Skateboarding Saves Lives

Skateboarding is not just a sport, activity or a hobby; it is a lifestyle, a way of living, and a subculture that helps brings people and communities from all over the world together in beautiful ways.  I have personally seen people transform from years of drug addiction and drug use to sobriety just because of skateboarding.  It is truly amazing the power of skateboarding and its effects on surrounding communities.  Skateboarding is nothing like its stereotype, it is a way for people to find and learn more about themselves.

I am a sponsored skateboarder and have been skateboarding for 13.5 years.  Every day, my life revolves around skateboarding, when I wake up I think to myself when am I going to skate today.  The reason I skateboard is not only because of how fun it is but also because of how it has positively changed my life.  My skateboard has brought me to some of the most unique countries and cultures in the world.  When traveling, I bring my skateboard everywhere and even when I can't speak the same language as locals, we have an instant connection bringing us together.  I have met skaters all over the world and bonded with them over our skateboards.  These countless connections have brought us closer together and have formulated hundreds of skateboard networks spanning the entire globe.  When skating in these countries I get to see parts of the country most tourists will never see as I seek out the next best spot, allowing me to obtain new perspectives of the world.  These new perspectives allow me to become more empathetic towards other ideologies that differ from my own, as the way we do things in the US is not the only way to go about doing things. 

Skateboarding has also kept me from falling down the wrong path and has actually helped me stay away from various drugs.  After having seen so many of my best friends fall down the same spiral of drug use and addiction, it has made me realize how their only savior is skateboarding. They had become disconnected with their skateboard and spent all of their time doing nothing.  One of my good friends struggled his way through high school, he lost all motivation to skateboard and complete school work because of his addictions.  He was sent away to a school in Michigan to rehabilitate himself.  The rules at this school were strict and skateboarding was damn near impossible, further disconnecting him from what he truly loved.  When he got back, having freedom without the structure of skating made his junior and senior years very difficult.  After he was done with school he was conflicted about what to do next.  This search lead him right back to his skateboard, instead of doing more drugs in his free time he spent it skateboarding.  When he went back to skating, his drug abuse and addiction almost seemed to stop dead in its tracks.  It was at that moment, seeing my best friend transform from an addict back to a skater when I realized how important and powerful one piece of wood with four wheels can be.  My friend and I now skate together every day, and he makes a living working for his dad.  Not only has skateboarding saved me and my friends, but it has also transformed many other lives and communities, uniting us all together. 

I reviewed articles, books, and interviewed real skateboarders who have traveled the world helping others through skateboarding.  These sources provide the in-depth argument to why skateboarding is so beneficial to communities and struggling drug addicts.  They all confirm how the stereotype of skateboarding is wrong, and why many people assume that all skaters act the same way.  My goal in this post is to show how skateboarding has changed thousands of lives around the world and how the skateboarding stereotype is completely wrong.  Skateboarding is an art form, a hobby and a sport that helps people learn and grow from their past mistakes while also strengthening communities and friendships around the world.  Skating is able to achieve this because of its ability to connect people without judgment. 

Skateboarding started because of surfers in the 1950’s who wanted to bring surfing out of the water onto the land.  They started with two by fours with some roller skate wheels and this idea brought light to an amazing activity.  By 1963 skateboarding became the new fad.  People began to come up with new ideas for boards and began using new obstacles, such as emptied out pools, to skate in.  As skateboarding became more popular it started to create its own subculture, that many people viewed as rebellious and disruptive.  Skaters began taking to the streets and using different obstacles in public spaces to skate, especially because skateparks were a very rare commodity at the time (“The Evolution Of Skateboarding”).  As skateboarding grew exponentially so did the culture and stereotype behind it.  More and more people began associating bad people with skateboarding, because of it’s loud, disruptive nature.  Street skateboarding was the only way for skaters to get their fix, but, this caused people to assume that all skateboarders were disruptive and troublemakers.  Skateboarding is growing fast and is now bigger than ever.  There are thousands of skaters everywhere around the world with the same goal, to have fun.  Skateboarding has its own language and slang that most skaters understand and relate with.  This creates an amazing accepting environment that makes people feel special because they are apart of a community that talks and acts the same. 

