Skating a way of life for Chemeketa student
Matt Hanson is a mentor to young skaters
South Salem's Matt Hanson skateboards in the Marion Square Park skate park. Hanson competes with Exit Real World's skate team. / DEE MOORE | Statesman Journal freelancer
When Matt Hanson walks into a skate park, he is immediately surrounded by kids.
They rush to his side like a flock of hungry birds looking for his attention. He knows them all by name. They walk up, and greetings are exchanged, hands are slapped, jokes ring out.
He's a role model to the young skaters, though that was not his intent. And despite the fact that he appears to have infinite patience with them, he is not so understanding with himself.
Hanson is driven. He grabs his board and starts to skate. He hits the ramp, jumps, and he and the board fly. But he misses his landing. The timing was off, so he does it again and again and again.
He is intent, his focus turned inward. Finally, he lands perfectly.
Hanson attended Sprague High School and now he attends Chemeketa Community College. He hopes to be a nurse soon.
"I am really interested in anatomy, in the human body," he said. His interest has grown out of his many trips to the hospital for numerous injuries.
"I've broke so many bones," he said. He qualifies this by pointing out that most of the injuries, "are not from some super-high-risk things."
Rather, his injuries have primarily been from stupid accidents, he explains.
He's broken his hand, foot, ribs and his leg. Right now he is suffering from a back injury. He believes he may have cracked one of his lower vertebrae.
Hanson works at Exit Real World, a skate and snowboard shop downtown. He's also been a member of the store's skate team for about a year. Previously he skated with Cal's Pharmacy, a skate shop in Portland.
"I've skated with a lot of people," he says, casually. He has been skating for about 20 years and has competed in numerous events over the years.
"I am usually second or third in all the competitions," he said, then pauses and continues, "usually in the top five."
Hanson's speciality is street skating. He has only competed in four or five of these events during the last couple of years. The events are hard to organize, it's difficult to find sponsors and there isn't as much interest in the street style as there is in ramp and pipe styles, he said.
But he appears less interested in that than he does another current passion: math.
Hanson describes himself as a hermit, as a nerd. "I read books. I am not a very social person," he claims, though his relationships with the youths in the park belie that claim.
Despite his appearance, he says he is not a 'skater punk.' Nor are most of the other kids in the park. Most are just typical adolescents channeling their excess energy into a sport that only requires a board.
Skating requires skill, an innate understanding of physics, geometry and math. Perhaps this is why Hanson enjoys the sport.
"I love going to school," he said, squinting into the bright sunlight.
Hanson would like to see a new skate park in Salem, someplace where there aren't so many aimless people wandering about. Though there are police officers patrolling the park, he doesn't feel its is a safe environment for young skaters.
Hanson isn't alone in this. His boss, Eric Wall, expressed a similar sentiment. Though Wall likes the fact that the current park is centrally located, he realizes that there are concerns.
"I have talked to many parents who do not allow their kids to go down to the skate park due to safety reasons. It is unfortunate because there aren't any other options to skateboard at," Wall added.
Because of this, most of the kids who skate are forced to skate on sidewalks and in the street, both of which are illegal in some places.
Wall is on a skate park committee trying to get a new, updated facility in the South Salem area. The proposed site is Woodmansee Park.
"This is still something that is in its relatively beginning stage," Wall said. "We've work closely with (the Parks and Recreation Department) in figuring out the best way to go about things, and they have been a tremendous help in getting the initial ball rolling. We hope this will be one of many parks to come in Salem."
Meanwhile, Hanson continues to skate and mentor. It's not just a hobby or an activity. For him it's a way of life.
"I like to fly," he said.
Copyright Statesman-Journal 2010
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20100901/COMMUNITIES/108160015
They rush to his side like a flock of hungry birds looking for his attention. He knows them all by name. They walk up, and greetings are exchanged, hands are slapped, jokes ring out.
He's a role model to the young skaters, though that was not his intent. And despite the fact that he appears to have infinite patience with them, he is not so understanding with himself.
Hanson is driven. He grabs his board and starts to skate. He hits the ramp, jumps, and he and the board fly. But he misses his landing. The timing was off, so he does it again and again and again.
He is intent, his focus turned inward. Finally, he lands perfectly.
Hanson attended Sprague High School and now he attends Chemeketa Community College. He hopes to be a nurse soon.
"I am really interested in anatomy, in the human body," he said. His interest has grown out of his many trips to the hospital for numerous injuries.
"I've broke so many bones," he said. He qualifies this by pointing out that most of the injuries, "are not from some super-high-risk things."
Rather, his injuries have primarily been from stupid accidents, he explains.
He's broken his hand, foot, ribs and his leg. Right now he is suffering from a back injury. He believes he may have cracked one of his lower vertebrae.
Hanson works at Exit Real World, a skate and snowboard shop downtown. He's also been a member of the store's skate team for about a year. Previously he skated with Cal's Pharmacy, a skate shop in Portland.
"I've skated with a lot of people," he says, casually. He has been skating for about 20 years and has competed in numerous events over the years.
"I am usually second or third in all the competitions," he said, then pauses and continues, "usually in the top five."
Hanson's speciality is street skating. He has only competed in four or five of these events during the last couple of years. The events are hard to organize, it's difficult to find sponsors and there isn't as much interest in the street style as there is in ramp and pipe styles, he said.
But he appears less interested in that than he does another current passion: math.
Hanson describes himself as a hermit, as a nerd. "I read books. I am not a very social person," he claims, though his relationships with the youths in the park belie that claim.
Despite his appearance, he says he is not a 'skater punk.' Nor are most of the other kids in the park. Most are just typical adolescents channeling their excess energy into a sport that only requires a board.
Skating requires skill, an innate understanding of physics, geometry and math. Perhaps this is why Hanson enjoys the sport.
"I love going to school," he said, squinting into the bright sunlight.
Hanson would like to see a new skate park in Salem, someplace where there aren't so many aimless people wandering about. Though there are police officers patrolling the park, he doesn't feel its is a safe environment for young skaters.
Hanson isn't alone in this. His boss, Eric Wall, expressed a similar sentiment. Though Wall likes the fact that the current park is centrally located, he realizes that there are concerns.
"I have talked to many parents who do not allow their kids to go down to the skate park due to safety reasons. It is unfortunate because there aren't any other options to skateboard at," Wall added.
Because of this, most of the kids who skate are forced to skate on sidewalks and in the street, both of which are illegal in some places.
Wall is on a skate park committee trying to get a new, updated facility in the South Salem area. The proposed site is Woodmansee Park.
"This is still something that is in its relatively beginning stage," Wall said. "We've work closely with (the Parks and Recreation Department) in figuring out the best way to go about things, and they have been a tremendous help in getting the initial ball rolling. We hope this will be one of many parks to come in Salem."
Meanwhile, Hanson continues to skate and mentor. It's not just a hobby or an activity. For him it's a way of life.
"I like to fly," he said.
Copyright Statesman-Journal 2010
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20100901/COMMUNITIES/108160015
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