Growing up I didn’t really get along with team sports. I had to play little league with my brother, but I was usually just out in left field physically and mentally. But then, in 1988, I got my first real BMX freestyle bike, a Dyno Detour, with mag wheels, flip down front pegs, trick nuts on the back, and two hand brakes. It was on. I immediately started trying to imitate tricks I saw in magazines, build jumps, and fall down. I had found my sport. Millions of kids have this same reaction when they get their first set of wheels, be it a skateboard, a BMX bike, scooter, roller blades, or skates. I was part of the explosion of action sports from back yard jams to the ESPN XGames during the late 1990s and early 2000s. It’s wild to think that skateboarding and freestyle BMX are part of the Olympic Games now. Despite the popularity of action sports, they aren’t at the top of any parent’s list of things they’re super excited about their kids doing. But I can tell you that these sports are rad for kids and parents alike. Parents, think about it. There are no schedules to follow. No 5 a.m. practices. No uniforms to buy. No carpooling nightmares. Pack the kid a sammie and send them to the park. Sure, there’s the occasional chipped tooth or broken wrist but that can happen with little league or football as well. Another bonus: skatepark parents are just cooler. I promise you they’ll love you more if you bring them to the park . . . and then leave them alone. On a recent trip to ROC City Skatepark I ran into my friend Carrie Principe and her ten-year-old son Dash, who is now my Padawan learner. Principe was looking for something her son could do, and I suggested going to the park. Dash immediately took to riding and skating. “Dash goes on and on about showing Tony his latest tricks. He has shown a side of himself that I wouldn’t have seen otherwise. It’s making our relationship and lives better,” says Principe. Skateboarding, BMX riding, and the other wheeled mayhem kids can get into at skateparks teach them a world of skill. On the practical side, kids learn how to maintain their ride. I had to learn how to fix a flat tire and adjust my brakes. Skateboarders must change wheels and bearings and adjust their trucks. These sports take a toll on equipment and kids need to learn how to use the tools to keep them rolling. Alan Presutti, executive director for Friends of Roc City Skatepark says, “These sports teach perseverance and resilience. Fall, get back up, and try again until you succeed, which is at the essence of what it is to be successful in life.” Most importantly, these sports teach kids how to have fun and be creative in ways other sports don’t. There are no rules. Your only limit is your imagination. The amount of positive change I have seen over the years is amazing. Things I only dreamed of are now commonplace in contest runs. You can see this happen right in front of you at skateparks when a group of kids start vibing off one another. One of the biggest changes in action sports is the respect among riders. In my day, skaters and BMX riders didn’t always get along. Where we did get along was in our disdain for rollerbladers. That’s changed now thanks to things like the Nitro Circus, a traveling show that highlights wheeled action sports. It is great to see kids give a shout out to a rad trick pulled no matter what the athlete is riding. Got an awkward kid who’d rather kick the heads off dandelions than fetch a ground ball? Grab a bike, board, and or scooter—and a helmet—and head out to your nearest park. Breaking Free Skatepark has beginner sessions every Saturday from 10 a.m to 1 p.m. ROC City Skatepark has plenty of smaller features for new riders, and there are always older riders to help show the newbies the ropes of riding at a park.
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