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Roll with it! More adults skateboarding as it debuts in the Olympics

For Becky White, it all began when she was a skater mom taking her son to the skate park. But on the bench, she was bored… so she decided to get on a board.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Skateboarding is new this year to the Olympic Games.

Also, here in Jacksonville, the city is hosting the Street League Skateboarding super crown world championship in November.  So even locally, there has been a lot of focus on the sport.

More and more adults are showing interest in it as well. For Becky White, it all began when she was a skater mom taking her son to the skate park.

But on the bench, she was bored… so she decided to get on a board.

"I thought, 'wow, that is something I could do'," tells Becky.

She went to the skate parks early to practice and started running into more adults like Brandi Schmidt and Andy Pearl. 

"It felt pretty natural getting back on the board again because I had ridden so  much as a kid," tells Pearl.

Both he and Schmidt were getting back into the sport after a few decades away.  Schmidt says when things began locking down during the pandemic last year, she needed some fun and jumped back on her board. 

"Fortunately, within a couple of days, I met a whole adult crew that totally encouraged me and I bought new stuff and totally got into it from there," says Schmidt.

They call their adult group "Skate Or Die" and they meet up at Kona in Arlington to practice. 

"We are all just skaters, it is the best," says Schmidt.

All three say it is great exercise and if more adults want to try it out, they should. Just pad up first.

"I took some falls out here, I do recommend the pads and just being sensible about it," tells Pearl.

Among the many benefits, they've seen parents and children bond even closer over a love of the sport, just like Becky and her son.

"He would love to share with me about tricks he was working on and the fact that I would know what he was talking about, that I was knowledgeable about what he was sharing and what he was enthusiastic about," says White, "that really made him happy."

So if you think you are too old to skateboard, you're not! As their group will tell you – you only live once, so get to grinding!

"Even if you have a little bit of interest I say go for it, don't hesitate, go for it," says White.

So while there isn't a formal time or place for specifically adult skateboarding, the three say the earlier you get to the skate parks, the greater the chance you'll probably see other adults there too. 

They do recommend if you are an adult, just starting out for the very first time, start with some lessons at Kona so you learn the proper safety and techniques.

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