ON BOARD
AWFUL TRUTH
Love & other gooey stuff
City should give skateboarders their own space.
Granted, the statue says LOVE.
And granted, this is the City of Broth-
erly Love. And many of us were teen
agers or twentysomethings once.
But youthful verve must eventu-
ally give way to adult pragmatism.
So the city and Fairmount Park
Commission must restate and rein-
force their ban on skateboarding in
JFK Plaza near City Hall-then give
the park a good scrubbing.
Imposed three years ago, the
skateboard ban is being regularly vi-
olated just as the park, made famous
by the red LOVE sculpture, is becom-
ing second to the Liberty Bell as Phil
adelphia's best-known emblem.
For tourists, the four red letters
serve as the visual cornerstone for
Benjamin Franklin 1 Parkway.
But that's hard to appreciate when
you must navigate around kids on
wheels screaming by inches away.
The city and Fairmount Park Com
mission also should banish the goo.
the hardened black coating on the
park's granite benches and retaining
walls. Skateboarders concede it's their
goo, a mixture of wax from the skate
board wheels plus plastic and paint
from the boards. The goo is ugly and
serves only to discourage use of the
park by shoppers, workers or tourists.
The Fairmount Park Commission
reports the park is regularly c
ly cleaned
and it is refreshingly free of de-
bris. But now must come the next
step. Goo, begone.
As for the skateboarders, theirs is a
sport that by dint of longevity has es
caped the classification of fad. Hun-
dreds make their living as "pro" skete
boarders; magazines on the sport have -
circulations of 100,000 and more.
To prevent a re-gooing, the skate-
boarders must be offered a public
venue more enthralling than the "of-
fictal" city site in a dirt lot under 1-95
in South Philadelphia. If there's
room for two skating rinks at the pro-
posed Penn's Landing development,
how about adding a skateboarding.
ramp? Disney's channel airs movies
about skateboarding: could its pro-
posed Market Street project include
something for skateboarders?
It wouldn't take much room, and
would create a populist performance
art. Try watching ESPN2 sometime,
if you think skateboarding isn't a vi
sual feast. And it would draw more
kids into the city.
One recent weekday afternoon,
nearly a dozen people were whizzing
about the approved site in Franklin
Delano Roosevelt Park. None was
from Philadelphia. Eight were from
Bensalem, driven down by a parent,
and three were college students from
the "burbs. "We'll skate here during
the day and go ito JFK Plaza) at
night," said one.
There you have it. Philadelphia's
future. Kids who love the city. Let's
find a way to encourage them that.
doesn't drive adults crazy.
FIRING LINE:
STEVIE WILLIAMS
Home: Philly, PA
Age: 19
Sponsors: Chocolate, DC,
Stamina, Diamond bolts, Lucky
bearings, FTC, and Venture
Years Skated: 7
Favorite Place To Skate:
Love Park
Favorite Food: Broccoli
chicken cheesesteak and ginger
ale from Ishkibibble
Looks Up To: Mom, Dad, Girl
and Chocolate teams, Josh
Kalis, Spencer Fujimoto, Karl
Watson, DGK, Lee Smith, and
24-karat gold
Favorite Trick: All tricks
Shoe Size: 9
Hair Care: Da
Hair Care: Dark fade, dye it
block
black, get it shaped, and
Murray's grease for waves
Five Greats: Josh Kalis, me, Spencer, Kareem, and everyone on Girl
and Chocolate
Favorite Music: Hip-hop and r&b, Jay-Z, Total, Gerald Levert, Nas
Final Words: Keep skating, buy my board, LCOB, shout-out to Spencer
Fujimoto, and a fat shout-out to Kalis and his kid, everyone in Philly, pho-
tographers, filmers, Rick Howard, Susan Williams, and Steven Lassiter
CONTEST
RESULTS
Etnies European Open
March 26-28, 1999
Nantes, France
Street
1. Marcus Juergenson
Vert
1. Brian Patch
2. Peter King
2. Alexis Jauzion
3. T. Bougdour
3. David Couliau
4. Florent Viart
5. Oli Buergen
4. Julian Dykmans
5. Oli Buergen
Q: How do we know the tooth-
brush was invented at Burnside?
A. Because if it weren't, it would
have been called a teethbrush!
-Paul Yuergans,
Mexico City, Mexico
Q: If you're called a drunk
American when waiting to
use the bathroom, what are
you in the stall?
A: European!
-Derek Mills,
Toledo, OH
FUN BCX
Two blondes are walking down opposite
sides of the street. One blonde yells over
to the other and says, "Hey, how do I get
to the other side?" The other blonde says,
"You are on the other side."
-Gerald Gomez,
San Francisco, CA
POET'S CORNER
"Skate Or Die 4 Life"
We live in the country and city too,
Nothing is like smooth pavement to cause
us to come unglued.
We've done the drugs and what a cheat,
But nothing thrills us like the deck under
our feet.
We are the chosen few who dare,
A kick to flip while feet in the air.
Although we are characterized bad and
untrue,
Our given talents are from above just like
what thrills you!
So before you judge and worry of the
deeds,
Just stop, take a seat and watch us tread.
The skill is there and abilities are true,
So who don't understand is on you.
The way we release is deck and feet and
the highs we have are chosen to be. So
watch and be amazed for we are skaters
not like you posers and haters.
-Sizemore
Skateboarding
Shuvits
Kickflips
Ass scrapes
Tailslides
Extra Band-Aids
Boardslides
Ollies
Aspirin
Rails
Darkslides
Indy grabs
Nollies
Grinding
-Tyson Cantrell,
Hurricane, UT
FIVE GREATS
Things A Skateboarder Shouldn't Do
1. Skip out on skating to see a girlfriend
2. Start rollerblading
3. Complain
4. Break your board on purpose
5. Throw your board
Things That Suck
1. Dirty Jersey
2. Jersey roads
3. Jersey drivers
4. The Jersey Shore
5. Jersey troopers
-AM
Orange County, NY
-Brian Foley,
Bloomfield, NJ
Great Head/Hair
Ensembles
1. Andy Roy
2. Sean Sheffey
3. Kien Lieu
4. Matt Field
5. Jason Dill
--Tim Frinche
Ann Arbor, MI
More Greats
1. Toy Machine
2. Independent
3. Spitfire
4. Zero
5. Creature
--Joe Dalrymple,
Zanesville, OH
Hates
1. Rollerbladers
2. No money
3. Posers
4. Hanson
5. Cops
-Richard Gainey,
Trinity, NC
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