Skateboarding - what every parent should know
During the past few summers there has been a proliferation of skateboarding activity wherever well tarred roads that are either steep or winding, or preferably both, can be found. Hoards of youngsters, some helmeted and in protective gear, participate in ever more hair-raising activities at ever higher speeds in ever increasing numbers. Skateboarding takes skill, physical fitness, sound judgment and a good measure of courage too.The downhill flyers are oftentimes busy with what might be described as a modern rite of passage. This includes an outlet for pent up testosterone in teenage boys, a way of being noticed, a peer group to which to belong, a sense of identity, the building of self-confidence, self-worth and self-respect. The need for speed and the love of risky behaviour come into it in a way that can vary from healthy to downright dangerous. The spectacle of a close knit train of long-boarders tucked together and snaking down a steep hill is adrenaline laced, even for the casual observer, let alone for the boy on the board.
Every parent of a boarder or prospective boarder needs to know a few important facts about the sport or activity.
Firstly, and most important, the City of Cape Town, like most big cities, has banned skateboarding on its streets. The relevant bylaw says quite clearly that no person shall:
on a public road skate on roller-skates or a skate-board or similar device except where permitted by the City;
The City is understandably disinclined to so permit. On special occasions the road from Kloof Nek to Clifton has been closed for the daredevils of the skating community. Elsewhere there is little evidence of accommodation of skateboarding except for competitions and events. Practising for these is of course necessary, but virtually impossible legally speaking.
Prohibiting skateboarding has consequences. It is a criminal offence punishable by a fine or imprisonment or both. While law enforcement on roads is conspicuously emaciated in general, in respect of the skateboarding offence it is non-existent. Complaints about skateboarding activities, if reacted to at all, are usually tactfully handled with a stern: "Cool it for a while you are irritating Mother Grundy" and no other action from the metro police, who seem to have a surprisingly "live and let live" kind of attitude.
This is however not the end of the matter.
Should, heaven forbid, an illegal skateboarder come to grief and injure himself then the medical aid schemes are entitled to refuse to pay the costs of medical care which may be required. Should his negligence cause loss, damage or injury to a third party - for example a fellow skateboarder or a skittish motorist who ends up in the ditch when surprised by a massed ensemble of flying helmets - then the all risks insurers who may be involved will be entitled to decline claims on the basis that an illegal activity is not covered under policy exceptions or exemptions which disallow claims that arise in such circumstances.
These financial inconveniences aside, the more fundamental question is whether it is appropriate for a civically responsible parent to allow or condone an illegal activity on the part of the skateboard crazed off-spring. There will be arguments comparing the relative merits of drug abuse and joy-riding in stolen cars with the healthy clean fun of skilled skateboarding. Less insightful skateboard aficionados will show a lack of appreciation of the rationale for outlawing so outwardly harmless an activity. Parents challenged in this way will find themselves having to defend respect for the rule of law against concerted attacks motivated by the pursuit of pleasure, adventure and that omnipresent rush of adrenaline.
Parents, who do have respect for the rule of law, and who wish to run their families accountably and responsibly, are not necessarily in a no-win situation when it comes to accommodating their skateboarding off-spring. Opportunities for skateboarding legally do exist and can be created and expanded if an appropriately motivated lobby gets together to press for the exception which the by-law expressly contemplates. There are also private streets in some areas to which the by-law does not apply.
Parents should not wait for a tragedy to occur before getting organised and pressing for the accommodation of an activity which is preferable to substance abuse and dicing. The Bill of Rights guarantees the right to freedom of movement and freedom of association to all. These rights can only be limited in a manner which is reasonable and justifiable. It is not beyond the wit of the City to identify roads, especially those with a well tarred shoulder protected by a solid yellow line, that are suitable for skateboarding at given hours on given days. This is surely preferable to criminalising an entire sub-culture of healthy, brave and otherwise law abiding young citizens. Their liberty need not be sacrificed on the altar of a nanny state mentality.
Paul Hoffman SC
16 January, 2012.
