Herhold 1 Brian Herhold Professor Connie Douglas Zz UWRT 1101-090 4 November 2014 ‘A Sport That Motivates You to be Yourself ‘An Ethnographic Study of the skateboarding community at Grayson Skate Park in Charlotte, NC. Skateboarding is a recreational sport that involves performing tricks, enjoying one’s self within a community, and bringing a part of yourself to show others. Skateboarding develops an individual's intrinsic motivation and it results in continual satisfaction. Skateboarders choose to skate for a number of reasons. They do it for satisfaction and accomplishment, challenge, and for a feling that leaves you “In the zone”. Skateboarding is a way of life for some people. They seem to walk a certain way, act ina certain manner and certainly dress like each other. They make up a sub-culture that is aécepting and independent, yet rebellious at times. The discourse group of skateboarders that was observed at the Grayson Skate Park in Charlotte was made up of teenage males who were randomly observed. Their experience ranged form beginner to advanced. The researcher was positioned at the front of the skate park, so that the researcher could see as much of the skate park as possible. At random, skateboarders were asked about their sense of satisfaction, accomplishments, challenges, and freedom gained from skateboarding. Finally, skateboarders were asked about their connection to skateboarding and how they felt when they were “In the zonl).” Observing the skateboarders, it was apparent that one of the major aspects that define a group of skateboarders is their skateboard and how they use it. Everyone whoHerhold 2 ‘was observed had a skateboard of his or her own. Some teenagers were filming each other, but they still had their boards near by. Nearly all of the teenagers were performing tricks on their boards. They were doing kick flips, ollies, grinds, pop-shovits, nollics, heel flips and other tricks that looked challenging to one who does not skate. One teenager in particular attempted to preform a stunt on a ramp with a metal bar at the top. He approached the ramp with a lot of speed, but he angled his body in such a way that he did not have enough momentum to get to the top of the ramp. He went back to try it again and this time he approached the ramp with a lot more speed. He ended up getting all the way up the ramp, but the bar on top of the ramp prevented him from getting to the very top of the ramp. You could hear his frustration and his grunts each time he did not get up the ramp. His facial expression indicated that he was upset, but he was determined to get the trick down. The teenager expressed intrinsic motivation because he was dedicated to getting the trick down despite his repeated failure. By continually trying the trick over and over, he was expressing signs of wanting to improve himself as a skater. The reason skaters fee! satisfaction when skateboarding is because once they nail down a trick they gain a feeling of success through hard work. This feeling of success is addictive in a way and it pushes the individual to try harder tricks so that they feel better about themselves (Seifert). He decided to try the trick again. He gained speed as he approached the ramp and leaned back so that his front wheels made it over the bar. He shifted his weight to the other side of the board and ended up standing at the top of the ramp just as he wanted. He said “Yessss!” and a huge smile spread across his face. Skateboarders also enjoy the ability to work toward perfecting a trick and taking risks to attempt to learn new ones. Challenges allow skateboarders to choose what trickHerhold 3 they want to master and at what pace they would like to master it. By randomly observing another skateboarder, it became apparent that the male teenager was attempting to drop into the cement bow! located near the back of the skate park. He approached the bowl and. stopped abruptly when he saw the depth of the bowl. He slowly approached the brim and placed the back end of his skateboard over the cement railing, He placed his right foot near the edge of the board, but he would not place his other foot on the board because he knew that it would cause the skateboard to drop into the cement bowl. He was afraid that I | he would lose his balance, fall and hurt himself. After a few minuteghe decided to drop in, but as he leaned forward he landed on his right side and slid down the bowl. He yelled out in pain, but soon returned to the top of the bowl to try again. After a few more cinuespe po dropped into the bowl. fioned his left foot a little further back on the skateboard and successfully Despite falling, the skateboarder held a belief that ifhe continued to try, he would be successful and his success would lead to satisfaction. The reason he continued to try to drop into the bow! was because he knew that he would be very pleased with himself when he did complete the trick. This is an example of intrinsic motivation within this individual because he seta goal (o lear the technique needed to drop into the bowff)he C S overcame a challenge not to fall into the bow) }nd to gain a feeling of satisfaction (learning how to drop into the bowl). The sense of accomplishment that a skateboarder develops is believed to be the source for the fun and enjoyment that comes form skateboarding, Once success becomes attainable to the skateboarder, they are motivated to get the same feeling again and again. Feelings of satisfaction cause the skateboardersHerhold 4 to develop a sense of self-determination and confidence needed to perform more difficult tricks. Freedom is also one of the major reasons people choose to skate. Another teenager was observed at random and