One More Post...

As I said before, age is no factor in skateboarding.

This will be me when i'm old. haha

Skaters view the world differently than most people. For example the picture below shows the thought process of most skaters reacting to this news. I had to repost this:

What Does a Skater Look Like?

If I were to ask you what a skater looks like, what would you imagine? You may think of a teenage kid with long hair, skinny jeans with a tee shirt and an attitude on his face. If this is anything close to your answer though,  you have been terribly misinformed. Skaters are as diverse, if not more, than any group of people you imagine because anyone can pick up a skateboard. Proffesional skaters come from all walks of life and all geographical locations. 

Meet Stevie Williams

 Most likely not the guy you picture when you think skateboarder, but he is both a professional and an entrepreneur in the industry. He grew up in a poorer part of Philladelphia, and once he picked up a skateboard he was ridiculed by his peers. They teased him calling him white boy and such. He truly loved skateboarding, so he never turned back and is now very successful. He managed to escape the poverty and violence of the ghetto.  Now both his travels and his deck brand are worldwide.

Is your picture of a skater starting to change? Now, check out this guy.

His name is Danny Way

 He seems like your average, middle-aged white guy, right? He appears kind of athletic. Maybe he's a baseball player or something. He is actually one of the greatest skateboarders in the history of the sport.  He comes from a broken home in a poor part of Cali, and growing up he and his brother basically raised themselves. He holds a lot of emotional turmoil in his heart, which he channels out through his riding. He invented the mega ramp which he is skating in the picture below, and he continues to push the boundaries of the impossible every time he steps on the board.

This rich kid here is really into cars from what we can tell by the picture. He doesn't seem too athletic from looking at his small frame. He really seems as though he is the guy who likes to stay clean. So this would definitely rule him out as the kid pushing his board around the city, getting hassled by security and taking bone crushing slams just to film a trick. You know by now that  he is a skateboarder, but this kid, at seventeen years old is one of the best skateboarders in the world. He's barely old enough to drive that car, much less buy it with his own money. He has won more prize money from contests than any other skateboarder in history. He wasn't born into this money, his family is from an average middle class home in California. The kid's got talent and he will be relevant for a long while to come.

Here is a picture of Nyjah Huston skating in a contest. He rarely loses and never has an off day on the board.

So I assume your idea of a skateboarder is beginning to expand. Here is one weirdo you would never expect to be a professional skater at a glance. 

Richie Jackson looks more like a pirate than a skater, but don't underestimate his talent and extreme creativity when riding his skateboard. Born in Australia, he now lives in the U.S. He seems to defy laws of physics, even by a skater's standards. He is one to stand out in a crowd, but that isn't the intent he is just being himself. 

Daewon Song, is a pro from California who pulls of the most mind boggling combos with a precise style. If you've never heard of him look him up.

Anne-Sophie Julien is a female professional skater from Montreal, Canada. She is also a sponsored snow boarder, and when she's not on a board or finishing school work she enjoys partying with her friends.

Duane Peters has a few decades of skating under his belt. He is your classic idea of a skater punk, and he embraces the image with every fiber of his being. He is a professional bowl ripper, and a gnarly alod guy in general.

His name is Mike Valleley, Mike V for short. He is and was an extremely influential skater, with a career spanning from the late 80's until present day. He has also been a professional wrestler, pro hockey player, a musician and he is breaking into the realm of acting. This Jersey native does it all. 

This list is becoming lengthy, so I will end it before it gets too out of hand. This last ripper is just a kid, but Louie Lopez skates like a man. He has been shredding since practically the womb with a very bright future ahead. He's still just a teenager and has a long skateboarding career waiting for him as he grows up. It just goes to show you not even age is a limitation in the world of professional skateboarding.

So, as you have witnessed, skateboarding isn't limited to anything really. Anyone can be a skateboarder regardless of gender, class, religion, nationality, or heritage. Even some dogs and chimps love to skate. You could be the highschool jock, the quiet emo kid or even the computer nerd. Skateboarding is a community that accepts anyone and everyone. We are a large group mad of a collection of individuals, each unique with a story to tell, so keep that in mind next time you have some opinion about skateboarders.

STAY LAME... 

old lame montage

Skateboarding is...

            Skateboarding is… Well if I could describe it in one word it would be freedom. It can be hard to classify under any other single label, which might creep into mind. It is a competitive sport and conversely, a hobby. Combined with cinematography it transcends into art. Some people simply enjoy the exercise of pushing around as opposed to running. People who live in big cities use skateboards as a primary means of transportation. Skateboarding is what you want it to be. It’s whatever you make it.

            Skateboarding can be a simple topic, and also an infinitely expanding one. In this blog I will be working to discover one question. “What is Skateboarding?” There are endless solutions to the question presented. I will try to pick apart as many facets, views, customs, etc. of skateboarding as I can possibly explore in the time given in order to find an answer.

            As a skater myself for nearly a decade I have experienced and considered many of these odd and often conflicting views. I ride for the local shop and compete in contests when they come around, but never take it to seriously. At the end of the day it’s all about having fun and hanging out with your homies. I’m known to get big flip tricks then mix it up and do some random trick you have never even seen before. My experiences have always been conflicting and given me multiple perspectives in situations that arise. In high school for example, I started on the varsity football team, but when off the field I was the art kid always drawing sketches instead of taking notes. Then I would go home after practice and skate with all my friends who mostly were misfits, like me. Skaters, well true skaters, tend to often be oddballs, kooks or weirdos rejected by society in one way or another. I always kind of fit in, but never found myself fully accepted in any particular thing, until I picked up a skateboard.

            Skateboarders are a diverse group of individuals, who are all accepting of our fellow peculiar acquaintances. Just who a skater is and what he or she looks like might surprise you. This is one topic among many, many more which will be discussed during the life of this blog. Check back soon for updates.