Skateboard Bombing Banned In Los Angeles After Two Deaths In The Last Year

Las Angeles, CA – Skateboard bombing is banned in Los Angeles now after the high-risk sport has taken the lives of two riders.

The practice of skateboard bombing takes place on hills, parking garages, and winding roads where riders can build up downhill momentum very quickly, ABC News reported. Reaching speeds of 40 to 50 mph, the riders bend to make their bodies parallel to the road and tuck their hands behind their backs.

Skateboard bombing was banned by the city of Los Angeles as a result of the dangers this style causes, with a new ordinance passed requiring skateboarders to ride standing up instead of crouched and keep their speeds much slower. Skateboarders will also be barred from grabbing onto moving cars and must follow traffic signs and signals.

Los Angeles Councilman Joe Buscaino proposed the ordinance to ban skateboard bombing in his district where two young skateboarders had died in the past year.

“Our objective today was to prohibit reckless skateboarding,” said Buscaino. “We are sending a message that skateboarding is still allowed in the city of Los Angeles, but they have to do it in safe way and obey the rules of the road.”

To pass the new ordinance the city of Los Angeles had to first officially recognize skateboarding as a form of transportation. Before this official designation, the city had no power to regulate the speed or style of boarding, and the skateboard bombing ban could have never occurred.

Skateboard bombing actually has some defenders in the boarding world. Kyle Chin, an avid and experienced longboarder, said he enjoys the downhill sport but hates the term bombing because it seems to promote recklessness.

“It is a legitimate sport with an accompanying industry,” said Chin. “This isn’t just some fad, the sport is growing and the community is growing. There really isn’t a legal place to do it, so it comes down to personal responsibility.”

Chin and other advocates may be disappointed that skateboard bombing is banned, but, if they dare to violate the ban, it could be costly. Tickets for skateboard bombing run $250.

What do you think about the ban on skateboard bombing in Los Angeles?