68-year-old skateboarding professor an Internet hit

A 68-year-old classics professor at the University of Nebraska is getting much Internet love due to a photo of him riding his skateboard, with briefcase in hand. Tom Winter became a top post on Reddit last Thursday, tech site Mashable reported on Easter Sunday (Manila time). "He drives to work and then skateboards on his Arbor Pocket Rocket board around campus. He even tries skateboarding tricks. He has battle wounds to show it – he once broke a rib while attempting a wheelie," Mashable reported. One meme on the QuickMeme.com site featured Winter on his skateboard, with the caption "No class today... Board meeting." “Walking sucks, so I get there on my wheels. I am 19 except (my) joints are all of 68. Walking is of discomfort. Once I get the board going, I can keep my balance and the joints are happy,” Winter told Mashable. Mashable added numerous blogs and news publications wrote stories about Winter, who suddenly became web-famous for his skateboarding. But it said Winter had never even heard of Reddit until his students notified him about his popular picture on the website. When he checked it, he found some of the memes hilarious, Mashable said. “You can roll, but you can’t hide,” Winter told Mashable when asked what he makes of all this. But when Mashable asked him about meme culture, he thought “memes” referred to the book “The Selfish Gene” by British evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins. On the other hand, he said that while a professor on a skateboard may be surprising for some, he thinks it’s normal. — LBG, GMA News