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June Skater of the Month

Name:Clay Kasow

Nickname: Clay

Age: 41

Marital Status:Married

Have been skating for how long: About 30 years.

Equipment Brand and Type: Rollerblade Speedmachine RX 110 Inline

Life Philosophy:Enjoy the present moment.

Favorite Time of Day to Skate: Dusk

Favorite Skating Events: The San Francisco Friday Night Skate

Awards / Competitive Wins: I've always just skated recreationally, for fun, so no competitive wins.

Most memorable incident / Biggest skating adventure:Doing steep, twisty downhill runs on Mt. Tabor, which is an extinct volcano in Portland, OR.

What do I get from skating:I both like the peace I feel when getting in the zone while gently cruising for long distances, as well as the adrenaline rush and excitement of going very fast on steep hills. I also enjoy hiking, biking, and skiing - but for me skating has the best balance of both excitement and the ability to travel longer distances and get in the zone.

Would like to do this year in skating:I would like to get into better shape and do longer distance skates than I've been doing recently.

Coolest Accomplishment:Before video streaming was "a thing", worked on the software used by Netflix to ship millions of DVDs to customers every day and solved problems in the middle of the night that prevented millions of people from failing to get their DVD.

Other sports / hobbies you enjoy: Skiing, hiking, photography, gaming, cooking, coding. I love cats even though I'm allergic to them, and have adopted two stray cats.

Favorite skating gadget / tool:Using a GPS app on my phone to measure my top speed, average speed, and track my route.

Mentors:Jimmy and the other leaders of the Palo Alto Wednesday Night Skate. These guys both knew how to have fun, and were incredibly skilled skaters.

What do you enjoy about being a member of HCIC:I've always loved skating with groups of people. It's both social and motivating, and fun!

Helpful Advice to Beginners: If you aren't excellent at braking quickly, practice braking in an empty parking lot or other safe area. Being able to brake quickly and powerfully is arguably the most important skill to have. Rotate your wheels regularly. Remember to have fun and enjoy the sensations of speed and motion in your body.

Favorite Quotes:"In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert's there are few." -Shunryu Suzuki

Clay Kasow