I haven’t stepped into an ice rink for at least three weeks. I guess I am taking a break from ice skating. I don’t when I am going to pick it up again. I am stuck at the loop and flip jumps.

I only rollerblade for half an hour each day. I am not learning anything new. I just keep doing the same things over and over again. I am not making any progress at all. I am losing my passion for rollerblading as well. I felt intimidated when I met much better aggressive skaters. I used to be the only rollerblader at the parks, but now there seems to be more. They were super friendly, but I just felt embarrassed.

I am not sure where I am heading with these sports. I guess I am showing my age after all. I still want to skate recreationally though.

My ice skating progress is stalling. I still can’t accomplish my flip and loop jumps. I am about to hit the reset button and go back from the beginning to relearn all the techniques the correct way. I just plowed through them the first time and now I am stuck. It’s time for me to let it go. My kids have moved on a long time ago. They don’t even want to skate around the rink for fun.

I am not making much progress in rollerblading either. My power stops were good, but they caused my wheels to worn out. I can’t find the wheels for my Flying Eagle aggressive skates to replace. I might just look into getting a new pair either USD Sway or Roces. I am learning to do fakies and turns on the quarter pipes. The other day, I watched a guy skated effortlessly around the bowl. He just jumped into the ramp without coping and he did a fakie from the high bowl with ease. I was in awe. I’ll get to his level one day. For now, I am just enjoying what I have accomplished up to this point. My kids aren’t interested in rollerblade anymore despite my attempt to get them to the skate parks.

My kids are looking forward to skiing though. My wife and I started to buy gears for them. Since I can now tuning up our skis in our basement, we can get used skis that are still in good conditions. I have sharpened, fixed the bases, and waxed our our skis. Once the winter arrives, we’ll be able to hit the slopes.

I bought Đán a used snowboard. The board and the bindings appear to be in good shape; therefore, I am not sure why the seller only listed it for $35. All I need to do now is tuning it up and getting him a new pair of boots. The board is a bit heavy. I am not sure if Đán can handle it. We’ll see!

I recently discovered that I have been wearing wrong shoe size all my life. Since I preferred to have some room in my toes, I had always pick size 8 (US), but my actual size is 6.5 (US). Now that I am used to skating shoes, my regular shoes feel weird. A few weeks ago, I bought a new pair of Adidas running shoes size 7 to replace my size-8 pair. Even then it still feels roomy. I took an audit of all my shoes and put together this page as a record for me to refer back.

Shoes

• 2025 Rossignol Primacy Power Focus Men’s Snowboard Boots: ($163). Bought it for Đán on September 9, 2025. It is 9 out of 10 for stiffness. If he can’t use it, I will.
• 2021 DC Men’s Laced Lace Snowboard Boots: ($164). Bought this pair on December 6, 2023. Good for snowboarding.
• Adidas Unisex-Adult Goletto VIII Firm Ground Soccer Shoe: 7 US ($40). I want to get back to playing soccer.
• Lange RX 120 Ski Boots: 25.5 Mondo ($355) I bought this pair brand new. I am loving it.
• Adidas Running Shoes: 7 US. The actual size should be 6.5. My everyday shoes.
• 2025 Burton Smalls BOA: 6K ($150). Bought this pair on April 15, 2025 for Xuân.

Skates

• Black & Blue Them 909 Marius Gaile Complete Pro Roller Blades: Size Small = 7/8 US ($212 including shipping). Bought this pair on December 10, 2023. We’ll see how they do.
• YF YouFu 110mm Three-Wheel Inline Skates: 7 US, 25cm ($89). I use this pair to skate on bike trails or boardwalk.
• Jackson Ultima Ice Skates Freestyle Fusion: 6.5 US, 39.5 EU ($100). This pair fits really well. I still wear this for ice skating.
• Bauer S29 Hockey Skates: 5.5D US ($65). This is a junior pair. It felt tight on me. I haven’t skated in it ever since I switched to my figure skates. I passed it on to Đạo.

