1)Skateparks – There are a lot of skateparks out there that charge money. You know why these skateparks charge money? Well, its because parents think that they are paying to have their kids babysat all day like it’s a daycare or something.
2)Fashionable Skateboarders – Skateboarders are all about fashion these days. They have to get their Sunday best on to go out and skate. Why would you put on your new kicks and clothing to just go and get all dirty and sweaty and damage all of the above. Personally, I have the same gear to skate in when I go skateboarding. I might change shirts but I have the same old holy shorts, and the same old beat up shoes with duct tape on the laces from knee-sliding out of bails.
3)No Union – Skateboarders don’t have a union! Skateboarders wreck themselves, become popular, and sign their rights away and their likeness when they enter the X- Games. When they get hurt (and they will for sure) there is no health care, and the veterans that got this sport going have no pension or retirement for helping make the sport as big as it is. Chris Gentry is working on forming a union called the Pro Riders Association, but it is very hard to start a union when everybody is just looking out for themselves. This goes for the skaters and the corporate sponsors alike.
4)Shop Decks – Skate shops found out years ago that they could print their own boards for cheaper than that of the pro skaters that keep their shops open. To make it even worse, they are getting these shop decks made in china for cheap, and importing them in by the thousands and its all about profit not about supporting the sport.
5)Security Officers and Cops
Cops and Security guards hate skateboarders! Their whole mission in life is to ruin your day. Next time one of them comes up to you with an attitude and asks you to leave, just be polite and do it. They are expecting you to make some kind of smart ass comment and then they can escalate the situation. Now there are exceptions to this rule. There are security guards that will creep up and grab you, I guess it’s because they think you are going to run. I remember one time I was filming and a security guard came up and started harassing the skater I was filming. We were on a 12 set and I was lying low on the bottom to get a good angle, so the security guard didn’t see me at first. After a little harassment to the skater I walked up and asked him what the problem was. The 150 pound 21 year old Security Guard wasn’t so froggy when I walked straight up to him with all 230 pounds and explained to him that all he has to do is be polite and we will leave. If you want respect in this world you have to gain it, you don’t automatically get it because of a uniform. Especially a Security Guard uniform?
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July 6th, 2008 at 11:12 pm
Nice, i like the last one thats tru man
July 6th, 2008 at 11:16 pm
Excuse shops for having to try and compete with people selling “wholesale skate shoes $19.99″ advertised on sites like this or kooks selling bulk blank decks on ebay and actually make a bit of profit to keep the doors open. Shop decks aren’t ruining skateboarding - a lack of regulation in the industry to protect the shops that helped build it is ruining skateboarding.
July 6th, 2008 at 11:26 pm
Yea the shops are just making a profit off of a sport. I didnt know that trying to pay the bills kills the skateboarder spirit
July 6th, 2008 at 11:49 pm
The only thing that ruins skating are dumbass skaters who think they can do whatever the hell they please and think they deserve respect, all the while doing dumbass stunts without safety gear (Tony Hawk wears pads for fuck’s sake!)
July 6th, 2008 at 11:59 pm
boardshops are the biggest problem… charging bank for china/mexico blanks
July 7th, 2008 at 12:48 am
sorry, but this article is pretty rubbish… if it weren’t for local skateshops supporting their local community of skateboarders, then corporate malls would have a monopoly on the sport. and ultimately none of these things are really killing skateboarding… bros will shred even if it were illegal.
July 7th, 2008 at 1:12 am
Yeah I hate how the parks are charging but im also sick of the haggard skate parks from BMX’ers. And as far as injuries go I tore both my MCL’s in both knees in one fall. So i can vouch for that.
July 7th, 2008 at 1:17 am
Whoever wrote this article is blatently an idiot. Go F*ck yourself gently moron.
July 7th, 2008 at 1:38 am
seriously, unions? that’s a boner idea from day one.
July 7th, 2008 at 2:07 am
whats the worst thing about skateboarding…you have to tell your folks you`re gay!
