Grind Kings

Grind Kings

Modern statistics reveal a new phenomenon of the 21st century. World Wrestling Federation stars and fans are left out: it is skateboarding. With every day number of skateboarders in the US and around the world rapidly increases. They can be young; they can be older, but they all share the same interest: carelessly rolling on four wheels. I am one of them, but in my case this hobby became my lifestyle, and most of beginner skaters are also looking forward to this transformation. Some can question this unusual popularity of skateboarding because this sport remains far from being the safest and at the same time the easiest one to practice. The actual reasons for the tremendous popularity of this extreme activity settle and arise from the depths of teenagers' minds.

Today, when healthy lifestyle is common among people of all ages, everyone is trying to stick to it. Some people work out in gyms, others feel satisfied with jogging, but most of young men and women are usually looking for something unordinary and interesting at the same time. Skateboarding represents one of such rebellious activities. It is not yet recognized as an official sport but already claims hundreds of professional riders, about a dozen of magazines, and about 7 million fans just in the US (Higgins 182). This sport involves a lot of movement, requires patience, perfect coordination, and balance; it develops cardiovascular system and improves health in general. These are just a few reasons, but it is certainly enough to make interested in skateboarding anyone who likes challenges from the workout. However, some aspects of rolling on four wheels are a little touchy: tricks and combinations of them can become rather dangerous for an unprepared skater.

I have always been told that a skater should never be afraid of falling and hurting himself or herself. Minor injuries are absolutely unavoidable in skating, just as getting wet is unavoidable while taking a shower. Traumas range from irritating scratches to broken limbs, but they do not stop careless teenagers from jumping on their boards over and over again. A desire to be tougher than others drives most them; they want to show that they are not afraid of falling; that they are strong and steady in pursuing a goal of being a good skateboarder. Indeed, little scratches can pass by unnoticed, but twisted ankles and broken wrists can really slow down or even kill a desire to skate. Everyone can be tough until the unbearable pain starts taking over the body. I just hope that such accidents will never happen to me. But if they will, I guess I will have to think again about advantages and disadvantages of skateboarding. Right now I do not even wear a helmet: any kind of protection is considered by skaters as weakness and fear of pain. Perhaps we would make perfect soldiers since physical pain means nothing to us. But laughing in the face of danger can be considered as a new wave of American beauty, a wave that originates in admiration of human body and its precise work.

Flipping and twisting the board in any imaginable directions while flying above it, sliding on its inner surface or grinding on trucks (metal parts that hold the wheels together and are attached to the deck): any possible tricks, even those that do not end up with a successful landing, - attract attention of many people that are walking by. Of course, attention is extremely popular for a teenager: it is something that most of us are lacking of, and skateboarding almost always becomes the easiest way to gain it. However, several skateboarders do not care about their audience; instead these guys (and sometimes girls) pursue a simple goal: to skate and to have fun. But there is no fun unless they wear clothes that resemble skateboarding in general or relate to some particular skateboarding brands. Surprisingly, dressing like skaters do turns out to be very stylish and therefore, popular.

Music has always been related to skateboarding in many ways. Bands have been playing on skate competitions, sponsoring professional skaters, getting into the sport themselves; as the result, every skater has some particular music preferences. It can be alternative or heavy metal music, classic punk rock which is sometimes called the real music of skateboarding, or hip-hop. But no matter what these preferences are, our outfits not only remain always popular among free-minded teenagers, but also form a separate trend in fashion. Usually it constantly changes, but famous logos of skateboarding-related music bands or manufacturing companies will always decorate hats, shirts, pants, and shoes that we wear. As much as a skateboarder cares about his or her outfit, he or she never forgets about performance. We all want to skate better, and better means endless hours of practicing in skate parks, or just riding around the neighborhood, thousands of jumps, and, or course, hundreds of falls. But nothing can stop a dedicated skater from reaching the heights of this sport. This is another factor that often attracts the beginners: becoming a 'pro' is the ultimate goal for almost anyone when he or she steps on a board for the first time.

Hopefully, one out of a thousand will succeed in reaching this goal. What happens to the other 999 beginners? Half of them will grow out of skateboarding. In other words, they will not have enough time to devote to this activity after work, family and parties. Some from the other half naively think that they can go to a local K-Mart on their way home from school and pick a board for 20 bucks and turn 'pro' in two weeks 'like that Musker [Chad Muska is one of professional skateboarders] guy (Transworld Skateboarding 30).' They are very mistaken and will sooner or later realize that after two years of trying to do an ollie, a basic jump. Quite a few will quit skateboarding after a severe injury. Do not forget about death: those who experience it never get back on the board. But if a person succeeds to become a skilled skateboarder and gains attention of the related mass media sources then glory and respect are almost guaranteed. Since skateboarding remains out of traditional sports area and is not yet accepted in Olympic Games, all skaters hope it will be accepted someday. Who would not like to become an Olympic champion with the free spirit of this sport?

Like every sport, skateboarding involves hard work, patience, sweat and tears, but on the other side it can be rewarding. It promotes friendship: I can always come to the skate park and find a couple of friends, people that I have never known but with the same interest. It is like mathematics: accurate, logical and universal. It is popular, plain simple, and complicated at the same time. It keeps parents aware of what their kids are doing: 'Those 150 dollars that I gave him last week aren't spent on drugs - he's got a new skateboard!' - happily says Kelly O'Brien (Transworld Skateboarding 35). Let's hope Kelly's son won't break his leg trying out his new skateboard. As for me, I am glad that I am into skateboarding. It is extreme, but that is what makes it so much fun. Got to go now - need some practice!

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Эта статься была моим экзаменом по английскому, за который я получил отличную оценку. Но это непроверенная версия, так что если найдёте там ошибки (а они могут быть!), очень за вас рад. исправляйте.

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