Skis

• 2020 Rossignol Experience 88 TI Men’s Skis 159cm + Look SPX 12 Dual WTR Bindings ($255). Bought this new pair on December 24, 2023)
• 2025 Atomic Maverick 86 C Skis ​(161cm) + Marker M10 GripWalk Bindings ($415). Bought this pair on January 11, 2025 for Ðạo

Snowboards

• 2023 Salomon Super 8: 154cm ($265). Bought this brand new board. I can’t wait to ride it in winter 2023-2024.
• 2020 Rome Bindings United-G1 Black-S: ($110). Size small (Size S or M/L fits shoe size 7). It is comfortable to strap on.
• 2025 Public Research: 154cm ($350). Bought this board on May 5, 2025 for Đán.
• 2022-2023 Salomon Rhythm Snowboard bindings ($85). (Size S). Đán is using it.
• 2008 Burton White Collection: 143cm. Đán is using it.
• 2025 Jones Youth Prodigy: 140cm ($220). Bought this for Xuân on April 15, 2025.
• 2025 Nidecker Youth Prime Bindings: ($100) Bought it for Xuân.

Protective Gears

Protective gears are very important for safety. I love these sports, but I can’t afford to take the risk.

• Soared 3D Protection Hip Butt EVA Padded Short Pants (Large) ($11)
• Relaxyee: Protective Padded Shorts (X-Large) ($17)
• 187 Killer Pads Skateboarding Knee Pads, Elbow Pads, and Wrist Guards (Medium) ($37)
• Helmet: 22″ – 23″ (56 – 58cm)
• Wrist: 7″ – 8″
• Knee: 14″ – 16″
• Elbow: 10″ – 11″

Ex-Gears

• 2019 ThirtyTwo Zephyr Snowboard Boots: 7 US ($80). Resold it on December 16, 2024
• Bodyprox Protective Padded Shorts (Large) ($37)
• 2023 Fischer RC Fire SLR Pro Skis (155cm) with RS 9 SLR Bindings: ($215) Bought this brand new. (I left and lost this pair at Stowe Mountain Resort on December 17, 2023 after just 4 runs total.)
• Flying Eagle Aggressive Skates: 39-40 EU ($93). This pair fits perfect. Despite the tiny coping, I love it to blade around skateparks. (Retired this pair on December 16, 2023)
• Rollerblade Zetrablade: 8 (US). This was my first pair to learn rollerblade. I had a lot of fun with it even though size 8 US was a bit too big for me.
• Head XENON Xi 5.0 (2008): 149cm. I loved this pair. Despite its used condition, it took me from green all the way up to double black diamond in winter 2021-2022.
• K2 Apache Sabre 2008 (119-72-103): 153cm. I also bought this pair used. It works perfectly. It was my go-to pair for winter 2022-2023
• Capita Indoor Survival (2006): 156cm. This was my learning board in winter 2022-2023.
• Lange Comp 80 Team Ski Boots: 7-7.5 (US). I used this pair to learn skiing in winter 2022-2023.
• Nordica Doberman WC EDIT 130 Race Ski Boots: 8 (US). Bought this used, but way too stiff for me and my son.
• Atomic Vantage 97 Ti Skis (2019): 172cm. This pair was way too long for me.
• K2 Escape Jr. 136cm Skis with Marker M450 Bindings. This was a junior pair. Bought it used and never used it.

On Wednesday I went to Wakefield skatepark to rollerblade around and to do a few drops before it would be closed for renovations. The skatepark has been in a bad condition for a while. Since it was built in April 2004, the woods are aging and the screws are popping off everywhere. A major renovation is a must. I will miss skating there over the summer, but I can’t wait for the new park to complete. The new design looks pretty sweet. In the mean time, I’ll just go to Van Dyck or other skateparks.

I still enjoy rollerblading. I try to skate at least 30 minutes a day. I still drop in and pump out. I try not to push the power stops too hard because my wheels have been worn quite a bit. I am learning to do fakies as well as jump turns on the half pipes. I have not worked up the courage to drop into the deepest end of the big bowl at the Powhatan Springs Skatepark. At my age, I no longer wanted to take the risk. I am just taking it easy.