July 7th, 2008 at 5:12 am
Well if you want to start your own skate fashion label with no upfront costs then check out http://www.jellyfiz.com
July 7th, 2008 at 6:44 am
Local shops MAKE skateboarding! I totally disagree with the comment on shop decks. TOY DECKS RUIN SKATEBOARDING - Like the ones promoted by some “Pros”. If you are buying from a reputable skateshop then you should know where your deck is coming from. It is very difficult to own a business guys.. get more realistic, especially skateshops because the wholesale cost on trucks and decks are really high. The most profitable merchandise in a skateshop are shop merchandise, clothing and accessories. Buying these decks actually can help keep a local shops and graphic designers alive.
July 7th, 2008 at 8:24 am
I don’t think skateparks that charge people are ruining it at all. You have the option to pay for admission or not. Not all cities are willing to fun the construction of free parks so small business owners provide an alternative to skating the street and possibly getting kicked out. Business owners need to charge something to maintain the park so its understandable. Good points everywhere else. I hate the “fashion” skater.
July 7th, 2008 at 8:34 am
Here’s my list:
1- Tight girlie jeans.
2- Throwing temper tantrums at the skate park because
some dildo on a video did it and you think it’s punk.
It’s not. You look like an idiot … go die.
3- Thinking that The Lords of Dogtown movie was real.
4- The “better than you” attitude. Take a lesson from
Trujillo … skate it all. [PS, he's better than you]
5- Buy decks from your local shop. That pro skater doesn’t need another Rolex … they need insurance.
6- Slalom racing elitists [please go back to golfing]
7- The new age of skateboarding has gotten boring. Where has all of the flow and style gone?
8- People writing articles about skateboarding being ruined.
9- Being cornered by religious freaks at the skate park, the local ditch, or any other spot. Don’t you know that God rides a longboard? —> STFU!!
10- Blame Canada
11- Without Security guards you wouldn’t have anything to complain about. The world would be an open skate spot, and that would be boring as hell.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:14 am
1. I wonder why they charge an entry fee to get in. Its not to baby sit you morons its probably because the insurance to run a place is so costly. The upkeep must be costly too.
2. How does the fashion of some idiots ruin it for the ‘true’ skaters? Holy shit the dood is wearing flanel shirt! I cant fucking ollie anymore!! oh noes!!
3. Union? lulz! Seriously all of about 2% of the skateboarders in this world would make a living in this activity. The living lasts what maybe 5-7 years cept for the true pros like Hawk and what not. So you expect these flash in the pans to give money away in hopes of one day getting a retirement fund? lol keep dreaming.
4. The pros need step up and design better boards. Simple as that. Market better.
5.”Cops and Security guards hate skateboarders! Their whole mission in life is to ruin your day.” Yes they target you. Their whole existence is predicated on chasing you punk kids down.
That shitty whiney article was probably written by and angst filled 17 year old. Cry some more. When I skated and I wasnt really any good but none of this shit concerned me. Skateboarding has been around a looong time and has seen its periods of change. Maybe the thing that is killing skateboarding is its lack of innovation at the moment, not these 5 lame excuses.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:14 am
5.”Cops and Security guards hate skateboarders! Their whole mission in life is to ruin your day.” Yes they target you. Their whole existence is predicated on chasing you punk kids down.”
Punks? My sons use to skateboard. It was great exercise and it kept them out of trouble. It’s a sport not a crime. Cops DO target skateboarders. I’ve seen it over and over. I don’t believe you ever skated. I don’t think your mommy let you out of the house to play with other kids. You have the attitude of a clueless momma’s boy or a pig. Probably both.
The police treat teenagers and skaters like their very existence should be eradicated. The next time you see a teenager who acts like a “punk” remember you’re looking at someone who probably gets abused and pushed around on a consistent basis by adults. They have every right to have attitude. Skaters and teens are valuable people just like adults are. When you treat people with respect they tend to conduct themselves with respect toward others.
You’re the punk with attitude.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:15 am
All good except for your #4.
It’s not about the marketing, shops just get their own boards pressed and cut out the middle man, hence lower prices and increased sales.
In most cases, it’s the same wood with a different picture for about $20 less, but that’s money that could go to pros who help keep the sport alive.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:16 am
$20 less? in Australia a pro model deck costs between $110 and $150, you can get a blank or shop board for $50.
Why support big companies that rip off kids by charging huge prices for a bit of wood that has a highly paid pro’s name screen printed on it?
