Ready

time to get the skateboard out again

photograph courtesy of sidewalk magazine

Fall in

Epping Bowl from william johnson on Vimeo.

The biggest baddest custom built piece of mayhem i ever fell into with a video camera.

Epic

It's surprisingly easy to describe the sensation of dropping in the bowl at Epping skatepark: find a rather high first floor balcony

then fall off it.

As you might imagine, having some wheels on a piece of wood under your feet isn't exactly comforting if you find out you survived the fall and are now facing a concrete wall known only to spectators as the other side of the ramp.

i would have complained if i wasn't too busy trying to wipe the smile off my face.

Blunt

bluntslide. photo by Chris Kehoe

Northcote Bowl

So i had a skate round Northcote bowl today. wow. not too big not too small, fast and a few crazy corners thrown in just to keep you guessing, that and the fact it's about 6 years old and still looking and riding great. strangely enough some BMX riders arrived and one of them was talking about travelling round the country building ramps with Convic, pointing at one of the insane corners saying "yeah i don't know what happened there, maybe i didn't pre-load it properly"

i'll be back to get some footage and photos later.

Concentration

Frankston from william johnson on Vimeo.

Saffron Walden skatepark Cambridge

Above is a video of my skate round arguably the best skatepark in England. This park was built by Dreamland, a legendary Oregon based company. This is the only park they have built in England and only the third in Europe. There is one in Italy and a massive park in the mountains in Austria which is supposed to surpass the bowl in Marseilles, France, which is absolutely ace- i recommend a skateboard pilgrimage. it's really important that fantastic skate parks get built in England. It encourages young people to get outside, exercise and socialize with open minded people, an opportunity to become part of a "global skate family." Good quality parks are safer, less dangerous e.g. smooth surfaces so you can keep the skin on your elbows and hands when you fall. Badly made/maintained skate parks are dangerous, frustrating, become damaged easily and usually cause more problems than they solve.

It's important to be aware that most problems associated with skate parks ie excessive rubbish, drug-taking, vandalism etc are usually not caused by skateboarders, BMXers or rollerbladers, but young people who visit and hang around giving the skate community a bad reputation. Skateboarders, BMXers and rollerbladers i've met around the world: France, Canada, Spain, Scotland, Jersey, Wales- are usually fantastic people. its never been a better time to learn. personally i'd recommend a helmet at first. and treat the skatepark like crossing the road- with respect. click the link for some more information UK Skate Association

i've been looking for the opportunity to hold skateboard classes (for all ages and abilities) at Greenhead Park skate park Huddersfield, if enough people are interested, weather permitting. get in contact if you're interested. When i began going to Rehab skatepark 10 years ago it was mandatory to pass a test to be able to skate.
you can visit the dreamland website by clicking here Dreamland Skateparks