As far as figure skating, I am still stuck on the flip and loop jumps after months of learning and practicing. I am starting to straighten out my landings, but I often landed to a stand still instead of checking out nicely. I still have a long way to go on both of these techniques, but I am in no rush. I am going to take as much time as I need. The ice rink is close to my workplace; therefore, I have been using my lunch hour to skate. Spending $15 for an hour public session is a bit too pricy, but the trade off is that the rink is usually empty. Sometimes there were only three or four skaters.

At home, I had set up my tuning station and I have been tuning up our skis to get them ready for the winter. I am taking my time with them. I just work on them when I have a few down hours on the weekends. I sharped the edges, removed burrs and rust, and repaired the bases. I am going to try waxing next when I have free time. Somehow I find tuning up skis satisfying, especially seeing the end results. Because I take my time with them, I do more thorough job in the details than the ski shops. They have way too many skis and snowboards; therefore, they have to plow through them quickly and their prices aren’t cheap. I can’t wait for the winter so we can take these skis for a run.

My figure-skating progression has come to a halt. I am stuck on the loop jump and the flip jump. Taking off and landing on the same foot have been a challenge. I can’t maintain the balance to check out. I am thinking of hitting the reset button to spend more time relearning all the basic skills to build a stronger foundation.

Last night I went back to Fairfax Ice Arena to see how my old colleagues were doing. I spoke to two of them and they struggled with the loop and flip jumps as well. The other two colleagues had dropped out of Freestyle 4. There were only four students left. The struggle is real and I am not alone. They encouraged me to keep going. I am going to keep trying for a few more weeks to see where I go.

As for rollerblading, my pumps have improved a bit. I’ll just keep pumping more. The drops are now solid. I am still working on my power stop and T stop. I want to get these techniques down first before moving on.

Đạo and Đán are rejoining me at the skateparks. Xuân is also picking up his scooter again. It is nice to hang out with my boys. We just enjoyed the rides. We don’t need to push ourselves into doing things beyond our comfort level. Of course, we get to have boba tea afterwards. Skating life is good.

I only hit the ice rink once this week. I am still working on my loop jump. I am not making much progress. A three-or-four-year-old girl skated by and gave me a compliment. I felt both embarrassed and inspired. I need to get back to the rink at least three times a week to get the loop jump down.

I have been back to the skatepark almost everyday. My pumps are getting better. I realized that I had been doing it all wrong. To pump, I just need to extend my body and keep skating to the top of the pipe. I jumped instead and that what how I lost my momentum. After I found my groove, I spent an hour pumping yesterday and my body was aching afterward. In the evening, I felt like I had no bone left in my body, but it was a good feeling.

Đạo is now taking over Đán’s Roces Aggressive Skates. He is breaking in and loving the skates. He can drop in with more confidence than before. He can also pump well. In contrast, Đán took over Đạo’s K2 Rollerblade. He is still a great skater. I am not sure if he wants to try skateboarding. I wanted to sign him up for a week-long skateboarding camp in the summer, but he is still unsure about it. He can if he wanted to, but I am not going to force him.

Đạo and Đán are willing to go to the skatepark with me and their reward would be a boba tea. I can accommodate that. I need to get Xuân back to the skatepark as well. He used to be good with the scooter, but he just stopped. The weather is so beautiful now and it would be awesome to be at the skatepark than to sit at home on their computers.

I went back on ice yesterday despite having pain on my right joint. The gout hadn’t completely gone yet. Since the loop jump required using my right foot, I was in so much pain. I skated for fifteen minutes and had to take a break to rest my feet. I continued today and the pain was tolerable.

I am making minimal progress on my loop jump. I could only make half of the rotation. My landing was still messy. I could not balance myself to check out. I was getting frustrated.

Learning ice skating required patience and persistence. I have been working on the loop jumps for days—an hour a day—and I am still struggling with it. I just need to find the rhythm and everything will click.

