Skateboarding is the sport of the suburbs, so let's give the kids a place to do it
Skateboarding -- the ultimate suburban sport. And my seven-year-old son has taken to it like big wheels on a pickup.
It's no surprise, really. Skateboarding and suburbia grew up together. The current form of skateboarding originated among pot-smoking, law-breaking, socially marginalized California teens -- the Z-boys of Dogtown -- who took advantage of the drought in the 1970s to turn backyard suburban pools into halfpipes. Add to that the lack of reasonable transit and acres of asphalt largely unused midday, and you've got a suburban recipe for skateboard culture.
The trespassing aspect aside, isn't this better than hanging out at malls, gorging on fast food, and exchanging sport for shopping? Give me "have skateboard will travel" over "have credit card will travel" any day.
My son, in fact, views skateboarding as transportation, not anti-social posturing. He'd ride his board to school if we had a safe route. But some city councillors here still need convincing to build roads for anything but cars, and sidewalks are considered an expensive afterthought.
My son is unaware, and frankly doesn't care, about skateboarding's gritty roots.
Not so suburban adults. Skateboarding still has a bad reputation -- not entirely undeserved.
Our neighbourhood, a windy, hilly community with pristine pavement, attracts boarders throughout the GTA who show up with long boards at midnight to race down punishing grades at breakneck speed. The obvious danger has prompted repeated complaints by worried residents to the city, and secured no-skateboarding signs and the occasional weekend patrol car.
These incidents threaten to ruin the sport for everyone. My son attended a half-day skateboard camp last week, and I got talking to the owner. She's trying to set up skateboard clubs in local elementary schools. "It's a tough sell with the principals," she warned, after I offered to get one going in Nick's school.
Skateboarding is part of a group of activities known as "X-treme sports" because they demand not only incredible agility and focus, but a willingness to risk significant injury. The list includes BMX biking, snowboarding and wakeboarding (essentially skateboarding on ice and water) -- sports my son has tried or wants to.
The fact that the purveyors of these sports occasionally run afoul of social norms doesn't help redeem the bad reputation (remember Canadian Ross Rebagliati, the first-ever Olympic gold-medallist snowboarder, who was temporarily stripped of his medal after testing positive for traces of marijuana?).
But what, really, are we afraid of? That our kids will start listening to Korn and sporting dreadlocks a la Z-boy Tony Alva? Better than sitting on couches absorbing a steady diet of sex and violence in popular movies, games and music. At least skateboarders are exercising -- vigorously. When I pick up my son after three hours full-out tackling ramps and bars, he's shed his weight in sweat, and has a grin so big I want to weep.
NINTENDO IS IDLE
Of course, I play it cool -- strictly high fives and a casual "Way to go, buddy." He continues to ride when we get home -- on the sidewalk, in full protective gear. His Nintendo sits idle. This is good. And our community needs to get on board, providing safe places for our kids to practice.
The city's already on board, maintaining a skateboard park, and lending gym space to the skateboard school. Now schools need to get on board -- for the sake of our boys.
My girls have no shortage of school clubs that appeal to them -- the recorder club; the choir; the green club (where they sing songs about the environment and adopt stuffed animals from the World Wildlife Federation website). My son wouldn't sing if you threatened to take his Nintendo, and the only use he has for stuffed toys is as punting practice. In short, he's a typical boy. And so are the rest of the boys at skateboard camp (and it's almost all boys) -- regular kids looking for fun. So let's give it to them, as often and as safely as possible. The 'burbs owes at least this much to our sons. And skateboarding is our sport.
Our neighbourhood, a windy, hilly community with pristine pavement, attracts boarders throughout the GTA who show up with long boards at midnight to race down punishing grades at breakneck speed. The obvious danger has prompted repeated complaints by worried residents to the city, and secured no-skateboarding signs and the occasional weekend patrol car.
damn longboard punks....
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He continues to ride when we get home -- on the sidewalk, in full protective gear.
Not so suburban adults. Skateboarding still has a bad reputation -- not entirely undeserved.
Our neighbourhood, a windy, hilly community with pristine pavement, attracts boarders throughout the GTA who show up with long boards at midnight to race down punishing grades at breakneck speed. The obvious danger has prompted repeated complaints by worried residents to the city, and secured no-skateboarding signs and the occasional weekend patrol car.
[size=2]These incidents threaten to ruin the sport for everyone.
I thought that was funny too. It isn't the short-boarders that are viewed as the problem in this article. I'ts the lunatic-fringe longboarders with a death wish.
I thought that was funny too. It isn't the short-boarders that are viewed as the problem in this article. I'ts the lunatic-fringe longboarders with a death wish.
Everybody always looks for someone else to blame. Including us.
She gets it!
we got the same thing in my neighborhood with the cop that shows up every once in awhile. its fun to shoot past him at 40mph then duck into some bushes and he just goes past whirling his lights. hahhahaha
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Originally Posted by nevadarasta18
Since the new evo has the green graphic, does that mean the board will go faster? I heard they used a lighter paint, which makes the board lighter and faster?:-k
Skate or Die Editorial...from the Toronto Sun
Skate or die, dudes
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