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| Entertainment - The Ultimate Skate Parks |
Inspired by a love of inline skating, Jabez Williams found eight of the craziest skate parks in Southern California. Click here to go straight to the list of So. Cal. Skate parks. Click here to visit www.heckler.comThis xtreme sport webzine has a Skate Cam and downloadable ramp-building plans. By Jabez Williams, 15, Sunland Christian School  Written by Jabez Williams, 15, Sunland Christian School This year, I was determined to skate and check out the scene of aggressive rollerblading in the year 2000. And so my quest began to find some of the craziest skate parks around Cali! Skate parks are places that give teens access to professional ramps. The difference between pro ramps and homemade is that pro ramps are built to last. They have so much support on them that you can do practically any flip or grind trick on them. California is known for its skate parks, but its also known for having the best streets to skate. To me, the difference between ramp riding and real streets is that the streets are rough. Ive talked to other bladers and they have told me that sometimes when they skate inside or in front of buildings, either the cops come or you get kicked out by fake cops with flash lights, or what I like to call them, toy cops with walkie-talkies. Even though the streets are rough, I still feel like we should have the right to skate there, because the streets are the birthplace of skateboarding, rollerblading and biking. I mean, when skateboards or rollerblades first came out, I didnt see anybody doing spins off ramps, I just saw kids jumping off the sidewalk. As these sports have progressed over the years, skate parks have gotten bigger than ever. You practice your tricks out in the streets, then do the same tricks in a skate park. So youre just putting the tricks that you know into another environment. The Glendale Skatepark has a cool mini-ramp  At the Glendale skate park, an inline skater catches some air. Photo by Kristin Luke, North Hollywood HS. The first place I went to was the Glendale Outdoor Free Skatepark. My experience of the Glendale skate park is one that I wont forget; it has a mini-ramp. Most free skate parks (or at least the ones Im familiar with) dont have mini-ramps. The six-foot mini-ramp has a one-foot gap in the middle. This worked out well for me, because I could get as much air I needed to spin over the gap. In addition to the two quarter pipes, a spine, and a mini-ramp, the park also has two grinding boxes. The box on the left of the park is called the rainbow box, because its kind of rounded like the top of a rainbow. The box on the right is a four-foot-long metal coping box, so that you can grind much smoother than on other boxes at the park. Glendale doesnt offer as much as other free skate parks that Ive seen or heard about, but it is decent.  A skateboarder spins his board at the Glendale skate park. Photo by Kristin Luke, North Hollywood HS. The streets of Glendale arent a very good place to skate, because of security guards, and some streets you cant even skate on, but I do have a local skate park to go [that] is near my house, says aggressive blader Shane Croughan, 15, of Hoover High School. Its not the best skate park in the world, but its better than nothing, says Croughan, who has been blading for a year. There are many great skate parks in Southern California, each with its own special ramps or courses that keep teens in lines just to get in. Take Skatelab in Simi Valley. This park is one of my absolute favorites. Skatelab is a place that just catches your eye as soon as you walk in. Thats what happened to me: I walked in and all around I could see bladers and skateboarders grinding or going big on the blue ramps. The blue ramps arent really a big thing, but it does make the park look cool. Another thing that caught me by surprise about this park is that when I went in the back, I saw a completely different course with a 10-foot vert bowl that is deep as can be and a blue mini-ramp, all the way in the back. I loved this mini, because the coping was perfect for busting topside souls.  An inline skater picks up speed on a ramp at Simi Valleys Skatelab. Photo by Christina Quarles, Los Angeles County High School for the Arts. Next to the mini-ramp was another vert ramp, but this one was only eight feet of vert. It really sticks out because of the red Skatelab signs on the ramp. To ride this street course you have to be creative, because this park is big and at times overwhelming. Sometimes you can find yourself doing nothing. Thats how I feel about this park, but other bladers and skateboarders have different thoughts about Skatelab. North Hollywood HS student Pachino Casey, 16, who has been an aggressive blader for two years, says, I think Skatelab is a great place to go and learn stuff. Its a dope place, but it depends how much you go there. At Skatelab, it has different kinds of set-ups. I mean, anybody can go there and learn.  An inline skater contemplates a ramp at Simi Valleys Skatelab. Photo by Christina Quarles, Los Angeles County High School for the Arts. Another skate park that is similiar to Skatelab, but bigger, is Vans Indoor/Outdoor Skatepark at Ontario Mills Mall. Well, what can I say about this place? Its one of the most versatile skate parks that I have been to. It has an eight-foot vert bowl next to a launch ramp. For stunt bikers, it also has a dirt jumping course outside for both beginners and the advanced. You must try the Vans street course What makes the Vans street course so different from others is that the six-foot mini-ramp connects to the course. In other words, you can grind a rail, then make your way up to the mini-ramp and drop in. That worked well for me, mainly because Im such a creative blader. Another thing that makes the Vans street course unforgettable is the gap. Its a