Using Skateboarding as a Front

[Bugs]

Driving home yesterday it popped in my head that there was this skateshop in Honolulu called Lazy Bones and there was always rumors that they just used the shop as a front to sell drugs out of. So that is a real example. It was funny to because they never re-ordered anything in there, shit was super old and out-dated.

[Nonsense]

As shitty as this may sound, I think the whole "drug addict, fuck up, crazy persona" thing that seems to be popular within skating is definitely a huge factor into what makes skating "different". There aren't too many "lifestyles" that harbor this type of behavior and promote it. And I personally wouldn't have it any other way. Fuck the NFL, NBA, MLB and any other governing body that control "sports". Front all you want, cause if you skate, thats all that matters, I think. Drugs, Alcohol, and all the destructive behavior and shit that's in skating is what makes it great, this isn't some PC youth sports league bullshit that mommy and daddy drive you to on Saturday mornings dude. If you don't like drugs and alcohol, don't use em.

[oyolar]

I still call it a front.

I would feel like such a sell out if I went out and partied with a bunch of pros and drank and did drugs like they supposedly do in the videos a mags.

The other thing that kind of makes me scratch my head is all the hooker/strippers or whatever that show up all the time. It's cool to look at, for sure. I just wouldn't want to be put in a situation where I'd have to hook up with some random bitch because It's the thing to do or else I'd look like a kook.

I don't know I guess I'm more laid back than the norm.

Just all the fast women, drugs, money, cars, bling, partying, boose

If you were stranded on a deserted island with nothing but your board, your team, and shit to skate...things would be a lot more different...

There wouldn't be blonde stripper chicks, jager, jack, tecate, cocaine, meth, crack, none of that shit.

Palm trees, shade, sand, coconuts, untapped ledges and stairs, banks, sun, tropical rain, a nice breeze, that shit is way better.

wow. you do realize there are so many interviews with skaters that talk about how the person doesn't drink, party, or do drugs, right? so you are making a gross generalization of what you think skaters are or how they act. and yeah, there are some that do do all that stuff but still. you really have idealized pros and ams haven't you? despite your claims to the contrary, you say you'd be bummed on it when a lot of pros make little effort to hide how they act. and if you would feel the need to do drugs or fuck a stripper in order to show some sponsored skaters you were "down" or "cool," and didn't have enough self restraint or respect to not give into "peer pressure," what does that say about you?

[Bugs]

Nonsense, what makes skateboarding different is that a bunch of surfers took their ironing boards and put roller skate wheels on the bottom of them. The partying is not what makes skating unique, that’s what this whole thread is about. If you think drugs and alcohol is what skating is all about, then you are using skating as a front for your problems...

[Sleazy]

it's funny to see the reality of what skating used to be talked about as stereo types that people strive for. when i grew up the same kids that were likely not to give a shit about the rules and skate on private property, where the same kids who came from broken homes, didn't fit in with the jocks or play sports and generally were just a bunch of rowdy guys who's parents didn't keep track of where they were every second of the day after school by having the in organized sports. it was just a natural thing that these people didn't care for sports and that they were wild. now that skating is so popular, it's funny to see kids from the suburbs accusing people of faking without understanding that that's just what skatings core always was and eventhough there are all these newer kids getting into it doesn't mean that it doesn't appeal to the new generation of kids who aren't into sports and have parents who don't really care what they are up to. those people generally do what they want and there you have it. if that's not your thing, then you got mike mo and shecks and plenty of other guys to get into. but it seems crazy to me to try and act like something that has permiated skating for so long is somehow a front. maybe your friends are fronting, but that doesn't mean that every skater that's been wild through the years is somehow striving to live up to an image. every skater i knew in the 80s did shit that was just as wild as the PDs but it was long before that shit was glamorized in videos. were all these guys fronting on an image that wasn't even marketed yet? at this vert ramp i used to skate at in the 80s it was very common for people antenna's to get ripped off their cars, shit happened all the time and the antenna's got used for crack pipes. that shit wasn't in videos, there was no image people were living up to, it was just the kind of people that skating attracted when it was less popular, not some fake image that your friends seem to be into.

