Sheckler A Possible Candidate For Skater Of The Year?
September 5, 2008 – 11:28 pm PT by MikeTags: Jake Phelps, Ryan Sheckler, Thrasher —
A strong case can be made about Ryan Sheckler earning a spot on Trasher’s “Skater Of The Year’s” short list of candidates and an argument can be brought even further that he should win the prestigious Thrasher award. Despite him being called “Sh*tler”, and that he relates closely with more of the Tiger Beat/Jamie Lynn/Jonas Brothers demographic, you can’t deny that his skateboarding abilities have been impressive since the tender age of what, 5?
Well that’s what Thrasher Editor, Jake Phelps, must seriously consider while taking on the daunting task. He along with Thrasher may suffer from a serious back lashing from bloggers, readers, and supporters of their magazine.
This sticky situation is reminiscent to a similar instance that took place at the 71st Academy Awards in 1999 when controversial director Elia Kazan, not to get him confused with Shaq’s 1996 hit “Kazaam”, was given the Cecile B. Demille “Life Time Achievement Award”. Kazan is controversial not because of the content of his films, but because he was a rat, a snitch, a bi*ch.
During his time, communism was a supposed major threat to the United States and with a pressing interrogational witch-hunt from Joseph McCarthy, Kazan ratted on possible communist in Hollywood. So as you can probably guess, Kazan was looked down on and sneered at while giving his acceptance speech at the awards ceremony. There was an obvious show of protest with colleagues and various members of the Academy crossing their arms unwilling to clap for him.
Although the 1996 Academy Awards is a less significant comparison to the Thrasher Skateboarder Of The Year Award, I hope that the Sheckler will not be given the same treatment because even though I may be biased and I’m a fan Jamie Lynn Spears, or I skate listening to the Jonas Brothers on my I-pod, or my favorite reading material is Tiger Beat, I think it’s undoubted that Ryan Sheckler is today’s best skater. So just like Kazan, I don’t think one should be judged on petty things like ratting out your friends, or because he has a buff body, or even because he has a wonderful smile. I think they should be judged on the embodiment of their careers.
Watch what Jake Phelps had to say…