Yeah sure there are plenty of pros out there that ride for companies that are not mega corporations, but most kids want to spend $130 (of their parents money) on a deck that has Bam Margera written on it because it has Bam Margera written on it.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:17 am
Unless it’s your property you have no right to skate there. So really you’re ruining their day. They’d much rather be drinking coffee, eating donuts, and dreaming of the career they didn’t have as a police man because they were too fat and/or stupid.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:17 am
My town lost a huge grant to defray some of the cost of construction because the Tony Hawks Foundation wouldn’t pay it if the city required pads and helmets for skaters using the park. The city had to pass on the grant because the insurance costs were so outrageous without that requirement that in just the first year the insurance increase would have exceeded the substantial grant. The park was built with pure tax money, but I can’t understand why Tony Hawks’ foundation would effectively encourage unsafe skating.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:17 am
To a certain extent they’re just doing their jobs, although I’d agree that a lot of them take it too far. If I was a business owner, I wouldn’t want kids skating on my property because of the risk of a lawsuit should one of them hurt themselves.
We live in a litigious society; people have to minimize their risks.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:18 am
long boarding has been taking off more new stuff like i see more innovation in long boarding then skating. long boarding has started board dancing and things like that and have been taking off in my area.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:19 am
None of this is anything new. I was skating back in the late-80s/early-90s (Oh, the glory days of huge fucking wheels and decks that weren’t shaped like popsicle sticks) and it was the same old shit back then too. Did it kill skating?
Ignore the bullshit. Don’t worry about clothes as long as the ones you’re wearing are comfortable, tough, and easy to move in. Find a park without all the kiddies, go when they aren’t there, build a fucking half-pipe in the backyard or whatever you have to do. Above all else, stop fucking whining! In the end nobody can ruin skating but you.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:19 am
Exactly! If you want to skate, fucking build a pipe. Plywood is cheap, so no one can argue cost. There’s no need to bitch about cops and security guards when you’re skating on sidewalks and in parking lots. I was a child of the 80’s when you HAD TO build your own shit if you wanted to skate. I had a bumpersticker that said “Skating is not a Crime” and then suddenly one day I had an epiphany: You don’t ride a jetski in a parking lot because that’s not its purpose… and the same applies to skating.
If you see skating as an art form, build your own studio and create art. If you just want to be cool and skate down the sidewalks, break your deck now and beat yourself senseless with the trucks, you fucking poser cunts. Fake skaters are ruining skating, nothing else. Quit crying, SKATE WHERE YOU HAVE A REAL RIGHT TO SKATE and grow the fuck up.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:21 am
I’m a security guard. I don’t give a damn about kids skateboarding outside (which they do), so long as they leave the employees alone and don’t break shit. Besides, security guards don’t have any more authority than a regular citizen. We can’t grab you unless you’re assaulting someone/something. If one comes up behind you and latches on, call his company and have him fired.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:21 am
No Union?
Wow. I would have thought skateboarding, an experssion of individuality, would be immune to the notion of paying lots of dues to bureaucrats who would then destroy the spirit of skateboarding.
Unions make sense when and while there is opression of workers. After that, they are a solution in search of a problem.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:23 am
My local skatepark closed when neighbors complained of the noise eminating from the wooden ramps… that is when the skating died in me… nothing worse than seeing your own neighborhood tear down a beautiful park, when no injuries or even a single drug problem was ever reported!
Skating downtown near commercial areas sucks anyways…
skating in big open lots with old churches, handrails, no security, bring your own quarterpipes, pipes, ramps, portable TV for skate Vids, a buddy or 4, some pads… some bandaids… a Proper Deck (old school, not that EMO popsicle stick that is rampant today, WTF!, and tools, and grease for bearings, that’s what skating’s all about!!) Long live Tony. Shit, I’m about to turn 36 and I feel like skating again, ollie over everything!
