By Scott Brinton
Slowly, however, skateboarding is becoming less of a fringe, or extreme, sport, and is gaining mainstream acceptance.
With acceptance comes a growing number of young people who are taking up the sport. Estimates are that there are nearly 20 million skateboarders worldwide, 85 percent of whom are under age 18 and 75 percent of whom are male.
Stephanie Altman, a Merrick Avenue Middle School phys. ed. teacher, said the number of skateboarders among her students has grown exponentially in recent years. The trouble, she said, is that too often they're skateboarding unsafely, because they've never received formal instruction in the sport.
So Altman thought she should teach skateboarding in phys. ed. She brought the idea to Saul Lerner, the Bellmore-Merrick Central District athletic director, who thought skateboarding would fit perfectly with the district's focus on the "new phys. ed."; that is, more individual, non-competitive sports that students can enjoy throughout their lives.
Lerner sent Altman to school to learn how to skateboard -- with an emphasis on safety. Altman, a mountain-biker, had never ridden a skateboard until recently. She was certified in skateboarding education -- yes, there is such a thing -- through Skate Pass, a private school, which taught her how to stay on a board and when and where to skateboard. She even picked up proper skateboarding etiquette.
As far as Lerner knows, Merrick Avenue is the first school in Nassau County to offer skateboarding. Lerner ordered a class set of skateboards, helmets and elbow, wrist and kneepads. The class may be taught at other Central District schools in the near future if all goes well at Merrick Avenue.
Skate Pass says its mission is to "bring skateboarding into schools across the world to address the growing trend of alternative activities; to emphasize the heart of skateboarding, which includes individual creative expression, cooperation, and friendship; and to support the health and well-being of students."
Lerner said he believes the two-week skateboarding unit, which is set to launch this month, will draw interest from students who do not enjoy the traditional "big three" phys. ed. units -- football, basketball and baseball.
"We're trying to get kids to really want to be active," Lerner said.
Next up for Central District phys. ed.? Possibly in-line skating.
Comments about this story? SBrinton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 203.
