Skateboarding is healthy for you!!!

However, drinking until 3 AM and waking up at 6 AM to ride is still unhealthy.

I swear i didn't make this up:
http://www.allhealthnews.net/news.html?view=11240


Skateboarding to better health
SAYREVILLE, New Jersey (AP) -- While the tennis courts at Kennedy Park are bare on a hot afternoon, parents keep dropping off teenagers at the skate park, home to all the day's action.
A dozen boys sit on the ledge, cooling off while watching others take turns flying downhill on the concrete slope.

Forget Little League: In some areas, skateboarding is now the sport of choice.Clad in helmets and jeans, the teens have their choice of skating into a clover-shaped bowl -- resembling an oddly shaped empty swimming pool -- or over a series of obstacles not unlike the park benches or railings used in street skating."You can just, like, go out here and do your own thing," said Nick Marrone, 13, visiting from Poughquag, New York. "It's whatever you want; you're just having fun."The sport once mainly practiced on backyard ramps and in Southern California skate parks has found universal appeal.

One estimate is that there are 12 million skateboarders nationwide and more than 1,000 public skateparks on top of the multitude of private ones."It's a great rush," said 14-year-old Amelia Brodka, taking a short break from the vert ramp at the indoor RexPlex Skate Park in Elizabeth.The sport is growing not only in the suburbs of big cities, but also in small communities like Searcy, Arkansas."There are more and more kids every single day getting involved and the stereotypes are really being lifted," said Alan Holloway, program coordinator for Searcy Parks and Recreation, which opened its municipal skate park in 2000 and expanded it in 2002 because of heavy use.

The core market seems to be in the 10- to 15-year-old group of "energetic, crazy young kids who are fearless," and who now surpass the number of Little League baseball players, said Miki Vuckovich of the Tony Hawk Foundation, established by perhaps the sport's best-known athlete."A lot of kids are looking for alternatives now; they don't want to do team sports," said Mark Sperling, founder of Op Girls Learn to Ride, which teaches skateboarding and other action sports to females. "Skateboarding is a way for them to express who they are and their creativity."

It's also inexpensive -- just grab a secondhand skateboard and head to the streets. And while some skate competitively, others say they have fun without the pressures or politics of team sports."There's no coach yelling at you that you bobbled the play," said Chris Li, 16, of Livingston, New Jersey, who is lobbying his hometown to build a municipal park.

"It's not like you bobble one play, and you're benched for the rest of the season."The sport's popularity dates to the 1960s and has surged again in the last 10 years thanks in part to the X Games, the action sports competition broadcast on ESPN and ABC.And its appeal these days is ever wider. Some parks have an "Old Man's Night;" and girls and women acccount for about 20 percent of skateboarders. There's even a California-based International Society of Skateboarding Moms."We just can't get this kind of buzz from scrapbooking," said founder Barb Odanaka, 41, of Laguna Beach, Calif.

"We can't get this on the tennis courts and we certainly can't get it from shopping at the mall. There's something about looking down a vertical wall of cement and basically hurling yourself down this wall on four wheels. That is a rush like nothing else."

Avid skateboarders maintain their sport is no more dangerous than football or soccer. Skateboarding-related accidents accounted for 113,180 emergency room injuries in 2002, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. That's about a third of the bicycle injuries suffered by kids under age 15, and about half the number of injuries from playground equipment.Aspiring riders are usually drawn more to the adrenaline rush than the fitness benefits, but it does provide a great workout, experts say."It's cardiovascular; it's better than running," said Brendan Flattery, 28, who runs skateboarding programs at the RexPlex.

"You're constantly moving."Balance is key, and it also helps to have a sense of direction and agility. While learning to skateboard requires patience and perseverance, Vuckovich said the rewards are many."You're always progressing, you're always learning something new," he said. "You see things and you want to replicate it. You want to be that guy. The closer you get there, the more the mystery is solved and the more excited you get. It's a great thing for kids to do."The trend also means teens are spending less time on video games."The more time that you can limit them from being squatted in front of the TV, and actually get them outside physically doing something, that's a good thing," said Searcy parks coordinator Holloway.
Copyright 2003 The All News. Published: Monday, August 16, 2004 Posted 18:02 EDT (1222 GMT)

It's On

This is a phrase we often use, but never really think about.

What exactly is on? Is the heat on? Hopefully not while we're not there, but I'd appreciate it if someone could show up around 5 and warm the house for me every Friday.

Are the lights on? Again, it'd be great if someone could turn them on for me before I get up to the BJL. I have an irrational fear whenever I arrive at the house first that tonight is the night the naked ninja hits me with his poison throwing stars and makes off with my valuable US Open duffel bag circa 1999 (seriously, is anyone else afraid when they show up first?).

No, what is really on is the season. There's snow on the ground (really, I've seen it) and I've already got four solid days riding/drinking/and falling on my ass with some really good people. Hugh's posts are starting to get me stoked to get back on the hill again and my new found prowess as a candlepin bowler gives me another platform to heckle my superiority over my long-time riding buddies.

Ok, this is the first and last self-serving, feel good, gimme a hug, rub my belly posting I'll drop.
Moving forward with this season, please keep three things in mind:

1. Remember to lower the heat to minimum when you leave
2. I'm a better candlepin bowler than you
3. Holding a beer does not count as icing your wrist, no matter how cold the beer

And with that advice, it's on,

-bb

The Beginning

In 2001 there was the Tilted House. Located a few miles from Hunter mountain, this was our weekend home for the winter. A small, three bedroom apartment at the bottom of an old mill, which was supposedly the site of a double homicide (according to the pizza store owner across the street). The house was also slanted 15 degrees towards the adjacent river, hence it's name.

Much fun was had in the house. It's central location to all of Hunter's nite life. It is this house that Buyyaahhh Caps! was invented and Mike Cassidy was given the moniker "Special X." However, due to the 4 AM last call of the many local clubs, not a lot of skiing went down in the two seasons we rented this house. We should also note that there was a rat problem and little critters were often heard rummaging around in the temporary ceiling. It might be worth noting that the kerosene heater leaked too one night, dousing the living room and leaving a stench on any gear/people who spent time in there. There's a lot more worth mentioning... but we won't.

In 2002, Chris "Size 8" Jackson rented a house at Mount Snow with Kara "KG" Grobert. This house was named the Brown Jug Lodge, after the name on the front driveway sign (duh). It is in this house where such stalwart riders as "Danger" Dave Sanosi and Brian "Salsa" Steinberg came into the crew. This house is a vast improvement over the Tilted House in terms of both size and construction. However, there was a shortage of animals in the house (except for the bugs who awaken whenever the heat is turned on) so in 2003 Chris and Kara bought their pet rats, Sniffy and Itchy.

The year is 2004 now, and the third full BJL season is underway. Hugh and Bill are handling house logistics, which means basically that Hugh bugs people to fill out the calendar and Bill takes back the recyclables (he probably drank most of the beer anyway).

What will the 04/05 season hold? It's already started off with a bang due to a new found love of candlepin bowling and a raucous "boys only" weekend attended by Bill, Hugh, Chris, Danger and Brian. Chris has already bloddied his shin on the fun box, while Bill asserts his dominance on the three-ball alleys. Will we see the elusive "Los Dos Tres"? Will Fat Dog come into the BJL? Will Special X learn to snowboard?

It's going to be a long season folks, get ready for the ride.
-Fat Dog