I'm So Blue (as in COLD...not sad!)

If you've been paying attention, you may have noticed that it's been several months, one hurricane, and one freak October snowstorm since I last posted on this blog.

There are several reasons for my absence.

First, the Streetleague Skateboarding competition was AWESOME!  So awesome, in fact, that I had tons I wanted to say about it and a gazillion photos to post.  But Hurricane Irene arrived and our power went out (along with most of the Northeast), and by the time our power was restored, I couldn't recreate the post I had been planning.  Then, after an unexpected one week delay, school began, and suddenly I was too busy (and too tired) to write.  And one thing led to another, and I fell out of the habit, and suddenly this blog was in serious need of updating...

And then Sk8terdude took a tumble on the last run of a beautiful blue sky morning at Jennings Beach and suddenly we were out of skating for a few weeks while he nursed a broken thumb...and before he could fully recover from the thumb, he fell going UP the stairs at our house...and broke a toe...and he broke it in such a way that he couldn't put weight on it, which meant yet another cast, and crutches, and by the time we were done (last week), he had been out of skating for three entire months.

So I haven't had much to say...until today.

It's holiday time and school is out of session and I promised Sk8terdude he could get back into the parks with some serious board time.  But with Vertigo and Haven both out of business, Connecticut in the cold weather is not exactly a skater's paradise.  So Sk8terdad took him over to 2nd Nature the other day for a few hours and then I packed up and made the trip to New Jersey for two days of indoor skating.  (Why New Jersey?  Free lodging courtesy of Sk8tergrandma!)

Yesterday I spent 3 1/2 hours at Shields Skatepark in Flemington, New Jersey.  With approximately 18,000 square feet of space, the park was a great place for an extended session - for Sk8terdude.  For me, not so much.

The "parent lounge" (and I use the term VERY loosely) consisted of a few tables and some metal folding chairs just outside the fence that keeps the skaters separated from the skateshop, hallway, bathrooms, etc.  Since the space isn't separated, it's maintained at the same temperature as the rest of the park which, yesterday, was just barely above 50 degrees fahrenheit.

If you've never spent a few hours sitting on a cold metal chair in that temperature, without a coat, hat, or gloves, well, I don't recommend you try it.  Even the mom who DID have a hat and gloves left to drive over to Wal-Mart (conveniently around the corner) so she could buy warmer socks.  For the first time in my life, I truly understood the phrase "catch a chill."

It took HOURS for me to thaw.  Seriously.  And that was after riding in a car for 45 minutes with the heat cranked all the way up to 75 and the heat seater on high and several more hours in the house with the heat at a normal temperature and at least an hour in bed under two blankets and a comforter.

And just when I thought I had finally defrosted, we arrived - today - at our second destination:  GardenSk8.

This is our second trip to GardenSk8, but our first since they expanded, adding a second section which Sk8terdude assures me is "sick!"  Last time we were here it was during a horrible ice storm, but we took refuge up the road, visiting Sk8tercousins who live nearby.  Today I thought I would just unpack the laptop, settle into the sofa, and get some work done.

Yeah, right.

Because once again I am freezing my you-know-what off...

My nose is running, I can no longer feel my toes (and I am wearing a thick pair of socks), and in between sentences I have to put on a pair of gloves and wait until my fingers are warm enough to keep typing.

I asked the guy (owner? manager?? dude hanging out in the office???) - only sort of joking - if they didn't have a space heater or something they could rent out to the frozen parents suffering on the sofas.  And he seriously thought I was out of my mind.

Okay, I understand that they can't afford to heat the entire warehouse to a comfortable temperature for sitting around and, even if they could, it would be too warm for the sweaty skaters.

But here's what I don't understand.  In order to survive, all skateparks have to hope that new generations of kids learn to skate.  And until those kids are old enough to drive, the skateparks have to depend on parents willing to drive them.  And for those of us who need to wait while our kids are skating (either because we live too far away or because our kids are too young to be dropped off and left on their own), we would appreciate just a little consideration!

I'd be much more likely to stay longer, visit more often, and spend more money at a park that at least pretended to care about my comfort.  A simple space heater would do the trick (and at this rate I might invest in my own and bring it with me in the future)...even a blanket would be nice....

Is it too much to ask?