a question was asked to inquire more information about the freedom felt while skateboarding. The question was “Why do you like to skateboard”? One skateboarder said that he has a feeling a freedom when he skates. He said that it takes him away from what was going on at home. He said, “It takes your mind off of things you're worrying about”. It allows you to be who ever you want whenever ‘you want. One of the great things about the group is was the fact that everyone skated differently and it was accepted. Some people skated with their right foot (riding goofy) while most people rode with their left. Trick wise, everyone does what he or she wants. ‘Some people like to grind, some specifically stay on the ramps, while others do tricks flat on the ground, Some seem crazy to do all three with an incredible amount of speed. This points to another reason why skateboarding is very open and accepting. There aren’t any rules and people don’t tell you what you have to do. There is not a coach and no one bashes you for skating differently. Skateboarding is seen as liberation from the daily i routine of what everyone has to do or say. There is also a distinct culture created within the skateboarding community. Everyone who was at the skate park seemed like they belonged and it seemed like each person's uniqueness added to the overall growth of the group. There was one group to the far left of the skate park that was made up of br feeaae One of the teens went down the ramp and ended up landing on his side. It looked like it was really painful. The other teenagers in the group were laughing hysterically. Usually one would get mad andHerhold 5 embarrassed at someone for laughing in our everyday life, but this culture seemed to be different, They all laughed together in a carefiee attitude just to make the moment. It was shocking to see at frst, but it was later assumed that they were all really good friends. Laughing at one another is usually a way to embarrass someone for a mistake they made, but the skateboarding community accepts it for what itis. They interpret any fall or mistake as a better time because it is something that makes the moment, It seems to add to the “show” that they put on for themselves and others. The teenager who fell didn’t care about how he looked and he didn’t care about what others thought of him. He was just there to have a good time. ‘There was another teenager in a black hoodie that finally landed a trick after the fourth or fifth time and he was just yelling “Yess!” One of the other skateboarders (most likely a fiend) went up to him and congratulated him with a double-handed high five above their heads. An interview was conducted with the teenager in the black hoodie shortly after his friend congratulated him. The researcher asked him how he felt when someone else came up and openly praised him for his accomplishment. He replied “It makes you feel good you know...like it's a great feeling when someone else realizes how hard it was to do that trick and land it. Nota lot of people can do that trick”. There is a special feeling and connection between the skaters that comes form this community. It is community where people come together to enjoy the presence of others while seeing what trick someone else can do. They congratulate each other when they land a trick and they encourage each other when they don’t. They are a family because they teach each other, care for each other and seem happy together.Herhold 6 ‘There is another feeling that is emitted form the skateboarders. They seemed to be “In the zone” when they were skateboarding. It is as if they are in another world and their performance seems to soar. Another randomly chosen skateboarder later explained this feeling of being “In the zone”. He described it as “A rush that makes you feel alive. You feel like you can do anything and it’s amazing! It's like the world is fading behind you and you are only focusing on what trick you are doing”. Other skateboarders described being “In the zone” as a liberation from stress, pressure and the outside world. Being “In the zone” enhances self-confidence, passion and the belief that you can do anything and no one can stop you. It is a rush that is experienced when an ultimate degree of focus and concentration comes over the body (Seifert). Its here that skateboarders get their feelings of freedom and self-rule. This addictive feeling is another reason why teenagers are continually feeling a connection with themselves and those around them while skateboarding. ‘The skateboarding community is also rebellious due to some of the spray-painted Jogos on the sides of the cement ramps and bowls. A lot of the skaters had stickers on the bottom of their boards supporting certain skateboard apparel brands. The researcher asked another individual why they had stickers on the bottom of the board. He replied, “it defines me. You know, like I got this one because I like the brand Zoo-York. They have a lot of cool shirts.” The stickers resemble a label for the skateboarders. Each one chooses different stickers because each one has a favorite skateboarding apparel company. The stickers allow them to better express their uniqueness to the rest of the skateboarding community.Herhold 7 In conclusion, skateboarding helps develop an individual’s satisfaction, accomplishment, challenge, and an addictive feeling that puts you “In the zone”. Skateboarding promotes uniqueness in style, freedom, and it gives you an automatic and addictive sense of approval into a life long community.Herhold 8 Works Cited Seifert, T. "Intrinsic Motivation and Flow in Skateboarding: n Ethnographic Study."Academic Search Complete. 11.3 (2010): 272-292. Web. 11 Nov. 2014.