Great letter

[SkaFreak]

I was just kinda glancing around expn.com looking at winter x-games stuff and came across this great letter written by Jason Hines, president of Mix Ride Media. This is about inliners and skateboarders, but I think it applies just as well to the skiboarder snowboarder issue.
http://expn.go.com/expn/story?pageName=050309_inline_letter01

[Greco]

i'm floored that inlining is out of the x games. damn the mainstream is becoming even more so. total shame. thanks for posting that link. his letter is so awesome and you're right, what a parallel to skiboarding.

here's the best part:::

Now, I ask ... Why do you hate me?

You want us to go away from your world of action sports and we have gone quietly. We are out of the X Games as a competing sport (Inline was removed from the roster for 2005) and we haven't complained. Our industry has been humbled and our numbers have slipped because obese American children wearing BAM shirts and playing Tony Hawk Pro Skater say we are lame. The majority of core rollerbladers have left your precious skateparks and knee-high ledges in search of more challenging terrain.

We have no desire to look like you; skate like you, chill with you, idolize you or even listen to the same music as you. We never did. We don't like to eat lunch with you at school, or hang with you in bars. It's not that we don't like skateboarders or hate skateboarding, despite being hated upon. It's just that we are not skateboarders, so why should we care what is going on in your sport? We are the anti-jock, underground, "can't sell out cuz there ain't no money in it", misunderstood, non-conforming, grassroots, for the love, most under-the-radar sport in all of action sports.

We are everything skateboarding used to be, which is probably why you all feel so threatened by Rollerblading.

Do you hate me now?

[phillycore]

Properly Edited Version Below:


Now, I ask ... Why do you hate me?

You want us to go away from your world of action sports and we have gone quietly. We are out of the X Games as a competing sport (Skiboarding was removed from the roster ) and we haven't complained. Our industry has been humbled and our numbers have slipped because obese American children going snow tubing say we are lame. The skiboarders have been banned from your precious terrain parks and forced to go look elsewhere.
We have no desire to look like you; ride like you, chill with you, idolize you or even listen to the same music as you. We never did. We don't like to eat lunch with you at school, or hang with you in bars. It's not that we don't like snowboarders, or hate snowboarding, despite being hated upon. It's just that we are not snowboarders, so why should we care what is going on in your sport? We are the anti-jock, underground, "can't sell out cuz there ain't no money in it", misunderstood, non-conforming, grassroots, for the love, most under-the-radar sport in all of action sports.

We are everything snowboarding used to be, which is probably why you all feel so threatened by Skiboarding.

Do you hate me now?

[tommy]

when people think of rollerblading they think of park and flips, if in the x games they had a huge kink rail, a nice normal rail and like some gapped rails basically made a street spot like they did for skateboarding then it would go off. rollerblading is sick on handrails. watch straight jacket, its one of the only rollerblading dvds i like, i dont like all this gangsta shit they try and put in. its gone more emo now though.

[Alex-TRS]

the whole inline industry is going nuts with this letter.... and with good reason. its totally ridiculous.

Hopefully all the comments,letters,emails they send will eventually make those big pockets realize what they're missing out on and bashing with no valid arguments.

ahhhh mainstream....

[Roussel]

the alternitive sports of "alternitive sports" are not accepted by the mainstream.

[McShane]

i loved the analogy with bikes for a response to humiliation - although, assumably, most bicycle riders are retrees or other "easy-afternoon-riders" to the shop or around a park, there are a handful of hardcore riders in mtb, bmx, etc who do the dirt, air, urban, etc.
i never said hardcore skiboarding should become mainstream, but is for shure should be recognized and well-regarded.

[Jordahl]

all i have to say is...FUCK MAINSTREAM

[tupacalive35]

Hell yea,

"Only dead fish go with the flow"

[Jordahl]

but mainstream people expect us to be fucking loaded or something. they always yell at us to get real skis like we WANT to ski/we have fucking 600 dollars to fork out. its so stupid

[kirk]

penis penching parrots


fuck the x games

[Jordahl]

the only thing is thats the only thing inline ive ever seen on tv so ill miss it. last years was sick!