Skateboarding Shutdown

Okay, technically, skateboarding has not been shut down. But in the aftermath of Hurrican Irene, we have no power, no water, and no easy Internet access. I'm preserving I-phone usage for important texts and updates on local conditions (like the welcome news that the nearest Starbucks re-opened this morning). Once power is fully restored I will post photos and an update from our trip to see the Streetleague finals in New Jersey.

Stupid Is as Stupid Does!

I was enjoying my last few days of kid-free summer.  No worries.  No hanging out in parent lounges.  Sk8terdad and I stopped at the mall and he ran inside to pick something up.  Knowing he would be right out (the item he needed was in the first store inside the door), I waited in the car, thinking I could relax for a few minutes.

Suddenly I heard a loud rumble and some shouts - and I saw this:

It's dumb stunts like this that give skateboarders a bad reputation.  Seriously.  This video (with apologies for the quality, but there's only so much you can do in a parking garage) was taken in the middle of a very busy afternoon at the local mall.

These two idiots raced down all the levels of the garage, over and over.  (I shot the video the second time they rolled by.)  The turns are tight and blind for drivers.  And I would point out that they aren't even wearing helmets but, really, a helmet won't matter much when they get hit by a car.

Where is mall security???  And what were these two drinking when they decided this was a good idea?

Yes, I called security.

I hope Sk8terdude is never dumb enough to try something like this but, if he is, I hope there's a mom (or someone) in the parking lot who cares enough to take action.

Sometimes it's not enough to "lounge."

Virtual Parent Lounge

Sk8terdad and I have been in a virtual parent lounge for the last few weeks and we've been - well - lounging around.  Sk8terdude and OlderBrother are both at sleepaway camp, so we've been keeping an eye on them via the internet, where camp photos are posted each day for our viewing pleasure.

It's a parent lounge of a different sort...and we couldn't be enjoying it more if we tried.  For starters, I'm sure I haven't stepped foot in the kitchen since the boys left.  And if either of the boys has a rough moment - trouble with a friend, a minor injury, etc. - by the time we know about it, typically it has long since been resolved, since they are not the most prolific letter writers and "news" tends to arrive about a week after it happens.  And although the camp allows them to email home once a week, OlderBrother has only availed himself of the opportunity two or three times since the end of June, and Sk8terdude claims to have sent two emails, neither of which actually arrived in my inbox (he probably typed the address wrong).

We do know that Sk8terdude switched out his deck on the first day, after his luggage spent an hour or so sitting out in the rain while they assigned bunks.  He claims the grip tape was ruined.  Hmmm....and apparently his old deck is now hanging up in the skate shack for decoration.

The camp does have a small skate park, which is where OlderBrother originally learned to skate.  And any day now we expect to see photos from the annual camp skate competition.  We won't be at all surprised if Sk8terdude is the camp skate counselor some day.  In the meantime, we couldn't be happier lounging at home, watching the two of them enjoy their summer.

Get a Grip

Sk8terdude's latest board is starting to chip at the tail, and since he's heading to sleepaway camp for the next month, I figured he might need a replacement board.  But the cost of new boards is getting prohibitive, so I finally went ahead and ordered a bunch of blank decks online in order to save some money.

The decks (buy five, get one free) arrived today.  We ordered medium concave 7-ply Canadian maple American-made boards.  I don't know how to tell if these are really 7-ply or Canadian or made in the USA, but I guess I'll take their word for it.

At first glance, Sk8terdude seemed to like the feel of the board and the cut.  He thinks he will get a lot of "pop" with the medium concave.

Of course, wearing socks and olleying on the carpet might not be the best test...

Although the decks can be ordered with grip tape, we decided we would wait and have them gripped once they arrived.  For those of you unfamiliar with skateboarding, the grip tape is the sandpaper-like surface that is added to the deck so that skaters' feet don't slip when they are skating.

At some point, every skater needs to learn to put his/her own grip tape on a board, but since the process includes using a razor to cut the excess tape off the sides, I haven't been anxious to let Sk8terdude do it himself.  (We are already experts at broken bones....I don't really want to add stitches to our repertoire - particularly when he's supposed to leave for camp in a few days.)

