Scooters Are Back in Town
互動天地
There are some hobbies and sports， such as cycling and playing football， which are always trendy， while there are others which seem to go through peaks and troughs[高峰期和低穀期] in terms of popularity. Skateboarding， for instance， originated in the USA in the 1950s and was the height of fashion in the early 1960s. But its popularity waned[衰退]， and it wasn’t until the mid 1970s when a new， improved board design emerged， that young people took an interest in it again.
One sport which is all the rage[非常流行] in the UK at the moment is ‘stunt scooting[特技滑板]’， and young people of all ages （especially boys） are joining in. The scooter of choice is small， with a light aluminium frame which is fixed rather than folding， giving it extra strength. While stunt scooters retail at around ￡100， enthusiasts frequently spend as much again customising their ride with wheels， bars， brakes， forks and clamps[夾鉗] of various eye-catching colours and special grip tape which is attached to the deck to make the scooter unique.
“The great thing about scooting is that you can do it anywhere，” says 14-year-old Jack Yeomans， who spends most of his spare time stunt scooting with his friends. “You can just skate in the street， but most towns have free leisure facilities with ramps[坡道]， and lots of places now have big indoor skate parks where you can watch the pros in action. Many of these have foam pits so you can practise new stunts without hurting yourself.”