Nothing for a skateboarder feels more freeing than jumping on your board and hitting the skatepark with your friends. Skateboarding culture stands for that freedom, going against the norm, and promoting the things you believe in. Skaters have been pivotal in cultural movements and shifts. There are, however, issues the skateboarding community faces that aren’t always talked about. We hope to start some conversations and to help bring everyone together.
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1. The Side Eye
While the skatepark provides some “herd” protection for this, there are times if you are riding on the street that can bring side eye or a dirty look from the non-skateboarding public. A lot of that probably has to do with the general reputation of skateboarders as delinquents or troublemakers. It can be difficult feeling like people just don’t understand the sport you love.
2. The Risk of Injury
We all know that skating leads to fails and tumbles from time to time. A bruise here and there, scrapes, and cuts, but the reality is there is a real risk of harm with skateboarding. While not super common, broken bones, cuts needing stitches, and more are a possibility each time you get on your board. While we all want to prevent an injury from happening, sometimes, it’s just out of our control. However, if we talk about the risk of injuries a bit more, perhaps more skaters will keep injury prevention in mind and step up their safety gear game.
3. Safety Gear
Look, the best of the best professional skateboarders wears helmets and knee and elbow pads. When you participate in a sport with a high risk of injury, the best bet is to stay protected. If Tony Hawk is regularly rocking mom-approved safety gear, we all should be as well. Don’t fall prey to peer pressure that tells you otherwise.
4. Cost of the Sport
People don’t talk about this often, but skateboarding can be an expensive sport. While first getting into the game isn’t too pricey, over time, those maintenance costs—new boards when our decks break, safety equipment, wax, and keeping up with skater style—can add up in cost. If skateboarding is your passion, it can end up costing a pretty penny.
5. The Skill Gap
The jump from basic and intermediate skills to advanced is huge and can be difficult to achieve. When skaters start to master those beginner skate skills and want to move on to some more challenging tricks, it can be hard to stay motivated if the practicing doesn’t seem to be panning out. It is worth it to push through the gap, however, and you’ll learn a lot of lessons along the way. But if someone could invent some awesome middle-ground tricks as well, that would be amazing.
6. Stereotypes
The side eye we discussed earlier comes from the stereotypes surrounding skaters and skate culture. This can be a big roadblock in being accepted by your local community. For years, movies and TV shows have shown skaters as rebellious and always up to something bad. Overcoming and disproving those negative expectations is important. Having a local skatepark or place to get together with others who love the sport can provide a sanctuary from the dirty looks on the streets. If you are a street skater, however, it’s important to stick to local skating rules and to respect other people in the area.
7. Lack of Representation
Along with often incorrect stereotypes, it seems like the only skaters we see on tv are guys. While representation in competition spaces has gotten way better in past years, we need more spaces to show off skater girls and everyone who loves to skateboard. The sport may have started with California surfer dudes, but today it reaches people of all genders, ages, and cultural backgrounds.
8. Skatepark Manners
When new skaters start off at a local skatepark, the experience can be daunting. It may seem like everyone there is better than you and there are a ton of rules you don’t know. As a skating community, we should do a better job of letting newbies know the ins and outs of skatepark etiquette.
9. Skater Fashion
There are few sports that allow you to live and lounge around in your uniform, but skateboarding certainly provides that benefit. Baggy skate clothes have been a closet staple for decades not only with skateboarders, but with the general public as well. Everyone loves to wear oversized skater hoodies and baggy skate shirts. Roomy jeans and cargo pants have been in fashion for decades, Vans are ever-cool, and trendy skater girl shirts are having a significant style moment with the increase in representation in the sport. Skaters and non-skaters alike want in on trendy skate style.
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Infographic
Skateboarding brings an unmatched sense of freedom, especially when spending time at the skatepark with friends. While skaters have influenced cultural movements, the community also faces overlooked challenges. Learn more in this infographic.
