THE
RAMP PAGE
RAMP ZINE CORRECTION
Whoops! Some of you would-be wood-
chucks out there may have been confused
by a type error in last month's Ramp Page.
In the paragraph at the bottom of page 47,
the price for our Ramp 'Zine should have
read $3.00 instead of $.00. Don't start
building until you've seen our "General
Guide to Building a Radical, Wooden
Skateboard Ramp." Send payment to
THRASHER Ramps, P.O. Box 24592, San
Francisco, CA 94124.
DECKS
SKATES
RAMP OWNERSHIP
How many times have you seen this happen? The crew gets to-
gether, spends every dime they've got, and every waking hour con-
structing the bio neighborhood ramp, and the day skating begins
some cranky bat living two houses down calls the authorities. The in-
spector comes and declares your structure to be outside the building
code, and as quick as it all started you have to tear it down!
This has been happening quite frequently in Skaterville, and is
likely to happen elsewhere if you, as ramp owner, do not contact the
Building Inspection & Permits department at City Hall and inquire
about what regulations and codes you must follow when building
and operationg your ramp.
In most cities, the ordinances require that the structure cover no
more than a certain percentage of your yard, such as, 30% of the av-
ailable open space. In many cases, making your ramp portable (or at
least appear so) will help bypass many of the requirements, such as
building permits, etc. Also, most city codes specify that no backyard
structure can be higher than the highest point of the house. Check
into it, once you know what must be done to build your ramp legally,
you will most likely have to abide by some civil laws as well.
It is very rare that all surrounding neighbors will put up with ex-
tended night sessions, trash floating around or boards shooting into
their pool or pegging their backyard pooch. Because of the brash na-
ture of skating and skaters themselves, it is wise to inform your im-
mediate neighbors of the possibility of such goings on, and get a
feeling for what you can and cannot do. Believe me, if you push your
limits with them, the ramp will not last long because the law will side
with them almost every time.
With the proper precautions taken, you should not have to worry
about legalities. There are a number of things you can do to make
your ramp less of a hazard as well. If you have it by a neighbors'
fence, put up some kind of catch netting to stop flying boards. If it is
prone to be an eye-sore, then paint it a suitable color, or nail panel-
ing around the sides and back. The neighbors may complain about
the noise when the ramp is being skated. This noise emanates from
the underside of the transitions, so keep this in mind when choosing
your ramps position relative to neighboring houses. If the ramp is al-
ready in position, you can dampen this noise by stuffing foam rub-
ber, styrofoam or insulation in the back between the support braces.
Even a few old sleeping bags tacked in place would help.
Set a time limit for sessions. A lot of neighbors don't mind the
noise, but after twelve hours it can get to them. Put out a trash buck-
et for litter.
OK, now you are within the law, you have appeased the neigh-
bors, and you shred without worry, right? Wrong!! You are liable for
any injury that may occur on your property which includes the ramp.
It is advisable to fix a sheet of ground rules (starting the first day) that
will minimize the chance that you and your family will get the shirts
sued off your backs. The first thing to do is to make people wear their
equipment especially their helmets. Now if we were talking about a
bunch of good skaters that were close friends then it might be a dif-
ferent story, but it is best to be safe than living in the street. Many
ramp owners require skaters to sign "Skate at your own risk" type re-
lease forms to exclude them from any liability.
Finally, don't be a wimpy owner!! In many areas, when a ramp
goes up, it turns into a friggin' skatepark with twenty new skaters
each day showing up to check it out. They often make themselves
right at home by barging into your house for a drink, pissing in your
yard, or severely thrashing your ramp and property in a frenzied
skate session. This may be cool with you, but may not be cool with
the owners of the property, so therefore you must keep control over
the situation. It is your right as the owner to determine the who,
when, where, what and how of your ramp so don't feel obligated to
anyone.
That wraps it up for this month's ramp page-build strong and
skate long!!!
Craig Ramsay
Chris Cook riding a legal, killer ramp in Pedro Point, CA.
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