I love that documentary so much that I've had the library actually tell me no, I can NOT check it out one more round without bringing it back to give someone else a chance. I ought to just buy it. Anyway, my kid has been on a major skateboard park kick lately and I've been glad to tag along. We recently discovered two skate parks in the past couple of weeks, one in our home town and the other in Portsmouth.


My son was just learning to balance on a skateboard when he left it behind my car in the driveway. Unfortunately the rule is to not leave toys behind my car. If a toy is left behind the car and the toy gets smushed, owner of toy assumes full responsibility, and owner of car will not run out and replace it immediately or sooner depending on amount of tears and wailing. So, my boy must wait until his birthday or something to get another skateboard. He does however have a Razor scooter and a "stunt" bike (a $35 Walmart special that his dad bought and customized for him).


He isn't in love with the Dogtown documentary as I am but he does think its cool. He prefers the newer generation of skater boys you can find on independent movies. He loves going to the skate parks. He will spend hours there at a time (note to self, bring thick book). Of course he's too young to hang out there alone or really do any stunts but he loves to test the waters with tiny trips up the ramps and baby grinds. Sometimes he abandons all riding paraphernalia and simply runs up and down the ramps, catching some air on foot.

He spent so much time at our local skate park the other day that the big kids started calling him "Scooter Boy" for his somewhat disturbing new "trick" of making his scooter do a 360 degree turn - on its own! (in other words, throwing it up in the air and flipping it, to have it crash land on the pavement). We finally convinced him this was not a trick but a hazard to others and his scooter and he stuck with practicing his balance.


I love to watch his confidence grow, see him try to imitate the moves of the big kids and offer them "advice." ("You should try this ramp, dude.")


My dog loves going too and is becoming a sort of mascot with the kids. Of course, when the twenty-something gang shows up and start working the half pipes, eventually getting sweaty and removing their shirts...well...can anyone say "fringe benefit"? (sorry, no half nude photos of nubile young men on skateboards or bikes...didn't want to look like somebody's perverted mom). (snort!)



Of course I'd love to have my pumpkin turn out to be the next Tony Alva, or Dave Mirra, or perhaps the first professional Scooter boy. But even if he never gets more than halfway up the quarter pipe, we're all enjoying the ride.

Cute. :) I think the skateboard parks are the best thing some towns have done for kids recently. My son was harassed by the police constantly in the beginning. Even when he had permission to be where he was. It's a harmless hobby. The kids are outdoors, getting exercise and not doing anything worse. My son was a daredevil. I have pics of him jumping over his friends heads on roller blades while they sat. He did crazy tricks on his skateboard. Once he set up a makeshift sort of mini ski jump in the side yard. Made out of a ladder and some plywood. He did jumps down it on a snowboard. Once he called me out to show me something when it was with ice. He went down it on ice skates. It was fun watching him. The younger kids seem to pick that stuff up so easily. And they are fearless.

My son's dad caved and bought him a new skateboard the other day on the same day that a free-cycler gave me an old skateboard.

We went to the skatepark after work yesterday and after sitting neutral on the sidelines for a little while I couldn't stand it anymore. I grabbed the older skateboard and the dog and we started practicing for the Iditarod. The kids were laughing at me being a fool on my kid's skateboard with my dog pulling me at breakneck speed. I can't believe I didn't wipe out!

I thought that was kinda funny and cool. I remember strapping on one of my son's snowboards once on an almost flat piece of snow. I almost panicked when it moved a few inches. it didnt feel like the cross country skiing i did in high school. very different.

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