July 7th, 2008 at 10:23 am
i dont think shop decks are really a big deal, my local shops boards are all pressed and printed right here in america. i mean a lower price board means more skateboards for kids that cant afford that much. i work at a shop and parents are always gasping at 50-60 dollar decks. if it means more core shops can thrive and more local kids can skate then whats the problem? yeah pros need support but they have alot bigger companies signing their paychecks than shops owners do.
companies like Dwindle distribution and Sole tech are DEFINETLY ruining skateboarding alot more by selling out to malls and corporate chains like pacsun and journeys and making the core shops compete with them. plus all of dwindles boards are pressed in china!
im suprised pacsun isn’t on the list of things that are killing skateboarding. but i guess that sort of ties into reason #2
July 7th, 2008 at 10:25 am
This is going to sound funny. I skated in the in the late 80’s for over 15 years. (Funny part with old man voice) Back in my day we had no skate parks, just the streets, empty pools and malls. I would have loved to have access to skate parks even if did cost. People don’t actually skate today they carry their boards with there hands or some use a $100 pack. we actually used it as a mode of transport.
Clothing was expensive but lasted and we did not care how we looked or what we wore, we cared more about having a solid deck.
We did wear some padding and still got banged up. My hands and knees are still messed up from skating.
And my favorite part the cops/rent-a-cop! Well that has never changed, and never will!
July 7th, 2008 at 11:56 am
Jesus christ skateboarding is a 5 billion dollar a year industry and your talking about local shops making decks and no pro rider unions are going to kill it?
The problem with skateboarders today is that theyre all little brats. It seems like 90% dont even truly care about the sport. Theyre all just skate rats thats hangout at the skatepark after school like its a social scene.
Security guards and cops are out to get you? No, they are there to protect the private property that WE skate on. Newsflash, someone owns the ledges and rails that you are skating and contrary to popular belief thats not what they were built there for. So instead of getting kicked out and coming back later you start a bunch of shit and get the spots capped or patrolled more frequently. Then you complain that there are no spots to skate anymore. Just connect the dots.
/end rant on little kid skateboarders
July 7th, 2008 at 12:16 pm
Yeah, this was pretty stupid.
A skateboarders’ union? Do you have the first clue what a union is, or what it’s supposed to accomplish? A union, in the sense that you’re trying to use the term, is a bargaining method utilized by employees to collectively and successfully negotiate with their employers.
The average skateboarder doesn’t try and make a living off of it, and even if he did, there’s no employer that’s taking advantage of him. A union doesn’t make sense for skateboarding, because it’s a hobby or a sport, not a profession. Please learn to use words before you stick them in some crappy article that you think is the best thing ever written.
July 7th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
Quit all complaining about style and how things have changed. Just hop on your damn deck and roll. Who gives a shit what other people do. And from my experience the skate parks you pay for are in WAAAAAY better shape than the free ones.
July 7th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
I’ll knock all 230lbs of you on your ass, eat a sandwich and take a nap.
July 7th, 2008 at 5:43 pm
They had to outlaw skateboarding in Santa Barbara, Ca. when I lived there. The skateboarders were literally (actually is the better word) destroying the downtown area. Every step and railing was horribly scratch up all over this beforehand beautiful town. The main part of the downtown area is on a down hill slope towards the ocean. After seeing the damage that was done there, I have never liked skateboarders either.
July 7th, 2008 at 6:04 pm
I remember a time before Vans became skate shoes. I remember when the skater fashion of the mid 90’s first came into being and suddenly appealed to (pre)teens looking to adopt an identity and labeled themselves ‘true skaters’ only for having been vaguely aware of the sport. Before then, for myself, skating was just something to do in parking lots alongside riding bikes and roller skating during the summer months. Anything on top of that is very successful marketing hyping it up and providing a false material identity to impressionable childre.
July 9th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
how can you even say that skating is dying? have you not noticed the more and more people skating? let me guess, it must suck for a young kid to buy a shop deck and go skate. parks are killing it? you dipshit, parks are promoting a good enviroment to skate at. cops/security guards? okay, they both suck. but if you show some respect, you get it back. the only problem is that people like you get paid to write this shit instead of just going and skating, while people like me read this shit that you write while i’m at work making money to build my own additions to my ramps at my house. get over it and just go skate. by the way, get some balls and tell brewce martin at skatopia that parks suck. see if your ass makes it off the hill without a roman candle shoved up it! skatopia jihad bitches
July 15th, 2008 at 5:12 pm
Lmao who said skateboarding was being killed. Go skate and have some fun and dont worry about all that other bullshit. Do you and let everybody else do themselves.
July 16th, 2008 at 10:40 am
skate parks are boring now, i’d rather skate the thrasher style. get chased by security and the police, jump fences to skool, skate whereever and whenever and skate hardcore all day