Believe it or not Artistic Roller Skating is a real sport, alive and well. The members of the USA National Team do things to rival the Ice Skaters you see in the Olympics. It is a great sport…but like all sports there are some issues…

My 13-year-old daughter just qualified for the US National Championships in Artistic Roller Sports while at the SW Pacific Roller Sports Championships in Fresno, CA (for Arizona, California and Nevada).

In Artistic Roller Skating there are A, B and C skating events according to the abilities and experience of the skaters. Sounds good on paper, but there is a dark side of this sport.

We’re all happy today about skating BUT there are young skaters who should be going to the National Championships who are not. That is because overqualified A skaters who PLACE and WIN in A events are skating B events and winning. That is bad sportsmanship and ethically WRONG. What sort of satisfaction do the coaches and parents get out of that. It is totally jacked up. I’ve seen these kids work so hard all year. I’ve seen the B skaters improve and become great skaters – and then they have their spots stolen from them.

That is one reason good skaters are dropping out of the sport. I often wonder about the parents of the A skaters who skate B and win in both. How can they look at themselves in the mirror and not see a bad person? What sort of wrong messages are they sending to their kids. The easy A is no A. The one who dies the most metals/toys/prizes does not win if it is a hollow undeserving win. The life lesson isn’t there.

This is KILLING the sport. IT IS KILLING IT. This might be the last group of skaters because the rules are so jacked up. Every year there are fewer skaters at the skate meets. Every wonder why? Letting A skaters who place and even win turn around and skate B events is WHY. Yes, you selfish coaches and parents YOUR egos are killing the very sport you claim to love.

And to all of those B skaters out there who worked so hard this year – keep skating – when you’re grown you’re the ones who will be on top and you’re the ones who will be the true winners!

One more word…and this is not for all of the really great adult skaters from age 21-over 79 that I meet at the competitions and in the rink. You’re the ones who encourage the young skaters and inspire them. You’re the ones we look at and say WOW.

But there are those “others”. We all know who they are.

A big problem with the sport of Artistic Roller Sports is all the OLD TIMERS who go online or in the rinks and do NOTHING BUT COMPLAIN and talk about the good old days. Those who live in the past will get older faster. It is sad that a bunch of old haters are doing everything they can to ruin it for young skaters who are desperately trying to keep this sport alive. They complain about everything from the quality of the skaters to the dress styles. Well HEY you OLD FARTS – the kids skating now are doing an AWESOME JOB. They are skating better than you ever did. Their dresses are better than yours ever were. They are doing this almost dead sport out of LOVE. Love that you’ll never know in your black nasty old spiteful heart. So just SHUT THE F UP. You and your old fashioned outdated ways are why this sport can’t get corporate sponsors.

So to end on a higher note and a positive note: For all of the skaters who are out there…THIS IS YOUR SPORT. Take charge of it. If you don’t like what your coach is doing TELL HER. If you don’t like the rules WRITE THE PEOPLE IN CHARGE. Write a blog post. Put it on Facebook. Call USARS. Let them know what YOU WANT.