Our last ski season had turned me into a skiing fanatic. I wrote down my experiences on each trip we took, but I wanted to have a quick roundup of the resorts we had skied in. I’ll update it if our list grow in the future,

Attitash Mountain Resort

★★★★☆

Located in Bartlett, New Hampshire, Attitash has two mountains: Attitash and Bear Peak. Unfortunately, we didn’t venture out far since it was our first ski trip after two years on hiatus. We spent three days on Inside Out, which was the green trail near the learning area. It was definitely a great learning experience, but we need to come back to explore the advanced parts of the mountains. Attitash has a small learning area, which is not recommended for beginners.

Liberty Mountain Resort

★★★★☆

Located in Fairfield, Pennsylvania, Liberty is a nice little resort. Since it is only an hour and a half away from our home, our family skied here on weekends. It has a decent bunny slope for beginners as well as steep and mogul slopes for more advanced skiers. My favorites are the double-black diamonds: Upper Ultra, Upper Eastwind, and Upper Strata. I also like the blue Lower Eastwind to work on my mogul skills.

Mount Snow Resort

★★★★☆

Located in Dover, Windham County, Vermont, Mount Snow is a big resort. I took Vương on the Long John, which is a green trail, and we spent almost an hour on there. Skiing with a harness strapped on a three years old was not easy. We fell a couple of times and my feet hurt from plowing to slow him down. I went with Đạo, Đán, and Xuân on the black trails and we had fantastic runs. I wouldn’t mind going back to Mount Snow if it would not be too crowded. It has a huge learning area, which is great for beginners.

Okemo Mountain Resort

★★★★☆

Located in Ludlow, Vermont, Okemo is is huge resort. We went to Okemo when Đạo, Đán, Xuân, and I were already skied double-black-diamond trails at Liberty and Roundtop; therefore, we could take on most of the trails. What we loved about Okemo was that the trails were so long. We skied from blacks to blues and it could take us 15 to 20 minutes to ski. The trails were also wide; therefore, we had plenty of room to turn and to maneuver our way down. We hit double-black diamonds including Big Bang and Rolling Thunder, but they seemed easier than Gunberrel at Roundtop and Upper Strata at Liberty. We will definitely come back to Okemo when we have a chance. Okemo has a long belt carpet and learning area, which are great for beginners.

Roundtop Mountain Resort

★★★★☆

Located in Lewisberry, Pennsylvania, Roundtop is fairly small. Since it is about two hours from home, our family skied here on weekends. Its learning area is tiny. I wouldn’t recommend it for beginners. It has two double-black diamonds: Upper Ramrod and Upper Gunbarrel. Upper Gunbarrel is my personal favorite. Its moguls used to intimidate me, but I found them fun after learning my way around them. In my experience, once you’ve mastered the Upper Gunbarrel slope, you can ski anywhere. Though I haven’t been to double-black diamonds on bigger resorts.

Whitetail Mountain Resort

★★★☆☆

Located in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, Whitetail is a bit bigger than Liberty and Roundtop. Since it is only an hour and a half away from our home, my family skied here on weekends. It has a sizable learning area, which is great for beginners. After my first skiing lesson, I went on Park Place, which is a blue trail, and skied straight down. Needless to say, I was falling like crazy. My personal favorite is the double-black Bold Decision. I also enjoyed the black-mogul Exhibition.

Wildcat Mountain Resort

★★★★☆

Located in Gorham, New Hampshire, Wildcat seems to be an adventurous ski resort. Unfortunately, we didn’t venture out too far. We stayed mostly on Snowcat, which is a green trail near the learning area, since we just returned to skiing after two years on hiatus. Wildcat has a tiny carpet belt. I wouldn’t recommend for beginners. We definitely need to go back to Wildcat to explore the rest of the mountain.

Before I started rollerblading two years ago, I didn’t even know that parks for skaters existed. Once I discovered one after another, my world opened up a whole new level. Nowadays, skateparks seem to be everywhere. Like a kid searching for his next playground, I always googled for a nearby skatepark when I traveled to new places. I used to take my kids with me to discover a new skatepark, but they had lost interest in rollerblading. I adventured out on my own instead.

