Am I a Helicopter, or Just Human? Greenside Parent Lounge - end of day 1

I'm exhausted...and I wasn't the one skating.  Sk8terdude is exhausted, too.  He's half-asleep beside me, trying desperately to stay awake just a little longer since, even long distance, he somehow knows that OlderBrother is not yet in bed!

We had an amazing dinner at Sunrise Viet Restaurant, conveniently located in the same parking lot as Greenside.  In fact, if it hadn't been pouring rain and windy, we could have walked.  Sk8terdude and I each had a bowl of pho (chicken for him, beef for me) - the perfect food for this nasty weather.

We went back to Greenside for one additional hour of skating.  The park was busy with (mostly) older skaters preparing for tomorrow's competition.  Greenside is laid out so that skaters go both front to back (ramps, stair set, funbox, etc.) and side to side (across the "plaza" bordered by quarter pipes at either end).  Somehow the skaters manage - most of the time - to take turns and avoid collisions, but for a younger skater it can be a bit overwhelming.  Sk8terdude migrated to the bowl, where it was a little less crowded and where he made a few friends closer to his age.

We came back to the hotel for a little post-skate relaxation session.  Through the windows, we could see the rain turn to snow, as fluffy flakes started to float into the hotel courtyard.

I parked myself in a lounge chair by the side of the pool (no lifeguard = mom on duty) and thought about the day I spent at the skatepark.  Usually Sk8terdude wants me nowhere in sight.  His typical request goes something along the lines of "Mom, you're not going to STAY, are you???"  But today he did not make the request, which I don't think I would have honored, anyway.

He's skating in a new park, in a new town, in a new state.  No one we know was there, or anywhere nearby.  While I might have considered leaving him alone during the clinic this morning, I certainly wasn't going to leave the building this evening.  The park was crowded.  Most of the other skaters were easily five years older than him and many were significantly older than that.  I don't know the culture at this skatepark like I do at some of our regular haunts.  (Do they get annoyed at younger, less capable skaters, or are they friendly and considerate?)  So I never even considered leaving, despite the fact that they had my cell phone number on file (part of the waiver every skater is required to have before entering the park) and despite the fact that the hotel is right next door.

And I began to wonder...am I a hovering helicopter parent?  Or just human?

What do you think?