two young daughters. At 11AM they woke me while leaving the room "hello" said the mother "we are still in Sweden, sorry!". Sure enough we were still in Sweden. The train crosses the water on a ferry and we were apperently waiting for the ferry which would lave at 12:15. When we finally did get on the boat we were gifted a buffet breakfast which after 9 hours of no food, was more than welcome. I spent the rest of the trip to Berlin with the mother and her kids in the train cabin. We played some cards for a while and then spend the rest of the trip talking about this and that.   

I arrived in Berlin at 9;30PM. The first thing I did was go to the service point to book my trains to Hungerzell the next morning. Seems like everyone else had the same thought. The line went from the counters all the way out the door. It would be a long wait but now that I had arrived, I didn't mind so much. That is until about 15 minutes later when a very rude man strolled his way up to the front of the line and headed to the next available counter. I was to tired and irritated to let him get away with that so i got up and met him at the counter. I explained very loudly to the service lady that I had been waiting for 15 minutes now and the people infront of me had been waiting even longer. I told her that this "asshole" had walked straight to the front of the line without waiting and that I hoped she would ask him to wait in line like everybody else. Everyone in the room was watching and even the other service desks had stopped to listen. He kept telling me that "it was ok" in which I would tell him "no it's not!". I made my way back to my place in the line and after a short while the man followed. He again told it was ok and to relax which really made me angry. I not so politely told him it would be best if he left which he did. On the way out he told me "go back to your own country" which at the time, seemed like a great idea.   

After booking my train I headed to my hostel which was on a very loud, colourful and partying street. The weather was really hot and moist so everyone was sitting and talking outside. The hostel was nice enough and I was put in a 16 person dorm which is the biggest I had ever been in. I had a quick chat with a Canadian lady before going to get some food. Berlin is great. Imagine a city covered in graffiti, a city where the buildings are older than Australian settlement and the lights from the street are all different colours. It was instantly inviting and friendly and although I was on a busy street as a tourist with no clue to where I was headed I felt really safe. I finally found a spot to eat and sat down outside. I was joined by two extremely gay German men and their friend from Hong Kong. They were an odd trio and the biggest of the 3 wore a glittery top hat. They were all very friendly though and extremely funny people. We talked for an hour or so before they left. When they left they told me that what was left of the Berlin wall was a mere 5 minute walk from here so I set out to find it. The wall now runs about a Kilometer long and the city has hired numerous artists to paint murals along it with a theme of peace and new beginnings. Although I had said that the city is rampabt with graffiti, none had touched the wall. It was the same with the old style European buildings. The graffiti was always over new modern, metal or concrete structures but never the old. I wandered along the wall for an hour or so before heading back to the hostel for some sleep.  

The next morning was another early one. I was at the station at around 7 and had an entire days travel ahead of me. Everything went pretty smoothly and I even caught up with Andreas on the last leg of the journey. I spent a couple of weeks with Andreas in Vancouver last year though he hails from Sweden. It helped to make the trip a bit quicker to have someone to talk to and before we knew it we were in a small town named Bogen. From there we got a lift with Stephan Risch who is the brains behind the Almatrieb race. He gave us a run up the mountain and some good local information on racing lines and average speeds. The road was awesome! I quick, technical section at the top which stays at about 70KM/h and then it rockets you into a fast straight which is around the mid 90 mark. The straight ends with a difficult left hand hairpin and then a few S bends to the finish line. Our camp ground was pretty average. It was in a nice enough spot but lacked the essentials of a week of camping. With no showers we bathed in the river next door each night. The river was like ice but after a whole day of riding in leathers and full face helmets in near 40 degree weather, it was a welcome change. We had some porta potties that ran out of paper after day 1 and in the heat of the sun were un bearable to use. We had a party tent next door though which was an awesome set up and in the small town of Hungerzell the beer is cheaper than water, truly. Not only that but if you collected 4 empty bottles and brought them to the bar, they would give you a knew beer. We basically drank for free the whole week. My first Qualafication run wasn't the best as I hit the bails on the last tight left so I got a time of 3:19. The next day I took it a bit easier and made sure I got a clean run down and ended with a time of 3:08. That put me in 114th spot and since they decided to run a 128 man bracket, I was in. My first heat was tight. I was consistantly in second for the technical top section but the other 3 proved to fast for me on the straight, pushing me back into 4th and not enough time to draft anyone before the line. It was a disapointing heat for me but I still had a good time and was able to get a lot of filming done for the rest of the day. At the end of the day Kevin Reimer took first place followed in second by Jackson Shapiera and Eric Lundenburg in third. It was Jacksons third podium of the season so far and he is doing the Aussies proud.  

