Okay I have to admit I totally blew it on a post a couple days ago about Christian skaters by not really dealing with the videos themselves, so caught up was I in an "aw shucks" preoccupation with surface contradictions that don't really hold up against scrutiny noways.
The Music
First off, it's difficult to deny the simple pleasure of listening to the music that plays in the background as Matt Beach and Chad Timtim gently shred the streets of America. Matt Beach's song is called "The Crayon Box Song" and was written by William V. Mason. This tune, gentle in its explanation of why Jesus is awesome, serves a striking contrast to music played in most skate videos (punk, rap). Although I love listening to metal while dudes like Dustin Dollin charge down inhumane numbers of stairs, Mason's little ditty about colors and Jesus more effectively captures the serenity that accompanies the best days of skating. Out in the sun, landing that flatland kickflip, just manualing across a pad, not stressing, just feeling the board under your feet.
The effect of the music on this viewing experience is hard to overestimate. It would be an interesting experiment to remix these videos with aggressive music to see if the serene skating still shone through.
The Style
Beyond the radness of the music, which for some reason I find it hard to admit, the skating itself appears informed by the holy spirit. These cats are skating for God, and damned if they haven't achieved some sort of spiritual calm on their boards. When Matt Beach falls, he doesn't swear; he says he feels like he got in a "motorcycle accident," then chuckles nervously. The unselfconscious sincerity of the declaration makes the skating appear all the more free and natural.
It's tough in today's skateboarding market to find pros who aren't straining at the bit to land the gnarliest trick out there, to one-up their competition by grinding a rail one stair longer. Say what you will about the lameness of believing in God, it sure helps these dudes' skating.
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2 comments:
But what if you're reversing the causation? Maybe the serenity they experience because of their heightened moments of skateboarding glory is the foundation of their Christianity, not vice versa. Or maybe other factors in their personality make them both more likely to skate peacefully AND more likely to submit themselves to a love-loving higher power. Me, I'm riddled with hate, I don't believe in God, and I suck (I assume) at this particular activity. Cause?? Effect??
When talking about a work of art, it is important to note the effect conjured, whether it is actually logical or not. Your point regarding the causality of the smoothness of the skating is nonetheless well-taken. But damned if you don't talk like an economist nowadays.
Plus one could always argue that God, as the first cause of everything, totally made the skaters in his image and their movements are but another incarnation of his glory. There is no other cause besides God. As they say in France, point final.
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