Step one: Find a good place to skate. A parking lot or level sidewalk can be an optimal place to start. Be wary of cracks, potholes, and small rocks. When using a skateboard with hard wheels, a surprising amount of falls will result from a small overlooked pebble. Jacob’s car broke down so I drove him to our neighborhood skatepark after school. A sunny August day in Arizona is an oven, dry with the heat turned all the way up. The sun beat down upon us and scorched the road we walked on. The empty skatepark buckled and flowed like a stagnant concrete ocean. Everything in this heat was still. Exerting enough energy for movement in the glaring sun seemed to be too much effort and the leaves that once swayed in the sun were still. I sat on a bench under a blue palo verde tree and took out my copy of Aldous Huxely’s A Brave New World, occasionally looking up to watch Jacob skate up and down the concrete waves.
Step two: With the board flat on the ground, stand with your feet perpendicular to the board and roughly lined up with the truck screws. Try to keep your balance without falling down. Lean back and forth to see how much sway is on the trucks and get comfortable with that movement. The next day on our way to the skatepark, I turned down the radio and remarked to Jacob how my brother’s old skateboard was sitting in our garage and maybe I could learn how to skate. To this he said nothing so I turned on 46th street and dug the board out of an old bin. The sun was setting as we arrived at the park and though it was a desolate desert the last time I was there it had seemed to come alive. With the sun slipping behind the jagged landscape, the vast sky was illuminated with bright oranges and sharp pinks. The concrete hills and valleys seemed to glow under the brilliant sky and they had become animated with people gliding up and down the pipes and inclines. “There’s a lot of people here,” I said. Jacob slammed the trunk shut, “Maybe you should just read your book.” My words got caught in my throat and I wasn’t able to answer before he skated away.
Step three: Slightly rotate your front foot so that it is more parallel with the board. Use your front foot to gently push off the ground. As you get more comfortable, increase your speed; bend your knees
How to Ride a Skateboard
Allie Ophardt
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