Like many, I’ve been watching bits and pieces of the Olympics over the last couple of weeks. This time round, I was particularly interested in the first time appearance of skateboarding as an official Olympic event. It was amazing how young many of the competitors were, but I was even more impressed by how old some of them were. Dallas Oberholzer, from South Africa, was one of two 46 year old men competing in the competition, and I was rather inspired by his story, which got me reading other stories about people who’ve picked up skateboarding in their forties after long absences.
Further to this, a couple of weeks ago I took my kids to the local skate park, which has just reopened after a big revamp and expansion. They were on their bikes, and it was nerve-wracking watching them drop in for the first time, but they soon got the hang of it and were cruising around like they owned the place. There were a bunch of kids there of varying ages and riding a range of wheeled devices and the atmosphere was really positive — everyone was giving each other encouragement — and when one of my twins, now seven, had a wee crash, I didn’t even get a chance to move before another boy, a few years older, helped him up, dusted him off and sent him on his way again.
All of this has got me thinking about buying a skateboard again, so I can share the action with my children next time we go. But the last time I rode a skateboard was around about 1998, and after twenty-three years, I’m not sure I’m up to the challenge. Given my age and lack of grace and co-ordination, I’d have to be fully armoured up in helmet and pads and wrist-guards, but that’s okay — one of the many advantages of approaching middle age is that the fear of looking ridiculous reduces with every passing year. No, the one fear that does give me cause to pause is that of pain. I hate pain, and given the aforementioned lack of grace and co-ordination, I just know that if I get anywhere near a skateboard again it’s going to be an inevitability.
So, the question is, will the enjoyment and satisfaction of giving it a go be worth the pain?
Only one way to find out, right? After all, as my students keep telling me, you only live once.
What sport have you found the most compelling at the Tokyo Olympics? Let me know in the comments.
FREE BOOK!
A gritty and engaging story of human faults, fears, and frailty, What Friends Are For is the prequel short story to my tragicomic novel, Taking the Plunge. Introduce yourself to the characters from the novel and find out where it all begins for Kate, Tracy, Evan and Lawrence.