Skateboarding has always been empowering for teenagers, but it’s turning its focus to an even younger demographic.
Pro skater Karl Watson has written a skateboarding book just for children.
According to Vice, Watson, a 40-year-old San Francisco native has been professionally involved in the sport since the early 1990s. Watson is now a father t four kids and wants to share his passion and love for the sport with the next generation.
My First Skateboard is a combination of stories between Watson and cartoonist Henry Jones, and tells a story about falling down, getting back up, and finding a community of likeminded skaters.
“I was at a turning point in my life and career and was thinking of ways to try and continue making my impact on skateboarding,” Watson said. “I wanted to focus on the positive attributes that skateboarding has to offer and it was like, ‘Hey, I might as well try to inject our youth with as much information as possible about how amazing skateboarding is.'”
Currently, about 23.9% of all skaters are female, but Watson’s book helps empower all children to feel comfort in picking up a board and having some fun. One of the lines in My First Skateboard reads:
“Whether you are male or female, big or small, [or] short or tall, skateboarding accepts us all.”
Skateboarding has always had negative connotations associated with it, but the tide is beginning to turn. Books like this will help young children feel more comfortable about picking up a skateboard and spending time with their friends — they don’t have to skip to smoking cigs and getting nose tattoos. They can just have fun.
“Skateboarding can save the world,” Watson added. “What I mean by that is that skating breaks down the race, language, gender, and age barriers. It’s the best activity known to mankind, straight up and down.”
Also, here is a skateboarding Santa.
