Ever since we visited Virginia Beach and rollerbladed alongside skateboarders on the boardwalk each morning, my boys have been asking for skateboards. While totally clueless when it comes to the skateboarding scene, my guess was that the cheap ones that we kept seeing in each gift shop that we happened upon, weren’t going to be smooth or easy to ride.
The boys also wanted new helmets for their birthdays…which happen to fall just 3 weeks apart. In addition to the helmets, they wanted cool stickers to decorate their helmets with. Stumped. So, I took to social media and shouted out to my Facebook friends. Loaded with tons of awesome suggestions, I took to the mall (shudder) and went to a store I had never even noticed before.
Not going to lie….I felt a wee bit like a fish out of water in the too-hip-for-the-43-frumpy-school-teacher-mom-of-two that I am. I found the stickers in the display case (just as I was told that I would) and started chatting with a couple of the employees. They couldn’t have been nicer…or more tolerant of my ridiculous lack of knowledge. With a pretty excellent pile of stickers in hand, one of the kids offered to show me some skateboards….boards, that is. I’m guessing it is fairly uncool to use the full name.
Turns out that I was right to have not pulled the trigger and bought a gift shop board. Not smooth. Harder to ride. Wear easily. Boys will lose interest.
I was schooled on the parts of a true board and the different ways to customize them. I was also taught what to look for when buying starter boards for the boys to help set them up for success.
Turns out, for $99 the boys could go into the store, customize their own boards, help assemble them, and not only get a sweet board, but also have a pretty cool hands-on learning experience….while chatting with some pretty cool employees. I got such a kick out of my own experience that I couldn’t wait to go back with them. By “customize” I mean, pick out their own deck (board), wheels, grip tape, wheel bearings, and wheel mounts. Pretty cool. They got to use the vice to assemble the wheels, help sand the grip tape into place, and screw it all together. Pretty cool again.
The boys were absolutely beaming as they walked out of the store with their new boards and have been working hard to get the hang of it. Have you been on a skateboard lately? Holy crap…not easy. Thatcher got the hang of it pretty easily. Finn is having some trouble figuring out if he’s left-footed or right-footed, but is doing pretty great for his age.
With such short, little wish lists for their birthdays, I’m feeling pretty psyched that they are so happy! Total score for mom…maybe I’m just a little bit cool after all (this week anyway).
Check out Zumiez website HERE….and their store at the North Shore Shopping Center.
Good Morning Gloucester 
Do they have any boards with the GMG Logo? Do they have Longboards?
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O’Maley school has a skate park. You and your boys should check it out.
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Thanks! My boys can’t get there fast enough, Paul! There is also one at Evan’s field in Rockport. I wanted them to get the hang of it a bit more before hitting ramps, etc. Yikes! They do sell Longboards at Zumies….but sadly no GMG boards. I wouldn’t be surprised if a homie sticker landed on their helmets though.
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“just a little bit cool” ~ you are WAY COOL! (I think that’s the term). 😉
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Thanks, Mary! We’ll see how long the glory lasts 😉 Soon enough they’ll be old enough for cars. Yikes.
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much cooler than my old skateboard and you my dear are an awesome cool mom
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Thanks for that E.J.! So nice of you to say! I wasn’t so cool when I said “no” to skateboarding when we got home from a school picnic at 7:30 tonight 😉
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I love it and the son’s were involved in this by photos from start to finish nothing like being a part of the board you ride and flip it up and Jaws and color scheme! We had skate boards when I was young I would not recommend “Duley street” talking experience here strawberry fields forever mom was pissed too! :-O
My personal experience (yes got dared and like a dummy I went)…either go straight hit a rocks on the road where stored the lobster pots and get tossed, try to make the corner (Didn’t work for me hit sand and down I went), or go into the sand when low tide…
Got me curious here also history:
http://teacher.scholastic.com/scholasticnews/indepth/Skateboarding/articles/index.asp?article=history&topic=0
The History of Skateboarding
By Sky Siljeg and Scott Starr
skateboards through the years
(Photo: Courtesy of Sky Siljeg)
1958: The skateboard is made from roller skates attached to a board. This is really where it all starts. As surfing becomes more popular, skating becomes a way to surf when there are no waves—”sidewalk surfing.”
1959: “Roller Derby” mass produces a skateboard with metal wheels.
1963-66: Surfboard companies like Makaha and Hobie start making better-quality skateboards with clay wheels and trucks that are made for skating. The first skate contest is put on in Hermosa Beach, California, in 1963.
In 1964, the musical group Jan and Dean appear on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand and sing “Sidewalk Surfing.” Dean does a few simple tricks and rides the board across the stage.
Around this time, Surfer Magazine puts out a quarterly magazine called Skateboarder. Only four issues are printed. This same year, ABC Wide World of Sports broadcasts the Skateboarding Championships.
1973: With the invention of urethane wheels, new possibilities emerge. What once was a noisy, bumpy ride is now smooth and silent. Banks and ditches become skateable, as these new wheels can grip the concrete. Surfers like Larry Bertlemann inspire a new and radical form of skating, as surfing begins to turn toward a shorter board with more fluid moves. From this point on, skating will never be the same.
1973-75: Fiberglass boards made by surf shops out of fin material become popular with the surf crowd. Companies experiment making skateboard decks, using everything from wood to aluminum. The first full-length skate movie, Spinnin’ Wheels, is released.
1976-78: The California drought forces homeowners to drain their pools. Though skaters have been riding swimming pools since the introduction of urethane wheels the previous year, they now view the empty pools as territory to be conquered. New tricks are invented daily—aerials, inverts, and the Ollie. Many concrete parks are also being built, and the first professional skaters begin to receive notice. However, many skate parks are forced to close because of low attendance and high insurance rates.
1980s: Street skating turns handrails and walls into free skate parks. Skater-owned companies become more and more common.
1990s: Skateboarding takes a giant step into the mainstream with the 1995 ESPN’s Extreme Games, becoming more of a spectator sport. By the late 90s, skating appears in commercials for everything from soft drinks to phone companies. Fashion trends begin to reflect the influence of the skating crowd.
2000: Skating can now be enjoyed by children as young as two, but the majority of skaters range from early teens to twenties. Many cities have built high quality skate parks, and a number of camps and lessons are available to young people. Some families even enjoy skating as a family activity.
2006: This brings us to today. Scholastic News Online launches a special report dedicated to skateboarding—”Kids On Board.”
Now that you know about the history of skateboarding, it’s time to grab your board and get out there.
Happy—and Safe—Skating!
Dave 🙂 & Kim 🙂
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