Jay Adams

"Style was everything", ("Dogtown and Z-boys"). This was huge back in the 1970s when skateboarding was getting more popular. Jay Adams was born in Santa Monica, Calif., on Feb. 3, 1961 (Dougherty). He was a young skateboarder that was part of the Zephyr Boys, a skate team that helped shape the lifestyle of skateboarding as it is today (Dougherty). During the 1970s, the Zephyr Team joined many skateboarding competitions and showed people the style of skateboarding they do. To me, every hero must believe what they are doing is right, and they can make a change. Jay Adams is a hero because he influenced the way of skateboarding to many that are pros today, and he helped revolutionize skateboarding into what it is today.

Jay Adams is a hero because he influenced the way of skateboarding to many that are pros today. In the article  "Jay Adams, Who Revolutionized Skateboarding, Dies at 53" by The New York Times, it says that Jay Adams created "foundational maneuvers that paved the way for stars like Tony Hawk" (Dougherty). This quote shows how Jay Adams and the Z-boys created or founded tricks that are used in skateboarding today. Without people like Jay, there would be no pros like Tony Hawk or Steve Caballero.  In the article, "In Empty Pools, Sport's Pioneer Found a Way to Make a Splash" it states that Jay Adams, "Taking his skateboard down steep hills and up the walls of an empty swimming pool -- and, finally, over the walls' edges -- Adams helped usher in the aerial, or vert, style of skateboarding."(Louison). Jay Adams and his crew went into empty swimming pools which started the whole "vert" style of skateboarding. All this vert skateboarding created many professionals today, like Steve Caballero, who is a legend of vert just like Tony hawk. Without Jay and the Zephyr-Team, these pros wouldn't have been skating like they are now. Professionals look down upon the Zephyr-Team, especially upon Jay Adams because he did the first "air" out of a swimming pool.

Jay Adams also shows that he is a hero by helping revolutionize skateboarding. One of the first changes that he made to skateboarding was its style. In the movie Dogtown and Z-boys, it said that, "There was no one like him; he was the original"(Dogtown and Z-boys). This is very important for skateboarding. "Without style, it just didn't look good" (Dogtown and Z-boys). This helped skateboarding grow because everybody had their own original style that made them look good. During "Legendary Skateboarder Jay Adams Dies At 53." Morning Edition 19 Aug. 2014, a talk show, a skater named Cooper says, "Oh, yeah. He's legend. And you hear something like that from skaters like Cooper Brazer. Legendary because Adams is a big reason these skate parks even exist. His aggressive vertical style helped spark a revolution in the 70s."("Legendary Skateboarder Jay Adams Dies At 53"). The thing that is very true is that there wouldn't be a lot of skaters or skate parks being built. Adams and the Z-boys are a big reason they even exist. During the time Jay Adams was getting into skating or "sidewalk surfing," they didn't have the toughest wheels. The wheels they had could barely go over cracks ("Dogtown and Z-boys"). "In the early 1970s, Adams and his teammate Tony Alva introduced the team to urethane wheels, which -- along with new technologies in axles, known as trucks, and in boards -- helped launch the skateboarding craze."(Louison). This really helped skateboarding because without the new wheels, the skaters could not skate in the street unless it was perfectly smooth. The wheels allowed them to skate everywhere and so people could see them build skateboarding. Without Jay Adams and the help of the Zephyr-Team, skateboarding wouldn't be the lifestyle that it is today. Jay Adams really changed the look of skateboarding to popular but more of a rebel sport. Jay Adams is a hero because he showed people the way of skateboarding and some of the people that followed are pros of today. He also helped shape the art of skateboarding.

Jay Adams had a lot of good in his life changing the world, but he also had some not-so-good things to look up to. During the 1980s Jay, "became a heavy drug user and began a long run of legal trouble" (Dougherty). When Jay Adams was getting popular and turning pro, Jay said, "it was just fun, before it got too

know what I mean." (Dogtown and Z-boys). Jay Adams didn't like the fact he was becoming pro, because of this, he started partying and getting into drugs.(Dogtown and Z-boys). Even though Jay did these horrible things he then got out of jail and said he was clean.

During Jay Adam's "career" he helped other people who wanted to skateboard in many ways. He helped people get into skateboarding, helped pros become pros, and helped people who skate skate to have fun. Jay Adams may have helped others, but Inspired me too. In the "Legendary Skateboarder Jay Adams Dies At 53." Morning Edition", "Jay Adams is known for taking skateboarding from the streets of LA to the world of extreme sports."("Legendary Skateboarder Jay Adams Dies At 53"). This inspires me because he took what was so little and was known as just another little kid toy to a lifestyle. Anybody can do whatever they like to do and have fun doing it. Overall, Jay Adams was a very influential person. He helped in many ways to make skateboarding a thing. Without Jay Adams I wouldn't be skating and skating is very fun. I sometimes like to look back at Jay and bring his style into my skating. Jay is my hero and many others' hero too.