six-foot-deep, five-foot-wide gap between two quarter pipes that looks crazy! At the time I was skating there, I didnt see anyone gap, but I heard stories from the locals about a skater who did a kickflip over the gap and landed it clean. Going over a gap is tough: you have make sure you know what youre doing, because if you miss the other side by just a couple of inches, you can be in some serious pain. Thats if youre doing a five-foot gap or wider, but if youre doing four feet or less, it shouldnt be a problem. Anyway, the park also has about four different rails to grind, some spines and quarter pipes of different heights. All in all, if youre a skateboarder, blader or biker and you like a skate park that has variety, then Vans is your place. These are just some of the skate parks in the L.A. area for you to check out, whether youre a beginner or youre advanced. If you ever get down to the San Diego area, there are two skate parks you should definitely check out: Escondido Sports Center, a 19,000-square-foot outdoor skate park; and Mission Valley YMCA Skatepark, which has awesome vert ramps and a slick street course. Well, I guess thats it: my quest is over. But remember, as these extreme sports get bigger every day, you cant help but think that the skate park world will get bigger too! Below are just a few of the great skate parks you can visit in Southern California. Some offer lessons, camps and other special events. Some have helmets, knee and elbow pads, and other gear available for rental. Feel free to call the parks directly with any questions, and have fun! (*See note about waivers at the bottom of this list.) Glendale Outdoor Free Skatepark 299 S. Orange St., Glendale, CA 91204 (818) 618-6604 Open 7 days a week, 3 p.m.-dusk; Free admission Skatelab Indoor Skatepark 4226 Valley Fair St., Simi Valley, CA 93063 (805) 578-0040; www.skatelab.com Open 7 days a week; times for 3-hour sessions vary, call for information. $3 per day membership, plus $8 per session Mon.-Thurs., $10 per session Fri.-Sun. Full gear required if under 18, helmet only if over 18 Vans Indoor/Outdoor Skatepark 4758 E. Mills Circle, Ontario, CA 91764 (909) 476-5914; www.vans.com Open 7 days a week; times for 2-hour sessions vary, call for information. $7-$9 per session for members, $11-$14 per session for non-members ($50 per yearly membership). Full gear required. Vans Indoor Skatepark One City Blvd. West, Orange, CA 92868 (714) 769-3800; www.vans.com Open 7 days a week; times for 2-hour sessions vary, call for info. $7-$9 per session for members, $11-$14 per session for non-members ($50 per yearly membership). Full gear required. RSA Indoor/Outdoor Skatepark 1644 Superior Ave., Costa Mesa, CA 92027 (949) 574-9966 Open 7 days a week; Mon.-Thurs. 11 a.m.-7 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Sun. 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; $10 per day Skate Street Indoor Skatepark 1990-B Knoll Dr., Ventura, CA 93003 (805) 650-1213; hotline (888) 85-SKATE; www.skatestreetusa.com Open 7 days a week; times for 3-hour sessions vary, call for info. $8 per session for members, $12 per session for nonmembers ($45 per yearly membership) Escondido Sports Center 333 Bear Valley Parkway, Econdido, CA 92025 (760) 738-5425 Open 7 days a week; times for sessions vary, call for information. $10 per session for nonmembers (call for membership information and fees). Full gear required. Mission Valley YMCA Skatepark 5505 Friars RD, San Diego, CA 92110 (612) 298-3576 Open 7 days a week; times for sessions vary, call for info. $4 per session for members, $10 per session for nonmembers ($20 per membership). Full gear required. *A NOTE ABOUT WAIVERS: You (and a parent or guardian if you're under 18) MUST sign a waiver to skate at any skate park. Waivers protect both the skater and the skate park. On the waiver, you give the park your emergency contact information and verify that you understand the park's rules. If you get hurt, it's not the park's fault. If you're going to a skate park for the first time, you must bring a parent or guardian to sign the waiver. (Some parks have their waivers on their Web sites to print out, or they can fax the waiver to you beforehand. That way, you can get it signed by a notary public before you go for the first time.) After your first visit, the park will have your waiver information on file. Skaters Glossary: Aggressive Blading: Aggressive skaters are the image-makers who help define inline skating, or blading today. They are divided into vert skaters and street skaters, with the vert specialists skating high in the sky off the big half pipe ramp, while street skaters fly off and grind on any suitable surface, whether in a skate park or in a real street environment. Coping box: Transitions are performed on the coping, a PVC or steel pipe that runs along the front of the top of the ramp. Grinding box: A grinding box, or fun box, is a multi-obstacle box incorporating rails, planters, transitions and flat banks. A typical set-up could include a platform about three feet high, with a grinding box on top featuring double coping. Launch ramp: A ramp designed to generate high airs. The skater hits the steep transition at high speed, takes off, and rolls out smoothly and safely on the flat bank on the other side. Mini-ramp: A small half pipe with a curved drop, which is about three to six feet high and has no element of vert. Quarter pipe: A small curved ramp which looks like a quarter of a round pipe and may have an element of vert (when the top of the curve ends with a short vertical section). Spine ramp: A ramp in which two half pipes are placed back-to back to allow transfers. Topside soul: The sole of the skate on top of whatever you're grinding. Vert bowl: Similiar to a vert ramp, but it is rounded like the shape of a bowl. Vert ramp or half pipe: Monster twin ramp which looks like half of a round pipe when seen from the side. Jabez Williams |
