by Margarett Dykstra
by Margarett Dykstra
Melissa adores her time skating, but refuses to allow it to jeopardize her education. "Skating is not going to be my life." It is simply something that she really enjoys and a great way to relieve stress. Melissa is a classical piano major. In fact, her piano teacher has no idea that she throws her body through the air at top speeds and would probably pass out if she discovered the truth. She admits that sometimes she doesn't try new tricks because she is protective of her hands, but still wants to continue to skate and compete. She used to be a competitive figure skater and thought in-line looked really stupid. Of course she eventually tried it and loved it. A friend took her to SCRAP, a skate park in Chicago and two and a half months later she competed in her first competition.
"I'm kind of conservative. I don't subscribe to the skate magazines, because I don't like them. They're too harsh. I don't see why parents allow their kids to see women that way." 
It didn't take long before she was invited to compete in the Extreme Games. She was packed and ready to go when she received a call from one of the producers to tell her that, unfortunately, she had to stay home. They had too many girls. They had booked 7 girls and only had time for 5. They had 60 guys competing. She was crushed, but not bitter. She thinks that too many girls whine about not getting enough attention: "If you're good enough, you'll get the coverage you deserve." She enjoys being one of the only girls around and likes to skate with the guys, although she admits they can be vulgar. She does, however, disapprove of the way women are portrayed in skate videos and magazines and finds it even more distressing when she sees women wearing "those T-shirts that put down women." She thinks that the sport needs better role models. And "if the pros support this lame attitude and marketing style, the younger kids will follow because they think it's cool."
