Saturday, January 27, 2007

Executive Skateboarding

Last fall, I started taking the train to and from the office. Gas prices had soared, the traffic on my 35-mile commute had been getting thicker, and I'd signed up for an employee benefit plan that let me buy tickets with pre-tax income. Riding the train allowed me to work in transit, too. Were I the type to wax sanctimonious about such things, I could even bask in the thought that I was helping to fight global climate change!

But it was not, as my slacker friends might aver, "all good." My new commute left me facing several blocks without powered transport, both between where I parked and the San Juan Capistrano train station, and between the Orange station and my office. The exercise gave me no grief; I love working out. It was the wasted time I couldn't bear.

The solution? Executive skateboarding. First, I convert my Kensington shoulder-strap computer bag into back-pack mode. Next, I whip out my saaaaWEET 37.6" Sector 9 carve-friendly skateboard. Then I drop the shades, look both ways, pump, and roll!

Granted, I get some funny looks. Even in Orange County, most guys in suits and ties don't ride skateboards. Not yet, anyhow. With the right marketing, though, that could change. Just think of all those wage slaves who gave up skateboarding as a youthful frivolity. They just need to see the efficiency gains that skateboarding affords, and a few examples of executive riders, to get rolling again. I'm sure that, like me, they would find that a little skateboarding can make a commute a lot more fun.

3 comments:

Gil said...

What?

No action photos?

Tom W. Bell said...

It's not like I'm doing ollies, Gil! Keep in mind that I'm wearing a two-piece suit, tie, and dress shoes. And, anyhow, I've got my dignity to think of.

Krestnaya mat said...

Professor Bell,
So as a UCLA alum, (I was in your Contract Class last year though), while visiting the UCLA campus I realized, soon there will be no parking. No parking and nowhere to build more lots. So I thought, sooner or later, the school will pay kids to bike because and you will not be able to get parking if you live within a 10 miles radius no matter what point system UCLA wants to use, because there won't be enough spaces. Won't that be interesting? A school paying you not to use your car.