Ryan Sheckler and His Foundation Are All Right By Me

Ryan Sheckler first caught my eye in 2003 after watching him do amazing things in the X Games…I put my finger on the pulse of his career and waited for the rest of the industry to catch up. Granted, Tony Hawk took notice way before I did (I’m not one to step on the godfather of skate’s toes)…next came a nod from the Sports Business Journal…then MTV sniffed him out and just like that, the kids a multimillionaire teen-aged heartthrob with his own TV show (Life of Ryan), throngs of squealing girls chasing after him and maybe, just maybe, he’s going to come out of this circus we call ‘fame’ with his morals in check.

The more athlete charity related events I cover, the more Sheckler pops up on my radar. The photos here are from the Mia Hamm/Nomar Garciaparra celebrity soccer event last month. Sheckler was one of the few guys to go into the stands and sign autographs. These two little girls waited patiently until Ryan noticed them, signed their soccer balls, then knelt down and signed their shirts. Not something I see very often from someone his age or of his caliber. And correct me if I’m wrong, but I haven’t seen much scandal associated with him. I’ve only seen a smiling skater loving life and giving back when he can. Seriously, he’s only what 19?

Anyway, for you Sheckler fans needing more, the young buck, along with his Ryan Sheckler Foundation, will be hosting ‘FRIDAY NIGHT FIGHTS’ (February 6, 2009, at 7pm) at the Grove at Anaheim. The evening will feature a multi-disciplined fight night with proceeds from this event benefiting Road 2 Recovery and TACA; Talk about Curing Autism. SCHEDULED TO FIGHT: Kit Cope (4 time Muay Thai Champion); Danny Abbadi (The Ultimate Fighter); Andy Wang (The Ultimate Fighter); Craig Wilkerson (The OC submission expert); & Jason Ellis (Professional skateboarder and Sirius radio host will be making this professional MMA debut) More to be announced…*fight card subject to change. Plus Special Musical Guest: LIL’ JON.

If you can’t make it to the event…how about some stylish support, which helps a great cause. The Sheckler Foundation supports causes benefiting children and injured action sports athletes…for a donation of $6.00 or more, they’ll send you a Sheckler Foundation-Down for Life bracelet. All the INFO HERE.

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda@athlebrities.com