With the increase of popularity with skateboarding and the X Games, young adults have become more involved with extreme sports. The traditional sports world has taken a popularity hit as younger generations are more involved with more individual extreme sports compared to the traditional team sports. These sports give younger generations the opportunity to show their individual skills. Some of these athletes do not like the structure of team sports as they feel restricted and they do not fit their personalities. With extreme sports those athletes can develop their own style and technique that makes it theirs. While in high school I was more involved with the traditional sports of football, baseball, and basketball. As I had friends who were involved with skateboarding, I myself did not have the capability to stay on the board long enough to do anything. They made the sport look easy, however when it came to me and some of my fellow teammates we did not have the coordination or experience on a skateboard and it clearly showed. It was interesting to learn and see as it was a different type of community and the terminology skateboarders used was different from what my fellow football teammates had. Years later I still respect the sport of skateboarding and I am still amazed by the tricks that are done during the X Games and other competitions.
While in high school I remember various businesses in the community putting up signs that skateboarders were not allowed in their parking lot. This became part of the problem in Coshocton as the sport was continuing to grow and skateboarders had no real place to skateboard except to use the city itself. The community seemed to have a difficulty accepting the increased popularity of skateboarding, as the city put in a recreational center for traditional sports. If skateboarders in the community wanted to go to a skate park they would have to drive up to two hours to make it to one. Evolution Skatepark is a bigger type skate park and those living in Coshocton would have to drive around an hour and a half to two hours to go. Other stake parks within two hours were located in Zanesville, New Philadelphia, and Johnstown. Right now some members of the community are trying to raise money to build their own skate park with the helpf for the Tony Hawk Foundation they could meet their goals even faster. The problem with this is with the even younger individuals who are unable to drive; it limits their capability for improving their skateboarding talents as they may not get any outside help from those who are involved with the sport. This sport is truly a community as everyone I have ever met who does skateboard has an understanding with each other and they are always intrigued by the individuality of the sport.
Coshocton, Ohio would benefit from the Tony Hawk Foundation Skateboard Grant as the city is a low income community compared with the averages of Ohio. Coshocton has an annual household salary of $31,500 while the Ohio average is $45,395 (Coshocton, 2011). The Tony Hawk Foundation in their mission statement explains how they are there to help low-income communities and this is something Coshocton should be considered. Many of the mom and pop stores and restaurants are being closed down due to large corporations such as Wal-Mart, Tim Hortons, CVS, and a variety of other larger corporations. This is a steel factory community that has had difficulties going through the recession that the United States is currently going through. Many families have left the community for jobs as they can no longer support their families due to the layoffs that have happened due to factories cutting back. The unemployment rate in Coshocton, Ohio as of March 2011 was 11%, while the state of Ohio was 9% (Coshocton, 2011). Coshocton has a lot potential for places as this could be placed Lincoln Elementary school. This would be an ideal location as it is near the center of town and is easy to locate. There is a few local churches, the police station, schools, and other community businesses around that location. Putting the skate park in a clean and safe part of town would be beneficial to build awareness and help with keeping kids off the streets.
References: Coshocton, Ohio. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.city-data.com/city/Coshocton-Ohio.html
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