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VIDEO: Ladysmith RCMP officer rides scooter with teens at skate park

A Ladysmith Mountie turned a few heads at the local skate park after taking a scooter for a spin.
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Ladysmith RCMP Const. Mason Dirnback is the star of a viral online video showing him scootering around the local skate park on Monday night. The local officer said that he hopes the experience was a positive experience for the youth.

A Ladysmith Mountie turned a few heads at the local skate park last Monday night after strapping on a helmet and taking a kick scooter for a spin while on duty.

The officer under the lid was Const. Mason Dirnback and a video posted online of him zipping around the yard has gone viral.

“They were pretty stoked and kind of taken aback that an older guy can ride a scooter and sort of keep up with them,” Dirnback told the Chronicle.

The 31-year-old officer was working the night shift last week when he decided to stop at the park on Sixth Avenue beside the Frank Jameson Community Centre.

“It was a nice day and I stopped at the skate park because I figured there would be kids there,” he said. “We just got to talking and I was riding their skateboard around a little bit….and I said ‘hey can I come back and ride with you guys?’”

A father to a four and six year-old, Dirnback just happened to have his son’s scooter in the back of his truck.

“For the average 30-something year old dad to get on a scooter that might end in disaster but I run around and ride with my kids and I grew up in skate parks,” he said.

The officer’s wife later saw the video online and knew immediately it was her husband.

“My kids saw this video and said ‘that’s dad and that’s my scooter - dad went to the skate park without us’,” said Dirnback, who lives in Ladysmith.

The RCMP officer hung out with the teens for about a half an hour and tried not to get too confident and go for glory.

“They were jumping off these pretty steep ramps and going up these big quarter pipes and I was like I don’t know if I’m ready for that,” he said. “If I fall down with all this gear on I can tuck and roll a little bit but if I fall the wrong way it’s going to be an interesting conversation with my boss.”

Dirnback said he hopes the experience was a good pick me up for the youth and plans on buying his own scooter to return to the skate park.

“I had positive contacts with police growing up and some kids just need a role model,” he said. “We can go through the rinse and repeat cycle with the bad people all day, every day …. to do this has more of a lasting impression and the kids will remember it.”