After the race a few of us went to a local place for dinner before heading back to the party tent for the award ceremony. I managed to take away a new Dervish board for a safety run I did down the track to point out a post the marshalls had missed with the hay bails. I also caugh a set of Abecs nez free ride wheels which was nice. After the ceremony I headed back to my tent to drop my new gear off. I had a few empty bottles in my tent and seeing as I was leaving the next day, I thought I would take them to the bar to cash them in. I put one in my pocket. DONT put glass bottles in your pocket. I didn't have a light with me and I didn't see my tent rope. I fell onto the bottle and it was game over. I got some help from Robin, Jacko and Norways team Sheiza. Leeo managed to track down Sammy from Switzerland who doesn't drink and the champ drove me to the nearest hospital. Sammy speaks German which was very helpful in the hospital and seeing as I didn't have any pants on, let ot lone a wallet he lent me the money to pay the doctor. I ended up with 14 stitches in my leg and 2 needles in my ass. Lesson learned, DONT put glass in your pocket. We headed back to the party in the knowing that I would be unable to race France. I hung out for a bit before going to bed. The next morning I awoke to the sounds of the Norwegians next door who were trying to work out who had shat in their tent. Turns out Dasha had woken in the middle of the night to see Alex (from team Norway and who sleeps in the tent) taking a crap. She screamed out no but it was to late so she went back to sleep. They will always be Team Sheiza...  

The next morning I got a lift to Munich with Danny Strasser who documents extreme sports around Europe. He dropped me off at the central station and I booked my trains. My train didn't leave until 11:30 so I had a shower at the station, ate and sat around. My train left an hour late. That meant I missed my connection to Zurich. That meant I spent another night at a cold, dark empty train station in the middle of no where. The zorst part was I had a sleeper booked and was so looking forward to being in a bed but it was not to be. I got on a train at 6am the next day and after a few hours and some of the most breath taking scenery I have ever seen, I was in Zurich. It was hot, damn hot! I had another shower at the station but by the time I was ready to get dressed again I was soaked with sweat. I hung around for hours waiting for my train and by the end of it I was ready to go home. My back hurt, my leg hurt, I was hot and sticky from sweat. My eyes throbbed from the glaring light and I was so sick of carting bags around with me. After hours of waiting I was on a train to Grenoble to meet up with Millena.
 
Millena is a French girl who lived with Julia in Adelaide. I dont know her well but we hung out a little bit and she came to stay with Julia and I one weekend on Kangaroo Island. We met at the train station and headed straight to her famalies house for dinner. It was great, her family were all very welcoming and friendly people and lived in downtown Grenoble which was full of old buildings and had a lot of charecter about it. Everyone kisses everyone on the cheeks to greet one another and say goodbye which I have never encountered before other than rich Western folk who try so hard to be French. It was done here in such a natural friendly manner though. After dinner Millena and I drove back to her house, I had a shower and slept. Millena lives with her dad, Pierre who I met the next morning. Millena had work so we said our goodbyes and she was off. Pierre is a teacher so he was on holidays which meant he was able to drop me at the station in the afternoon. He is an avid motorbike rider so I leant him my head cam to use before I headed off to explore. Grenoble is an awesome city. Full of parks and fountains, dogs, churches, cafes and restraunts. Towering over the city on one of the mountains is a huge fortress named Le Bastille. I hiked up the mountain on my own. I was worried about an hour and a bit hike up a mountain side with 14 fresh stitches in my leg but thought I may never get the chance again. The views on the way up are incredible and onlmy topped by the views from the top. The fortress looks over the whole city with the enormous mountain back drop. I hung around for an hour or so, paid 8 Euro for a coke and an icecream (I guess they can charge what the want up there), checked out the museum which was free but all in French so I had no idea what was happening and then caught the Bastille eggs back down. The eggs were built in the 60's for the Olympics and they are 6 seater cable cars from the bottom to the top. I HATE heights when I have no control and sitting in a bubble that swings in the wind 800 meters above the ground is about as little control as you can get. By the time I reached the ground I was cramped all over from being so tense for the ride down. I slowly made my way back to Millenas on the bus, spent some time watching bike footage with Pierre before he dropped me at the train station and on my way to Anncey.... The Graveyard call.