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April / May 2010 theShield
Feature/Sports | 13
Skateboarding Becomes a Way of Life for Diehards
Skating is Pursued Despite Time Restraints Imposed by School and Other Duties
By Dominic Mallari
Do you ever wish you
could fl y? Ever thought
of surfi ng without the fear
of drowning? Skateboarding puts
these two dreams together. Skaters
go everywhere to feel the thrill of
risking injuries. From stairs with
handrails to vertical half pipes, all
these adventurous endeavors allow
skaters to know how it feels
to fl y, as well as surf. Senior Ayman
Abdeldayem describes that
places to skate are “whatever is
rugged enough to skate; got to go
savage sometimes, ya know?”
There are many things that get
in a skateboarder’s way. One of
them is school. School gets in the
way of skating because it takes up
all of our time. It doesn’t mean
that school is a bad thing, but
skaters try to juggle skating and
still doing well in school. Skating
is not tolerated in school or any
other public place, and it is often
misjudged by society. Also, skateboarding
is not a sport. It is nothing
like baseball, football, basketball,
or any other sports because it
has no rules or regulations, which
is what makes it so different.
Junior James Tilman, a local
skater, says, “Skateboarding is a
way to get out of everything. Like
when I’m really stressed out, I
skate to feel more relaxed.”
Tilman also said, “I don’t like
how skateboarding isn’t the way
it was before. We all used to skate
for fun, but now the new skaters
only skate for the style. I think
skateboarding should be a way to
express yourself. You shouldn’t
skate only because people want
you to.”
He states that kids these days
only skate because it is cool, and
not because they like it. Many locals
feel the same way, and they
feel that these posers only get in
the way.
Senior Joseph Locke explains
his views on skateboarding, commenting,
“It’s freedom, no rules
to follow, just fl ow! It’s that thing
that just isn’t a hobby; it’s a lifestyle.”
When it comes to school work,
Locke says, “Sometimes it’s hard
to get off the brain, but for me it’s
just another reason to get good
grades.”
He says that he always skates
whenever he can. His opinions on
new skaters are that “everyone
plays their part in the enhancing
of skating
fun
and new
skaters
are no
except
i o n
[since
t h e y
are] just
keeping
skaters
hyped.”
His favorite
spots
include
the Pie
in Laurel
Mall
a n d
Carolls
Ledge.
Senior Abdeldayem says, “It’s
just something I love and actually
have a passion for. Nothing can
take me away from it and it’s a
perfect stress reliever. [It] always
puts a smile on my face.”
Abdeldayem is almost done
with high school, so he faces a
huge amount of schoolwork. Abdeldayem
explains how he does in
school, mentioning, “Although I
get good
grades
n o w ,
school
interferesintensely
[with
skating].
I’m
sure if I
wasn’t
skating,
I would
probably
be a 4.0
Skater Ayman Abdeldayem performs a Nollie 360-Flip on “The Pit” in Washington, D.C. (photo by Dennis Williford)
student taking AP classes. But it’s
not what I love. I’m glad to risk
a couple GPA points for skating.”
Even though he gets plenty of
homework, Abdeldayem proudly
claims that he skates for hours
everyday. And with that spirit, he
still maintains A’s and B’s on his
report card. Through his hard work
in skating, he’s earned some sponsors
such as Kooks Skateboards
and Velocity Skateshop, which
provide him with the best equipment.
Kooks is a new brand which
makes decks. It has many riders
and some decks can be found in
GVC Skatepark and Shop, which
is located in Laurel Mall.
Abdeldayem also gives advice
for anyone who is trying to skate,
expressing, “Well I think being a
new skater is cool and all, but it
depends on what you’re skating
for. Such as if you’re doing it to
be cool or just to fi t in, then I can’t
agree with that. But if you do it
for the sole purpose of the beauty
and art involved, and can just see
yourself having a passion for it,
then by all means go ahead and
start skating.”
Skateboarding is nothing more
than that of a person’s mind. It all
begins through a mindset because
skaters do it for the fun of it since
it is different, and it is perfect for
those with an outsider mentality.
Skaters would not feel the thrill
of expressing themselves if they
were held back by reservations
about what they do. Rules do not
matter to us; we just have fun and
hang out.
In addition, one of the major
benefi ts of skateboarding is
traveling. Trips to great spots for
skateboarding take the locals to
Washington D.C., Baltimore, and
even New York. Although there
are many other places to skate,
Laurel also has its own ideal spots
including GVC Skate Park at Laurel
Mall, stair sets, open parking
lots, ledges and curbs. As one can
sense from skateboarders’ comments,
skateboarding tends to become
a passion or obssession that
is fi lled with endless possibilities.
Male Cheerleaders Add
Integral Element to Squad
By Jennifer Rodriguez
“People should be open-minded
and actually do the research on male cheerleading,”
says Mrs. Bulla-White, who is
the coach of the cheerleading team.
This year, there are two boys* on
Varsity and two boys* on JV. There was
a mandatory interest meeting last month
and tryouts were scheduled to be held last
week.
“I encourage all who are interested to
try-out,” says Bulla-White, “I especially
encourage male team members who are
confi dent and can be dedicated to the
sport.”
“One thing that the guys quickly learned
was that cheerleading is more dangerous
than football,” says Bulla-White. The
team has been practicing every day and
they are in the midst of competitions. The
team competed on March 19 and the 20.
“I think it would behoove a lot of males
to stay in shape [in order] to become a part
of the cheer program.” The “main function”
of the male cheerleaders “is to primarily
lift the girl and keep them from hitting
the ground,” explains Bulla-White.
Many major colleges, including Maryland,
have males on the their squad.
Diana Mejia expresses how the male
cheerleaders have helped her and the other
female cheerleaders on the squad from
avoiding injuries.
“We actually need them for strength;
[they] add to the program, and I think
people have a bad view of them,” stated
Mejia.
This is Cheerleading Coach Bulla-
White’s fi rst year as coach of the team.
She has coached teams in Missouri and
North Carolina, which both included male
cheerleaders. Throughout all these years,
she has yet to have a team that was not
composed of athletes from both sexes.
* The cheerleading sponsor has requested
that the names of the male cheerleaders
not be mentioned.