Skateboarding is an art form that is a great source and inspiration for creativity and learning.  Skateboarding forces kids to use their resources and the environment around them to have fun.  Many places in America don’t have places for kids to skate, in fact in a Transworld article by Miki Vuckovich he stated “With over 11-million skateboarders in the U.S. alone, and only about 2,000 skateparks, we have a long way to go before our need for top-quality terrain is met” (Vuckovich).  This is just the U.S, skateboarding exist all over the world and kids struggle to find places to do what they love.  This struggle forced kids to get creative and this creativity birthed a new style of skating called street skating.  A bunch of skateboarders who struggled to find places to skate got creative and found places to skate, like empty pools, stairs, parking curbs, you name it.  The coolest thing about skateboarders is when they walk down the street instead of seeing plain old architecture they see an array of skateboard spots and places where they can have fun and get creative.  This creativeness is truly amazing a Waikato University Associate Professor Holly Thorpe even stated "[Skaters] are opening up spaces of conversation where they feel support from a global community, We assume that young people in these spaces are victims, are needing our versions of support. What I'm seeing are some really creative, resourceful approaches they're using themselves to try to create change and improve their lives and others lives" (“How Skateboarding Is Helping Kids Change the World”).  Skaters learn from each other and can experience many different outlooks of life from all the people they encounter.  So many different backgrounds come together to do the same thing and learn and grow from each other.  When one skater does a trick another skater may see it and will be inspired to get creative and use that knowledge they gained from watching someone else do it.  This creativity truly makes skateboarding an art form that is inspiring and motivating.

Also, skateboarding is not just an art form, sport or a hobby, it is a culture, a way of life that can help kids express themselves while positively developing young minds and societies.  When skateboarding first started it was an activity for delinquents, skateboarding was one of the things the “bad” kids did, and it wasn’t even considered a sport back then (Jenkins).  Now skateboarding is changing for the better and is becoming widely accepted, but many still have to deal with the typical skater stereotype.  In many third world countries, there is no skate scene and many kids don’t have anything to do, there are no public parks, and kids don't really have anywhere to play.  One non-profit organization, Make Life Skate Life, works with local skate communities to help grow and evolve their culture.  They stated “In Yangon for example, there's been massive development and it's totally wiping out any green space anywhere in the city. In many places, there’s not even a public square where kids can skate… A skatepark is a community space that’s focused around skateboarding; younger skaters can learn from older skaters” (“What the World Can Learn from Skateboarding”).  These kids whether they are “bad” kids or not, skateboarding is a way to distract them from doing other bad things.  Most people view skateboarders as bad people or delinquents because of their pasts or demeanor, but in reality, skateboarding helps distract them and helps them become better people.  One skate shop owner even stated “We've had people literally come from prison to buy a board to stay out of trouble.  It's good for adults as well as kids.  Skateboarding teaches self-discipline, perseverance, determination, dedication, how to deal with pain and lots of other things.  It has helped us shape who we are and how we look at the world.  Where else can you go like a skatepark and not have any politics, race, gender or how much money you make be of any topic?  Skaters get judged and people think they're all punks.  At the skatepark, we all share a common bond and leave everything else outside in the world.  When you’re skateboarding all your problems fade away.  Whether it be bills, family issues, friends, school or whatever.  Skateboarding is a drug and one that you can do as you wish and better than any real drug or alcohol you can find” (“SKATEBOARDING CHANGES LIVES”).  Skateboarding is life changing, the public and media just like to portray skaters as bad people.  In reality, a lot of the skateboarders that are “bad” people are just people in transition.  A transition from an old life to a new different life and the only savior is skateboarding. 

