During the San Francisco X Games, MomsTeam talked to moms of some of the top athletes, who shared their experiences in the world of "extreme" sports and advice on what other parents should know to help them decide if these sports are right for their child.
A Generation Gap?
If you don’t know much about the new sports that have kids across the country jumping, spinning and riding every chance they get, relax! You are not alone. Despite having moved into mainstream culture, they are still very generational, with most parents knowing only what they learn from their kids. As a result, parents usually have lots of questions, like: Are these sports safe? Where do I take my kids to learn? How do I buy the proper equipment? Can you really make a living as an extreme athlete and how do I know if my child is good enough to compete?
Some of what moms told us was not surprising, including the very real risk of injuries. Every parent had a story about stitches or broken bones, but, as they pointed out, so does the parent of a football or soccer player. On the other hand, we were surprised when moms told us about how close many had become to their teenagers as a result of their support and involvement in their child’s choice of a non-traditional sport. Both the mothers and the athletes helped explain why many kids are drawn "alternative" sports instead of more traditional sports.
Family Support is Key
The mothers we spoke with, all who have children competing at these X Games, had to make tough decisions and sacrifices to help their kids reach this level of competition. In some cases they travel the country with their child to attend competitions, spending considerable time away from the rest of the family. The moms confess to having had concerns when their kids first began these sports about the possibility of injuries. And many of them had little knowledge, let along first hand experience, about sports like skateboarding or in-line skating. But once it became clear to them that this was what their child loved doing and that they had the talent, they committed themselves and their time to helping their children fulfill their dreams.
Debby Pastrana is the mother of 16-year-old Moto X freestyle phenom and gold medallist in the 1999 and 2000 X Games, Travis Pastrana. In this, one of the most dangerous sports at the X Games, where riders fly 35 feet in the air and perform extremely difficult tricks on a motorcycle, Debby has had to face her fears as a parent and rise above them to support her son’s dream. "Its hard, it’s very hard. Travis has broken over 20 bones and been in a wheelchair for two and half months when they weren’t sure if he would be paralyzed. It was the hardest thing as a parent, but you see your kid who tries and it’s in their heart. As a parent, if you see this in your child, you have to support it. You have to. And if you don’t support them then lots of things are going to be worse. Because then they feel the friction of that and don’t want to go against you. We are in it 100%, I’ve been with him every step of the way. When he’s hurt and in rehab, he never complains, and that’s when you know [that he’s committed]," explained Pastrana.
On the other hand, some parents still don’t see extreme sports as real athletic competition and, as a result, don’t respect the path their child has chosen. One parent, who didn’t want to give her name, shared with us how a lack of support can really harm a parent/child relationship. While both parents have decided to support their child’s decision to become a professional bike stunt rider, one parent continues to belittle the sport and has yet to attend any competitions. This has caused a lot of pain for their child and has seriously strained family relationships.
A Family Affair
Extreme athletes may present a rebellious persona to the public, but that doesn’t necessarily reflect their true character or their relationships with their families. In fact, it is not uncommon to see these young athletes hanging out with their families and even giving mom a hug during a practice session. There is a real sense of family teamwork at these competitions, with the parents offering support and encouragement, but showing no signs of putting pressure of their kids. At a time in their lives when kids often feel their parents can’t relate to them, many of these young athletes are very close with the parents who have done so much to help them reach their goals.
In the case of the Pastranas, both mom and dad are at the X Games with Travis and it is truly a family affair. Debby Pastrana is justifiably proud of her son. Not only because he repeated as gold-medallist and, at age 16, is the youngest competitor in Moto X, but because of the kind of person he is growing up to be: one with the drive and discipline needed to compete in one of the most adrenaline-driven sports, who can still show respect towards his family (often giving her a hug after completing a good run).
Fulfilling A Dream
In the world of aggressive in-line skating, the athletes are some of the youngest around, and, it seems, getting younger every day. Deborah West is a 14-year-old professional in-line skater competing in her first X Games. Unlike other athletes who reach the elite level at an early age, such as gymnasts, who often travel with a team and coaches who are often like second parents, cutting edge athletes like West are pretty much on their own. That is one reason why family support plays such a vital role in their success.
Corinne West, Deborah’s mom, has committed to doing everything she can to help Deborah fulfill her potential in skating, but it hasn’t always been easy. Corinne remembers how her daughter kept asking her if she could try in-line skating at a local skatepark [1] . She finally consented, and a month later Deborah entered her first contest and won! Since then it has been an adventure for them both. "I didn’t like it at first," said Corinne of her daughter’s participation in a sport where injuries are a fact of life. Her advice to other moms who may feel that way: "If it’s your child’s dream, go for it, but be ready to give a lot of support and a lot of hours sitting on a bench. It [requires] dedication." West, along with other parents, spends much of the professional in-line season, from April to October, on the road with her daughter and apart from the rest of their family. It’s a sacrifice she is willing to make.
