to be a roller
Rolllllllllllllllll bounce. Roooooooooooooooock skate.
Vaughan Mason & Crew - Bounce, Rock, Skate, Roll
Whew. A classic.
I started this blog to explore and share my passions. With the way 2020 went, I couldn’t even begin to be passionate. Honestly, the plight of Black America, racial injustices, police brutality, COVID, politics and everything else that has been going on really put a damper on everything. I needed to be sensitive to the climate but I also needed to write about some important stuff. But the more I realize that things can’t (and shouldn’t) go back to the way things were, the more I am coming to understand that I can still be passionate about myself and the world around me. Whew. I’m preaching.
So now that we can talk about something else, let’s talk about rolling. One of my many passions, that I’m finding my way back to, is skating. I’m from St. Louis, USA. We don’t claim the rest of the state because we’re highkey bougie. Anywho, Skate King, one of the greatest skating rinks in the country is in St. Louis. As a kid, I had no idea how dope the rink was. I had most of my birthday parties there, my friends had parties there, and it was a general staple. I stopped skating when I moved away to go to college.
It was strange to me that my college town only had one skating rink and it was super far from everything. College Me didn't have a car and I didn’t have the money to pay for a ride. We didn’t have Uber back then. (Don’t worry about how old I am, just know Black don’t crack.) Needless to say, I stopped skating. At home, there was always a skating rink to go to.
How it started
How it’s going
Being in the house during quarantine forced me to get back to the things I loved. That’s part of the reason I published this blog. I wanted to do all the things that made me happy because being in the house was draining all of the energy I thought I had. I reached out to some sk8ters in St. Louis to help me find some skates. I bought a pair of Riedell Angel Skates. These are my first pair since I had those goofy looking adjustable roller skates from Fisher Price. Did you have a real childhood if you didn’t stomp around the kitchen in them things??
Where do I skate? Outside, in the house, on the balcony, in the parking lot, and any place else that has a relatively smooth ground. Most rinks are still closed because of COVID and I’m not taking any chances on the places that are open. In an effort to push myself more out of my comfort zone, I’m willing to just be outside. I’m learning and there is a unique beauty in that. Yes, I fall and look a mess but who gon check me, boo?
One of the first things I did when I ordered my skates was look up everything I could on the innanets. I learned that skating is something Black people created. Inline skating was popular in Europe but not 4 wheel skating. Roller skating and artistic skating was popularized during the time of disco music and became a large part of Our community. I mean, I thought skating was yet another thing that Black people were ostracized for and we created our own rinks as safe havens. Nah, fam. We made dis. If you do a Google search on the roller skating community, you’ll find a plethora of articles that talk about Black skate culture and community. And as a kid, it never occurred to me that everybody didn’t skate. The rink was the place to be without an age limit. There were also specific nights for specific groups so everybody could shine. Rinks were the place to be. Being Black gets more and more lit every day.
I am by no means a great skater (yet) but I am still stomping around my kitchen in skates.
Okay so why am I telling you how great St. Louis is and how dope I am at skating? Because! I want to know what yall have found to help you stay sane during quarantine? Are you getting back to old passions? Are you finding new things to be passionate about? Enjoy this mini photo shoot. I look like I know what I’m doing but I fell like 8 times.
Link to the Riedell skates: https://www.roller.riedellskates.com/catalog/roller-skate-sets/artistic-skate-sets/set-111-angel
