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SKATEPARK WARS
It's hard to believe that any skateboarder could speak at
word against the development of custom-made
skateparks. However, anyone who has seen the park cycle
come full circle in the last dozen years the pouring of ce-
ment and the building of ramps, especially for the purpose
of charging money to skate on them-observes the current
building boom with caution. While there is certainly no knock-
ing a new place to skate, the question always arises
whether it's better than the streets, schools, backyard ramps
and pools. The parks of today are different though, they're
more like the backyards and playgrounds, with less pressure
and rules. The people in charge are more likely to be skaters.
themselves, or understanding parents, or a combo of the two.
We rang up a long list of skatepark owners and managers
Left to Right: Dawn of a now bygone era-spraying shotcrete at nascent Winchester Skatepark.
An overview of the six-foot deep cement pond at Stone Edge. Photo: Bill Thomas. Jeff Phillips
forgoes the grab on a fat frontside at his indoor haven. Photo: Bill Thomas.