Towson’s Joey “Jett” Hornish has the punk rock-skateboarder look nailed: dark-green helmet covered with Underground wheels and skull-and-cross bones decals, long-sleeved State of Confusion skate shop T-shirt, pro-tech elbow pads, baggy shorts, and a dirt-smeared face.
He’s got it down to his classic Etnie sneaks — size 2 1/2.
A second-grader at Cromwell Elementary, Joey might only be 7, but he hangs with the big boys.
At the recent PlayStation Hook Up competition in Philadelphia, he was named event MVP by pro Mike Vallely.
On Sunday at the Cockeysville Skate Park, he captured first place in the 6-9 age group at a competition co-sponsored by the Baltimore County Department of Parks and Recreation and The Fells Point Surf Shop.
But truth be told, Joey — who has his own Web site, www.joeyjett.com — was one of the top skaters at Cockeysville, period. He’s already placed in national 14-and-under competitions and has an invite to a Mountain Dew-sponsored jam in Orlando in October with legends Tony Hawk and Bucky Lasik. Hawk, for the uninitiated, has popular PlayStation video games with his name on them and tours nationally.
“It’s amazing what he can do,” Dulaney High junior Justin Medero said of Joey.
“To see all these little kids out here is great — they’re going to be so much better than us.”
Joey’s buddy Tyler Wadsworth,12, a Sparrows Point middle schooler and State of Confusion teammate, took the title for ages 10-13, and both captured their respective trick events. Joey won with a 360-degree spin off the quarter-pipe, and Tyler with “an acid drop off the well into the corner pipe.”
Joey, who needed to stand on the seat of a park bench to reach the teenagers’ shoulders, was introduced to the sport a year ago and dreams of competing in the X Games.
For now, though, he’s doing what comes naturally to second-grade boys.
“I skate because it’s fun,” Joey said. “It’s fun being outside, and it’s fun learning new tricks.”
His mother, Isabella, a prosecutor in Prince George’s County, and father, Steve, an Air Force lieutenant, are supportive of Joey’s nonmainstream sports career.
“He’s got a passion for it,” his father said. “We don’t push him. That’s all he wants to do every day.”