    While skateboarding can lead to drug use, it is often used as a tool for self-development where people can grow and learn more about themselves.  One skater named Andrew Reynolds had been skating all his life and in his teenage years fell into a loop of drug and alcohol use.  This use of narcotics caused him to lose some sponsors and made skateboarding so much harder for him.  As he grew up he realized how these drugs were negatively affecting his skateboarding career and his family as he was about to have a daughter.   He learned from his past mistakes and the shoe company he is on, Emerica, came out with Andrew Reynolds most iconic skate part in “Stay Gold”.  This part truly showed his insane skateboarding that no one at the time could do.  Andrew’s sobriety really helped motivate and push him to make that amazing part and he was able to grow and learn from his past mistakes (Hendrikx).  In an interview with Andrew he discussed his sobriety for a decade and what it was like skateboarding on substances, he stated: “ It was just an experimental time in my life and I was just doing stuff, but every single time regretting it” (Michna).  He learned from his past mistakes and learned many valuable lessons from his early years of his life.  Andrew’s nickname is the “boss” because of his insane style and tricks he can do which was extraordinary and revolutionized skateboarding forever.  Now he uses his past experiences to spread an anti-drug message.   I also did an interview with Trevor Mekelburg, a youth leader apart of a local sanctuary for drug users and high school kids in Steamboat Colorado called Sk8 Church.  We talked about the affects skateboarding has on their community and on different areas where they do mission work.  In the interview, we talked about Trevor’s experiences with skateboarding and how he got involved with the Sk8 Church.  He explained how he got into some trouble, partying and drinking, and he needed to do community service.  The Sk8 Church welcomed him with open arms and he was able to do community work through skateboarding.  It wasn’t until he was at an all-time low, in trouble and feeling abandoned, when he found how God and skateboarding changed so many lives.  After finding himself through skateboarding, Trevor now works as the middle school teacher at the Sk8 Church, to help guide them along their path and to help them realize the true power of skateboarding (Mekelburg).  Many skaters now look up to Andrew and Trevor as role models.  Not just because they are very good at skateboarding but also because they used skateboarding as a means for self-development, a way to grow and learn more about themselves.

    Even though most people view skaters as failures, skateboarding promotes peace and helps strengthen and grow communities.  Most people view skaters as disruptive and disrespectful, but in reality, they help bring the community together in an extraordinary fashion.  Skateboarding is an open, accepting community that helps intertwine societies and cultures together.  In the interview with the Sk8 Church, Trevor stated, “We went to New Mexico to teach skateboard lessons on the Indian reservation and we also went to California where we skated with prison inmates who just got out.  Everyone there had served a minimum of 25 years and these are people that have been treated like animals for so long they just wanted to feel loved.  Once I skated with them and saw the inmates laughing and having fun I realized how skating has changed their life” (Mekelburg).  Most people can’t look beyond their prison history and their past mistakes.  People like to judge others based on first impressions and when people see prison inmates skateboarding with other skaters, they assume the worst.  In reality, skateboarding is the only thing that keeps them from falling down the same path again.  Skateboarding allows people from all backgrounds to connect, without any judgment bringing communities together.  Tony Hawk stated, on a trip to a foreign country, “[Skating] brought together people from varying socioeconomic backgrounds.  The sport even bridged language barriers -- we all spoke the same slang!” (Mehring, 19).  It doesn’t matter where people come from or their background, because no matter what skateboarding is able to bring skaters together.  This interconnectedness helps strengthen their communities and grows friendships that can last forever.  Another example of this is in South Africa, where national geographic followed a young boy, Andile, and his friends to see how skateboarding has changed their lives.  Andile stated, “We come together, all the guys and girls come together to be like a family” (Colquhoun).  Skateboarding not only brought their community closer it created a family who loved and cared for each other.  Many of the kids in South Africa didn’t have anything to do or anywhere to go after school and they felt hopeless, but once they were able to find skateboarding it saved them.  They were finally able to do something they enjoyed and this connected people together creating unbreakable friendships.  “The common experience of skateboarding can connect us to people in cultures so different from our own… And this connection has the power to improve people's lives in many places throughout Africa and around the world” (Mehring, 107).