The Appeal Of Action Sports
For many kids, action sports mean less pressure to win and more fun with their friends. While each child is different and their reasons for choosing a sport are just as varied, we definitely found from talking to parents at the X Games a common theme: kids participated because they wanted to have fun with their friends and be able to express themselves.
The top reasons parents and kids give for why action sports are so appealing:
They are fun
They are always challenging and there is always something new to learn
They get to hang out with their friends while participating
They offer kids a way to express themselves and show their individuality and personality
They allow kids independence yet with a sense of community
Kids are competing mostly with themselves
There is less pressure to win, and no coaches or parents yelling at them
Face it, they’re cool sports and every kid wants to be cool!
Playing Other Sports
Don’t assume that a child interested in action sports is completely rejecting more mainstream sports. Many participate in both. Kelley Matthews, a professional in-line skater, was an all-star softball player and was offered a college soccer scholarship but decided to commit full-time to becoming a skater because it was the sport she loved most.
Extreme sports have evolved from kids playing together in their backyards and in their neighborhoods, being inventive, creative and adventurous and eventually developing new sports. Even as they have become more mainstream, with top athletes now able to support themselves financially, the desire to have fun is still at the core of why they do what they do.
Advice From Skateboard Legend Tony Hawk
You may hear your kids talking about skateboarding legend Tony Hawk and a trick he performed at last year’s X-Games called a "900", which wowed the action sports world. No doubt every young skateboarder dreams of being able to skate like Tony Hawk. But do they know that it took Hawk 10 years to learn how to do that one trick? Top action athletes don’t go out and just start throwing themselves off of jumps and up in the air. Their mothers will tell you that, like elite athletes in any other sport, they had to spend hours and weeks and years learning to ride and perfecting basic tricks in order to progress to the harder ones.
Asked by MomsTeam, Hawk's advice to parents was that "If their kid is getting frustrated or feels like they’re not progressing, give them encouragement. When I was learning, I never really felt like I was excelling that quickly, but my dad was always willing to take me to the park and my mom was always giving me encouraging words. I think the bottom line is to make it clear to them that skateboarding is hard and it’s a long road. You can’t just pick up a skateboard and do the things you see on TV."
Safety First
As one mom put it "I’m so proud of her but my hair is gray. I’m in church everyday saying please no more boo boos." Injuries come with the territory and there are different risks in each sport. Proper safety gear [2] is essential, as is learning how to take a fall properly and how to interact with other athletes on a course or skatepark. There are unwritten safety and etiquette rules in skateparks including where not to stop (like in blind spots where no one can see you), when you can start your run and when your turn is over. Taking lessons [3] and paying attention to your surroundings will reduce the chance of injuries. At the professional level there are medical staff on hand at each event, and some athletes even bring their own doctors with them.
Challenges and Rewards
"It’s an excellent sport, if the child is serious about it, but there are a lot of injuries involved," says Diane Matthews, mother of in-line skater, Kelly Matthews, age 18. "If the child is determined and is healthy about it, and is taking care of other responsibilities like school (Kelly graduated high school with honors), then it’s okay with me. If she stays clean as far as drugs and all that garbage. [Drugs are] available but if a person keeps good character, they can go really far."
The reward comes not just from the actual skating, which Diane feels is a great outlet for kids to stay focused on positive things, but also from the opportunities that can come with it. For Kelly, those opportunities include winning prize money, getting sponsors who help support her skating, and having the chance to be in ads and working with companies like Disney.
Diane has had to make sacrifices
to allow Kelly those opportunities, including taking a job she wouldn’t
have otherwise taken, simply because it offered a great health
insurance program necessary to cover Kelly’s frequent doctor visits for
her bumps, bruises, sprains and broken bones.
Planning For The Future
As in all professional sports, it is important for extreme athletes to prepare for a future after they can no longer compete. Many are beginning to get involved in the business end of their sports, and it is becoming increasingly common for them to have product endorsements (note the large number of television ads with skateboarders and in-line skaters), have their own line of products and even to start their own businesses.
Perhaps one of the greatest examples is bicycle stunt legend Matt Hoffman, whose company, Hoffman Bikes, has created a new career for him even as he continues to compete. He also founded Hoffman Productions, which runs many of the bike competitions and is largely responsible for the organization and success of freestyle biking today.
Links:
[1] http://www.momsteam.com/alpha/sports/skateboarding/skateboard-parks.shtml
[2] http://www.momsteam.com/alpha/sports/inlineskating/aggressive_skating_equip.shtml
[3] http://www.momsteam.com/alpha/sports/inlineskating/skating_instruction.shtml