LEEDERVILLE’S YMCA HQ hosts the Healthway Drug Aware skate series this Saturday, with WA’s best skaters and scooterers competing.

Scooter contender Jiordan Giacoppo is in the finals after the competition was whittled down in 12 qualifying events over three months.

18-year-old Mr Giacoppo says he took up the scooter after a stack on his bike led to a bad whack on the head.

• Jiordan Giacoppo pulls off a flare whip. Photo by Matthew Dwyer

Despite spending half his time airborne or even upside down, he says he doesn’t really get a lot of bad scrapes on the scooter.

Mr Giacoppo says he hasn’t set his plan in stone for Saturday, preferring a looser approach, but good use of the whole park usually scores well with the judges (the sport’s scored by young people who know their stuff).

The comp’s free this Saturday March 21, with the scooters on from 1.30–4.30pm and skating starting 6.30pm.

by DAVID BELL