Amateur Skateboarder Continues to Pursue his Passion

by Zinta Aistars



A health care story I wrote about a young man named Danger ...

Auttiesh Danger lives up to his name. He’s been an amateur skateboarder since 2000, and nothing gets in his way—not even a serious back injury.

“When my brother and I were kids, about 11 or 12 years old, we nagged our mom to order a pizza,” says Danger. “They had a giveaway with the pizza: a disk of video games. One of the games was all about skateboarding, and I saw how cool it was.”

Most video game players stick with the video, but Danger wanted to try the real thing.

“I got a Michigan-made skateboard, and I got super hyped. I fell a lot at first, but getting hurt only got me more obsessed. I lived in a kind of rough area of Grand Rapids back then, and some of my friends got in trouble. They got incarcerated, but I just stayed on my skateboard, and it kept me out of trouble.”

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Years later, Danger, now age 27, is one of the area’s top skateboarders, winning awards for his skill on the board.

“Skateboarding is an art,” he says. “Pure art. No rules, no coach, no team. It’s solely you out there, yet at the same time, skateboarding really connects you to people. Other skateboarders become like extended family.”

Danger moved from Grand Rapids to its outskirts, Forest Hills, with his family, but he also started traveling to participate in various skateboarding contests. As his skill increased, he gained sponsors, and skateboard park owners allowed him to skate for free so as to inspire other skaters.

“When I was about 20, I was taking part in a Halloween skating contest,” Danger recalls. “We were all dressed up in costumes, and the contest was for the best trick. I was skating gap and grind, and when I went up on the ledge, my feet slipped and I ...

READ THE COMPLETE STORY AT SPECTRUM HEALTH. Learn what happened to Danger.