[Bugs]

wow. you do realize there are so many interviews with skaters that talk about how the person doesn't drink, party, or do drugs, right? so you are making a gross generalization of what you think skaters are or how they act. and yeah, there are some that do do all that stuff but still. you really have idealized pros and ams haven't you? despite your claims to the contrary, you say you'd be bummed on it when a lot of pros make little effort to hide how they act. and if you would feel the need to do drugs or fuck a stripper in order to show some sponsored skaters you were "down" or "cool," and didn't have enough self restraint or respect to not give into "peer pressure," what does that say about you?

I'm not making a gross generalization. Nah dude, don't tell me theres not peer pressure in a drug/party scene. But all I'm sayin is that there are skaters who get more involved with skating because it can lead to a destructive lifestyle. What I'm sayin is, that is not the point of skating, so I'm calling that a front.

[Nonsense]

Nonsense, what makes skateboarding different is that a bunch of surfers took their ironing boards and put roller skate wheels on the bottom of them. The partying is not what makes skating unique, that’s what this whole thread is about. If you think drugs and alcohol is what skating is all about, then you are using skating as a front for your problems...

Oh I know that drugs and such aren't what make skating "unique", but I FEEL that what makes skating unique is the "DIY, punker, anti-establishment, no need for anyone else, fuck you team sports" attitude that skating has somewhat emerged from. And it just so happens that drugs and alcohol fall into that "anti-establishment, fuck you" attitude. And for the record, I don't use skating as a "front", and I don't have drug or alcohol problems, but thank you for looking out dude.

[FROST YOUR TIPS]

GOLF!

[bobjohn]

The only front I've seen in skateboarding involves (usually washed-up) pros using youth subcultures like skateboarding to facilitate their brainwashing:

[FACE!]

i'd be a jock, i could shoot freethrows 9/10, 3 pointers 7/10. i was the lead scorer. and that was 6th grade. shouldve kept playing

[krewkruxklan]

i'd be a jock, i could shoot freethrows 9/10, 3 pointers 7/10. i was the lead scorer. and that was 6th grade. shouldve kept playing

fuckin kobe

[j....soy.....]

pretty sure skating kept me from drinking or doing drugs....at the ages when everyone gets into that shit..i just skated....then never bothered getting into it....

[toque]

I'm sorry bugs.  I feel bad for you bro.  you're struggling in your own mind.  Whenever I have to talk to parents about any kind of negative image that skateboarders have I end up saying something like "yeah sure a lot of skateboarders end up doing these things you're talking about,  but I would wager that more kids that don't skate are doing this negative stuff more often." Talking about people on serious drugs and "getting girls seriously blacked out on purpose" is just a problem in general society as a whole.  Skating is something different. I know this example has been beaten to death in here already, but do you think rapping or hip hop is a front for taking a bunch of drugs and mistreating women?

[McCly]

Driving home yesterday it popped in my head that there was this skateshop in Honolulu called Lazy Bones and there was always rumors that they just used the shop as a front to sell drugs out of. So that is a real example. It was funny to because they never re-ordered anything in there, shit was super old and out-dated.

that happened at a shitty surf/skate/snow shop here before new owners took over. I think the dude was arrested or had to leave town or something.

[Matze]

i couldn't go through this topic, but skateboarder normally continue to live the teenage livestyle a little bit longer, that's pretty normal. 25 year old people normally have a degree, a girlfriend and try to live a "normal" live - skateboarder at that age still are around people that are teenager while beeing on the same level as they are (in the end a skateboarder doesn't care about the age of other skateboarders, they just skate together). and: how many 53 year pro's do we have, that live that lifestyle? none? most of them retire at one point and start to live a "regular" live ...

[lampshade]

i'd be a jock, i could shoot freethrows 9/10, 3 pointers 7/10. i was the lead scorer. and that was 6th grade. shouldve kept playing

That is pretty amazing, considering the NBA 3-point leader shot 47% last season from three.  Should have kept the 6th grade dream alive. 

[Mouth]

I was a filthy nerd before I discovered skating. So, I guess that's what I'd be.

In fact, considering the fact that I'm on Slap on Saturday night, I guess that's what I am.

