This is part of this week's Freaky Friday contest by @pete. All pics shown are from either Pixabay or Pxhere (unless indicated otherwise in the captions). This story is entirely fictional.

After playing Tony Hawk skateboard video games all of his life, Danny decided he really wanted to give skateboarding a try. He saved up at least 4 weeks worth of allowance money to buy himself a skateboard, a helmet, and both elbow and knee pads. He then browsed around with his older brother Kyle to see where the perfect place to skate is. Danny wanted to be the next Tony Hawk. He wanted to do the exact same stunts he rocked at in playing all those video games. They decided to scout near the beach areas and near some of the parks to see if there were any good places to totally skateboard. What they saw would blow their minds.

Several skateboarders were practicing their skills nearby, and their stunts caught Danny's attention quick. Their names were Stan, Ollie, Charlie, and Marx (I bet you can guess what their names are references to). Stan was one of the coolest kids in his high school, and he got into skateboarding as a kid in the 1990s. One of his elementary school buddies introduced him to skating, and Stan quickly caught on the sport. He spent a lot of free time practicing skateboarding stunts, selling skateboards and skating equipment, teaching newcomers on skateboarding, and even showing off for some exhibitions. He was considered the master of skateboarding, and a lot of new and veteran skateboarders respected his talent.

Ollie got into skateboarding after seeing on TV. He had a very slow start in learning the talent and even put it on hold for several years until he could finish his schooling. He then started to again take up skateboarding as a hobby, but did end up winning one of the professional skateboarding contests and winning some money. Of course, he was not fully into skateboarding like the others; he just wanted to do something occasionally.

Charlie was extreme through and through. He was known in school as a more of a showoff than an achiever. He would often skate at the local skateboard parks just to show everybody he was so cool. He never had any ambitions aside from skateboarding, except he worked at Stan's store to help sell skateboarding equipment. Charlie's girlfriend Tina would often visit the store to flirt with Charlie, sometimes to Stan's chagrin as he wanted Charlie to be focused on his work. Of course, Charlie always stole the show with his totally rad stunts.

Marx was more of a comedian than a stunt performer. He would often incorporate comedy into his skateboard stunts and even performed in a circus once with clowns. Many people loved his talents so much that he is often asked to do performances for fundraisers, county fairs, and festivals. He could often be seen at either the farmer's market or at the mall performing his stunts for people who will sometimes give him money.

Photo by Sgt. Tyler J. Bolken (source:

https://www.marines.mil/Photos.aspx?igphoto=2000745813)

Danny wanted to be taught by these four skateboarders. He thought that these four “master” (that was what he called them) would make him a totally rad skateboarder. So, he went up to Stan and asked if he could teach him how to skate. After awhile, Stan agreed. Every Friday after school, Danny would visit Stan, Ollie, Charlie, and Marx. They would tell him everything they knew about skateboarding. The most important thing Danny learned from them would be that skateboarding is not just some simple sport that you can pick up from some video game or movie. You have to devote time and effort to know how to skateboard and to perfect your art. After a couple of months of practicing skateboarding, he entered a skateboarding contest and won 1st. place with around 80 dollars. After he won the contest, Stan came up to congratulate him and then give the aspiring skateboarding an unorthodox piece of advice: don't be a skateboarder. Danny did not know what he meant by that, and it cut him to the core. So, after awhile, Danny gave up skateboarding. It felt as if his hopes and dreams were shattered and he was mad at Stan for telling him that. After a month or two of sulking, however, he decided to pursue something else.

Danny eventually graduated from high school and became valedictorian after putting forth hard work in his studies. He later attended college and became the first in his class. At the encouragement of his parents, he decided to pursue (and later won) several college scholarships. He then got hired to work at a major sporting goods store and eventually worked his way up to be a manager. After enjoying the fruits of his hard work, he met Stan once again at the skateboarding shop. Danny eventually figured out exactly what Stan meant by saying to not be a skateboarder; Stan did not want Danny to be so focused on skateboarding that he forgets the more important things in life. He apologized to Stan for being so angry, and later got interested in skateboarding again. After doing some convincing, Danny made room for a special section of the sporting goods store for skateboarding equipment and learning how to skateboard. Kids and teens would get to not only buy skateboarding stuff, but also learn about it....with Stan, Ollie, Charlie, and Marx coming by once in awhile to talk with people on skateboarding and how it can be used as a hobby to help people be active in life. He taught the kids to enjoy skateboarding, but never let it make them forget the important things in life such as being the best worker you can be or being the best person you can be for your family.

Danny learned a lot in his journey through the realm of skateboarding and beyond. He did something he enjoyed, but needed the push to always remember the journey of life in general. Because of that, he pushed to succeed and reaped great rewards. To him, this journey was TOTALLY rad.

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