PRO:
By Carissa Edwards
Photographer
Recently a student was hurt on campus by a skateboarder. Seeing as most of the skateboarders on campus use their skateboards as their main means of transportation, they are quite good. The thing that I can deduce from this is that it was not the skateboarder’s fault. There are rules in place that say no skateboarding is allowed on campus. I don’t see any thing wrong with skateboarding. Actually, I am jealous of the skate boarders.
What takes a student normally about 10 minutes – walking across campus – skateboarders accomplish in a minute or less. The college campus is not that big, but it sure feels like it when you have a bag full of books and the sun decided that the weather should be more like summer than the season it actually is – fall.
As they rush by us on skateboards, it just makes me wish I had mastered skateboarding as a child, too. They get their exercise while heading to class and out of the sun.
The school has recently changed to a green campus. This means that many teachers are giving their syllabuses through e-mail instead of the paper copy that we all know and love, or hate. The school is also installing solar panels to cut down the cost of the school’s energy by a third.
Along with this, skateboarders are the ones with the right idea. If you skateboard instead of using a car, then you are being green. And is that not what the school wanted, a greener campus and student body?
I personally don’t understand why skateboards or bikes aren’t allowed on campus. I could understand if the school had a massive population, but this school does not. It seems that the only reason that they are not allowed is that other schools don’t allow them. Also, there could be risk of injury, but this is the first time I have heard anything about an incident. So, allow the students to ride their skateboards and enjoy themselves while they are here.
CON:
By Ryan George
Photographer
Skateboarding on campus is, in short, dangerous. The rolling hill from the bus stop down to the cafeteria may be a cheap thrill, but without a strong ability to stop, all you are going to do is either hurt yourself or someone else.
I personally have nothing against skating, as long as it doesn’t involve taking someone else out when you, the skater, fall. But as a warning, or maybe some advice to all of the skaters at Bakersfield College, just be a little smarter about skating on campus and keep it to the local skate parks around town.
BC is not one of those skate parks, period.
The school does not want anyone getting injured on campus for any reason, and skateboarding is just the stereotypical sport where injuries occur often. Personal-injury-info.net says “an estimated 50,000 skateboard injuries are treated in hospital emergency rooms each year” and that “skateboard injuries come in several common types, including head and neck injuries.” How many of the skaters-or bicyclists, for that matter-on campus actually wear a helmet? Almost none.
Now for the small difference between longboards, which are designed for long distance riding, versus the regular skateboard, designed for tricks, are two separate dangers. Longboards are for traveling from one location to another.
Skateboards, however, are designed for a more controlled activity, doing tricks off of the ground or ollie onto a bench or rail: all of which can not only cause damage to the school grounds themselves, but also injuries to the riders as well.
In either instance a helmet should be worn, and the more safety equipment worn, the less chance of injuries can occur to the rider, but not the pedestrians around you.
Campus security deals enough with people doing other things that aren’t allowed on BC, so to all the skaters out there, give the security a break and don’t ride on campus.