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Skateboard SafetyRonald Porep, Republished from SafetyIssues Issue 11 |
Volume 4 Issue 42May 2005 |
| Your child’s skateboard could be a real killer. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, approximately 26,000 persons are treated in hospital emergency rooms each year with skateboard related injuries. While most common injuries from skateboard accidents are sprains, fractures, contusions and abrasions, deaths due to collisions with cars and from falls happen. Here are some basics to prevent skateboard injury. | |
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Before buying a skateboard, determine what type your child should have.
Boards have varying characteristics for different types of riding (i.e.,
slalom, freestyle, or speed). Some boards are rated as to the weight of
the intended user. Know what type of riding your child plans to do and
how heavy your child is before buying a board. Once your child has a board, he or she needs to check the board each time before using it. Riders should check boards for hazards, such as loose, broken, or cracked parts; sharp edges on metal boards; slippery top surface; and wheels with nicks and cracks. A qualified repairman should correct defects. With the board, you need to buy your daughter or son protective gear. Protective gear, such as closed, slip-resistant shoes, helmets, and specially designed padding, may not fully protect skateboarders from fractures, but your child should use it as such gear that can reduce the number and severity of injuries. |
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Padded jackets and shorts are available, as well as padding for hips,
knees, elbows, wrist braces and special skateboarding gloves. All of this
protective gear is designed to help absorb the impact of a fall. Now, protective gear currently on the market is not subject to Federal performance standards so you must choose carefully. |
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In a helmet, look for proper fit and a chinstrap; make sure the helmet does not block the rider's vision and hearing. Body padding should fit comfortably. If padding is too tight, it could restrict circulation and reduce the skater's ability to move freely. Loose fitting padding, on the other hand, could slip off or slide out of position. Of course, safety gear can only help your child if he or she uses it so it is also important to look for comfort, design, and function. And, the gear should not interfere with the skater's movement, vision, or hearing. Choose carefully. Those are the cardinal rules of safe skateboarding use. |
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Here are some other rules a skateboarder needs to follow: Don't take chances! Complicated tricks require careful practice and a specially designed area. Even the expert skateboarders practice a lot in highly protective clothing in specially designed areas before doing a trick in public. Even the most conscientious skateboarder falls so your child should learn how to fall in case of an accident to help reduce the chances of being seriously injured. If the rider is losing his or her balance, the rider should crouch down on the skateboard so that he or she will not have so far to fall. In a fall, a boarder should try to land on the fleshy parts of the body. If a rider falls, he or she should try to roll rather than absorb the force with the arms. And, though it may be difficult, during a fall a rider should try to relax the body, rather than stiffen. A boarder should never hitch a ride from a car, bus, truck, bicycle, etc. Of course, a skateboarder should never ride in the street anyway as skateboards and cars can be a fatal mix. And, only ONE rider on a skateboard as a board is designed for only one person to use it at a time and exceeding the design expectations of any piece of sports equipment is dangerous. Skateboarding can be great fun for your children and a good source of exercise and skill building if done safely. Like any other sports though, skateboarding can be a real killer if your child does not follow the safety rules. |
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