Skateboarding not only brings communities together but also brings people from different backgrounds and cultures together.  The skateboarding culture is completely different compared to what regular society accepts. Skaters dress differently, create their own slang, and live by their own rules.  All of these foreign attitudes and differences from societal norms cause people to feel threatened.  In reality, skateboarding makes it easy for kids to connect through one similar activity.  “[Skating] ignores typical judgments and stereotypes and easily connects people together.  It provides a sense of community to otherwise disenfranchised youths who may not enjoy more popular team sports. It accepts those who don’t fit in elsewhere and gives them confidence and purpose. Skateboarding is more than a form of entertainment. It's a lifestyle that transcends social, economic, and cultural barriers around the globe” (Mehring, 21).  With skateboarding, race, religion, and culture are meaningless, making the skateboard subculture an amazing thing.  The author, Gregory J Snyder, wrote an article about the skateboarding subculture and careers formed from skateboarding.  He stated “Skateboarding is not a homogeneous subculture and since its inception has attracted a diversity of practitioners. Skateboarders are united by the process and practice of skating and form their identities as skaters first and ethnic and racial identities second” (Snyder).  The skateboarding subculture creates a unique family that can’t be achieved through any other activity.  The fact that a piece of wood with four wheels can connect thousands of people from all over the world together is absolutely incredible.  The skateboarding subculture creates a safe environment where everyone can feel accepted. Jonathan Mehring a photographer and the author of Skate the World: Photographing One World of Skateboarding wrote about his experiences traveling the world and taking pictures and stated, “We spoke different languages and came from different cultures, but skateboarding became our shared language” (Mehring, 21). Most skaters can relate to each other through their very similar interests which helps make people feel accepted no matter the skill level.  Skateboarding is one of the only activities where you can find people of all races, genders, and backgrounds working and having fun together.  Neftalie Williams, a Ph.D. student, and skating ambassador once stated "I saw that it didn't matter how much money you had or where you came from, everyone was skateboarding together.  It doesn't matter where we're at in the world you'll see that bond between all skateboarders" (“How Skateboarding Is Helping Kids Change the World”).

Skateboarding is an art form, sport, lifestyle, and culture that involves intense physical activity, with constant falling and getting back up.  Not only is skateboarding physically beneficial but also a great means to grow socially and emotionally. Physically, it helps kids get stronger, more flexible and teaches kids how to fall which can be very beneficial and applied to many other aspects of life (Health Fitness Revolution).  Mentally, It teaches many young kids and adults how to persevere through hard moments in their lives and helps people learn to never give up (Shepard).  Atita Verghese, a women skateboarder in in India who started a group to help get more girls to skate stated “Skateboarding, not only gets girls into athletics, but also teaches perseverance, teamwork, confidence, balance, coordination and endurance — things that can help women grow stronger mentally and physically” (Verghese).  This is not just true for girls but anyone who skateboards.  Skateboarding helps in all aspects of life and teaches so much to kids that many other sports are not able to do.  Also, skateboarding’s accepting culture makes it easy for new beginners, regardless of race, gender, color or background, to feel accepted and grow at their own pace.  This acceptance helps skaters feel wanted and gives them purpose which really helps develop their mental and physical health. 

Skateboarding is a creative outlet that helps people learn from their past mistakes while also strengthening communities and friendships around the world.  Without skateboarding, I don’t know where I would be.  I don’t know how different my life would be, but I do know it would be much worse.  In the interview I did with Trevor Mekelburg he stated “[Skateboarding] is a common ground a place where people come together.  Like I could meet someone that doesn’t speak the same language as me, that doesn’t look like me, that doesn’t believe what I believe and it’s like if they have a skateboard in their hand it’s a sort of brotherhood, a family thing that is like hard to describe” (Mekelburg).  Trevor couldn’t have said this any better.  The feeling one gets from skateboarding is indescribable and the friendships people make through skateboarding last forever.  Skateboarding is not what everyone stereotypes it as.  It is a different, accepting culture that loves and cares for one another.  Skaters are not all druggies and delinquents, we are people that accept people for who they are.  Skaters accept everyone making it possible to blur economic and cultural differences.  The skateboarding stereotype was created for the few people that went down the wrong path, these people do not represent skateboarding.  Skateboarding puts you in a meditative state that allows you to reflect on your past and imagine the future.  This has brought people out of addiction, putting them back on their feet.  All in all, don’t judge people because of what they do or how they look, get to know their true personality, and accept others who may be different.  If the world could live like the skateboarding subculture, world peace wouldn’t seem very far away.  Oliver Percovich the founder and director of Skateistan, a non-profit skate group in the Middle East said it perfectly “The key is not skateboarding; the key is the power of sharing something that you love” (Mehring, 155).

Works Cited
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