But at some point every skating parent needs to let go.  So despite my concern, and with a nod to Free Range Parenting, I decided it was time to give it a try.  And since it was already late in the day, we drove to the nearest skate shop.  New Canaan/Ridgefield Ski and Sport recently moved their Ridgefield store to the former Rugged Bear building on Route 7.  I purchased the grip tape and asked if they would supervise Sk8terdude while he put the grip tape on the board.

We purchased Jessup grip tape, which is sold in individual strips.  After peeling away the backing to expose the adhesive, Sk8terdude positioned the tape onto the deck.  He came close to needing a do-over...as you can see in this photo, the tape is positioned all the way up against one edge.  (Usually people center the deck under the tape.)  Fortunately, he got the tape just far enough that it was okay.

He smoothed down the tape, releasing all the air bubbles, and proceeded to the next step:  running the shaft of a screwdriver all the way around the edge of the board in order to crease the grip tape where it would need to be trimmed.

This process was harder than it sounds. Sk8terdude needed to apply a lot of pressure on the screwdriver to get the crease and to break through the grip tape.  Once that was done, it was time for the cutting.  Now I have to say that in all the times I've seen this done, every person in every skate shop has used a razor blade.  Free range or not, a razor blade sounded like a bad idea to me.  So out of my bag I pulled the box cutter.  [What?  Doesn't everyone carry a box cutter???  Okay.  I admit I brought the box cutter with me, figuring that it would be safer for him to use - since it has a handle - than a regular razor blade.]  Ken (the guy who was helping us at the shop) showed Sk8terdude how to hold down the board with one hand and slice through the grip tape with the other.  There were two women working in the shop.  Clearly both moms themselves, they said out loud what I was shouting in my head:  "CUT AWAY FROM YOUR BODY!"  Apparently, that isn't so easy when cutting grip tape, and since Ken is lefthanded and Sk8terdude is righthanded, the demonstration was a little complicated, too!

They worked together:



And then Sk8terdude finished on his own:

No blood...no stitches...  I'd call that a success!

Is he too young for a box cutter???  I'm still not certain.  I did end the day with a stern reminder that despite his success, he still does NOT have my permission to use the box cutter without adult supervision.

Future Skatepark....continued

Remember my post from May about the two guys building a skatepark in the woods in Milford, Pennsylvania (if not, you can read it here)...  This past weekend we were in Milford, so I dropped them an email asking for an update.

Joe wrote back to say that they are moving along, and he sent me this link so that we could see the progress.  It's pretty amazing, isn't it?  When they originally told me they were building it in the woods, I didn't quite realize that they really meant IN THE WOODS!  And no joke about the bears in the area.  Sk8terdude and OlderBrother go to overnight camp nearby and we've seen bears on the camp property.

We were glad to hear and see the progress, but Sk8terdude was bummed that nothing is ready to skate...yet.  So, Kelley Bros:  we're ready when you are!

(Don't forget - the guys are still looking for donations of old equipment they can salvage for the skating surface.  Let them know if you have any leads.)

Born to Teach

And so Sk8terdude's first week as a "teacher" comes to an end, and by all accounts it was a huge success!

As I mentioned in a previous post, this week Sk8terdude was one of the "teachers" at the Pee-Wee Ramp Camp (for new skaters ages 4-7) at S.P.I.R.I.T. in Ridgefield.  Too young to be hired for real, he was offered the opportunity to be a volunteer helper.  I have to admit, I was a little worried that after a short time he might decide to stop helping and just go skate.  But it turns out he more than rose to the occasion.

On day one, Sk8terdude came home after the three hour camp and announced that he started the day by showing new kids the park, then worked one-on-one with a boy who had a little more experience than the others.  He told us that at the end of the session he gave the boy a sticker for working so hard and he announced that "all the kids left with smiles on their faces."  He was very proud to come home wearing his new staff shirt:

When we arrived this afternoon to pick him up after the third (and final) day of Pee-Wee Camp, we heard nothing but rave reviews of his performance.  Apparently he showed a real gift for knowing which kids needed help at any given time and he remained focused and engaged with them the entire time.  The camp gave Sk8terdude a ribbon that said "Special Helper" to thank him for his hard work and he helped distribute the ribbons and certificates to each of the campers.

They wrapped up the program with the traditional water balloon fight.  Soaking wet and smiling from ear to ear, Sk8terdude left for the day.  He'll return next week as a camper in the regular program, proud to know that he helped a new group of kids learn to skate.