men-m... “96.49,,” using... WW and four. wheel‘sy
promoting the health. environmental and practical benefits of cycling.
Sustrans Freepost BS7739. Bristol, 881 4BR. The Sustainable Transport charity. which designs and builds
There is no other pastime that has no instruction manuals, no
school, no laws or rules.
v wait»
Angus-NiacLellan, 19 ' skateboard Queen Street Station,
Glasgow
oif by the guard...
routes for cyclists and walkers. Responsible for building a 10.000-mile National Cycle Network. of which 5000 miles were opened in June 2000.
Cyclists’ Touring Club Lothlans Branch
Secretary. Mike Harrison, 0131 554 7773: e-mail secretary@ctclothians. orguk The national body for cyclists everywhere. with 100 years‘ experience under its belt. membership
I’ve just come off the train from Aberdeen. l’m from Huntly, V and I’ve been at university in Glasgow since October. I just hopped off the train and straight onto my skateboard; until I got told
offers free third party insurance. legal advice and other benefits. The CTC actively campaigns for safer roads and
better facilities
throughout the UK and concentrates on touring
not racing.
Surf addict
They said it was a passing fad, but skateboarding just won’t go away. Words: Coach Photos: Jonathan Littlejohn and S. King
have been sidewalk surfing in Scotland for the past fifteen
years. It seems like an oxymoron. imagining ‘skateboard’
and 'Scotland‘ in the same sentence. what with our awful weather in winter and the poor surface quality of the majority of Scottish streets. But I‘m as much of a skateboard addict as I‘ve ever been. I just haye ntore distractions and commitments now I‘m older.
The anatomy of a skateboarder from Scotland is unique. The conditioning they go through due to the elements. environment. torture and abuse certainly separate the wheat from the chaff. There is no other pastime that has no instruction manuals. no schools. no laws or rules. All you do is put the board down. stand on it and the rest is up to you.
Whether you like bombing down hills. or flipping the board beneath your feet. jumping downstairs (or if you are really brave and stupid. slide down the adjacent handrail) or maybe just going back and forth on your backyard ratnp. skateboarding is the most Zen-like experience available using wood and four wheels.
Skateboarding has strong foundations in Scotland. Kenny ()mond. who started the first Scottish skate organisation itt l‘)7(i and helped build the legendary Livingston skate park. the Stonehenge of British skateboarding. is (it) this year and can still be seen down the park having a cruise on his hoard. 'l'hat‘s proof that skatel‘ioarding is here to stay and isn‘t some retarded jumping on the American Tony Hawk bandwagon type stuff. We are talking about 25 years of history.
There was a time when there was a facility in Kelvingrovc (now llower beds) . . . there was an indoor place in a (ilasgow church known as Angelights which met its maker . . . there have been countless abandoned factories in Dundee all illegally converted and destroyed . . . But skateboarding keeps
jumping out of the ashes bigger and better than before.
011 paper I‘m an adult. a professional. a tax payer. Most people see me as a nuisance on the pavement or a danger on the road. Last week a bus driver refused to let me on his bus for bombing down a hill in front of him. What a misery gule But ljust can't stop and l have no idea how to grow tip.
l‘use' it for transport and to get to University in the morning. lt’s'about
3, .a twenty minute walk, but I get
Ethere in 'te'n'min'uteson my
1 skateboard. Most. skateboarders
‘ use their board for transport. I take mine into lectures and leave it at the side. , “
l’ve been skateboarding for four
years. The Gallery of Modern Art is good for tricks.
Stansfield, 19 Hallcroft
l .lart. not: Park, Ratho. Edinburgh Borders Mountain Bike EH28 88F. 0131 333 Club Emma Guy, 12A 4585.
Young Street. Peebles Edinburgh Bicycle Club
EH45 8JX. 01721 724481. E-mail eguy@656978aol.com
M. Sweatman. 8 Alvanley Terrace. Whitehouse Loan, >
‘. ,- 14-1 Ma, W301 THE LIST 25