VERTICAL EXPOSURE
This ends my introduction to you
skaters about us central Canadian
skaters, and I bet our situation is the
same as most of you other skaters
located on the other world (also known as
not the West Coast). But, what of now, our
park is closed, we can't build a ramp, my
neighbors won't let me ride my ramp, how
do you build a ramp, nobody around here
skates, I don't have a place to skate, what
about the winter, whine, whine,
whine...Well, I'll tell you about our scene
and then I'll answer those questions.
The average day of skating is and
always will be freestyling in front of my
house. Yes, my friends come over and we
skate on my street doing freestyle tricks
over and over. And that's basically it. Big
deal, what a bunch of geeks (another
West Coast word). Well, let me tell you, I
had the halfpipe and all the other ramps,
but I got rid of them out of choice. This is
not to say they are bad, but they are
definitely worth trying. We freestyle
because we find it the funnest part of the
sport. And in response to all the questions,
I say quit skating if all you're gonna do is
whine. You'll be doing skating a favor,
cause if you truly loved it, none of the
above questions would be asked. Just
skate how you like, even if you are alone.
Start writing skate companies, let them
know you are there, get up and do
something! And, most important of all,
send any money you have to me.
-Stephen Harnish
It's 6:30 a.m. The damn alarm clock is
ringing. Yes, this is July 1st, Canada's
birthday, and I can envision everyone else
in Canada wishing the land a happy
birthday with their eyes shut and in bed;
but not the local skaters. This foolhardy
crew is aroused in anticipation of the start
of a series of half-pipe demos throughout
the summer.
God, it's cold outside. A quick check with
the calendar reveals that it really is July
1st, but you could have fooled me. Oh well,
a good chowing of Corn Flakes and a dose
of Circle Jerks and the early morning world
is ready for me. As I crawl out the door I
wonder if there is any legal amount of
sleep you must get before driving. Maybe
there won't be much traffic.
The cars converge on our dismantled
ramp and I see the remainder of these
dedicated hardcores fall out of their
respective autos. A quick "standing" nap
before our truck arrives to transport the
ramp and all are just full of life (sort of).
Three trips later and our city's largest park
is now home for a rather sizeable pile of
wood.
The available automobiles have been
located in the middle of the park with tape
decks in position. As the Adolescents
crash into "I Hate Children" we are
confronted with our first problem. It seems
the donkeys and geese which reside within
close proximity to our setup reject any form
of punk rock at such wee hours of the
morning and express their displeasure
with very loud noises and honks. After
much taunting, these creatures cease their
resistance and we can now begin the task
of assembling our ramp.
A stunned crowd checks Ward McKay's layback rollout on the demo ramp. David Maki Photo
cloudless sky, the first passersby give us
very strange looks as they ponder what is
happening to their park, but their glances
are returned as WE wonder why the
hell anyone would be driving through
the park at 7:30 in the morning. The
structure begins to take shape and the
spectator's questions are getting dumber
every minute. "No, this isn't part of the
outdoor barbequel"
A quick trip to the donut shop for some
"cigarette smoke flavored" donuts
disguised as chocolate completes the
day's breakfast and we are about ready to
ride. Only 10:00 a.m. Somehow we are
ahead of schedule.
As the curved templates rise into the
Canada Day (July 1st) demo at Bellevue Park in Sault Ste. Marie. David Stanley Photo
The moment the first rider drops in, an
ever increasing crowd begins to develop.
The first few hours creep by, more lawn
chairs are set up and picnic tables are
brought within viewing range by the
obviously impressed spectators. Two foot
airs, sweepers, layback air, footplants and
a multitude of other tricks bring spontane-
ous rounds of applause from the crowd
lending the demo a "golf tournament" style
atmosphere. By mid-afternoon, the
audience is numbering at least 200 at a
time. We're impressed. They're impressed.
Our legs began to tire and the tricks
became less radical (but not much).
The TV crews come and go twice during
the day. By 7:00 p.m. we can't go on any
longer. The people want more, but we
can't today.
We attempt to have the ramps down
before dusk We succeed.
Everyone is exhausted but agrees
it is worth the pains to give skating the
exposure it deserves. It is a lot of work to
do a demo, even with a good, portable
ramp yet the fun outweighs all problems
and labor. So get out there and ask
someone, anyone, in your city about doing
a demo. You'll be surprised at how positive
a reaction you will get. Go on, do it now.
Background info: demo took place in
Sault Ste. Marie, Canada on July 1st
(Canada Day) at Bellevue Park.
Story by David Maki