July 8 - 21, 2017
Jan. 22-Feb.7, 2015
Feature Story
Philippine Showbiz Today
Pinoy Skateboarders Unite
11
by Jose K. Lirios
PST Manila Correspondent
Beyond an extreme sport,
skateboarding is a lifestyle.
Ask any skateboarder out
there and they will tell you it
is really all about having fun,
establishing real friendship and
self- expression. Skateboarders
usually spend a lot of time and
effort to complete a trick. They
practice every day to master a
certain trick that will help them
win a skateboard competition.
The fine art of skateboarding
helps them relieve stress from
the daily routine of work, some
skateboarders aim to make it
their profession and for others
it is a way to make new friends.
The skateboarding scene in the
Philippines is on an upsurge
and is the fastest growing broad
sport in the country today.
Twenty one-year-old BP
Valenzuela, an avid skateboarder,
singer, songwriter and producer,
embodies the free spirit of the
booming skateboarding culture
here in the Philippines. A music
icon among her fellow skaters,
Valenzuela says her work as an
independent electronic artist is
largely influenced by her love
for skateboarding.
“I always wanted to skate
even when I was a little child
but when I was growing up I
had asthma. Siyempre I am
a girl so even if I wanted a
skateboard my parents wouldn’t
give me one. When I was a kid I
would buy Tech Decks (a brand
that makes fingerboards—
a miniature replica of a
skateboard) from toy stores and
pretend to skate. I would play
video games like Tony Hawk’s
Skater (a popular skateboarding
video game released as Tony
Hawk’s Skateboarding in the
UK, Australia, New Zealand and
parts of Europe). After finishing
high school I really wanted to
learn to skateboard. I was given
my first ever skateboard by my
friend and he taught me how to
skate,” said Valenzuela.
Skateboarding ties in a
lot with music and art. Many
skateboarders
value
their
freedom to express themselves
so you can tell immediately that
most of them are artists.
“I really believe that being
a skateboarder is really a cool
thing to do because I get the
chance to meet other people
through skateboarding even
though it’s for music, even
though it’s for art. It is just like
a community and if the art is
influenced by the culture, the
culture is also influenced by the
art. So it is a two-way thing,”
said Valenzuela.
Even though skateboarding
is commonly known as a
predominantly male extreme
sport, there are a few girl
skateboarders in the Philippines
and right now the number
is steadily growing and they
shouldn’t be ashamed about it.
There is this stereotype going
around that skateboarding isn’t
for girls and should only be for
the boys which shouldn’t be.
Ali Alejandre, a member
of Kick Engines Skate Team
who took up Consular and
Diplomatic Affairs at the De La
Salle-College of Saint Benilde,
is proud to be among a crop of
growing skater girls. What she
enjoys very much is doing her
moves in the Bowl of the Manila
Skate Park at the Canonigo
Covered Court in Paco, Manila.
The sports facility, which opened
in December 2015, can be
used free of charge by the city’s
youth for practicing their skills
and for other social activities
that encourage sportsmanship
and camaraderie.
“Since I started in the sport
of longboarding (longboards
are commonly used for cruising,
downhill racing, slalom racing,
sliding and dancing) skating in
the Bowl feels like longboarding
as well because longboarding is
basically concrete surfing,” said
Alejandre.
“I can be myself when I am
skating at the Manila Skate Park.
Being a girl, it is embarrassing to
fall down but it’s ok because the
people understand. I feel very
safe skating in the park because
sometimes when I fall down
someone comes over to me and
asks if I am ok. Skateboarding
basically teaches you how to
interact with other people.
“Skateboarding is actually
like trying to learn how to
balance. In life you need to
balance yourself. You will fall
sometimes but you need to
get up and you need to go on
forward with your passion,”
Alejandre stressed.
“Nakakatuwa na marami
mga bata na nageeskate
ngayon. Kasi kung mapuputol
ang pageskate nila, mawawala
ang ganitong libangan. Kaya all we do is drink booze, smoke
and vandalize things.”
mas maganda na tuloy tuloy
na yan. Ayan na ang pruweba
na hindi mapuputol talaga
iyan. Pagkatapos namin sila
na ang susunod na katulad
namin, tapos meron naman
dadating katulad nila na bata
sila hanggang tuloy tuloy
na,” said Jerry “Fiber” Benig,
skateboarder and Manila Skate
Park pioneer.
Skateboarding can really
have a positive effect on today’s
youth because it can help them
stay away from bad influences
like drugs and alcohol. “Nangyari
na sa akin iyon kasi hindi na
ako