Wherever I went, I always found the skateboard community to be welcoming and encouraging. Most of the time, I was on my own because I was the odd one out. In occasions, there would be one or two aggressive skaters. For the most part, however, I had always been the only old-ass rollerblader with a helmet and full protective gears. As much as I love skateparks, the fear is real. Dropping into a deep bowl could be quite dangerous. I fell a few times. The helmet, which cracked, saved my head. The knee, hand, and elbow guards saved my body. One time I fell on my butt and I was in pain for weeks. Another time, I twisted my right knee and that took weeks to heal.

These days, I am more cautious at the skateparks, especially the ones that I discover for the first time. I would study the ramps and the bowls first before diving in. Age is definitely a factor and I can’t take the risks. I still have responsibilities, but I love to add a bit of danger into my life. I am always fully-guarded just in case.

I am putting together a list of the skateparks I have visited so far. I might go back and add more in the future, but here’s the list:

Albert I Allen Memorial Skatepark

★★★☆☆

Located in Wildwood, New Jersey, Albert I Allen Memorial Skatepark has decent snake zones with bowls to drop in. I skated here every morning when we stayed in Wildwood for vacation. I am looking forward to going back this summer.

Fort Belvoir Skatepark

★☆☆☆☆

Located in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, this skatepark is small, which is good for beginners. Advanced skaters might get bored.

Herndon’s Skatepark

★☆☆☆☆

Located in Herndon, this skatepark is tiny, which might be good for beginners.

Lake Fairfax Skatepark

★★★★☆

Located in Reston, Virginia, Lake Fairfax Skatepark has a decent bowl and low ramps suitable for beginner and intermediate. It haas bright lights for late-night skating. My kids and I used to skate here quite a bit. They had lost interest though.

Lancaster County Skatepark

★★★☆☆

Located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, this skatepark is close to my sister’s house. It has a huge bowl and a snake zone. When mother was in the hospital in the last two weeks of her life, I came here every morning to clear my mind and to think about her. I cried and fell here by myself. This skatepark will always remind me of her.

Manassas Skatepark

★☆☆☆☆

Located in Manassas, this skatepark is very small.

Matt Hughes Skatepark

★★★☆☆

Located in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Matt Hughes Skatepark has decent ramps and a half pipe for intermediate skaters. I skated here in the afternoons when we stayed in Myrtle Beach last summer for vacation. It was not bad.

Nags Head City Skatepark

★★★☆☆

Located in Nags Head, North Carolina, this skatepark has deep bowls as well as snake zones. It is geared toward intermediate and advanced skaters. When I visited it recently, which was a few weeks ago during our spring break vacation, the wooden ramps were not in good shapes. It needs some maintenance. My kids and I only skated here one time.

Overlook Skatepark

★★★☆☆

Located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Overlook Skatepark has ramps only. At the time, I could only skated around the park and small ramps. I’ll revisit it in the future to see how far I have come.

Powhatan Springs Skatepark

★★★★☆

Located in Arlington, Virginia, Powhatan Springs Skatepark has two bowls and a snake zone. I usually dropped in from the bowl of the snake zone. I tried the deep end of the smaller bowl and fell on my ass. I was in pain for weeks. I have conquered the smaller bowl, but I have not attempted the large bowl. I go to this skatepark about three times a week during my lunch break at work. It’s my afternoon exercise away from the screen.

Rodanthe Skatepark

★☆☆☆☆

Located in Rodanthe, North Carolina, this skatepark is small, but has high curved ramps to ride up only. It doesn’t have the top copping to drop down. I couldn’t do much here, but the playground nearby is very nice. The kids loved the playground. We biked here every morning on our recent spring break vacation. The kids hit the playground and I hit the skatepark.

Schuyler Hamilton Jones Skatepark

★★★☆☆

Located in Alexandria, Virginia, Schuyler Hamilton Jones Skatepark has straight and curve ramps. They are high enough to drop in and skate around. My kids and I used to go here on occasions. They used to love it. Even Xuân liked riding his scooter here. Now they are no longer interested.

