Tomo on freedom, fear and coming back to inline skating

Tomo opened our chat the only way he knows how: “Yo, yo, yo, I’m Tomo and I’m on my inlines, of course.” He fell in love with skating as a kid and has been rolling for about 20 years. Josh Glowicki sat down with him to ask why he keeps going, how to come back after years off and how to get past fear. His answers are simple and honest, and they’re worth hearing whether you’re dropping in for the first time or the hundredth.

Freedom is the whole point

Ask Tomo what keeps him on wheels after two decades and he doesn’t start with tricks, contests or gear. He talks about a feeling.

“Skating is the best feeling ever. Nobody tells you what to do and what is the rules, you can do whatever you like and whatever you feel.”

Anyone who has spent a few years in the scene will recognise that. There’s no referee and no scoreboard, just you, your skates and whatever the spot gives you. Skating has no rulebook, and that freedom is what keeps riders coming back for decades.

Coming back after a break? Go slowly

We asked Tomo about the number one mistake skaters make when they return after years away. His answer came fast: pushing too hard. You remember how good you were, or how many tricks you had back in the day, and you try to pick up exactly where you left off.

His advice is to adjust instead. Go slowly, adapt your tricks to your current abilities and, in his words, “slowly, slowly feel it. That’s the most important, feel it.” Adapt your tricks to the skater you are today, not the one you remember. If you’re in your 30s, 40s or 50s and thinking about lacing up again, that’s good news. Nobody is asking you to be twenty again. You just have to roll.

Fear lives in the head

Helping someone through their first drop-in, or back into a trick after a long break, is hard, and Tomo doesn’t pretend otherwise. His approach is to talk. Skating is partly training and physical preparation, he says, and partly mental, and in his opinion the mental side matters even more than the physical.

So he explains, he convinces, and he waits until the rider is ready. You have to believe in it first, and then you can try.

His one drill for building confidence is refreshingly simple: just go and skate. Confidence comes from getting used to the feeling, so skate every day, have fun and, as he put it, “be careful.” Confidence comes from time on your wheels, so skate every day and have fun.

Magical people, magical place

Our last question was about the vibe for first-timers, the one that keeps riders like our Fall Fling crew coming back year after year. Tomo kept it short: “Malaga is magical, the weather and the crew. Magical people, magical place. Blading Camp is the best.” Thank you, Tomo. Hearing that from someone with 20 years on wheels means a lot to all of us.

What we love about this chat is how little of it is about tricks. Freedom, patience and belief are things any skater can work on, at any age and any level. If you’re getting back on your inlines this season, take Tomo’s advice: feel it, go slowly and enjoy the ride. You can find more stories from the scene in our news section.