[sirfinbar]

making 3 pointers in an NBA game is a slightly different situation than your driveway or school gym practice. IT'S LIKE TRYIN TO BACK LIP A 16 STAIR RAIL ON NATIONAL TV WHILE P-ROD'S DAD YELLS SHITTY JOKES!

[Donkey Lips]

What do you think? If you weren't a "SKATEBOARDER", you would be a drug addict or an alcoholic. Some dudes just call themselves skateboarders...








If you weren't a "SKATEBOARDER"....what would you be?

if i werent a SKATEBOARDER i would be your stepdad.

[Commercial D]

I get bored fast at bars/nightclubs—I really don't understand the allure. It's much easier to pick up chicks at the laundromat, the supermarket, the bus or even the sidewalk, when they're not on their guard.

If I wasn't into skateboarding I'd likely be into auto tuning, doubling the stock output of a Volvo S60 R or Lancer Evolution VIII or something. Which means I'd likely be dead by now.

[carbonite]

i'd probably be some steve vai-type guitar virtuoso dude

[Galletly]

Doesn't it have a lot to do with personality? Generally, the dudes who get all crazy when they're not skating are the ones jumping down big stuff. A bit of a stereotype maybe, but you don't associate the Baker team with manual pads. I think a lot of the time it's to do with someone being a reckless person whatever they are doing, be it skating or sitting in the bar. Maybe having a bit of a blind spot when it comes to risk is partly why they're pro in the first place. That's maybe a bit of an over simplification but you get the gist.

Also, peer pressure, as gay as that sounds, is probably an influence. I imagine tours, autographs, signature shoes and magazine covers will do a good job of inflating an ego and some dudes can build up pretty big reputations to live up to.

[Mevs]

There is one character in my scene who used to be really good back in the day and was the head honcho at our main shop for a long time. All the groms who frequented the shop thought that he was the shit, even though he used to hardly skate and spent the majority of his time fucked up or recovering from the night before. These same groms have grown up and have reached he age where they can get served in bars and score weed/pills/whatever, and they still hold this guy in the same regard that they did when they were younger. Now all the up and coming rippers hardly skate and spend most of their time getting fucked up with this guy because they think that it's cool, and it boils my blood. It perfectly illustrates to me the influence that some older disfunctional skaters have over younger members of their scene, and the result is that one fuckup breeds loads of new younger fuckups because they look up to them and want to emulate them...

I'm not trying to be preachy, but I really wish that older guys in a scene took some responsibility for their actions and encouraged the next crop to skate more and get fucked up less. The reason a lot of kids emulate the same flaws that the older ones make is due to peer pressure, and the fear that if they don't that they'll be frozen out. These same kids burn out really quickly and develop serious alcohol and social problems that last them well into adulthood, and it annoys the fuck out of me that one kingpin fuckup holds so much influence over everything that they do.

Head honcho kingpin fuckup person still tells everyone that he skates because he lives vicariously through the groms who had more talent than he ever did, yet never actually skates. Meanwhile the groms who had genuine talent have been turned into his minions and hardly ever skate anymore, because they think he's way cool and just copy what he does.

Does anybody else have one of these fucking regular older kingpins that seem to do more damage than good to their scene?

[gutterhead.]

I'd probably drink and smoke just as much if I didn't skate.

[Schindlers List]

Driving home yesterday it popped in my head that there was this skateshop in Honolulu called Lazy Bones and there was always rumors that they just used the shop as a front to sell drugs out of. So that is a real example. It was funny to because they never re-ordered anything in there, shit was super old and out-dated.

youd be surprised how many shops are into sketchy shit like this

[Bugs]

There is a really friendly message in this thread you guys. Every once in a while I mention that I post with a creative voice. I'm not a fake account but I do exaggerate my own beliefs to make it an interesting read and to be in some sort of character on the boards. The message is for those who are still skating, really simple: don't forget why you fell in love with skating and to stay away from destroying your life with drugs and alcohol to the best you can. I know it's hard and tempting, I've been there, just try and stack clips instead of problems. Stay Up and keep progressing, ALOHA.

[1992]

I'd probably drink and smoke just as much if I didn't skate.

I agree.

This thread sucks.

[SanchoDave]

Expand Quote

I'd probably drink and smoke just as much if I didn't skate.

[close]

I agree.

This thread sucks.

Kill this thread please.