Scott D. Eagles Skatepark

★★★★☆
Located in Woodbridge, Virginia, Scott D. Eagles Skatepark has the highest half pipe I had seen yet. It also has a steep bowl. The only area I could skate was the street course.

Shaw Skatepark

★★★☆☆

Located in Washington, DC, I only went here a few times during my lunch break. It has a small bowl and a few ramps. It was usually a bit crowed when I went there during lunch hour. I don’t mind skating here once in a while.

Van Dyck Skatepark

★★★☆☆

Located in Fairfax City, Van Dyck Skatepark is perfect for beginners. I learned to skate down straight ramps, curved ramps, and quarter pipe in this skatepark. This is also where I twisted my knee trying to ride the quarter pipe. I still go to this skatepark whenever I can because it is the closest to my house. My kids used to join me in this skatepark. These days, they rather go to the playground areas.

Wakefield Skatepark

★★★★☆

Located in Annandale, Virginia, Wakefield Skatepark is a step-up from Van Dyck Skatepark. It has three areas from beginner to intermediate to advance. I started off at beginner then moved to intermediate. I never thought I would ever go near the advance area. One morning I decided to drop in from the highest curved ramp in the park and hit my head on the concrete. I was blacked out for a minute. The helmet cracked, but I survived. If I didn’t have my helmet, I would have been in trouble. These days, I have conquered my fear and dropped in from that highest ramp. Wakefield is a bit further from my house, but I go here whenever I could. My kids used to join me here, but they don’t like going to this skatepark anymore.

Walker Mill Skatepark

★★★☆☆

Located in Walker Mill, Maryland, this skatepark has a nice variety of ramps and a bowl. I only skated here once since it is about 45 minutes away. My sons liked it, especially Đán when he was on top of of his game.

I didn’t hit the ice rink for almost two weeks. I returned in the past three days to learn the loop jump. I am still struggling with the landing. I kept losing balance and had to put my free leg down. It’s quite a challenge, but I have confidence that I will be able to make it. I just need more time to practice. My only focus now is to nail the loop jump.

For rollerblading, I am practicing the power stop on both my left and right sides. I want to be able to stop at a faster speed. My T-stops aren’t so good either. I need to work on those as well. I also need to pump higher to get myself on top of the half pipe. Dropping in is the only skill that I am getting good at, and yet I haven’t had the confidence to drop in from a steep bowl. I just can’t afford the risk at this age.

Đạo and Đán had completely lost confidence in dropping in. After Đán fell off a high ramp and had a few scratches on his arms and legs, he doesn’t want to go near it again. Đạo is just too intimidated because he hadn’t skated much in a while. Both of them aren’t interested in rollerblading anymore. They rather sit in front of the screen than skate outside. I miss having them at the skateparks with me. I just go alone these days. I am disappointed, but I don’t want to force them to do what they don’t want to do.

Last week, I listened to an interview with Ocean Vương on NPR and he shared that his mother gave him no pressure. She was not the typical Asian tiger mom. She let him do whatever he wanted to do as long as he was happy. If all failed, he could always work at the salon with her. She gave him the ultimate freedom to explore, but he insisted that it was to serve her, not him.

Vương’s story gave me a pause and made me wonder if I have been too hard on my boys. Should I give them the same freedom Vương’s mom gave to him? If I do that, they would just fry their brains in front of the screens and not do much else. I don’t want them to serve me. I just want them to serve themselves. I don’t think Vương’s mom wanted her son to serve her either. He just took it that way.

Of course I wanted my sons to be happy and success is the key to their happiness. My role as a father is to guide them in the right direction. I don’t need to take the credits for raising them well. I don’t care if people would criticize me for my parenting failure. When I was younger, I cared too much about how people perceived me. I was sad and even depressed when I heard people talk shit about me. I worried words would get to my mother. As I was going through my mother’s belongings after she passed, I came across old letters my family members had written to my mother to advise her not to be down about my failures. I don’t know if she took it to heart or not because she never told me. My mother never said to my face, but there were rare moments she revealed that she was proud of me. That was all that mattered.