We drove up and parked in the local skateboarding park parking lot. The first thing we saw was lots of activity. There were kids of all shapes and sizes. They were mostly boys. The only thing they had in common was that they were all flying around on wheeled objects. There were boys on skateboards, bikes and scooters. They seemed to be traveling around in all directions.
They were going down one side, up the other and cutting across in all directions. There was a little bit of hollering going on, a few curses being shouted and an occasional hoop and hooray. The second impression was of trash. There was a trash can knocked over and all sorts of wrappers, cans and bottles lying around. My kids were ages seven and nine. I wasn't sure this was a good idea.
Beginner Trick Skateboard
We stood around a few minutes taking in everything. My kids then put on their helmets and ventured into the beginners area. You could immediately see the skaters sizing them up. As soon as the other skaters could see my kids were falling into the groove, and not cutting across the established skating lines, they didn't pay much attention to them. My kids quickly figured out the flow of the park and they also quickly figured out where they fell in the pecking order. They noticed who was better than them and who they were better than.
I didn't leave them alone there the first day, but stayed in the background and watched. They slowly and steadily become more self assured, concentrating on their own abilities. After about an hour they were ready for a break. They took off their helmets and we sat down and had some Gatorade. They pointed out different skaters and their different abilities. Some were better street skaters and able to Ollie, grind, and do other tricks. Other skaters were more vertical skaters and able to drop in off ledges, go down ramps and carve through the bowls.
When it was time to go, they told me about the things they had practiced and what they wanted to be able to do. They were so excited; I had to have them take turns talking. They immediately asked when we could come back. I told them I would be glad to bring them back next weekend.
So, despite my first impressions of the skateboarding park, and my fears regarding the apparent hoodlums there, I was convinced the skateboarding park was a great place to bring my kids and couldn't wait to come again. I knew that this skate park was a great place to bring my kids.
Kid Friendly Skateboarding Parks - Are Skateboarding Parks a Good Place to Take Your Kids?
No comments:
Post a Comment